Femininity-Masculinity Analysis

To read Babio without recognizing the gender politics at work in the play would disregard much of how the play itself creates meaning. So much of the play’s plot and character dynamics are related to the way gender functions in this play. One major theme of Babio is the idea of masculinity and how masculinity is defined. Through the portrayal of Babio as an effeminate character, Babio is able to define masculinity through absences in Babio’s Character. Consequently, Babio makes the additional point that lovesickness is not an intrinsic aspect of medieval masculinity, despite the fact that love sickness is often attributed to men.

What is it to be a man? Masculinity is defined and characterized differently across cultures and time there is no “global” standard. In some cultures, being a man may mean being comfortable with both your masculine and feminine sides or it could suggest being “tough” and not letting your feelings show at all. Manliness can be demonstrated in some cultures by providing for a family through work, and in others, it might mean scoring the winning goal in a championship game. Trying to define one’s own masculinity and live up to its standards is a tough and grueling task that many men struggle with. Maintaining this masculinity is something that the male characters in both Death of a Salesman and A Raisin in the Sun are familiar with.

Generally, there are not as many documented physical abuse cases for men as there are for women. According to the National Domestic Violence Hotline (2014), men are less likely to seek help when it comes to physical abuse. “1 in 4 women (24.3%) and 1 in 7 men (13.8%) aged 18 and older in the United States have been the victim of severe physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime” (National Domestic Violence Hotline, 2014). The stigma revolving around masculinity and how society views men teaches them not to express their feelings and see themselves as victims. The common stereotype is that men are seen as the abusers and women are seen as victims, therefore men who express their feelings are seen as weak and incapable of being a “man”.

As described in the dictionary, masculinity is to, “have qualities appropriate to or usually associated with a man.” (Merriam-Webster Inc. 2004) Masculinity is defined more as a social than a biological convention. For example, society defines masculinity as a set of traits within behaviors and roles generally associated with boys or men. This is where the stereotypes of

In our society, masculinity can be broken down into five parts which include athletic abilities, economic success, sexual conquests, domination, and aggression. The typical male archetypes we see in the media are superheroes who show strength and athletic abilities, thug characters that promote violence and aggression, the man child character that is in a perpetual adolescence stage that engages in high risk activities and doesn’t face consequences, and finally the silent males that maintain control of their surroundings and don’t show emotion. These archetypes teach boys that instead of being sensitive they should give off a fear inducing energy which in turn allows them to maintain an indestructible, hard outer shell. Society in turn shapes masks of anger and aggression for boys and men to wear. For example, studies show that men who experience feelings of shame and

‘True’ masculinity follows a rulebook that explains appropriate male behaviour, especially in contemporary media. Craig (1992) states that the media does not give permission for ‘alternative interpretations of reality’. The beer industry relies on white males to interpret the reality that they wish the public to see. The stereotype of the ‘man’s man’ is utilized to attract a mainstream, predominantly male target audience. Alternative social types – sensitive men, homosexual men, and househusbands – are excluded from these premises. Beer advertisements are thus said to be a ‘manual on masculinity’ (Craig, 1992, p78). Men are often portrayed in a group drinking beer, never alone: they are part of a membership. To become a part of that community,

Throughout the world, countries and cultures are struggling with the idea of queer. The problem is that the United States and many countries live with the concept of patriarchy. Patriarchy is a social constructed structure to organize people to live in a gender binary society. The gender binary is the constructed gender roles that men and women are expected to do in which it affects the everyday lives of queers and it doesn’t allow them to freely express who they truly are. Historically, white heterosexual males and heterosexual families are the ideal model and are those in higher power.

Firstly, one of the aspects of gender role is the distinction of roles based on masculinity and femininity or sex and gender. Before Blanche’s arrival, for Stanley being the masculine and the head of the house who is in absolute control and Stela being the woman of the house who takes care of the house: their relationship was happily as both know their part and were comfortable with it. As a motif, Stanley brings the food symbolizing that he is the man of the house and Stella cooks the food that Stanley provides and in this simplicity, their role is clear and defined. As Stanley and Stella conversing;

Womanhood is often associated with femininity while manhood with masculinity. Masculinity is the idea that men are tough both physically and mentally. Femininity, a term associated with being women is used to describe a women’s comportment and attitude. A gentle individual male or female, who wears dresses, skirts, high heels, makeup, and has long hair would be identified as feminine. Unfortunately, society judges and criticizes a women who do not depict feminine characteristics. Such women are regarded as either homosexual or queer. I chose two pictures of Grace Jones to compare in this essay since she happens to be a gender bender and victim of alike persecutions. Additionally, Grace Jones is a supermodel and singer from Jamaica, who’s renowned for cross-dressing and artistic fashion styles (Williams). The picture titled, “Grace Jones/Nightclubbing,”was derived from the National Portrait Gallery,while the other from, “Essense” website, Jones demonstrates that women can be feminine or soft in one picture and masculine or hard in the other picture through her appearance.

Encarta dictionary defines masculinity as “those qualities conventionally supposed to make a man an excellent specimen”; but what exactly are those qualities? Many would say that physical strength, ability to compete in sports, or even the ability to hold liquor are all parts of masculinity. In ancient Greece, they called this quality andreia, literally meaning “manliness”. In truth, masculinity is a much deeper trait that can be viewed differently by a variety of people. Realistically, masculinity cannot be defined universally. A man who is considered masculine in France would most definitely not be considered masculine in the Middle East, simply because the cultures in those areas of the world are vastly different in their beliefs and

Growing up, I always felt a conflict between my femininity and my masculinity. As a small child I loved pink, and Barbie dolls, and flowers. I was always trying to sneak my mothers makeup, and frequently I was traipsing through my house in high heels 10 times too big for me. At the same time however, I also loved to fish with my grandpa. I liked riding around in a tractor, and getting dirt under my fingernails. I would look at my older brother and wish I could be him.

Indications of contemporary femininity and masculinity can be communicated through the slightest of cues, such as speech, dress, movement, or even the way one sits. According to Holly Devor in Gender Role Behaviors and Attitudes, these roles and traits are reinforced from birth, and internalized throughout adolescence. People in society use certain gender cues to indicate sex or contrariwise. However, a person’s sex and gender don't always mirror one another. This mainstream gender schema is seen throughout society, and can be noted through seemingly trivial indications. As seen in the photo, three individuals in business attire sit and pose next to one another. Physical appearances as well as the body language of how these people sit are supposedly

The rapid pace of Globalization has led to a change in the global economy during the past several decades; it is believe that factors such as trade liberalisation, access to cheaper labour and resources, similarity of consumer demand around the world, and advances in technology and communication has widened the market of consumption, investment as well as production on a global scale. These globalization driven factors created new challenges and global competition for businesses around the world thus as a response many companies decided to expand their operation across national borders in order to be competitive. A company that operates their business in at least one country other than its country is called Multinational

Given that the structure of gender qualities has been a large part of our views, in regards to a variety of issues, a number of people take exception to variances from within these rules. Keeping this in mind, we will discuss the reasons why many individuals are discouraged from crossing traditional gender traits, and closely examine parts of the article assigned for this paper.

The greatest diversion in cultural values between eastern and western nations can be observed through the mentality that shapes social behaviors in terms of relationships and in response to goals. The Hofstede dimension which best represents this aspect of society is the Individualism versus Collectivism index. This dimension refers to the degree of interdependence among the members in a particular society.