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essay on gender issues in sports
essay on gender issues in sports
the issues of women in sports
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In April 1992, when a mostly white jury acquitted four police officers accused in the videotaped beating of a black motorist, thousands of people in Los Angeles, mainly young black and Latino males, joined in what has often been characterized as a race riot. In the summer of 2001, ethnic riots occurred on the streets of towns and cities in the north of England (Oldham, Leeds, Burnley, Bradford), involving young British Asian men and young White British men. More recently, in November 2005, riots emerged in Paris’ suburbs, sparked by the accidental deaths of two Muslim teenagers, and then spread to 300 French towns and cities. Most of the rioters were the French-born children of immigrants from Arab and African countries, a large percentage being Muslim. These race and ethnic riots have all recently placed the issue of racial and ethnic identity at the forefront of political debate in the United States and in Europe. In this paper, we endeavour to discuss many issues especially on gender issues, relationship issues, family issues, notion of beauty, women in sports and migration issues. The way the characters behaved and how the other characters behaved towards them portrays the theme and the issues involved. Certain symbolisms were also used to show how these issues existed in the lives of the characters.
Gender issue is portrayed through Indian beliefs as well as Western beliefs. The traditional notion that girls should not be involved in sports existed in both the Indian family as well as the England family. This can be seen in both Jesminder’s family as well as Catherine’s family where their mother’s strongly discouraged them from playing soccer as soccer is meant only for the boys. Both mothers cannot tolerate the idea that...
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2. Messner, M., Duncan, M., & Cooky, C. ‘Slience, Sports Bras and Wrestling Porn; women in televised sports news and highlights shows’ Journal of Sport and Social Issues, Vol 27, No. 1 February 2003
3. Wearing, B. (1996) Gender; the pain and pleasure of difference, Longman, Melbourne Chapter 8 Leisure
4. Grosz, E. (1994) Volatile Bodies: Towards a Corporeal Feminism, Allen & Unwin, Sydney
5. Kell, P. (2000) Good Sports: Australian sport and the myth of the fair go, Pluto Press, Annandale Chapter 7 Golden Girls, Lesbians and Sexing Up; Women and Sport
6. Jarvie, G. & Maguire, J. (1994) Sport and Leisure in Social Thought, Routledge, London Chapter 7 Feminist thought and the boundaries of sisterhood
7. Young Murdock, I. (1990) Throwing Like a Girl and Other Essays in Philosophy and Social Theory, Indiana University Press, Bloomongton
The report will refer to the sociological perspective of women’s sport in Australia which leads to the changes within women’s sport, Athletics at Brisbane Girls Grammar, women’s sport in the media and then an evaluation and recommendation on the topic ‘Women in Sport’.
For this assignment, I am going to analyze 3 different articles relating to how gender has had an impact on sport through history and how this has affected sport in the modern society.
Sports, in general, are a male dominated activity; every “real” male is suppose to be interested and/or involved in sports in the American society. However, it is not expected of a female to be interested in sports and there is less pressure on them to participate in physically enduring activities. These roles reflect the traditional gender roles imposed on our society that men are supposed to be stronger and dominant and females are expected to be submissive. As Michael Kimmel further analyzes these gender roles by relating that, “feminism also observes that men, as a group, are in power. Thus with the same symmetry, feminism has tended to assume that individually men must feel powerful” (106).
...c competition. Men maintained their power over women through wealth because, without men, women wouldn’t have the possibility of attaining an education or job outside of the household. As new Roman laws eased restrictions on women from upper classes, heroines like Kyniska of Sparta and competitors in the Heraia games with the means to do so, blazed a trail of female identity in sport. Without the actions of courageous ancient women willing to risk life and death in the name of tolerance, the comparable participation of women and men in sports we see today would not exist. The inclusion of women in sport is certainly a critical development in the progress of women away from a position of inferiority in terms of physical ability, social status, and biological destiny to become more self-confident and to share the same positions of influence as men.
Girls are told to stay indoors and play with their dolls or bake, while boys are encouraged to go outdoors, get dirty, and be adventurous. Wade and Ferree also state “sports are squarely on the masculine side of the gender binary” (Wade and Ferree, 174). Hence, we are brought up with the understanding that playing and talking about sports is a boy’s thing, which further promotes the notion that sports are a very masculine thing. Furthermore, as playing sports is competitive and is a way to show excellence, young boys are considered as “real boys” and “real men” later on. However, when boys do not talk about or play sports, they are considered feminine or “not real men.” The same rule applies for young girls. If young girls are too into sports, they are considered to be “too masculine.” This is true for me too. When I was younger, I was told to not play too much outdoors and to behave “like a girl.” The stigma that only boys should be allowed to play sports and it is not a feminine thing needs to be erased for us to welcome a more gender-equal
In his essay, "Why Sports is a Drag," Dave Barry discusses the differences between men and women in relations to sports. Barry poses the idea that since the beginning of time, "Mankind" has had an obsession with sports (267). With the few exceptions that make the rule, women are not accepted as equal participants in the activity of sports, or in sharing sports knowledge.
Messner, Michael A., and Donald F. Sabo. Sex, Violence and Power in Sports: Rethinking Masculinity. Freedom: The Crossing Press, 1994
As it becomes increasingly acceptable for women to be athletic in American culture, a new question arises: in which sports should women be allowed to participate? From a physiological standpoint, it has been scientifically proven that female bodies do not differ significantly enough from male bodies to prevent them from participation in any "male" sports. This division between "male" and "female" sports clearly stems from age-old, socially constructed norms of femininity and masculinity. When women attempt to challenge these societal molds by participating in sports that are traditionally male, the intricate web of norms is disrupted. Like many other instances where traditional social constructions are tinkered with, individuals and communities are forced to reevaluate how they think about and categorize their surroundings. I would argue that women's participation in athletics, especially in non-traditional sports, is instrumental in breaking down stereotypes and social confines that have plagued women for centuries
In Anderson and Collins’, chapter on “Why race, class, and gender still maters” encourage readers to think about the world in their framework of race, class, and gender. They argued that even though society has change and there is a wide range of diversity; race, class and gender still matters. Anderson and Collins stated, “Race, class, and gender matter because they remain the foundation for system of power and inequality that, despite our nation’s diversity, continue to be among the most significant social facts of peoples lives.” (Anderson and Collins, 2010) When I was a little girl, I never knew that people were classified in to groups such as race, class, gender. I knew there were people that had a different color of skin than my color of skin. I knew that there were rich people and poor people, and that there were girls and boys. I saw everyone as being human beings, as being the same and not classified as something. As I was growing up, I started to see the differences in classifications in groups. It was not because I just woke up knowing that there were different classifications, but because I was taught about them in school and society. Anderson and Collins stated, “Race, class and gender shape the experiences of all people in the United States. (2010) This means that experiences that we have gone through in life are formed from a race, class, and gender view.
Within todays sporting community, certain aspects of sport and its practices promote and construct ideas that sport in general is a male dominated. Sports media often provides an unequal representation of genders. Women athletes are regularly perceived as mediocre in comparison to their male equivalents (Lenskyj, 1998). Achievement in sport is generally established through displays of strength, speed and endurance, men usually set the standards in these areas, consequently woman rarely reach the level set by top male athletes. Due to this, the media significantly shows bias towards male sports while we are ill-informed about the achievements in the female sporting community. On the occasion that a female athlete does make some form of an appearance in the media, images and videos used will usually portray the female in sexually objectified ways (Daniels & Wartena, 2011). This depiction of female athletes can cause males to take focus solely on the sexual assets of the athlete in preference to to their sporting abilities (Daniels & Wartena, 2011). Sexualisation of sportswoman in the media is a prevalent issue in today’s society, it can cause physical, social and mental problems among women of all ages (Lenskyj, 1998).
Connell states that masculinity is the end result of socialization and can, therefore, differ according to gender relations in regards to particular social settings (West, pg. 2, 2011). Historically sport has been an ideal means of addressing questions and concerns regarding hegemonic masculinity. Within the Western World, sports have been regarded as the most masculine institution, regardless of the recent progress within female involvement in sports, it is still largely organized, reported and run by men. The growth and development of organized sports since the turn of the 19th century, can be seen by some, as a means for men to regain the wavering ideology of male dominance after the integration of women into the labour force (West, pg. 5, 2011). Previous to the First World War, women were not eligible to work and were expected to stay and keep watch over the home while the husband was the bread maker. This all changed when men went to war leaving no other option than to employ women to work within the factories. As some might assume, this did not necessarily sit well with men as they had always been the ones making a living, and in some ways, by women entering the workforce, they felt as though they had been
The first perspective is that women are disadvantaged at any sport. Some people reiterate the difference of men and women in sports. This is influenced by strength and the natural power men hold, comparable to women. Rodriguez questions “Is this because female athletes don’t have what it takes to make it in the world of sports or could it be more of a social issue?” This perspective seems to be a social issue based on the notable skills women acquire vs. the apparent judgments of gender issues. The second perspective is the idea that women deserve and inherently earn their right of equal attention and equal pay. “Sometimes, the secret to equality is not positive discrimination, it 's equal terms. It 's the shrug of the shoulders that says "what 's the difference?" The moment worth aspiring for is not seeing people celebrate the world-class female cricketer who competes at comparatively low-level male professional cricket, but the day when people are aware that she does, and don 't find it notable at all” (Lawson). Lawson makes it a point to confirm the biased notions against women in sports and relay an alternative worth working toward and fighting for. Both outlooks can be biased but only one has factual evidence to back it up. The second perspective reviews an ongoing gender issue. This problem is welcome for change depending on society’s
Krane, V. (2001). We can be athletic and feminine, but do we want to? Challenging hegemonic femininity in women's sport. Quest, 53,115-133.
Whether its baseball, basketball, soccer, hockey, or tennis, sports is seen all over the world as a representation of one’s pride for their city, country, and even continent. Sports is something that is valued world-wide which has the ability to bring communities together and create different meanings, beliefs and practices between individuals. Although many people may perceive sports to have a significant meaning within our lives, it can also have the ability to separate people through gender inequalities which can also be represented negatively throughout the media. This essay will attempt to prove how gender is constructed in the sports culture while focusing on female athletes and their acceptance in today’s society.
Although women have been accepted within the participation in sports and physical activity, there is still constant controversy surrounding the topic of whether or not female sports can be “considered a ‘real’ sport” (Hall, M. Ann, 2007, pg. 56) or if the female participants can be “viewed as ‘real’ women” (Hall, M. Ann, 2007, pg. 56). This is due to the fact that sports and physical activity has invariably been viewed as strictly for males, to aid in validating their masculinity. It is constantly vocalized that sports considered to be ‘feminine’ ones such as