Societal expectations and gender roles
So basically, I'm writing an essay about gender being a construct and there's a part where I try to explain why people have one gender identity or another. The thing is I'm agender, which means gender is a thing that doesn't happen to me, so this part of the essay is purely based on my interpretations of what I've heard other people say. I'd greatly appreciate it if someone with a gender could give me their opinion on the following segment of the essay and warn me of any inaccuracies:
Now, the fact that it is something constructed does not mean it is something fake, the gender of each one of us comes from a feeling inside of us, somehow, a woman feels like a woman and it is precisely that what makes her a woman, independent of how her body might be. The same happens with any other gender identity, what leads us to define our selves how we do is a feeling of connection with a certain label or, in the case of agender people, the lack of that feeling.
Prior to reading the article Doing Gender, I have never paid attention to the concept of doing gender. I found it interesting how these roles go so unnoticed because they are so enforced in our society. We never stop to think or questions if an individual’s actions are masculine or feminine. For example, some of us are just so use to having our mothers cook and our dad’s do all the heavy lifting but we never stop to think why is it like this or what does this represent.
Societal expectations and gender roles
There are distinct differences between Sex and Gender. Sex is divided up into two divisions, male or female, based upon their reproductive system. Gender is the notion set by society on what social behaviours are acceptable for males and females, for example the expectation that females are more caring or nurturing than men. Gender can be further divided into two subcategorise: identity and stereotype. Gender identity is the concept that your sex and gender do not have to be the same but can different, i.e. a male at birth can identify as a female. These notions of acceptable behaviour set by society create gender stereotypes for both male and female, which can cause a person to reject their gender identity if they do not conform these gender stereotypes.
The concept of gender has a strong social impact on me. When I was born, I was immediately assigned to a biological sex as a female with two X chromosomes. I was then socially classified as a girl in the society with feminine gender roles. Gender is defined as a social principle which attribute to the roles and expectations of males and females through the years of different societies (Phillips, 2005). Gender can be considered as behavioural, cultural and psychological traits
Gender inequality has become an issue of concern in the modern day. For many years, the society has been highly patriarchal giving regard to men and overlooking roles of women in the society. Social norms determine the perception of men and women towards their roles. Young girls and boys are socialized to view men as superior human beings while women are inferior. From a tender age, the boys and girls nurture this conviction that one gender is better than the other. Boys grow up regarding themselves as the most powerful and influential gender. On the other hand, girls grow up with the conviction that they are less significant and that their voice in the society does not matter. Numerous barriers prevent women from achieving similar goals to men. It is time for the society to recognize that a person’s strength depends on his or her inner energy and character and not just the physical attributes.
Gender, sex, and sexuality have remained divisive issues in every society on the planet. Although sex is solely biological, gender is more complex and refers to a person's physical characteristics. On the other side, sexuality refers to one's sexual orientation and level of familiarity with one's biological sex. However, society, especially American culture, has narrowed the discussion to just two sexes/genders: female and male.
The Gender Discrimination In Pakistan Sociology Essay
In culture, biologically defined sex is the determinant of gender identity. (Linda Alcoff, p.g. 23) Male and female are the two primary sexes in this instance. Culture and socialization process plays a role in teaching children as young as from birth what is expected of them and what is accepted in the society. At the age of three, children display characters and engage in activities that are associated with their sex. By this age, children are always aware of what sex they identify with. The society and culture shape what is deemed as female and male forgetting that this may not be the case for every child. The few that do not conform to this society’s expectation are discriminated and judged. Those that fit in their gender will never be judged as they fit in the community’s setting of normalcy.
Gender Discrimination Essay - Gender Inequality
As highlighted above, gender inequality is one of the issues of concern that has prevented women from achieving their goals. The highly patriarchal society explicitly defines the roles of men and women. Due to the patriarchal attitudes, society begins to perceive men as being better in some occupations, deserving a higher salary, and enjoying more rights. The physical appearance of men has been one of the factors that have motivated the society to view them as strong, resilient, enduring, and highly capable of completing different tasks (Milkman 56). Unfortunately, the society views women as weak and lacking the necessary strength or resilience to carry out some roles. The patriarchal attitudes have been supporting the differential treatment and perception of men and women. Men have been enjoying the superior treatment and the common perception that they are better than women (Evans 78). On the other hand, women have been striving to break the glass ceiling associated with gender inequality and prove that women have the character and resilience required to venture into different occupations. However, it has not been easy to break the glass ceiling and overcome the negative attitudes associated with women who pursue certain careers.
Sample essay on effects of gender inequality in society.
The most commonly preached and accepted social path for an individual is to go through elementary and secondary school, and immediately follow that with some sort of a post-secondary education. We must take the skills we have learned in grade school and apply them, as we become adults. Schools where a student can receive a degree are regarded as the highest quality by society. We are lead to believe that the college or university campus is filled with equality and equal opportunity. In reality, college reaffirms the gender frames we have understood throughout our lives thus far and strengthens that reality even after we graduate. The gendered division of labor that we see in the workplace is
Amazing Gender Inequality Essay ~ Thatsnotus.
Gender identity is the personal conception of being a man or a woman and the society creates standards and comes up with gender roles basing them on existing norms and traditions which will in turn influence gender identity. For instance, most societies associate strength and dominance to be masculine roles while caring and assisting or subordination known to be feminine roles. This clearly makes gender identity be bred within the society. One’s identity is important as it influences his or her life through events like life experiences, how one is being taken or treated, how to do one associate or socialize with others, the type of job one will have to do and also opportunities that may come up favoring a certain type of gender identity. One is also likely to face obstacles or discrimination due to his or her identity.