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3rd wave feminist issues with gender
3rd wave feminist issues with gender
3rd wave feminist issues with gender
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1. The reading that I chose was Neither Man Nor Woman: The Hijras of India by Serena Nada. Nada basically speaks about a group of individuals whom cohabit a region in India, and these people are known as the Hijra. Nada first meet the Hijra people in 1971, in Bombay. Hijras are “neither men nor women and the experienced gender identity of many Hijras as women”, and due to the way they felt they behaved as women, they would also dress up like women, wear traditional womens jewelry, they basically adopt the female behavior. Hijars are considered to be an alternative gender category, which has similarities to what we know as transgender individuals. Those whom are Hijars are originally born as male, and normally during their teen years decide to be a part of the Hijars culture (because this is considered to be a culture in India). To conclude this, this culture does not see gender differences rather I feel like they go based upon the way they feel internally, even though there physical features maybe …show more content…
The author describes Hijras, which are an alternative gender, neither men or women. In todays US society I do not think that there is a “alternative gender”, but the most relatable gender that I would consider to be more similar to Hijras are those whom are transgender. Which is a person whose self-identity does not conform unambiguously to a conventional male or female gender. Reason being is that those whom are Hijra are raised as man and then undergoes genital removal, which is similar to what some transgender individuals go through. Therefore, similarities between the third gender, other than I do not see any similarities. Due to the fact that a majority of those whom cohabit the US are so fixed upon the fact that you are either male or female and there are no in between. The Hijars are not looked down upon in any way rather they are “so respected” in Bombay which is completely different from the amount of respect that transgender individuals get here in the
This book differs from most ethnographies in that it was not authored by an anthropologist. Fernea originally set out to accompany her husband as he completed research for his doctorate in social anthropology from the University Chicago. Henceforth, Fernea did not enter the field with any specific goals, hypotheses, or particular interests. In many ways, Guests of the Sheik reads as a personal narrative, describing Ferneas struggles integrating into a society that has vastly different expectations and guidelines for women. Fernea recalls the culture shock she first experienced as well as her eagerness to overcome it. Her goals were mainly of a human nature: she wanted to feel a sense of belonging, to have friends, and to establish a life in El Nahra. The first part of Guests of the Sheik largely mimics Fernea's own journey to feeling accepted as it introduces readers to the various groups of women who soon become Fernea's close friends and confidants, most importantly Laila, who will later introduce many aspects of Muslim culture to Fernea. Throughout the book, each chapter emphasizes a different aspect of life as Fernea discovers it, or details an important event. As such, readers experience Ramadan and Eid, two staples of the Muslim culture, Weddings and marriage arrangements, discussions of monogamy and polygamy, the Pilgrimage to Karbala, and many other customs
One of Sultana Yusufali’s strongest arguments in “My body is my own business” is her scrutinization of the exploitation of female sexuality. Initially Yusufali writes about the injudicious individuals that assume she is oppressed by her hijab. Thereafter, she describes them as “brave individuals who have mustered the courage to ask me about the way I dress”. Moreover, Yusufali’s word choice is intriguing as she utilizes the word “brave” when laymen hear this word they habitually associate the aforementioned with heroic, valiant and courageous. Consequently, Yusufali ensues to comprise her opinions on the hijab and how it carries a number of negative connotations in western society. Furthermore, Yusufali proceeds to strike on the importance
Betsy Lucal, "What it means to be gendered me: Life on the Boundaries of a Dichotomous Gender System."
perspective on the concept, arguing that gender is a cultural performance. Her careful reading of
What does the word gender mean to an individual? Do people believe it means different responsibilities among people? Do people believe it means equality? Gender roles play a major role in our lives. It is the heart of our self-conceptions and daily actions. In the book Things Fall Apart, Nigerian author Chinua Achebe tells about the culture of an African society. The lives and beliefs of individuals are effectively described and are easy for readers to compare and contrast to their own culture. While gender roles exist in the American society based on a Eurocentric perspective, the book Things Fall Apart portrays a different culture illustrating the roles of individuals within the Igbo tribes.
The book I choose to read was Delusions of Gender: How Our Mind, Society, and Neurosexism Create Difference by Cordelia Fine. There are three parts to the book: “Half-changed world”, “Half-changed minds”, Neurosexisam, and Recycling Gender. The reason I choose this book was because it dealt with gender and how in society and our mind we create the differences that are used against us. I thought that by reading it I would understand more from a psychologist’s point of view how our thought process creates what we perceive as reality, what has been placed upon gender specific things by society, and how it has affected society.
To conclude, I chose this article as I found the discussion point interesting and wanted to bring to more people’s attention some of the underlying discrimination that is embedded in U.S. culture. Although transgender people are in the minority, they are no less than myself. I believe strongly that they deserve the same rights and opportunities that are presented to me daily. This article is relevant to the issues of Cultural Anthropology as it addresses questions surrounding gender stereotypes, gender discrimination, gender performance as well as relationship ties and kinship.
In this article, Shaw and Lee describe how the action of labels on being “feminine” or “masculine” affect society. Shaw and Lee describe how gender is, “the social organization of sexual difference” (124). In biology gender is what sex a person is and in culture gender is how a person should act and portray themselves. They mention how gender is what we were taught to do in our daily lives from a young age so that it can become natural(Shaw, Lee 126). They speak on the process of gender socialization that teaches us how to act and think in accordance to what sex a person is. Shaw and Lee state that many people identify themselves as being transgendered, which involves a person, “resisting the social construction of gender into two distinct, categories, masculinity and femininity and working to break down these constraining and polarized categories” ( 129). They write about how in mainstream America masculinity and femininity are described with the masculine trait being the more dominant of the two. They define how this contributes to putting a higher value of one gender over the other gender called gender ranking (Shaw, Lee 137). They also speak about how in order for femininity to be viewed that other systems of inequality also need to be looked at first(Shaw,Lee 139).
For years American women have been and still fight for equality. On the other side
Across the globe, gender systems vary in ways that often exclude individuals who don’t identify within their realms. From the binary structure of the West, to the ternary system of India, there are many ways in which societies conceptualize gender. Gender systems are generally considered inherent to humanity, and are seldom questioned or altered. This has led to the marginalization and discrimination of individuals who diverge from the implemented structure.
The the book introduces the topic by defining sex and gender. Sex refers to the biology of your body, there are two aspects within this concept: primary sex characteristics and secondary characteristics. Primary characteristic is the genitalia which you are born with. Secondary sex characteristics has to do with the hormones; distribution of male and female hormones. Gender on the other hand is a societal concept that comes along with gender roles; which is when society places roles on how each gender should act. This is where sexist stereotypes such as “girls like pink and boys like blue” come about. Gender roles become impacted by other factors such as: religion, class, race, culture to name only a few. Culture and other aspects alter what is perceived as the norm; some cultures recognize an androgynous gender, while the concept is still taboo in many cultures. This chapter, assesses how patriarchy prevails given the fact that gender roles create an environment meant to benefit males more than
Sati is defined as “a Hindu practice whereby a widow immolates herself on the pyre of her husband” (Dictonary.com). Sati also means righteous, women throughout the Hindu myths were willing to do anything for the man that they loved. This symbolized the perfect Indian wife to any man. Imagine being a married couple in the Hindu religion, as the wife you have to prove yourself to your husband. According to About.com it goes into brief detail of the idea of marriage in the Hindu religion; “after marriage the Hindu women lead the men by keeping the lustful propensities under control. While married, thought of any other man does not enter the mind of a Hindu lady until she loses her faith in her husband due to his consistent misbehavior and 'don't care' attitude” (Rajhans). Basically in this commitment women must keep the male under control and keep the loving relationship alive and well. Suddenly, during your marriage your husband suddenly dies and you are now left as a widow. How would you feel? Would you mope around and have sorrow for the months to come? Or would you go to the extent of suicide to be with your husband once again. Some say sati is a voluntary act chosen by the newly widowed woman to end her life by being burnt to death at her husband’s pyre. But there are moments in history that Sati was forced upon these women, some ever were dragged to their burning death (Daniel). “The custom of burning the widow on her dead husband's pyre probably did not evolve from religious background but from social background” (Daniels). This paper will explore the horrible act of Sati and how it was practiced throughout history.
“India is the meeting place of the religions and among these Hinduism alone is by itself a vast and complex thing, not so much a religion as a great diversified and yet subtly unified mass of spiritual thought, realization and aspiration”(Sri Aurobindo). Hindus believe in karma, which means that the actions that are made will affect this life or the lives to come (Fisher 120). Reincarnation is a rebirth in a new life (Fisher 120). In Hinduism the roles that the women play in their society is similar to Rukmani’s in Nectar in a Sieve. Hindu women take care of the children and help the husband with farm work or any other work ("Hindu Beliefs"). The three main themes in the book that connect to the Hindu religion are Humans choose their actions which cause happiness or sadness, suffering purifies for the soul, and truth is the most important moral value to have. Every action made by humans is based on a choice the outcome could be happy or sad.
In conclusion, Eastern and Western cultures clearly vary in the level of tolerance and acceptance they each have towards what is considered outside of the social norm for sex and gender. This is evident with the amount of acceptance of homosexuals and transsexuals in our everyday society as well as in some religious places of worship. There is also a great deal of tolerance for the idea of a third sex within the Indian and Hindu culture. Eastern cultures are definitely more accepting and open then Western cultures. Many studies have been done to prove this information and this paper draws on some of them.
Gender Theory in Everyday Life”, the various definitions of “trans” depict that it is not possible to place one’s gender into only two categories. In the definitions of “trans”, transformation or transitioning is a common theme. Transforming into their true self or transitioning from one gender to the other. In the third definition, transgendered individuals are seen as transcending gender, thus making gender non-existent; not only to them, but when they view other individuals (Kessler and McKenna 1-2). The individuals in “When Girls Will Be Boys”, had to create a safe space, and find allies that would provide them with resources to help them in their progression as a trans individual. Trans people truly want to be integrated into society, but they are cognisant of the social standards in place that make them othered (Quart 49-50). In the instance of the varied definition of trans and the experiences of people in “When Girls Will Be Boys”, they are all going against the social norms and actively fighting to create a seat at the table. They refuse to to fit in the status quo of accepting that there are only two genders, and one must stay in either category. Instead, they challenge that thinking by being themself, thus having a hand in creating the new norm. These individuals are not passively combating the misconceptions, miseducation, and misinformation. They are actively creating a space for others and themself to grow in self and in