According to dictionary.com, gender is defined as “the condition of being female or male.” Gender and Sexuality conjure up images of the male and female and the roles that each sex is supposed to fulfill. Of the two forces (Biology and Environment) influencing human development, especially gender, environment is more influential. Environment is basically the surrounding conditions or forces capable of influencing a person or any entity, for example, family, culture, peers, society, etc. In view of this, let us now think about these thought provoking questions. Do you believe there will ever come a day when boys will play with dolls and girls will play with trucks and no one will notice? Suppose parents could successfully forget about the gender of their child. What would be the advantages and the disadvantages of this? These are the questions that would be examined and answered in this article.
Reasonably, I opine that a day might come when boys will play with dolls and girls play with trucks, but people will take note of this, depending on their sense of perception and cultural backgrounds, and since neither this situation had ever occurred nor has it ever been that way from time being. Also, since the environment people live in could either positively or negatively contribute to their physical, spiritual, and social well being, so, gender should be seen more of a social structure that forms the basis for individuals’ norms which are anchored into the major societal organizations of our world today (Lorber 5). This might make one to ask again - Is a Genderless Society Attainable? What are the advantages and disadvantages?
Apparently, parents, as a factor, have the power and the responsibilities to shape the gender identity of their wards from childhood. The socialization theory, in terms of gender, suggests that “children are taught to behave in a certain way according to their sex. Boys are taught to be masculine and girls to be feminine. For example, parents will often buy trucks or army toys for boys while girls will have dolls and playhouse sort-of toys” (Cohen and Ian, 78). So why would a genderless society be unattainable since the primary factor of childhood gender-shaping is the parents? In fact, from the socialization theory, it could be deduced that genderless society might be achieved if parents would act in other way round- allow boys to play w...
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...A day might come when boys might play with dolls and girls might play with trucks, but people would surely notice this. Since our mode of life- morals, physical, social, gender, etc are being modeled, nurtured, and influenced by many factors of our immediate environment such as our family, culture, peers, society, education, community. If on the other hand, the environment nurtures or influences us the way the “fabulous baby X” was nurtured, there might be a success of a genderless society, but this will sound too strongly unattainable and an illusion of reality!
WORK CITED PAGE
Cohen, Jack and Ian, Stewart. “Our Genes Aren’t Us.” Discover Apr. 94, Vol. 15 Issue 4, p78,
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Gould, Lois. “X: A Fabulous Child’s Story.” Mirror on America: Short Essays and Images from
Popular Culture. 2nd Ed. Mims, J.T and Nollen, E.M. NY: Bedford/ST. Martin’s, 2003:
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Lexico Publishing Group. “Gender.” Dictionary.com. (2003) 23 Jan. 2005.
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Lober, Judith. Paradoxes of Gender: sex role, gender identity, social theory, and feminist institutions. Yale UP: New Haven, 1994.
To begin, I think it is important to analyze the difference between “sex” and “gender”. Up until researching for this paper, I though that the two terms were interchangeable in meaning, rather, they are separate ideas that are connected. According to Mary K. Whelan, a Doctor of Anthropology focusing on gender studies, sex and gender are different. She states, “Western conflation of sex and gender can lead to the impression that biology, and not culture, is responsible for defining gender roles. This is clearly not the case.”. She continues with, “Gender, like kinship, does have a biological referent, but beyond a universal recognition of male and female "packages," different cultures have chosen to associate very different behaviors, interactions, and statuses with men and women. Gender categories are arbitrary constructions of culture, and consequently, gender-appropriate behaviors vary widely from culture to culture.” (23). Gender roles are completely defined by the culture each person lives in. While some may think that another culture is sexist, or dem...
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even exist in 5 or 10 more years. But what of that one book that has
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playing indoor games, watching soaps, and going shopping every now and then. A society expects a boy to be the solid figure in a family. A man who can earn the bread for the family and women to take care of the kids and the house. Jobs in our society define gender. The sex of the sex.... ...
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