Sexism In Heather W. Hackman's 'Night To His Day'

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Sexism Is Not The Norm

From the day we are born, we begin to see the world around us. We are taught what the norm is for each of us. Depending on various factors such as race, gender, or physical ability, we all have different norms that we see. However, there are a lot of these norms that people grow up with that are not healthy for anyone. There are norms that are creating a divide between men and women in this country. It is allowing a patriarchal society where men are believing they need to fit into a box and are more powerful than the women around them. Most importantly, people around the globe are believing that sexism is the norm which should not be the case. Heather W. Hackman wrote in her introduction peice that “in order for …show more content…

Judith Lorber wrote in the piece “Night to His Day”, for the individual, gender construction starts with assignment to a sex category on the basis of what the genitalia looks like at birth” (324). The first thing that children are seeing when they come into this world are the separation of colors based on what gender you are. They kids are being given toys that differ depending on which sex organs you were born with. All of these norms are being introduced into kids lives and they start the gender divide at a very young age. Children begin to understand the normalness of sexism before they can even say there first …show more content…

One of the biggest causes to men exhibiting “normal” sexist behavior is homophobia. Michael S. Kimmel wrote in “Masculinity as Homophobia” that “Homophobia is more than the irrational fear of gay men, it is the fear that we might be perceived as gay” (330). Men growing up are put into a competition with their peers around them. They have to do and say certain things so that they are not perceived as gay. Everyday, young boys talk about women as a prize to their fellow classmates and if a certain boy has not achieved that prize, then they are considered gay or a “faggot”. This behavior is not only bullying, it is creating an irrational normal sense of how these boys should act as they become men. Sometimes, this homophobia can go as far as turning the most innocent boys into violent

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