Abstract The paper examines how, when people discuss gender relations, specifically gender discrimination in the Canadian workplace, they usually conduct their discussion on the presumption that there are only two genders - male and female. The writer proposes that gender relations have become much more complex than this, and the paradigm of just two, opposite genders is increasingly being challenged. The paper analyses some of the repercussions of this aspect of gender relations in the Canadian workplace. There is a rising tide of gender activists who are questioning the binary paradigms that pervade our thinking about gender relations, e.g. man OR woman, gay OR straight, etc.
Abstract The paper discusses the declaration by Nancy Bonvillain that "gender relations can be characterized on a continuum from full equality to the complete domination of members of one gender by members of another...[and] may include economic, social, political and religious activities." The paper examines how this serves as a reminder of the complexity of conducting gender analysis in different contexts. This essay argues, with reference to several case studies on representations of women in early Canadian writing, that gender analysis must necessarily consider the existence of both the observer and the subject along a continuum that incorporates a recognition not only of gender, but also of variables of race, class, politics and religion.
Argues that the images of perfection that are disseminated by society are generally stereotypical images that reinforce gender roles of dominance and submission.
Abstract The way in which society defines the structures and strictures of gender has developed in the last century into a field in which there is an abundance of textual dissertation concerning gender, identity, body image, and other issuances of definitional standards that often defy the status quo and change the way in which we think about what it is to be a man or woman. The paper shows that these essential qualities that define gender are harder to determine the more we explore the boundaries that have been set up, in many cases, as no more than cultural myths that represent the continuance of a socio-economic class system. One of these myths is the idea of the mythical body image, or the ideal physiological representation of a society in which gender lines are clearly defined in terms of male and female. This paper explores the idea of this image in terms of its contrivance, ramifications, social constructionism, and its support of gender stereotypes to provide an understanding of how our culture defines male and female images of perfection.
From the Paper "Myths traditionally focus on the superhuman or divine while providing a model of behavior for their consumer, who is more often than not encouraged by them to accept a sort of socio-economic status quo, along with a sense of diversion and the illusion that in escaping reality, the person buying into the myth is escaping the status-quo of an
economically oriented social class system. This particular diversion is carried on through time and changed, if slightly, by successive generations as the gradations of society change with time (although the continuance of myth is often retrogressive concerning the continuance of the society). Although the theme may only change slightly, the
presentation of a new myth within this traditional trope suggests other changes that are more important."
Abstract The paper deals with the question of whether environment or nature defines sex and explains that it is impossible to know. The paper discusses that certainly there is compelling evidence against either of these factors being totally responsible for gender. Gender is something that a person feels--it is not defined by how a person appears. The paper emphasizes how even then, a person only ascribed themselves an emotional gender based on traditional assumptions about the binary gender. The paper concludes that with the abolition of these traditional assumptions, gender, in a way, has become obsolete.
Abstract This paper explores possible sources of gender roles and discusses some of the problems they create for society, as well as proposing some solutions. In this essay, the writer examines and compares two works concerning the issue of gender roles. The writer studies Judith Lorber's article 'Night to His Day' and the work 'Masculinity as Homophobia' by Michael S. Kimmel. The writer maintains that the fight for the civil rights of all people in the United States seems promising. Further, the writer notes that equality for both race and gender has come a long way since the early 20th century, but there is still a lot of work to do. The writer concludes that if gender role segregation continues, the opposition of sexes will continue indefinitely and that it seems that the best way to solve this problem is to fight to stop gender role enforcement from birth.
From the Paper "When it comes to defining people from a sexual perspective in the United States, people often confuse two words: sex and gender. The word "sex" has a purely biological definition, creating the categories of male and female. "Gender" has a completely different connotation, and contains many more than two categories. Gender roles in society are incredibly pervasive, and play an important role in defining a person. According to Judith Lorber in her article 'Night to His Day', children learn to play certain gender roles from birth, receiving cues from many different sources. In Michael S. Kimmel's 'Masculinity as Homophobia', the author focuses more on the male experience, focusing on how males learn and "perform" these roles that define our society. These articles contain a lot of similar themes, and at certain points it seems like they compliment or expand on each other. At the core of the concept of gender it is observable that both sexes receive subliminal cues from influential figures that attempt to define their actions for the rest of their lives; however, the separate expectations that apply to each sex are striking in their dissimilarity."
Abstract This paper examines the observation that the sex of the physical body is not the same thing as gender and, in particular, explores the statement, ?The body does not have a gender; it is gendered," by using sociological and feminist theories to describe precisely what this phrase may mean in terms of differences between one's biological sex and one's gender.
From the Paper "When studying "gender," the first task is to clearly define what it is not. Gender simply can not be defined by one's anatomy. In other words, gender is not categorized as male or female. Stating this fact is quite important, because most people would define gender in such a way. In fact, some dictionaries actually define gender as "See sex." So now that I have withdrawn that determinant, I must conclude that gender is something which is determined socially."
Abstract This paper raises the question of whether there is a relationship between gender stereotypes in children's books and a child's perception of gender. The analysis is based on a qualitative review of research articles.
From the Paper "This study sought to determine the existence of the relationship between gender stereotypes in children's books and children's perceptions of gender. The exploration of this topic involved a qualitative review of research articles that addressed this topic from multiple perspectives. Several research studies that focused on measuring the gender representations in children's books were based on the premise that the presence of gender stereotypes in books automatically translates into children's gender stereotypical perceptions. However, the remaining research studies suggested that children's gender perceptions played a stronger role in shaping..."
Tags: Is, there, a, relationship, between, gender, stereotypes, in, children's, books, and, a, child's, perception, of, gender?
Abstract This paper describes gender schema, talks about the author's own gender schema and her adherence/divergence to a perceived general gender schema (a composite of other social members' schema). The paper explains that a gender schema is formed in response to the perceived importance of differentiating males from females. The paper highlights that it is a key part of stereotype formation and can be restrictive in the expectations it leads people to form of others when they are identified as "male" or "female."
From the Paper "A person's gender schema affects how they treat all other people regardless of age, race, or social position, because we assume that everyone fits into one of two categories: male or female. There are other cultures that do not have a binary gender schema, and allow people to occupy a "third position" combining traits that Americans would see as male or female. It is unfortunate that gender schema are so restrictive and create expectations and judgments about people's authentic selves that can damage the psyche (Valian 208)."
Abstract The paper discusses how in comparing, contrasting and discussing the issue of gender and its significance in "Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet)," "Orlando," and "The Sun Also Rises," it is evident that gender issues were perceived and portrayed very differently by writers such as Virginia Woolf and Ernest Hemingway. The paper explains that this is because of their personal agony over gender and its psychological implications. The paper points out that differences in their fictional portrayals of rigid gender identity and values is not particularly surprising, for Virginia Woolf was not inclined to shoot wild game animals in Africa or attend bullfights and Ernest Hemingway was not a exactly a charter member of the early feminist movement in fiction and literature.
Abstract The purpose of this study is to examine the nature of the gender gap that exists between girls and boys at the primary and secondary levels of education. This paper first discusses some of the root causes that influence the development of gender stereotypes and the gender gap in science and math. It then examines some of the effects of this gender gap also within an educational context.
From the Paper "Consistently, studies have demonstrated that gender stereotypes can have an effect on the ability of girls to excel in either science or math. Cultural perceptions that assume that those subjects are the domain of boys and not girls can have a deleterious effect upon the ability of girls in a schooling setting to pursue and master either of these subjects that are considered to be so crucial. Science and math constitute two of the core academic subjects that are taught in school, especially at the primary and secondary level. Despite the basic importance of science and math to education at these levels, studies seem to indicate that the current educational situation actually accentuates the gender disparities that exist between girls and boys regarding learning in science and mathematics."
Abstract This paper reviews the social structures that shape gender in our society, based in some part upon biological determinants, and the degree to which gender is socially constructed possesses striking levels of convergence with inequalities with respect to class and race as well. This essay examines the social structuring of inequality in respect to gender, race and inequality in order to highlight both the social determinants of gender stratification and how this has converged with inequalities of race and class over time.
Abstract The paper explains that as genetic research continues to evolve, one of the themes those in genetic counseling seek is gender selection. This paper provides a brief review of genetics, chromosome pairing and gender determination following by a discussion of gender selection and its ramifications. The paper concludes with commentary and documentation as to why gender selection is unethical.
From the Paper "The results of the Human Genome Project were astounding and revolutionized the world of genetics and unleashed a world of possibilities. Many people have feared genetics and the potential for the development of a master race of super humans similar to what one would see in a science fiction movie. The benefits of genetic knowledge, however, can affect the safety and health of children and save countless years of suffering and expense to parents of children born with sex related genetic disorders. One of the many joys of the childbirth experience is finding out the sex of the child either through ultrasound, amniocentesis or at the moment of birth as the doctor cries out "It's a boy" or "It's a girl.""
Abstract This essay examines the emerging trend and, indeed, necessity to distinguish between the two terms "gender" and "sex". It examines the introduction and usage of both terms and the subsequent historical development, including the power benefits that the biological reductionism of "sex theory" encompasses. Through specific reference to sociological schools of thought, such as structural functionalism, feminist critique, role theory, social constructionism and post-structuralist theory, an argument for the need for distinction between "gender" and "sex" is established. With references to Foucault, Derrida, and Judith Butler, this essay examines the need for a biological ("sex") and social ("gender") specificity of sexuality, proposing a conceptually accurate path forward for the future.
From the Paper "The terms ?sex role,? ?sex role socialisation,? ?gender role,? and the term "role" itself, have become so confused and definitionally abstract that it is often inadequate or even incorrect to use such terms. Many individuals do however. The terms "sex" and "gender" are infinitely bandied about, consistently interchanged, and often stand proxy for one another, in every imaginable discourse and social institution. This is because "sex" and "gender" are the foundational concepts upon which society is built. Sex and gender is integral to every social structure, having far-reaching implications that shape individuals? opportunities for safety, employment, education, family, legal access, fecundity, knowledge production and much, much more. However, the challenge here is to understand such implications within a conceptually accurate framework. The development of sex/gender theorising has met this challenge, and the fact that some sociologists today reject the terms "sex roles" and "sex role socialisation" is a reflection of the changing and developing nature of the theoretical framework. It is only through an examination of the history of sex/gender theory however that it is possible to determine how and why these same sociologists have rejected the frameworks that they have."
Tags: biological, critique, feminist, functionalism, gender, post, reductionism, sex, structural, structuralist, theory
Abstract This paper examines gender identity based on the statement: The body does not have a gender. The author utilizes sociological and feminist theories to describe the meaning of the phrase in terms of differences between one's biological sex and one's gender. It focuses on both the biological and social aspects and differentiates between them. The paper also discusses the role biological sex plays in identity.
From the Paper "According to Alcoff and Mendieta the term identity typically refers to the way people see themselves the groups they feel a part of and the aspects of themselves they consider significant. However some theorists distinguish ..."
Abstract In this essay, the writer analyzes one episode of the T.V. program "Home". The writer explores the plot and the characters in this show. In this paper, the writer points out stereotypes and gender issues that appear in the show. The writer looks at the gender roles portrayed in one episode of the show.
From the Paper "Channel House is a medical show and the episode analyzed involved the case of a homeless woman who is brought to the hospital unconscious from a seizure. She was found in a punk night club looking for someone only identified as Jamie. The young doctor attending her believes she may have a brain tumor but the neuro surgeon he consults dismisses his diagnosis and says that the woman is faking and just wants a bed for the night. The case is discussed by ... "
