"Boys Don?t Cry" and Gender as a Social Construction

Paper Summary:

The film "Boys Don't Cry" presents several themes, problems and questions that apply to and can also serve as examples for issues of women's and gender studies. The paper shows that it relates especially well to Judith Lorber's chapter of the book Feminist Frontiers, entitled "'Night to His Day': The Social Construction of Gender." The paper shows that both of these works, although certainly in very different ways and in different mediums, convey the message that gender as we know it today is simply a construction of society. Therefore, gender is not a simple classification created by nature or biology, but instead one that has evolved and been shaped to fit particular social needs.

From the Paper:

"However, there are identifiable differences between this film and Judith Lorber's "'Night to His Day'": The Social Construction of Gender." It seems that Lorber both strives to emphasize, and maintains as a thematic backdrop for her chapter, the inferior and subordinate position of the female gender in comparison to the male gender. This is a topic that Boys Don't Cry only subtly touches upon. She states, "when gender is a major component of structured inequality, the devalued genders have less power, prestige, and economic rewards than the valued genders" (46). Men have historically taken the role of the oppressor and women the role of the oppressed, which is certainly not a natural condition but a product of enduring social structures."

More papers on "Boys Don?t Cry" and Gender as a Social Construction:

• Analytical Essay # 90619 : "'Boys Don't Cry' and 'TransAmerica'"
• Film Review # 71502 : "Film: "Boys Don't Cry"
• Film Review # 8311 : "Boys Don't Cry"

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