Gender Inequality And Relevant Social Norms

The book introduced the topic of women’s and gender studies and what this course entails. It is defined by the book as; an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to topics concerning women, gender, and feminism. It delves further into the history WGS of how to originated and the progress it has made through to today. WGS has now been integrated into most college curriculums and can even be chosen as a major. The feminist movement has been divided into separate “waves” where specific times of feminism are grouped together. Women’s studies originated during the 2nd wave. Feminism is usually associated with WGS, which is a word that comes with copious baggage, although it is a movement for equality and social justice for all. They further describe the myths associated with feminism like they are men-haters and lesbians causing many people to shy away from calling themselves a feminist, although they may agree with many feminist views. The book concludes by stating that there is still much work to be done regarding the rights and equality of women.

In society these days there is a noticeable difference in the treatment of men and women, the most common examples would be found in the social, business and culturally convention realms. These ways of life have double standards in many different ways. There are many ways to convey the ways of discrimination towards women by men.

According to the first chapter Untangling the “F” –word in Women’s Lives: Multicultural Perspectives by Gywn Kirk and Margo Okazawa-Ray, women’s studies programs were birthed from the idea of feminism. The course began to pop up at different universities across the United States in the 1970’s; the course allows an in depth study of women in social and cultural aspects. Women’s studies courses attempt to explain the experiences and significance of women, which in turn sheds a new light onto the lives of many men and women. Today, the course informs and challenges many men and women to critically think not only in the course but also for the rest of their lives. Feminism can sometimes be misinterpreted, and the ideals of feminism are frequently

In other words, the overall goal of this creative project is not only to make the individual aware of the broad branches of feminism, but to spark their imagination on how they can make a positive impact and further the development of gender equality. Moreover, in some of the activities, I provide background information so the individual would be able to imagine how it felt to be a feminist in a given time and analyze what they would have done in that scenario. For example, one of the activities I do is describe women’s suffrage and try to recreate the tribulations woman underwent to vote by providing a voting exam and allowing them to create their own suffrage sign they would have used. The book also contains engaging questions parents can ask their children, or vice-versa, while completing the different exercises. The purpose of this is to help develop a conversation concerning the different topics each activity reinforces and help guide parents in ways they can engage and interact with their

Gender inequality plays a critical role when it comes to social progress. As a woman,

During these last thirteen weeks, I have discovered a lot about myself, not only as a student, but as a feminist. Before taking this class, I knew that I wanted to be a feminist. I believed that women should stand up and exercise their rights to be equal to men on every level. Be that as it may, I lacked the education required to develop my own sense of feminism--my feminist manifesto, if you will. When approaching the topic of feminism, every person needs to ask themselves a list of questions: Who am I? Who do I want to be? What has influenced me as a person? How can I help? These are the beckoning questions we, as developing and purposeful human beings, ask ourselves every day, and these are the questions that will lead each and every person

I was born in a family where I never had to worry about my race or ethnicity. Both of the terms are “social construction” which means that “society has created this category” and “it has more meaning socially than biologically” (Race and Ethnicity for OLS Prezi). Race is how we look, or “a social definition based on shared lineage and a real or presumed, biological characteristic,” while ethnicity is a social definition of groups that are “typically defined on the basis of some cultural characteristic such as language, religion, traditions, and cultural practices” (Ritzer, 223). The whole nature of racism boils down to having a dominant group who believes that they are superior, such as more civilized or physically more evolved than the minority

We all had our share of favorite Disney films when we were growing up. Girls lean more toward all of the Disney princess films. One Disney princess in particular that everyone loves is Cinderella. Cinderella is what every little girl wishes they could be, with her long blonde hair, and finding her prince charming. However, “By looking a little bit further into Disney films, we realize that they were setting up gender roles for us as kids, that we aren 't completely comfortable with today” (“Gender Roles in Disney Films”). Now, as adults we realize that Cinderella was mainly about gender roles and societal norms. “Results suggest that the prince and princess characters differ in their portrayal of traditionally masculine and feminine characteristics, these gender role portrayals are complex, and trends towards egalitarian gender roles are not linear over time” (England, Descartes and Collier-Meek).

The readings and video that have been discussed in this lesson have definitely changed my perspective on many things relating to feminism and women’s oppression as a whole. Before I started this class, I was unaware of all the events women went through in for their rights. Now, that I have started this class I have become more aware of how women’s rights has become a prominent issue in America today.

When we look at gender, we look at the social norms that are associated with, within each gender. Each gender has an individual way of communicating. Women talk about things guys would not understand, and we see males talk about things that females would not ever think of talking about. We live in a society where women have to be polite and not vulgar. On the other hand, it is considered okay for men to talk in a vulgar or impolite way. For example, in a school setting, if a girl said something inappropriate, a teacher might scold her for her behavior. But if a boy said something impolite, a teacher might brush it off and say, “Boys will be boys”. A time where I have witnessed men and women displaying different idiolects would be a personal

All of these, ageism, racism, and heterosexism are all interconnected in some way, shape or form. They all portray a group of people negatively and places judgement on them all. They all have the power to isolate, control and destroy. Each of the -isms all work to create a definite norm, which in America is, being a white, heterosexual, church0-going male, with a job and access to resources. Anything outside of this breaks the definite norm

Feminism is a topic often overseen by many because it can be deemed as “weak” or even “hateful” to those who encounter the word. This is slightly expected because of the frequent negative association linked to practicing feminism or being a feminist. Another major reason is because feminism is not explored as much as it deserves to be, before any serious judgements are made. In We Should All Be Feminists by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, being a feminist is explained and supported through Adichie’s her own personal experiences as well as observations made and noted.

Not identifying as a feminist, I have become oblivious to some of the things that go on where thousands of women fight for on my behalf. I have identified myself as a non feminist and believe in the things that I have always been taught. Yet, there is many in my life who have identified themselves to be feminism or follow in the beliefs of feminism. With this subject being one that everyone already has their opinion about; we have no use trying to argue it, despite who is right or wrong on the topic. If and when it does pop up in conversation, I keep my two cents to myself because, in all honesty, I truly know nothing about feminism. In this paper, I hope to advance my knowledge of feminism to understand to a

Important theorists, eye-opening articles, groundbreaking books, and activism has influenced my intellectual journal through feminist theory. Feminism is a contentious topic with matters that pertain to contemporary feminism, including the following: reproductive rights; equal access to education and employment; marriage equality; violence against women; and the sex trade. While these are only a few of the issues faced by feminists, it is evident that feminism has great value in today’s society. My journey with feminism began in high school when a professor shared negative assumptions associated with my gender and Aboriginal heritage. This alone was motivation for me to pursue women’s studies, specifically on marginalized populations.

“You educate a man; you educate a man. You educate a woman; you educate a generation.” (Young). This quote illustrates the importance of women in today’s society and the crucial role they play in inspiring the next generation of young women. Feminism is a social perspective dedicated to equality and equal rights between both sexes, male and female. This social perspective has been and still is practiced by millions of feminists around the world fighting for equal rights. The feminist movement has undergone three waves in the past century, changing the face of the human race as we know it. It has changed social norms and shifted the norms and stereotypes of typical gender inequality that is embedded in daily practices. In Canada we still