End Of Gender

While reading “Gender,” an essay by Jack Halberstam, the topic of sexism was brought to the forefront of my mind. It has been brought up more often in conversation in the modern era, issues such as how a few cruel insults pertain to female reproductive anatomy and, in a sense, degrade females and ultimately identify them, as well as femininity, as inherently “bad”. Such a thought stemmed from how Halberstam touches on the “problematic stabilization of the meaning of ‘women’ and ‘female’”: meaning there is no room for argument when it comes to your gender—you’re either a girl or not. You either fit into a strict mold, or you do not.

Culture often thrives off of polar opposites—hot and cold, bitter and sweet, male and female. By setting up these opposing constructs, one can easily find a set definition for each. A hot surface could scorch someone or a cold temperature could cause them to shiver. In the same way, a bitter substance would be less enjoyable to eat than a sweet one. These terms are often defined by mentioning their antitheses. Because it’s comfortable to embrace specificity and certainty, topics such as gender and gender expression often get simplified into binary existences—however, they don’t quite operate under the same parameters. In an essay entitled “Bad Feminist”, Dr. Roxane Gay explores and warns against the dangers of binary thinking. Throughout

This semester, I am taking Intro to Sociology and we have been looking at different perspectives of our society. One thing we are studying is how from at such a young age, we are taught to assign gender roles. In Patricia J. Williams’ magazine article, “Are We Worried about Storm’s Identity- or Our Own”, an essay taken out of the Nation magazine (June 2011), she tells a story about Storm, whose parents choose not to reveal the sex of their baby. She is a legal scholar and examines issues related to law and culture. Williams focuses on all the stereotypes that we associate with gender, how we as a society find social order in assigning gender roles, and the need to have the proper pronouns so that we know how/what to label a person. The author’s use of ethos and logos really brings the point home that we need to be more open about all the possibilities associated with gender and pronouns.

Inequality between different groups of people within the United States is concerning for many sociologists and society in general. One of the main inequalities throughout the United States is gender inequality. Gender inequity is found in all past and present societies. It takes the form of patriarchy. From the patriarchal point of view, gender inequality can be traced back to biological differences in early societies (“Steven Goldberg on Patriarchy” 2006). This inequality is present in society through many different forms, including job segregation, the gender pay gap, and a great difference in women’s political representation (Joan Acker, 1989).

Gender is one of the most heated terms in the English language during the 21st century, whose role seems to be constantly changing, always on the move, reflecting new updated meanings for society. Gender roles often portray the fairness and justice of any given society, hence the more equality genders reach, the more advanced and sophisticated the society is considered to be. They also suggest a set of rules that males and females have to follow and play their parts in order to define genders. However, the ambiguity of society’s confinement, like an invisible hand around everybody’s neck, draws attention to the artificiality of what we define as “acceptable” behaviors.

An ever changing, yet common issue, in today's generation revolves around how society views gender. The general consensus dictates that gender, as a whole, is a spectrum, rather than a standard set for each individual male and female to follow throughout everyday life. However, there are those individuals who wish to remain reluctant in changing their view of society. Some believe it is better to allow the education system to be segregated by gender, in order to provide more resources to both girls and boys. One person in favor of this public education reform is David Brooks, a neuroscientist who published the article titled “The Gender Gap at School.” A thorough analysis of the effects of literature on men and women, biological factors

Our society’s gender roles are constantly evolving and changing, all in the name of “progressive thinking”, though not all for the good. With a new “social norm” appearing every few years or so, it comes as a surprise that it

Today in our American society, the majority of U.S, citizens are still following the gender norms that have been created for both sexes with some twinks. As America is known for the changes made to itself throughout the years, such as phones, TVs, and other electronic devices that would have been seen as impossible back then, it’s ironic to see that societies views on the dos and don’ts of gender haven’t been as widely developed. However, these developments on gender aren’t bad as they also helped women gain the right to vote in the 1920s, allowed same-sex couples to have the benefits of marriage in 2015, and now more women are being involved in politics not only in the U.S. but in other countries too. In an article written by Samantha Olsen, What It Means To ‘Be A Man’: How Male Gender Stereotypes Try To Fit Growing Boys Into A Mold And Fail, Olsen, informs her audience using effective strategies that make the audience understand why gender stereotypes affect societies young men abysmally.

When thinking of gender roles in society, stereotypes generally come to mind. Throughout history these stereotypes have only proven to be true. Major historical events have had a huge impact on the way men and women are seen and treated. In this way, women have always been secondary to males and seen as the fragile counterparts whose job is to take care of the household and most importantly, be loyal to her husband no matter the circumstance. Gender roles throughout history have greatly influenced society. The slow progress of woman’s rights throughout humanities led to an explosion of woman’s rights throughout the 20th century and that trend will only continue on into the rest of the 21st century.

Prior to reading the article Doing Gender, I have never paid attention to the concept of doing gender. I found it interesting how these roles go so unnoticed because they are so enforced in our society. We never stop to think or questions if an individual’s actions are masculine or feminine. For example, some of us are just so use to having our mothers cook and our dad’s do all the heavy lifting but we never stop to think why is it like this or what does this represent.

Gender issues have recently hit the surface pretty hard and has made life changing impacts, nationally. Some political topics have been on same-sex marriage and restrooms for transgendered students. The nation is divided in regards to gender issues. The recent awareness has forced the government to step in and back up laws that are for and against these issues. Analyzing our lives on a daily basis seems easy, but after reading The Gender Trap: Parents and Pitfalls of Raising Boys and Girls by Emily Kane, I didn't realize how much I actually gender my children and how it could affect them in the future. Interviews

Throughout today’s society, almost every aspect of someone’s day is based whether or not he or she fits into the “norm” that has been created. Specifically, masculine and feminine norms have a great impact that force people to question “am I a true man or woman?” After doing substantial research on the basis of masculine or feminine norms, it is clear that society focuses on the males being the dominant figures. If males are not fulfilling the masculine role, and females aren’t playing their role, then their gender identity becomes foggy, according to their personal judgment, as well as society’s.

Another area that illustrates massive shifts in public opinion and judicial decisions involves gender discrimination. This issue area is extremely controversial as the feminist movement has been strong since the 1960s, paving the way for equality for women. Today in America, women take advantage of the rights feminist leaders have won while debating new issues. For example, in the past two years, the gender wage gap has been seen as a major issue with many men trying to claim it does not exist or, if it does that it is a woman’s fault for picking less lucrative careers (NOW 2016). The Feminist in the modern media is portrayed as crazy, with comments on feminist posts stating “Feminism’s goals are to demonise men, control and bully women, and secure advantages for feminists. It is an odious cult” (Guest 2015). This stereotype of radical man-hating runs deep and has destroyed the credibility of the movement (Bedard 2011).

An incredibly sensitive subject that has only been silently amplified in the 21st century, is the topic of Sex, Gender, and Women vs. Men. We're living in the time of tiny cellular devices and electric cars, yet with all these technological advances, when it comes to gender equality it almost feels like we've been going around in a ridiculous merry-go-round.

Over the past few years, there appears to have been exponential growth in discussion surrounding gender identity and the role educators ought to have in gender alignment. Multiple groups in BC have clashed over the issue, resulting in national media coverage. The proposed SOGI curriculum, for instance, has sparked a heated discussion between those for and against it, prompting Chilliwack school trustee Barry Neufeld call allowing children to choose their gender “child abuse” (Global News). The other side of the argument saw bi-partisan MLA support in favor of the new curriculum (Abbynews).