The Genders

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The Genders

Through out history, men and women have struggled to understand each other. Society has struggled to meld their complex differences while embracing the wonder of individuality. Biologist attempt to explain why men and women are different yet comes from the very similar genetic make-up. Psychologists have made grand strides in understanding how the mind works in the dynamics of relationships between men and women. And in a society that is governed by economics, the realm of social status and money can often determine whom one will couple with.

Gender relationships are currently defined in American society by historical classifications. Historical representations of gender roles have been carried over to today's culture. The original identities of men and women have survived nearly unchanged throughout time. These are linked to the sexes in a very general way. Men were originally dominant and women, subordinate. Men have always been ideally strong leaders and women, passive and nurturing. These roles have been modernized rather than modified through the years. These standard gender roles and relationships have survived because they remain successful in our culture by satisfying basic needs (Walsh,1987,11).

Three men of great intellectual influences on our society today are Karl Marx, Charles Darwin, and Sigmund Freud. In order to understand the association of economics, biology and psychology in sexual relationships, we will refer to these three men and examine their expertise in each area.

Few of us can deny the importance and power that money has in our society. It is difficult to think of issues that affect us on a daily basis, that does not involve money. But where does this fixation on money originate...

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...erefore we must seek to better understand it. It is unfortunate that the ideologies of the men mentioned here have still implemented themselves in our culture. While their premises are valid and vastly important in the history of humankind, one must be careful to discern what is relevant in today's society and what was the experimental leanings and philosophies of the past.

Bibliography:

WORKS CITED

Charles Darwin. (1871) The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex. New York: D. Appleton and Company.

Diamond, Jared M. (1993) The third chimpanzee. New York, NY : Harper Perennial.

Doyal, James A., Paludi, Michele A., (1994) Sex and Gender: The Human Experience.

Walsh, Mary Roth,ed., (1987) The Psychology of women : ongoing debates. New Haven : Yale University Press.

Waldron, Jeremy. (1987) Nonsense upon stilts. London ; New York.

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