Final Paper Gender in our society is commonly understood to be male or female. However, those labeling terms are the sex of an individual, which is based on genitalia and internal organs. The misconception that gender and sex are one has altered the daily functions male and female. Therefore, our expectations of each gender is tainted. Diverse sexually has been a rapidly developing norm in many societies. Unacknowledged is our acceptance of each genders sexual expression. From a historical standpoint sexual expression appeared to burden women and men whose performance did not remain in social binary masculinity. The ideal man being strong, ambitious and successful; I’m questioning if the social acceptance of sexual expression is determined …show more content…
Ann Swidler uses the analogy of a toolkits, cultural toolkits. Our cultural toolkits allows us to establish Cultural Capital. Cultural Capital suggest that all toolkits are not created equal in all situations. Prime example is sexuality. Consider the tradition of Halloween in Kent. On a daily bases in Kent you may see exaggeration of masculinity and femininity. However, during Halloween Gender Polarization and Impression Management based on sexuality is rampant. Gender Polarization is when men and women exaggerate differences between them (Bem, 1994). Impression Management a way in which people give performances or presentations of self to others in an attempt to influence how others perceive them (Goffman, 1959). I conducted an interview with a close from who has always seemed conservative however, she has a child. There is a stigma within our culture that children at a young age suggest promiscuity especially if one is not married. With Halloween approaching, we went custom shopping. During the search I ask her a series of questions related to her perceptions of her sexual expression verse her awareness of spectator’s perceptions of her. When ask if she felt stigmatized because she is an unwed mother she replied is a fluster tone, “Yes! But most often by men. They don’t want to date me, they want to fuck me. It’s like they assumed I just dropped my panties right after Aaliyah’s dad said hello.” I was more than shocked by her response because she doesn’t typical raise her voice or curse. Later interview she added, “I don’t understand why I can’t find a man. I’m a good girl. I’m employed, in college and I always dress well! I’m not ugly either. Aaliyah’s dad has had plenty of girlfriend since me. Hell, he’s on baby number two.” Reinforcing her
well-known stereotype. Sexuality is described in two different environments, showing how circumstances can change what is socially accepted.
Fresh from the womb we enter the world as tiny, blank slates with an eagerness to learn and blossom. Oblivious to the dark influences of culture, pre-adult life is filled with a misconception about freedom of choice. The most primitive and predominant concept that suppresses this idea of free choice involve sex and gender; specifically, the correlation between internal and external sex anatomy with gender identity. Meaning, those with male organs possess masculine identities, which involve personality traits, behavior, etcetera, and the opposite for females. Manipulating individuals to adopt and conform to gender identities, and those respective roles, has a damaging, life-long, effect on their development and reflection of self through prolonged suppression. This essay will attempt to exploit the problems associated with forced gender conformity through an exploration of personal experiences.
This article was written to bring attention to the way men and women act because of how they were thought to think of themselves. Shaw and Lee explain how biology determines what sex a person is but a persons cultures determines how that person should act according to their gender(Shaw, Lee 124). The article brings up the point that, “a persons gender is something that a person performs daily, it is what we do rather than what we have” (Shaw, Lee 126). They ...
In Doing Gender authors West and Zimmerman argue the concept of gender being an outcome of daily life rather than an outcome from a physician with an ultrasound with only two permanent results. The meaning behind the term gender invokes different connotations of either masculine or feminine qualities that lay the groundwork for societies preexisting roles. Society today views gender as being either of masculine or feminine form however the controversy with this is how this is determined in our society today as well as in the past. Both authors fall upon the idea that sex is a disposition of birth whereas gender is a disposition of your actions after your birth. “It is necessary to move beyond the notion of gender display to consider what
Gender refers to psychological and emotional characteristics that cause people to assume, masculine, feminine or androgynous (having a combination of both feminine and masculine traits) roles. Your gender is learned and socially reinforced by others, as well as by your life experiences and g...
All around the world society has created an ideological perspective for the basis of gender roles. Gender and sex are often times misused and believed to be interchangeable. This is not the case. There are two broad generalization of sexes; female and male, yet there is a vast number of gender roles that each sex should more or less abide by. The routinely cycle of socially acceptable behaviors and practices is what forms the framework of femininity and masculinity. The assigned sex categories given at birth have little to do with the roles that a person takes on. Biological differences within females and males should not be used to construe stereotypes or discriminate within different groups. Social variables such as playing with dolls or
Nicki’s apparent feminist agenda through her music and identity is being distributed to her wide audience, which covers a massive array of hip-hop and pop music fans. Her wide reach and continual influence has the potential to lastingly correct the anti-feminist, misogynistic tone of the male-dominated genre and culture. Despite her hyper sexualized image and defamatory lyrics, she is arguably a positive, albeit controversial, feminist role model, which is evident in her motivation for success, lyrical discourse, and use of and meanings behind her alter egos.
Sexuality is a fundamental part of our self-discovery, involving much more than just being genetically or anatomically male and female and it is not defined solely by one 's sexual acts (Ministry of Education 1989, p.79 cited in Gourlay, P 1995). The notion that sexuality is fixed and innate disregards the social aspects that impact ones’ sexualities. Gagnon and Simon (1973) further commented that sexuality is a feature of social
I will be examining the very much discussed topic of whether the gender binary is universal or a social construction. First, I will discuss the concepts of gender and the gender binary. Second, I will touch on whether I believe the gender binary is universal or a social construction. Third, I will analyze what gender means for individuals and society. Using the information, I will conclude my examination with final thoughts for my claim.
I would like to observe not only the forms of cultural capital that I possess, but also those of which I do not. I believe that with these countless examples of cultural capital will have a big influence in my life. To start off with, let’s just assume that, I examine the capital that I possess, which I contrast with that which I do not. First, I am a Man. I have the ability to be hired for a job, be promoted within a career, or be put in charge of any numerous positions within the workforce, based on the fact that I am a male.
The sexual orientation of a person has been a critical debate over the past several centuries. For several...
In order to grasp the concept of social construction of gender, it is essential to understand the difference between sex and gender. Biologically, there are only two reproductive genital organs that are determinants of sex: the vagina and the penis. Sex is established solely through biological structures; in other words, genitalia are the basis of sex. Once a sex category is determined, gender, a human categorization socially attached to sex, is assigned based on anatomy. Gender typically references social or cultural differen...
Human beings have been, and always will be, dichotomized into either male or female. When determining a person’s sex we often look for differences in facial features, body shape or mannerism’s, but another promising way to determine a persons sex and one that is most often used today, is through gender roles. Gender roles are behaviors that portray masculinity or femininity. The theory behind gender roles through multidisciplinary viewpoints is the focus of this paper. Throughout history and in every culture these roles have shifted and transformed into what society says is expectable. In this analysis, gender roles will be examined through a sociological, biological and evolutionary scope.
The relationship between sex and gender can be argued in many different lights. All of which complicated lights. Each individual beholds a sexual identity and a gender identity, with the argument of perceiving these identities however way they wish to perceive them. However, the impact of gender on our identities and on our bodies and how they play out is often taken for granted in various ways. Gender issues continue to be a hugely important topic within contemporary modern society. I intend to help the reader understand that femininities and masculinities is a social constructed concept and whether the binary categories of “male” and “female” are adequate concepts for understanding and organising contemporary social life with discussing the experiences of individuals and groups who have resisted these labels and forged new identities.
Sex and gender are terms that are mixed up from day to day and seen as similarities rather than differences. Sex is what distinguishes people from being either male or female. It is the natural or biological variations between males and females (Browne, 1998). Some of these variations are genitals, body hair and internal and external organs. It is the make-up of chromosomes, men have one X and one Y chromosome and women have two X chromosomes, these are responsible for primary characteristics (Fulcher and Scott, 2003). Gender on the other hand refers to the sociological differences between male and female. This is teaching males and females to behave in various ways due to socialisation (Browne, 1998). Example: masculinity and femininity. Girls are supposed to show their femininity by being non-competitive, sensitive, dependent, attractive and placid. If and when some girls don’t succeed in keeping this image they will be referred to as a tomboy. On the other hand, boys show their masculinity through aggression, physical strength...