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Taylor Staley
Professor M. T. Sparks
LE 1360
6 March 2013
Diversity Within: Meanings & Relations
Diversity could have different meanings to people of a different race, culture, or
ethnic background. According to the textbook Diversity Consciousness: Opening Our
Minds to People, Cultures, and Opportunities by Richard D. Bucher, the definition of
diversity is “referring to all the ways in which people are different”(1). The dictionary
definition of diversity, according to Webster’s Dictionary, is “the condition of having or
being composed of different elements” (“Diversity” def. 1). Although these definitions
could both be correct, one definition of diversity may seem more correct than another to a
certain group or individual. The way diversity is defined is dependent upon interpretation
and in which way an idea is perceived. For instance, the textbook definition is stating the
differences, both inside and outside, of a person. Whereas, the Webster’s definition of
diversity is mainly looking at how the person was composed and what, exactly, their
makeup is.
There are many ways in which diversity can be used, understood, or perceived by
different individuals (Bucher 25). Some people may think that diversity means
“tolerance, acceptance, and attitude” of another being, whereas others will think that
diversity means “inclusion, numbers, racial/gender differences”. As was said above, the
whole view on diversity is dependent on the way things are perceived by an individual.
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Diversity has certain dimensions. Some of these dimensions include, but are not
limited to: hidden or visible dimensions, dimensions found within groups as well as
within individuals, dimensions being in a constant state of “flux”, not always clear cut or
easily defined dimensions, and interrelated dimensions. Beginning with hidden or visible
dimensions (Bucher 26), now what does this mean? Some dimensions of diversity can be
visibly seen, such as skin color or gender. But there are others that are not as easily
visible such as differentiating a vegetarian vs. a meat-eater or how someone was raised to
believe in certain morals. The dimensions that are not easily defined by looking at
someone are called hidden dimensions of diversity, while those that you can obviously
see when looking at someone are called visible dimensions of diversity.
The second dimension of diversity is that dimensions of diversity are found within
groups as well as within individuals (Bucher 26). Sometimes there are, for instance,
cliques at school where they are labeled as “popular” or “gothic”, those groups are given
a dimension of diversity as they stand out from the other cliques at school. Even though
the people within those groups may all seem to be the same stereotype to an outsider,
there may actually be diversity within the group. Individual diversity occurs when there
are differences between individuals. For instance, one of your friends may be good at
drawing, while the other friend is very talented at playing soccer, and you may enjoy
reading books. There may be a friend group, which has some traits all in common, but
there is also individualistic diversity within that group.
The third dimension of diversity is that the dimensions of diversity are always in a
constant state of “flux” (Bucher 26). Flux, using the Dictionary.com definition, is “the
action or process of flowing or flowing out” (“Flux” def. 1). Basically, what this means is
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that there are constant changes of diversity, such as different roles. Sometimes a girl
wants to be known as a girlfriend to her significant other, while at other times she wants
to be known as a softball player to her teammates. There is always constant change
between diversity roles because when moving throughout life, there are always different
roles that are taken on and those roles cause different views of diversity.
Some dimensions of diversity are not always clear-cut or easily defined (Bucher
26-27). When given the word “race”, we may start to categorize people into different
categories based on their physical appearance, but sometimes the people we are
stereotyping don’t always agree on the race that they are placed into. Sometimes there are
white people who grew up with dark skin, and people will give them a category of being
black, when they believe that they are, in fact, white. These dimensions cause confusion
among the people giving the stereotype as well as the people receiving the stereotype.
What one person may think of themselves and their race, may not match up with what
other people think of them (and visa versa).
The different dimensions of diversity can, at times, interrelate (Bucher 27). This
means that one aspect of diversity can combine with another aspect. For instance, if there
were a correlation between the East side of the Salt Lake Valley being rich, and most of
them being white, this would cause the dimensions to interrelate into one. They would
interrelate because we are taking white people and combining them with the rich.
Although the East side may be known to be wealthier, there are also people on the West
side who are just as well off and may not even have white skin. Diversity is interrelated
when two aspects match up with one another and can be combined into one.
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By evaluating the play, Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, different areas of
diversity surface. The areas of diversity within the play include, but are not limited to:
expectations, successes, affairs, choices, values/ideas, ageism, income, gender
differences, marital status, culture, global perspective, assimilation, role conflict, limited
perspective, ethics, and social forces. The different areas of diversity in the play make the
play interesting to evaluate, as well as research.
An expectation is “a belief that someone will or should achieve” (“Expectation”
def. 2). Individuals hold their own expectations for other groups or individuals. An
example of expectations in Death of A Salesman is when Willy (the father) expects so
much of his sons to be successful in their life. He is expecting them not to fail and to have
the best life possible. Anything less than what Willy expects of his children, will not be
acceptable for Willy.
Success is “the attainment of wealth, positions, honors, or the like” (“Success”
def. 2). This means that the higher up you are, the more successful and valued you will be
honored as. Successes in Death of A Salesman occur when Willy wants to be the most
successful and wealthiest businessman he knows. He doesn’t want to be known as
anything less than what he knows as successful.
Having an affair is “when two people, aside from being married, are having a
romantic relationship or episode between each other” (“Affair” def. 1). This happens
more frequently than not, we may not realize the harsh consequences of affairs, but they
are highly likely to ruin a marriage. An example of an affair in Death of A Salesman is
when Willy has an affair with another woman behind his wife’s (Linda)’s back. Affairs
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happen for a variety of reasons, some of those reasons being that needs are not being
fulfilled or that there is no longer a connection.
A choice is defined as “selecting or making a decision when faced with two or
more possibilities” (“Choice” def. 1). Choices are sometimes difficult to make, but other
times they can be easy. “Sometimes the right decision and the hardest decision are the
same thing” (The Fray- All At Once Lyrics) I found this quote able to directly relate to
certain choices because choices are sometimes hard to pick whether or not they are the
best, but in the end the hardest decision could be the best choice. An example of
decisions in Death of A Salesman is when Biff (Willy’s son) was deciding whether or not
he should go off to college or if he should try to be successful by \ staying at home and
trying to hit off the career of a businessman like his father. I feel that many people in
college are faced with this decision: Should I be going to school or could I be successful
elsewhere? What you do in your life is based upon a choice, and that choice is yours.
Values are “ideas regarded as important or a general way of thinking” (Bucher
28). Different individuals have a different value system than others, but some of the
values can interrelate among individuals. A strong value in the Loman family is to be
successful. Biff and Happy are living at home with their parents. Their parents, especially
Willy, see them as not being successful and not following the value system of their
family.
Ageism is “prejudice or discrimination on the basis of a person’s age” (Bucher
135). Ageism occurs throughout our daily lives, especially in the workplace. Willy looks
down on his children because they are not being as successful as he once was. He is
making it seem like they have had a lifetime of experience, when in reality, they really
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haven’t had as long to be as successful as their father. Because Willy has been alive
longer than his children, his children are at a disadvantage because of their age. Willy is
expecting them to be as successful as him, but they haven’t had as long of experience to
meet those expectations.
Income is “money received on a regular basis, for work or through investments”
(“Income” def. 1). Income is highly valued in today’s world; people without income are
looked down upon because they are seen to be “lazy” and “unsuccessful” individuals.
The amount of income can be determined, at times, by an individual’s race or gender.
This is called racial/gender discrimination. Especially in the workplace, people are
having their income, at times, determined by their physical characteristics. An example of
income in Death of A Salesman is when Willy goes out to kill himself in a car wreck so
that his son, Biff, can start to pursue his career as a businessman. Willy felt that there was
no other way to give Biff his wealth without killing himself. This income was transferred
down a generation to Biff and the rest of the intermediate family.
Gender differences are “a distinction of biological and/or physiological
characteristics associated with either males or females” (“Gender differences” def. 1).
Gender differences can hinder an individual’s success in his/her life by putting them at a
disadvantage because of their gender. One of the main gender differences in Death of A
Salesman was Linda being the only female in the household. Linda was known to be
more caring than direct or disciplinary, while Willy was known for his harsh discipline
on the children, as well as on Linda.
Marital status is defined as “the condition of being married or unmarried”
(“Marital status” def. 1). There are few relationships in the United States, as well as all
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over the world, that cycle through being married and unmarried. More individuals in a
relationship are deciding not to get married, rather cohabitate and live together. People
nowadays, seem to not care so much about the “paperwork”, and rather about the
commitment to each other. There has definitely been a change over the years regarding
the definition of “marital status”. An example of marital status in Death of A Salesman is
the relationship between Linda and Willy. They don’t seem to have much of an intimate
relationship, yet they are considered married.
Culture is referred to as “the characteristics of a particular group of people”
(“Culture” def. 1). Culture in one group can be similar, as well as different, than other
groups. One aspect of culture in the Loman family is “to be successful”. Nothing less
than success is accepted in their family, therefore it is considered one of their cultural
expectations. Cultures don’t necessarily have to be a characteristic; rather, it can be a
belief that is common throughout the group, in this case family.
Global perspective is “the study of the larger world and our society’s place in it”
(Bucher 11). To put this into a perspective, take the United States, for example, and
compare it to the society of New Zealand. The U.S. society is much more harsh on the
“beauty ideal” than is that of the New Zealand Society. Society could be one pressure that
has impacted Willy to enforce the “successful aspect” on his children. He doesn’t want
them to be a “failure” in society’s eyes, so therefore he greatly encourages and enforces
them to be the most successful.
Assimilation is “the process in which people lose the cultural differences and
blend into the wider society” (Bucher 21). Assimilation occurs very often, especially
when people of other cultures and countries enter into another society, such as the United
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States. They try to adapt to the culture of which they are going to be living in, so that they
don’t seem to be an outcast. Society pressures individuals to be successful or else they are
seen as “lazy” or “failures”, which is completely a black and white statement. But black
and white is basically what assimilation does. Assimilation makes it so you are either a
nerd or a jock in high school, perfect or non-perfect according to society. Businessmen
are known to be great and rich, so Willy tries to force his children to assimilate into the
wider society so that they can be known as a success and not be categorized into the
failure category.
Role conflict is “interference among the duties associated with the multiple
positions held by an individual” (Bucher 36). This conflict happens quite often with
college students. They are trying to be a good student, employee, and sometimes even a
parent. All these roles sometimes will conflict with one another because they are not able
to fulfill all the requirements at once. For instance, if a mother was also going to school,
she may have homework to do when she gets home, but she also needs to be a parent.
Sometimes the conflicting roles can be tough and make individuals favor one role over
the other. Linda has a similar role conflict, as she is a mother as well as a wife. She may
have an easier time being a mother to her children, than a wife to Willy. Willy isn’t much
of a husband to Linda, so it might be hard for Linda to want to play a role of being a wife
to him.
A limited perception is “having a limited view of different areas of diversity”
(Bucher 80-81). It can be hard to acquire an “unlimited perception” of diversity, rather
having an open mind to all diversity and being diversity conscious. Limited perceptions
happen when an individual doesn’t have a complete understanding of the different
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aspects of diversity. Willy has a limited perception on his children’s success in life, he is
not aware that they may have different aspirations in their life, other than being a
salesman.
Ethics is defined by “people’s morals or standards regarding the rightness and
wrongness of certain human actions in light of specific circumstances” (Bucher 65).
Different people perceive ethics differently; some people have an ethical code regarding
one topic, while others don’t have much of an ethical code against the same topic. A
specifically strong ethical belief that Willy had was that everyone should be successful
and work hard to achieve their goals.
Social forces are “an element of society, which has the capability of causing
cultural change or the ability to influence people” (Bucher 45). Social forces can impact
people differently. Some individuals can be more impacted than others from a social
force, while others will not let the social force bother them. Sometimes there are cultural
changes in society that can impact the society as a whole, whether people want to be
influenced or not, such as, a new law passed in Congress. Society has a major play in
Death of A Salesman, causing a large pressure on Willy to be successful, which later
gravitates toward his pressure on his children’s success.
The different areas of diversity influence each individual differently. By being
more diversity conscious, it can make it easier to be more open to the different aspects of
diversity. Everyone defines diversity differently, but each definition in which they define
is true to them, which may not be true to you. But, by remembering that each individual
is diversely different, this allows us to accept the differences and embrace what we can
learn by being diversity conscious.
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Works Citied
Diversity Consciousness: Opening our Minds to People, Cultures and Opportunities (3rd
Edition) [Richard D. Bucher, Patricia L. Bucher]
Miller, Arthur. Death Of A Salesman. New York: Penguin Books, 1986.
“Diversity” Def 1. Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2011.
Web. 6 Mar. 2013.
“Flux.” Def 1. Dictionary.com. Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 6 Mar. 2013.
“Expectation.” Def 2. Dictionary.com. Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 6 Mar. 2013.
“Success.” Def 2. Dictionary.com. Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 6 Mar. 2013.
“Affair.” Def 1. Dictionary.com. Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 6 Mar. 2013.
“Choice.” Def 1. Dictionary.com. Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 6 Mar. 2013.
“Income.” Def 1. Dictionary.com. Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 6 Mar. 2013.
“Gender differences.” Def 1. Dictionary.com. Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 6 Mar.
2013.
“Marital status.” Def 1. Dictionary.com. Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 6 Mar. 2013.
“Culture.” Def 1. Dictionary.com. Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 6 Mar. 2013.