Jamba Juice Culture

1094 Words3 Pages

In viewing males and females at the Argyros Forum Einstein Brothers Bagels and Jamba Juice seating area, it became noticeable that people tend to remain in the social constructs of their own gender. In our culture, there seems to be room “for only two genders… and anyone who doesn’t clearly fit one or the other is instantly an outsider” (Johnson, 2006, p. 16). In order to appear normal, people act the way they are supposed to. The females acted more polite towards the employees or bubbly when talking to one another, while the males cared less whether they spared a smile or “thank you” after ordering or would speak to each other in a more laid back manner, for instance. However, one of the traits that looked as if it was pretty much the same …show more content…

On this particular day, there were three men and one woman working. Most of the time, they seemed to share most of the obligations. They all switched around making smoothies and taking orders. One glaring difference, however, was that the woman was the only one to ever do the dishes. The men only seemed to put the dirty utensils in the sink. The woman, on the other hand, went back and forth from taking orders, to making smoothies, to cleaning the dishes. This duty seems to parallel to the common view of women being the keeper of the household; hence, they did the dishes. Today, even without knowing it, people tend to stick to these gender constructions. One case where it is recognized is in the story “Two Women, Three Men on a Raft.” It only came to the narrator’s attention after his journey that he and one of the other males “proceeded to undermine the women” (Schrank, 1977, p. 35). They subconsciously took the power away from the females in order to “protect them.” All they really appreciated them doing was their “normal duties,” such as “[carry] food bags, buckets, and ropes” (Schrank, 1977, p. 28) while the men inflated the raft. Even though it can be pushed by men, it seems that women just tend to gravitate toward areas where they can feel that they are taking care of someone. So maybe the employees did not tell her she had to do the dishes. Maybe she just cleans them out of habit or …show more content…

Many of the girls, when walking up to the counter, would smile and greet the employee. After they would order, they would generally smile and say “thank you.” In contrast, the boys would walk up to the counter, greet the employee without smiling, and then leave the counter when they were done with their order. It is assumed that girls have to be nice and polite to fit into the typical female role that society requires of them. With men, they are perceived as less of a man if they show too much emotion. Emotion is a feeling that seems to be “allowed for women and discouraged in men… [and the] patriarchal culture puts a low value on it compared with appearing to be tough and always being in control” (Johnson, 2006, p. 33). Even this small series of actions demonstrates that this culture

Open Document