Define the concept of bifurcation of consciousness. This term underscores that subordinate groups are conditioned to view the world from the perspective of the dominant group, since the perspective of the latter is embedded in the institutions and practices of that world.
What will be an ideal response?
Smith uses this term to refer to a separation or split between the world as you actually experience it and the dominant view to which you must adapt (e.g., a masculine point of view). The notion of bifurcation of consciousness underscores that subordinate groups are conditioned to view the world from the perspective of the dominant group, since the perspective of the latter is embedded in the institutions and practices of that world. Conversely, the dominant group enjoys the privilege of remaining oblivious to the worldview of the Other, or subordinate group, since the Other is fully expected to accommodate to them. The “governing mode” of the professions, then, creates a bifurcation of consciousness in the actor: “It establishes two modes of knowing, experiencing, and acting—one located in the body and in the space that it occupies and moves into, the other passing beyond it” (ibid.:82). Of course, bifurcation of consciousness reflects Smith’s own experience of living in “two worlds”: the dominant, masculine-oriented, “abstract” world of the sociologist, and the “concrete” world of wife and mother. The key point, as Smith (2005:11) notes, is that “the two subjectivities, home and university, could not be blended.” In this way, Smith’s concept of bifurcation of consciousness recalls W. E. B. Du Bois’s concept of “double consciousness,” which he used to describe the experiential condition of black Americans.6 In both cases, it is the oppressed person who must adapt to the “rules of the game” that do not reflect her interests or desires, even though, in both cases, the dual subjectivities provide a uniquely “clairvoyant” vantage point (in Du Bois’s terms). Thus, for instance, women in male-dominated professions (e.g., law enforcement, construction) acclimate themselves to sexist and even misogynistic talk about them.
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