Identity and Gender

The word identity has become the most discussed idea in our society. It is described mostly, to be a word that stands for who we are. Therefore, because of who we are, identity has come to be a word that we use to claim and understand people’s actions in our society. So in this paper I will be analysing how social practices surrounding identity relates to gender in social, personal levels, through the work of three authors; by Ian Hacking on “kind making”, Margaret Somers on “Narrative construction of identity” and finally, Frederick Cooper and Rogers Brubaker on “beyond identity” . However, I will tilt more toward Frederick Cooper and Rogers Bruakers article on identity. This is because I feel that their article contributes better to my understanding of how identity relates to gender. Therefore, I hope to fully be able to outline how identity relates to gender.

First and foremost, I will look at how Identity relate to gender on a social and personal level. The reason for analysing the articles in these levels is because; the articles seem to talk of identity in either a macro, micro or in both level. First off, to show how far we can stretch and connect identity to explain many things, people and activities accoutring in our society. I will speak of the aspects of Identity and gender at a social level that are mentioned in all three articles. Identity on a social level is approached as an idea that was constructed by and used by a group of people.

First, Ian Hacking author of “Kind-Making; The case of Child abuse”, looks at the concept of child abuse as a socially constructed idea. In his article he speaks of kind making, which he identifies as the process of constructed ideas, ideas such as identity. These Constructed idea...

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...al level. I accomplished this analysis by using articles Ian Hacking on “kind making”, Margaret Somers on “Narrative construction of identity” and finally, Frederick Cooper and Rogers Brubaker on “beyond identity”. I spoke of how at the social level, identity is looked at through a macro level, where the authors speak of how identity and gender are ideas that are socially constructed. However at the personal level Identity and gender is seen as the cause of people’s actions.

REFERENCE LIST

Ian Hacking, “Kind Making: The case of Child abuse,” in The Social Construction of What? (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1999), 125-162.

Frederick Cooper and Rogers Brubaker, “Beyond Identity’,” Theory and Society 29 (2000), 1-47.

Margaret R. Somers, “The Narrative Construction of identity: A Relational and Network Approach,” Theory and Society 23 (1994), 605-649.