Brief Summary Aaron Devor discusses the patriarchally-expected gender roles of today’s society. He delves into the discussion of femininity versus masculinity. Society associates femininity with weakness, whilst associating masculinity with greatness. Furthermore, Aaron sheds light on today’s societal gender norms. He explains that men must be seen as the providers, while women are seen as caregivers. He writes that society doesn’t appreciate when people deviate from the norms that they’ve been shown. Women are supposed to be available for men at all times, and men are supposed to always be seen as strong. Devor tells that to be taught how to be “properly gendered” (Devor, 424), one must first establish a gender identity; this is something …show more content…
This should enrage anyone who considers themselves to be female. For example, Devor talks about how women are seen as creatures who always want to avoid confrontation and who are instinctually maternal. Females are just expected to want to have and raise children, appeal to men, and be completely and utterly weak-natured. When they break beyond the boundaries that society has glued them into, they are seen as undesirable and tainted by feministic ideology. Furthermore, society, especially men, seem to have a strong disdain for feminism. There seems to be this notion that if society treats women as equals, the entire world as we know it will cease to exist. Even if that were true and happened, it might not be such an awful thing. It seems that nowadays if a person even says that they are a feminist, they are seen as a misandrist and immediately need apologize for their man-hating ways. In reality, feminism has absolutely nothing to do with misandry; it has everything to do with empowerment and equality for all persons. Everyone deserves to be treated as an equal, regardless of appearance, race, or …show more content…
It’s hard to hear about the way something is without reading or learning about it for one’s self. This paper helps someone do exactly that. Society does have an impact on the way people think, and in some ways they mediate or control what is being thought through their actions. When Aaron said, “As we move through our lives, society demands different gender performances from us and rewards, tolerates, or punishes us differently for conformity to, or digression from, social norms.” (Devor, 424) he was right. People are afraid to stray from what they have been conditioned to think by society. They believe that they aren’t doing anything wrong, because the patriarchy rewards them for acting a certain way. The problem is that just because something is the norm, doesn’t mean that it’s the only right answer or solution. This paper highlights that in specific ways. Humans feel the need to categorize everything, but gender isn’t something that is black and white. There are grey and in-between areas. Sex characteristics do not always define a person’s gender identity. Many people are nonbinary and that’s perfectly okay, just as many people are cisgender and that is fine as well. The best thing about this paper is that it explains that, and that many cultures accept this
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Show MoreIn his essay “Why do we make so much of gender?” an excerpt from his 1997 book, The Gender Knot: Unraveling Our Patriarchal Legacy, Allan G Johnson argues about patriarchy and the differences both between men and women. He first argues about how important roles are to reproduction, “the roles are crucial to human life “(546). Next he goes to argue about patriarchy, the idea of a male-identified society (547). Third he argues that men are defined more by their manhood then adulthood (548).
Men and women in our culture are constantly forced to act a certain way. Humanity takes joy in dictating how each gender should behave. In “Jock Culture” by Robert Lipstye and “Strong Enough” by Wendy Shanker, we learn countless pressures and insecurities that both women and men face in today’s society. The tension placed on both men and women to meet a certain standard may often lead to catastrophic outcomes. Unfortunately, both men and women constantly feel the pressure of fitting into society’s norms, but fitting into these norms comes with many consequences.
More often than not, society compels us to behave like genders we are not. For instance, when faced with challenges like finance, family issues and education, women are expected to be exceptionally strong. Likewise, when men are confronted with sensitive issues they are not expected to openly show their emotions like women. Some jobs description requires female
In today 's world, gender roles are being shattered on a daily basis. Women are supporting their families, becoming involved in STEM field, and proving themselves to be more than just their gender. Similarly, men are becoming stay at home dads, participating in household activities like cooking, and also proving themselves to me more than just their gender. Respect for either gender is growing day by day; however, this isn’t always the case and hasn’t always been the case. As seen in the play Fences written in 1985 by August Wilson and in the painting American Gothic created by Grant Wood in 1930, Gender makes people act in demeaning or conforming ways simply because of it’s implied societal meanings.
The 21st century has made quite the impact on the world. From new technological advances to science being able to answer some of our deepest questions. Despite the obvious changes made in everyday lives, something that hasn’t considerably changed is gender expectations. These value systems and perceptions of what is to be of genders result in negative reactions or costly consequences. The biggest issue we face that prevents us from eliminating this is how we react.
In the United States, ideas concerning race and gender have not always been around; they were only introduced through social constructions. Each one of these terms has its own unique story of how it came to be widely known and understood in the US, as well as around the world. In this paper, I will focus on the issues concerning the social constructs of race and gender, along with providing background information about how these terms still have huge influence today. Race and gender have contributed to many of the injustices present in today’s society. Racial projects such as Federal House Act of 1934, privileged whites, over people of color in terms of bank loans, allowing whites to have the best neighborhoods, while people of color got stuck
Society has changed since Margaret Mead has written Sex and Temperament; however, her concept on masculinity and femininity is still something we face to this day. Meads viewed a masculine woman as someone who is more dominant and a feminine man as someone who is gentle and submissive. Today’s generation regard reverse gender roles, which are masculine women and feminine men, as different than normal, but not as drastic as Mead’s perception. People expect the man to be the head of the household and the woman to be the person who takes care of all the household chores. Even though in modern society woman have more freedom and goals than in the past, they are still expected to cook the food, clean the house, and care for the children.
Have you ever realized how society put us in categories, on how we should act according to our gender? Or have you ever watched commercials that actually try to break free from the gender stereotypes? If not then you should pay attention. Gender is something that strongly influences the world around us, whether it influences our behavior or how people treat us, it is still something with great power. Investigating how we are socialized in regards to gender is interesting because it is such a broad topic on how society characterizes everyone by gender.
According to Webster Dictionary, the word ‘feminism’ is defined as the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. Many people, however, mistake that word for ‘misandry’, which is simply defined as the “hatred of males.” This might be because the word ‘feminism’ is rooted by the word ‘feminine’, which may give the impression of gender bias against men. This is not the case. The act of feminism is an act of equal rights.
Feminine. This suggests that a clear distinction exists between men and women, one that supersedes biological differences, allows the for division to creep in between them. This understanding of gender cascades into the concept of hegemonic masculinity, a reality in which man “sustains a leading position in social life”
(dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/feminism). Another meaning, feminism is a range of movements and ideologies that share a common goal: to define, establish, and achieve equal political, economic, cultural, personal, and social rights for women. This includes seeking to establish equal opportunities for women in education and employment. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feminism According to Erica Dien in his Journal published on Thursday, February 28, 2008, Feminism has been misinterpreted by society to represent masculine women who hold no respect for men.
In our progressive world, we are failing to recognize an important issue of sexism. Men are constantly expected to be ‘manly’ and strong, mainly seen in their attitudes and fashion. This strong cultural expectation of men is the core reason behind the bullying of those who don’t conform to gender stereotypes. Acting outside the boundary for males causes ridicule and becomes a taboo. Things considered manly are societal conventions.
If these roles are not followed by the specific gender, society judges the individual and claims that what they are doing is wrong. This book gives countless great examples of the roles that genders are expected to follow; specifically
Essay Topic In what way is gender basis a basis for inequality in contemporary society. Start point: interpreting the essay question and key words By asking for ' In what ways ', the question wants me to explain or interpret the proposition of how gender basis is a basis for inequality in contemporary society, by using relevant sociological theories and research.
Masculinity refers to the qualities, personality traits and roles that are associated with the male gender. In the 21st century, there has been a movement, a drive in the more socially aware sections of the world to equalize or balance out masculinity and femininity. Feminism or, at least the main stream feminism aims to find equality for the females in social, political and economical fields. Even today, as we work forward to find a middle ground for the two genders, masculinity is seen as the superior quality that only men are privileged to have. Hence, main stream feminism is so focused on emancipating women by encouraging them to let go of the ‘weaker’ feminine qualities and roles and fit themselves in a Man’s world by embracing masculinity