Gender And Gender Identity

​​Gender is defined as whatever behaviors and attitudes a group considers proper for its males and females. Unlike sex, gender is something that we learn from the day we are born. “Young children begin to acquire gender role stereotypes at about the same time they develop gender identity and by the age of 3 or 4 most children” (Amanda Youmans). Peers, community, media, religion and our upbringing all play a role in the understanding of our culture and what is considered acceptable for males and females. When the sex of a child is revealed, they are automatically placed into a gender specific role with certain expectations. There are things in this world such as colors, toys, media depiction and taught behaviors that play into these gender roles.

A person’s sex is determined on the basis of three fundamental human physiognomies, chromosomes (XX for a female and XY for a male), gonads (ovaries for females and testes for males) and the obvious being genitals (vagina for a females and a penis for males). However socially, gender identity is formulated on the grounds of stereotypical roles from both

Now, I will be looking at how identity relates to gender at the personal level. The article speak of Identity on a personal level mostly, it is when they are looking at how ideas are impacting people, on an intimate way and looking at the motivation of peoples actions. For example, Somers analysis on the new political identity (pg. 219); New political identities are positions and political activities that are more self-centered. They are motivated by people who have

Transgender can be defined as a person whose self-identity does not conform precisely to conventional notions of the male or female gender. This self-identity problem can usually be accompanied by numerous forms of treatment to change ones’ physical appearance, and make it more consistent with their identified gender identity. In many cases, the individual can identify with the gender of the opposite sex to the point one believes that he or she is a member of that gender group trapped in the wrong body. This is also called Gender Dysphoria or formerly known as Gender Identity Disorder. The person with gender dysphoria or GD at times does not know that he or she have an actual disorder but more of a general discomfort with his or her biological sex. This also creates complications in their everyday life, when they are unable to interpret their feelings or rationalize problems they experience in a social setting (Gender Dysphoria, 2014).

Gender is considered an axis of social order. Its categorisation into masculinity and femininity is social constructed and maintained in everyday life (Clark and Page, 2005; Mackie, 1994). Gender identity is our innermost understanding of our self as ‘male’ or ‘female’. Most people develop a gender identity that matched their biological sex (their body). Gender identity can be affected by, and is different from one society to another, depending on the way the members of society evaluate the role of females and males. Our gender identity can be influenced from the ethnicity of the group, their cultural background, and family values. Gender like social class and race can be used to socially categorize people and even lead to prejudice and discrimination. From day –to-day, continuous production of gender has been called ‘doing gender’ (West and Zimmermann, 1987), meaning that gender is “made” by us in everyday lives in our interactions with others.

Gender identity is the personal conception of being a man or a woman and the society creates standards and comes up with gender roles basing them on existing norms and traditions which will in turn influence gender identity. For instance, most societies associate strength and dominance to be masculine roles while caring and assisting or subordination known to be feminine roles. This clearly makes gender identity be bred within the society. One’s identity is important as it influences his or her life through events like life experiences, how one is being taken or treated, how to do one associate or socialize with others, the type of job one will have to do and also opportunities that may come up favoring a certain type of gender identity. One is also likely to face obstacles or discrimination due to his or her identity.

Gender appears to be a fundamental category taken place in our identity and has emphasized to us at an early age. Going to Wal-Mart and Target we discovered that tons of our preferences are made for us before we are even born. As an infant, it seems that boys prefer blue and girls prefer pink. Because of our gender ideology and socialization, it is easy to differentiate which clothes/toys are for boys and which are for the girls.

Gender identity is one’s personal sense of identity within their own gender, which in most societies consists of membership in two groups: males and females (Carlson & Heth, 2009). In Western societies, gender binary exists, classifying gender and sex into the opposite, disconnected structures of masculinity and femininity (Garber, 1997; Rosenblum, 2000). This division of genders creates a barrier, discouraging individuals from crossing society’s idea of normal gender roles. All societies have individuals who do not personally identify with all aspects of their biological sex, and in 1965 these individuals were first classified as transgender (Oliven & A, 1965). Transgender individuals are those who

When I first started thinking about gender roles and how they influence us, I wanted to argue for how things have gotten more equal for both sexes in our society. Women and men alike have gradually shifted into roles once believed to be the sole territory of either one sex or the other, making gender equality highly valued by most people now-a-days. We also now acknowledge the differences between gender identity and sexual identity, and the roles that transgender, bisexual, gay/lesbian, and heterosexual individuals bring to our society. However, when I started to really reflect upon the 21st century, I began to realize that many of the culturally defined ways of behaving for men and women today still seem to be from the norm of a time so long past it isn’t funny. Two current examples, in our society today women face caps on how far they can go in the workforce due to a pre-established “glass ceiling” that dominates in a still very male oriented work environment; on the flipside, many people, men and women alike, will snub their nose at the “stay-at-home dad,” because both sexes still see house work and childcare as the women place.

Gender plays an enormous role in every society around the world. There are debates about whether gender is defined by strictly biological characteristics or social attributes. Others argue that gender is a spectrum, rather than the dichotomy of male and female. Masculinity and femininity are sets of attributes, roles and behaviors that are associated with men and boys and girls and women, respectively. Both masculinity and femininity have specific traits that are both biologically and socially defined. People are expected to conform to these traits depending on their biological sex. However, there are people who do not relate to either masculine or feminine traits, and do not feel that they are a “man” or a “woman”. This is when the topic of gender identity comes into the discussion. In the past decades, more research and on gender identity have been conducted. Gender identity is significant in how people are viewed and treated in society.

Gender identity is an unfamiliar and confusing concept to many people. Until recently, Americans have been taught and conditioned to believe that one’s anatomy and genetics are what determines one’s gender. Acting or dressing like the other gender was considered disgusting and taboo, and people who claimed to be transgender were thought of as severely mentally ill. Some would even confuse gender identity with sexual orientation; like believing that all transgender people are gay. However, now that the LGBT community is gaining more popularity and momentum than ever before, these individuals are slowly but surely becoming more understood and treated equally, as the idea of gender identity uncertainty and exploration is becoming more widely accepted. Americans are finally opening their eyes and ears so to be educated about these misunderstood and mistreated people. Has this been effective? Before that question can be answered, one must understand the terminology behind the discussion.

In today 's world there are more than two genders. Believe it or not there are (unofficially) eight genders, and according to Facebook, there are fifty-eight genders to choose from. It is not simple anymore.

Gender is the social identity of a person; it characterizes what society and culture portrays as feminine and masculine. Sex however, determines the biological and hormonal difference between female and male. “Gender relations are the ways in which a culture or society defines rights, responsibilities, and the identities of men and women in relation to one another” (Bravo-Baumann, 2000, what is gender). Biological sex of a person establishes the

Gender is imprinted in a person’s identity. A person’s identity is closely connected to the social institutions he or she includes himself in. These social institutions have influence over the lives of individuals in various aspects. One social institution an individual imparts oneself in is religion. Religious institutions use scriptures as the primary basis for life such as the Holy Bible for the Catholics and the Quran for the Muslims. Of the data given, some Christians and Muslim non-heterosexuals experience social exclusion because of some spiritual texts (Yip, 2005). According to a survey by Pew Research Center 's Social & Demographic Trends done in 2013 on the religious affiliations, 48% of the LGBT Americans did not have one. The executive director of the Gay Christian Network, Justin Lee said, "[the study] reflects a lot of my own experience in the LGBT community. Many LGBT people have felt a lack of understanding and love from religious groups-Christians in particular-and, as a result, they often walk away from their childhood faith and may even become very hostile to religion.” That statement is just one of the many sentiments non-heterosexuals experience in today’s contemporary society. The following paragraphs will discuss how Christian and Muslims non-heterosexuals critique the traditional hermeneutics and the credibility of institutional interpretive authority of Judeo-Christian Scriptures and Islam’s Holy Book – the Quran. There are two approaches namely, the

Seeing the riots and protests on the news can help people to put life in perspective, and with there being more and more issues with genders today it makes people wonder why. With there being so many genders that people identify with in this, the 21st century, it can get to be confusing and difficult for some people to follow and understand this ‘why’ behind people’s choices. Changes have been made within communities all around the country; eventually, other groups join into the changes. Some example of these being businesses, colleges, and other organisations. Though there are many people who aren’t involved with any sort of issue having to do with a person’s gender identity, those who are impacted by these decisions go through many different situations. A parent’s decisions while raising their child(ren) have a great impact on what the child identifies themselves as later on in life and the way that they express themselves in public. There being an increased amount of tension around the matter will more than likely continue growing as the publicity on the issue continues.