Gender Structure In Patriarchy The Systems By Allen Johnson

Gender is structured to be such an important part of daily life. From the moment we are born we are taught gender norms that are expected of us, and it's not until a boundary is crossed that we begin to wonder where they even came from. Judith Lorber explains gender formation by explaining, "A sex category becomes a gender through the use of naming, dress and the use of other gender markers." Through human interactions and gender socialization we learn to internalize expectations of gender roles, race identities, class status', and other societal differences.

Through American history women have taken the "backseat" to men, people of color to white people, able bodies to disabled bodies, straightness to homosexuality and so on. Society uses

The reading pinpoints patriarchy's defining elements are that it's male dominated, male identified, male centered and control obsessed characters. Male dominance means that most of the people in authority are men. In the military, government, legal system and many other realms, it's very dominated by males. We often see men in superior job positions, so this creates the idea that men must be superior to women. Male identified means that the values and experiences of men are assumed to be the standard for everyone. Some of societies core values like strength, competitiveness, rationality, etc. all get coded as masculine. Male centered means that a man's wants and needs are the center of attention. Even in magazines designed for women companies are created to promote the idea of the male sex drive

As we participate in this social system we are shaped by socialization and paths of least resistance. Magazine companies might use heavier set models, stepping out of my path of least resistance, in order to promote self-love and demote body shaming. In a reading called A Way Outa No Way written by Paula Allen, examines how eating disorders are so frequently developed by women experiencing a man's idea of "sexy" and comparing themselves to the ideal body. I participate in patriarchy by compare myself to others, sometimes wishing I could change things about my appearance and wearing makeup to look