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Gender roles and social norms
Gender roles and social norms
Gender roles and social norms
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Just Friends?
Men and women have their obvious differences. But have we come far enough for men and women to simply be friends without any other string attached? I am certain that at some point in every heterosexual man’s or woman’s life, this has been a question that we have pondered upon. Some say we have surpassed the standard gendered friendships, but due to each of the sexes’ personal benefits, emotional needs, and friendship goals, I do not believe that a man and a woman can strictly be just friends without one person wanting something more than the conventional friendship.
From a young age, we learn what it means to have a friend. According to the Free Dictionary, friendship is by far more than just sharing time together. A true friendship
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Their results were kept private due to that in the events that one or the other person had any romantic feelings toward the other person it would not sabotage their relationship. And in order to ensure honest responses, the researchers followed a standard of protocols to keep their surveyors anonymous and to keep their confidentiality. They also required both people to agree verbally, and in front of each other, to refrain from discussing the study even after they would leave the testing facility. These friendship pairs were then separated, and each member of the pair was asked a series of questions related to his or her romantic feelings toward the friend with whom they were taking the study and the results were astonishing.
The results showed that men were much more likely to feel some sort of romantic attraction or benefit for their female friends, where as the women typically did not feel the same for the man. Not only did the male feel an attraction toward the female, they would also think that their female friend was reciprocating the same feelings towards them. Most, but not all of the women did not feel the same way towards their male friend
Webster defines friendship as the emotions or conduct of friends; the state of being friends. Growing up you realize that every relationship is tested throughout time and some make it through that time and others do not.
What we as a society need to do is learn how to improve the expectations and change the reality of friendships between men and women, we all need to get rid of the negative mentality that has stained the idea of female, and even male relationships categorized as either uncooperative, competitive, or complicated and change our behavior positively, portraying male and female relationships as harmonious and
By definition a friend is a person who provides assistance and support. We have different groups of friends for different purposes in our lives. Although there are many different categories of friends, Marion Winik author of “What are Friends For?” mentions that some of the more common groups consist of the faraway, work, family, and former friends (132). We keep our friends because we value their loyalty, communication, support, and dependability.
From a young age most people have gone through many relationships with other people who were not their family. Thus, we often acknowledge these relationships as friendships. But the word friend is too broad, so people categorize their friends to several types. In her book “Necessary Losses: The Lovers, Illusions, Dependencies and Impossible Expectations That All of Us Have to Give Up in Order to Grow”, Judith Viorst divided friendships to six types. Those are convenience friends, special Interest friends, historical friends, crossroad friends, cross-generation friends and close friends. In my life, I have been friend with many people since I was little. Although I have met all six kinds of friend of Viorst, convenience friends and close friends are two important kinds of friends in my life.
Ba writes at the beginning of chapter nine, “Friendship has a more constant code of behavior than that of love. Friendship can be stronger than the affection born of blood ties” (Scarlet Song 152). Female friendship or community building is not a new trend, but the society today seem to have chosen to ignore it. Dating back to the nineteenth century “…abundance of manuscript evidence suggests that eighteenth – and nineteenth-century women routinely formed emotional ties with other women” (Women in Culture 372). And contrary to what women have internalized about other women, and their friendships – “…women are so suspicious of any interest that has not some obvious motive behind it, so terribly accustomed to concealment and suppression…” (NATC 900). These women all experienced the comfort that comes with having another person to relate to outside of their oppressive relationships.
Naturally, human beings are social beings and cannot live without friends. Friendship is an essential part of the structure of human existence. Today’s people are seeking and participating in relationships because they believe that it is good to have friends so as to experience pleasure, to be honored, to be healthy, and to prosper in life. Even in the inferior kind of friendships, people cooperate for the common advantage or pleasure. Irrespective of qualifications, career, personal perspectives, cultural differences, and interests, all people seek for love and acknowledgement from others (Curzer, 2012). This means that at a particular time, every individual will seek for a friendship, whether based on utility, pleasure, or even virtuous
Some of my friendship do follow the gender patterns and prescriptions discussed in the reading. I have three female close friends and many guy friends. My three female friends are Asialynn, Liz and Maritza. The type of friendship I have with Asialynn and Liz, follows the typical gender friendship pattern. Our friendship is built on dialogue. We became closer through talking, disclosing personal experience, emotions, fear and our problems. We try to understand one another and be each other’s shoulders. In the reading Janice states that, “one of the worst things about being a female is not having permission to be selfish or jealous or not to care about your friend”. I can relate to Janice comment especially in the friendship I have with Asialynn
However, Traister doesn’t talk about the female friendships that might not be like being in a heterosexual relation just instead with a friendship. She should’ve accounted the negative approach to friendships. Not all friendships are positive and there aren’t many delightful things about a friendship. Yet not all women’s relationships are positive but instead can be a negative relationship for some individuals. Though Traister focuses the book on the single woman who are graduating from college and are just about to start their careers in their profession. It appears as if she only focuses on one group of single women. Nevertheless, what about the woman who are over forty-five years or older who are divorced and woman who are widowed. There are many women who are over that age who are unmarried. While Traister has many descriptions of people who are starting their careers. There are many individuals who are unmarried and are aging. For example, Traister doesn’t mention any examples of older women and doesn’t mention what are the problems connecting to concerns of older single
Migliaccio (2009) addresses that it is commonly believed men are less trusting and honest in a friendship, but the relationships usually examined are male and female. In male friends, the other feels that it is not just the fact they are men that need to be taken into account, but the impact of gender roles that also play a role. In the study, Migliaccio (2009) examines friendships between men in occupations typical of their gender such as military and nontraditional such as a hairdresser. Being masculine is described as “being stoic, both physically and emotionally” (Migliaccio, 2009, p.228) which impacts friendships. In male friendships, it is also explored that men avoid being perceived as feminine. Another factor, Migliaccio (2009) considers is either a man works with more females rather than males. “In short, women and men experience and define intimate friendships in different ways, and neither should be judged by the standard of the other” (Migliaccio, 2009, p.229). It is determined that gender is not as much of a factor as gender roles are in male friendships. This article will provide evidence for the impact of the male gender versus gender roles within the theme of masculinity. It examines many factors that go beyond gender as well as the lens these relationships are viewed through
What is your definition of a true friend? Well, to me, a true friend is someone who understands you, accepts you for who you are, and is willing to do anything for you. While reading John Steinbeck’s classic, Of Mice and Men, George and Lennie maintain a true friendship despite all the ups and downs they encounter. After Lennie Small, a man as gigantic as a mammoth with a pea-sized brain, is caught touching a girl’s dress in the town of Weed, he and his best friend, an average migrant worker, George Milton, travel a strenuous journey to the town of Soledad and start working on a ranch. The young men come to realize that they have a true, brotherly bond and nothing can separate them.
Women are aware that men do have a best friend too, the guy in his life he just cannot let go off - his most trusted ally and confidant. A more fitting term used in Kenyan colloquial would be “his boy”. This is the unique phenomenon that is a ‘bromance’- a purely platonic relationship between 2 heterosexual males bonding over common interests and life experiences. A woman expressing her feelings was and still is the norm, but until recently this bonding between men was somewhat a taboo. Previously men, have been brought up to hide their feelings and affections with those they love, but Ruth Njihia a charted psychologist and Counselor at Oasis Africa encourages these types of relationships and believes that they “show men are improving their social skills.”
Friendship is an interpersonal relationship between two people that is mutually productive and can be characterized by mutual positive regard. Friendship should enhance the potential of each person involved and should only be productive. You must like each other in order to call it a friendship, and
There are many valuable things in life like family, sports, school but what about friendship? To live life without friendship is something no one should ever go through. Friendship is a necessity to living a successful life. Friendship occurs when someone is a supporter, gives assistance, and is attached to someone all the while genuinely taking care of them when they are hurt (The definition of friend, 1995-2002). A good and healthy friendship can be defined fro individuals as when someone has his or her own support system, a friend being loyal, and will always have genuine and mutual trust.
Friendship is the most wonderful relationship that anyone can have. Ideally a friend is a person who offers love and respect and will never leave or betray us. Friends can tell harsh truths when they must be told. There are four different types of friends: True friends, Convenient friends, Special interest friends, and historical friends. To have friendship is to have comfort. In times of crisis and depression, a friend is there to calm us and to help lift up our spirits.
There is no real definition of friendship, because there’s no one way you can define it. Friendships can mean many different things, depending on the person. Friendship. You may be your boyfriend or your mom. To someone else, it may be their cousin or someone they met at school.