This course, in general, constructs views on psychological issues such as sexuality, the relation between motherhood, ethnicity, race, class, women in the workplace and the roles of women. This course embarks on a variety of theoretical perspectives and concepts to everyday research practices on women. In addition, it focuses on a thought-provoking exploration concerning current research on women’s lives. This essay will focus, largely on my overall experience and understanding about this course, and how it has transformed my life as a whole.
Learning about Gender Similarities
Accordingly, this course delivers a handful of analyzes on the subject of women. One of the main issues that astonished me in regards to this course is the similarity and the likeness between women and men. We are more alike than we are different. No doubt, there are a few dissimilarities between men and women; however, there are alarming studies in the field of psychology that reveals evidence to such stereotypes and biases to these remarks (Matlin, 2008, p.37). This course examines the variety of subjects in relation to the similarities of men and women, in particularly, gender-role stereotypes, social constructionism and the exploration of women and men in the early historical times to the present (Matlin, 2008, p.41). Before enrolling into this course, my expectations were that men and women are completely different, primarily because culture entitles gender to specific groups in accordance to social constructionist perspective. Being the single girl as well as the youngest in my family, my expectations to reaching goals were always limited taking into account the social identities that tie into intersectionality. With that said, this course has ...
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...tering into this course for the first time, my analysis on females and males was that, we are completely different according to biological, cultural and social views. At this moment, my views on females and males are that we are completely similar. The psychological perspectives on social and personality characteristics, women and work, cognitive abilities and attitudes indeed presents compelling explanation to the comparison of females and males. Moreover, learning about the psychology of women opens my mind to questions and answers further down the road. Taking this course has broadened my understanding in relation to the identity and the role I commit as a woman. In the same way, psychology of women has helped in revolutionizing and transforming women’s lives by means of giving us a sense of empowerment and inspiration to fulfill our needs and aspirations.
Gender roles are a staple construct of human civilization, designating the behaviors and lifestyles that society expects out of its participants, with gender as the defining characteristic. Historically, females have been at the forefront of the conversation, with feminism regarded as the principal solution to the well-established issue of gender inequality. However, this is foolish. To truly mend the gender inequalities forged by thousands of years of human interaction, both genders have to be acknowledged. Both males and females are equally constrained by gender roles, however the effects of this constraint are in differing fields. There are studies showing that females are at a disadvantage economically, in the workplace, while other studies
This proposal will identify the social construction of gender roles for women as the “other” in the primary source writings of Simone De Beauvoir’s The Second Sex and Arrogant Beggar by Anzia Yezierska. Beauvoir’s Second Sex provides a primary source evaluation of the historical distortion of women’s role in society as the “other” through patriarchal traditions that have no basis in genetics or science. Yezierska’s experiences as a Jewish woman in New York “workhouses” define the subjective gender roles assigned to women as being submissive and “invisible” in patriarchal American culture. These two primary sources define the subjective and non-scientific distortion of women‘s roles as the “other” in patriarchal European culture as a historical
In the past there were many biases against women and their lack of abilities compared to men. Although the male perspective has changed over the past few centuries, there are many feminists who still fight for ...
Gender inequality has been a major issue for many centuries now. Societies insist in assigning males and females to different roles in life. The traditional stereotypes and norms for how a male and female should present themselves to the world have not changed much over time. But individuals are more than just their gender and should have the right to act and be treated the way they want. The novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
The idea and characteristics of gender, relate to the specific differences men and women deliver to society and the unique qualities and roles each demonstrate. The term ‘Femininity’ refers to the range of aspects and womanly characteristics the female represents. The foundation of femininity creates and brings forth many historical and contemporary issues. According to Mary Wollstonecraft in ‘A Vindication of the Rights of Woman’, women’s femininity is considered a flaw of nature. Throughout the paper, history indicates how women are viewed and looked upon in a male dominated world which hinders a woman’s potential, her character, her mind, her dreams, her femininity. The paper particularly stresses the idea of power, the power of man. The historical argument leans towards man’s desire to treat women as inferior to them.
Through investigations of writers as diverse as Silvia Federici, and Angela Davis, Maria Mies, and Sharon Hays, Judith Butler, and Steven Gregory we have come to understand that confronting the categorization of gender differences is a complex and nuanced project. Whether one is an ontologist, exploring the metaphysical nature of gender differences (that may or may not lead down the road of essentialism) or a phenomenologist exploring how exactly it is that one “does” gender—to the extent that there even exists a concept called gender—one must employ a varied and multipartite approach. Writers such as Federici, Mies, and Davis sketched out a framework of the history of gender roles for us. From what Federici calls a time of primitive consumption through feudalism, to the time of slavery and rapid industrialization and, indeed, through our current technological revolution, we have seen the basic gender differences between the sexes evolve over time. To be sure, our notions of what is expected from both women and men have changed since prehistoric times, and they continue to evolve. Sharon Hays in the chapter “Pyramids of Innequality” of her book Flat Broke with Children: Women in the Age of Welfare Reform shows us how, in the United States, poverty and access to the social safety net have been raced and gendered. She provides a springboard for further investigation.
The masculine and feminine are how we view all things in life. There is a superiority of one over the other, and it cannot be confined to the likes of one’s mental state. The masculine is hardened, or what is outwardly described as tough, rigid, strong and basic. The feminine is at best described as the antithesis of masculine, softer, kindler, weaker, and to be protected. When I have to define the traits between the two, both masculine and feminine, I am relegated to speak based on perception of the two definitive aspects of male and female and none else.
Anthropologists have examined our assumptions about the ‘natural’ roles of men and women in society through investigating the past and present. This is important as the core of anthropology is the ability to understand and use our knowledge of not only the past, but also the present to question societal norms (Blasco, 2010). Gender roles, society’s image of expected roles and attitudes a particular gender should possess, continue to be of great interest to anthropological studies. These expectations result in many gender stereotypes and create a stigmatized definition of what it means to be a man or a women (Blasco, 2010). The purpose of this paper is to conduct a gender analysis of
The distinction between sex and gender are differences in assumptions about causality, extent of similarity or difference between the sexes and on the covert political agendas in sex differences. Epistemological reflections like how gender is constructed and maintained in social practices were research concerns to Unger. Her book, The Lenses of Gender, is worth mentioning for its radical rethinking of the importance and possibility of transforming cognitive structures that hold gender in place. Oliva Espin gave another important addition to the feminist perspective through her articles focused on feminist therapy with women of colour. She raised the concern for including diversity among women into the feminist perspective. Her contribution was to “distill he significance of gender in the psychological development of women who are twice or sometimes thrice ‘othered’ by ‘mainstream’ psychology” (Espin, 1997). Stephanie Riger (2000), regarding how misguided efforts to empower women in individualistic ways might undermine the community connections and the larger picture of feminist efforts, took up a critique of feminist efforts. The emphasis on all power hierarchies, not just limited to gender was seen in the works of feminist psychologists of the late 90s. The topics researched were social class and education (Ostrove & Cole, 2003), low-income women’s perceptions of status and opportunity (Bullock & Limbert, 2003), beliefs about social class and caste (Mahalingam, 2003). Related research explicitly challenges the essentialist notions like women are ‘the non-aggressive sex’ and that aggression among females are ‘in competition for men’ (Day, Brandon, & McFadden,
Since the beginning of biological time, males and females have had noticeable and unnoticeable differences. These differences have caused conflicts, which have endured time and are still a part of our modern everyday lives. However, the discord has become more defined than what is characterized as a woman and a man. In order to attempt accordance between the sexes, it is essential that we educated ourselves in the true meanings of men, women, masculinity, femininity and the power aspects involved.
Suggested roles of all types set the stage for how human beings perceive their life should be. Gender roles are one of the most dangerous roles that society faces today. With all of the controversy applied to male vs. female dominance in households, and in the workplace, there seems to be an argument either way. In the essay, “Men as Success Objects”, the author Warren Farrell explains this threat of society as a whole. Farrell explains the difference of men and women growing up and how they believe their role in society to be. He justifies that it doesn’t just appear in marriage, but in the earliest stages of life. Similarly, in the essay “Roles of Sexes”, real life applications are explored in two different novels. The synthesis between these two essays proves how prevalent roles are in even the smallest part of a concept and how it is relatively an inevitable subject.
Harding, Sandra. Whose Science? Whose Knowledge? Thinking from Women’s Lives. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1991. 43. Web.
Because men and women constitute the human species biologically, culturally and socially, we presuppose that no essential differences in humanity exists between men and women. Both are sharers in an identical human nature, since both engage in activities of knowing, choosing, communicating, feeling, loving which are activities which are characterize humans. We recognize that among human beings, and among men in general and women in general, there are different ways of reaching a decision, knowing, feeling, interacting, with others, but these differences, significant as they are, do not establish that men and women are essentially different beings, different species of reality.
Gender roles and identity are constantly shifting throughout different societal generations. Men and woman both have notable similarities and differences in genders and they each contribute to their personalities and actions. In the past men have been viewed as a more dominant sex in society over women, both in careers, home life, and sexually, however, today women have bridged many of the gaps and society is accepting a more equal view of genders. The following examines the similarities and differences between men and woman by looking at biological characteristics, gender roles, and sexual responses.
She is expected to live under the shadows of her husband commands and seize the stereotype of "the ideal housewife." A women’s identity is define by the idea of her gender and the internal forces that force her to fallow this notion. In many cases, the simple idea of pursuing a political career causes dismay in society. However, in order for a woman to achieve a level of equality that is just, there must be a change in the infrastructure of the women’s role, politically, and economically. In the article “Autonomy and the Struggle for Female Identity: Implications for Counseling Women,” McBride strongly declares, “Much of the feminist literature over the last 20 years has focused on the injustices done to women in our society, the need to validate women for their differences from men, and the need to move toward equality politically, economically, and socially ” (McBride 22). McBride concurs with the idea of providing women a place in society to encourage social acceptance in their work, and help them shape their own positive identity in their respective fields (22). This is not an issue that has risen in our society recently, but is an issue that we have taken for granted, and seen as a normal aspect of a women’s