Gender Roles In Same Sex Relationships

People are not born with knowledge of biases or differences among each gender. Bennhold, the author of the article “What Roles Do Nature and Nurture Play in Constructing Boys and Girls,” believes, “early stereotyping via gender-specific toys, clothes, and language, matters.” Teaching your children that differences between genders do exist molds their future abilities and behaviors. For example, people often associate certain toys, jobs, and even colors with male and females. Women are often portrayed as caregivers and Men are seen as the breadwinners. Raising your children according to these societal standards can affect their preferences and decisions and “to prevent the stereotypes you have to start early” (Bennhold). Stepping outside the

In "Night to His Day" The Social Construction of Gender," Lorber says that gender "is such a familiar part of daily life that it usually takes a deliberate disruption of our expectations of how women and men are supposed to act to pay attention to how it is produced" (324). We do not think about gender roles in regular basis until we notice that either a man or a woman is not acting how society expects his/her to act. This is when we start questioning what gender is and how it works in society.

Gender roles can be defined as the behavior learned by a person as appropriate to their gender, determined by the prevailing cultural norms. Gender roles still influence modern thoughts even after the woman’s rights movement and still appear and impact daily life. There are numerous sides to gender roles, including; men's and women's stereotypes and norms, the pros and cons, and how it can be fixed. As Ostrovsky stated in her article, “we have evolved. But our ideas of gender have not evolved very much,”. In literature as in life, the theme of gender roles exists.

In a male-centric society, everything revolves around the predominant definition of maleness or manhood. It is what everything else hinges on. If the definition of manhood changed, everything else would change and paradoxically, it can only change when everything else changes. It will only change when the definition of manhood has to change for some reason.

Currently in the United States less than one percent of domestic abuse is reported to police. Nevertheless, about thirty five percent of the American population will endure such cruelties. There is often a separation between public and private matters pertaining to relationships for fear of judgment. Gender stereotypes have the ability to inflict tremendous pressure upon a person’s reaction to mistreatment for there is emotional, physical, sexual and financial abuse. Currently in the media a relevant discussion about sexual abuse in the workplace has surged a mass discussion. Various influential figures in Hollywood such as Bill Cosby, Harvey Weinstein, and Matt Lauer are faced with sexual harassment and or rape accusations. The significant

All my "feminine" words are untouchable, palpable, and intangible things. For instance, laughter is a feminine word. We are unable to touch laughter even though we can hear and feel it. History is also a feminine word. It is written down on the paper; it is spread from mouth to mouth. But we still can 't catch it or touch it. Umbrella and diamond are two of all my "masculine" words. We are not only able to see these two objects but also able to hold them. We can put hands on these objects in any way.

Although gender roles have changed over time, where males and females have become more equivalent , a certain level of behaviors and tasks which are acceptable for men and women still exist today.

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

Being the simple-minded conformist Western Americans that we are, it’s hard to have an open mind on topics such as gender roles, gender equality, sexual orientation, and so on. Most Americans don’t have a complete understanding of the world outside of the United States, so if we see or hear something we don’t feel is right, we automatically speak negatively on the subject. Western Americans have just passed the law of gay marriage being legalized in the United States. All this time most Americans we’re viewing same sex marriage is wrong, because that’s abnormal to us. We would categorize it as a sin, disease, an evil spirit or any other negative outside factor affecting the individual. Like any disease, we would try treating someone who categorizes themselves as homosexual, transgender, bisexual, etc.

The documentaries Tough Guys and Killing us Softly, really brought to light the way masculinity and femininity are represented in our society. The characteristics and associations that are made when these words are thought of are bizarre and not natural. I strongly believe that both masculinity and femininity are learned characteristics from the human environment. I often wonder if people would even have these ideas and characteristics that are associated with gender in the beginning of time, or if people have slowly began to define and differentiate the genders throughout the evolution of time.

In “Guys Suffer from Oppressive Gender Roles Too,” author Julie Zeilinger makes it clear that men’s actions, personalities, and identities are contrived based on society’s expectations. These expectations shove boys and men into a character-like attitude, preventing them from truly discovering themselves. With a society that decides to adhere to these gender roles, any sign of being different from the rest of the world tends to generate a negative reaction. Accepting and learning about gender roles is established at a young age, for anyone of that matter. Whether it be during school, through any form of media, or even from our own friends and family, gender roles are expectations that many boys and men tend to feel threatened by. Zeilinger

In our society, dichotomy is a way to separate people, gender, ethnicity etc. According to an article from Sociology in Focus, our society tries to separate us in-group and our society believes our gender is a natural way to define someone. For example, our society automatically defines boys as their appearance as masculine or girls are feminine. However, it is not like that at all. Some boys do not have a masculine appearance and women can have a masculine appearance and women can be masculine as well. (Palmer, 2012) Women are still trying to gain higher position within our society and I do believe that our society still faces gender social construction. Women are still struggling to be in the same level as men when it comes

In What about Gender Roles in Same-Sex Relationships?, Stephen Mays critiques various gender stereotypes, including ones affecting gay people and straight people, both men and women. In Mays opinion, gender roles do not determine sex (male or female), therefore I agree with the author’s point of view that what a partner in a same-sex relationship may decide to do in a relationship is not pre-determined by their biological sex.Mays stated, “[d]espite sexual orientation, some people simply demonstrate more masculine qualities or more feminine qualities” (719). In gender roles, a male or female in the past was based on societies’ definitions that they are supposed to practice something that defines or pertains to their role in the relationship.

There is an assortment of social factors that make up a person’s social location. They bring to bear an effect on every person’s development as an individual. Social location can be defined as the groups people belong to because of their place or position in society. The three factors that have contributed the most to my social location are my social class, race, and gender. These things have shaped my life experiences in the United States.

Letty Cottin, an American author and journalist once said, “When men are oppressed, it's a tragedy. When women are oppressed, it's tradition.” This quote alone is so very powerful for both men and women. For some it may cause a sarcastic reaction and not a second thought. For others, it may speak deeply and open eyes. The idea of inequality between men and women has been an issue for many years in the United States and all over. This issue is one that is caused by stereotypes and gender roles given to both men and women. A clear example of inequality in the United States that is the wage gap between men and women. It is known and proven that women simply do not get paid as much as men. Some believe that this is caused by simple discrimination