Gender Norms : Women And Their Plight Throughout History

Throughout this course, we learned that women’s studies originated as a concern at the time that “women and men noticed the absence, misrepresentation, and trivialization of women [in addition to] the ways women were systematically excluded from many positions of power and authority” (Shaw, Lee 1). In the past, men had more privileges than women. Women have battled for centuries against certain patterns of inadequacy that all women experience. Every culture and customs has divergent female

Norms in society are the expectations of actions in specific situations. Social norms keep human social relations and behavior stable. Norms are “rules” that have developed within a particular society taking into account its values, culture and way of living. Sometimes, it is even the case that individuals do not have a choice and rarely recognize that fact that social norms have arbitrary origins because they have experienced this during the ongoing process of living (Clinard and Meyer 2011:10). Thus, gender norms are sometimes seen as limiting, disenfranchising and oppressive. People who are in less-favored or less-accepted norms are sometimes pushed to “deviate” from the norm in order to achieve some form of “liberation” from their

Gender roles have played a major part in society. According to the book “The Psyche of Feminism” “A gender role is a theoretical construct in the social sciences that refers to a set of social and behavioral norms that are considered to be socially appropriate

Gender roles are the portrayal or demeanor learned by a person as appropriate to their gender, determined by the prevailing cultural norms. Currently many women and men are trying to escape the traps of society that force them into a precise “women” or “man.” Why are women who want to better the way they are, seen as wrong because they want to one-up men. To what extreme will culture go in order to manipulate women into believing they need to live by certain rules created by the thought that men are and will always be better than women. The goal of our research paper is to show the gender norms in each culture, and to inspire the readers regardless the gender to diminish the boundaries that gender roles, and society form and try to demand from an individual. We will first address communication between the genders, the gender norms in the Mexican culture followed by the Russian culture and the African culture. Then we will address the genders at work and home as well as the eyes of society. In many different cultures, the stereotypical aspect of how women should be, result in women being inadequate to express their true feeling and thoughts because of the fear of being dishonored, thought of as less and the fear of being less of a women than those that remain in the women stereotypes.

Gender inequality has been the main focus for many centuries through the use of discrimination and oppression women were exploited. Where women had very little rights of their own or a voice in society but made many sacrifices to achieve equal rights whether it be in employment or other areas of inequality. As men were seen as masculine breadwinners and women as more feminine by looking after the family and raring of children.

Gender “norms” do not exist because of biology, but because of society. (Cum.) Lorber indicates society is the cause of gender discrimination when she states, “Gendered people do not emerge from physiology or hormones but from the exigencies of the social order…” (Lorber 732). The social order separates “male” and “female”, and constricting them to each gender.

There are difference between sex and gender, and as time passes they become better known. Sex is known as male or female. Sex refers to the biology, the differences of chromosomes and hormones; internal and external sex organs of individuals. Gender is known by the terms “masculine” and “feminine”. Gender refers to the characteristics of a society or culture that are defined as either masculine or feminine. Gender roles refer to the characteristics and behaviors that different cultures attribute to the sexes. The evolution of gender norms happens by culture and region, and over time, there has been less of an emphasis on biology so much to explain differences between men and women, just know society shapes different outcomes and expectations

When looking at gender roles and the effects they have on society, one must ask why society still seemingly follows them. They are roles or behaviors learned by a person as appropriate to their gender, determined by the prevailing cultural norms. These norms have a very influential role in society, whether it is recognized or not. They can lead to the separation of genders on both physical and mental level, while also tearing down both in the process. Although there are many side effects and consequences of gender roles, the reasons why society chooses to still abide by them are quite extensive.

Norms are defined as beliefs and practices that are followed by society and are culturally approved (Wade and Ferre, 165). Gender norms have always existed but changed through time. In order to determine how drastic the change has been and how it affected how individuals, interviews must be conducted. Four individuals were interviewed on how gender norms have changed during their lifetime. The interviewees consisted of a 50-year-old woman, a 19-year-old woman, a 55-year-old man and a 20-year-old man.

Gender roles are basically “society norms” It tells types of behaviors that are considered acceptable for a person based on their sex. The expectations include of how a person should act, dress, and talk.

Since childhood, we are taught what norms are appropriate and meant for depending on the gender we are ascribed to. Ferris and Stein (2014), define norms as “the rules and guidelines regarding what kinds of behaviors are acceptable and appropriate within [a certain] culture (84). These gender norms are passed down to us through the culture our parents and ancestors belonged to.

Over the past decades, gender roles and family relations have changed, specifically in marriage and in family relations. Men and women now have equal rights, which means women can work at any job they would like, have a right to vote, and do not have to live under any rule of their family. Back in 1450-2000 circa people would live under very tight ruling where you either follow the rules or die.There were a few similarities as well as differences during this time in Western Europe and the Middle East.

Do you know what gender norms are? Gender norms are gender roles, applying behaviours and attitudes that are shown acceptable and appropriate for their own sex (gender) into society and the world. How gender norms are reflected and opposed are explained in this response, sourcing from the comedy film, She’s the Man. There are many scenes where gender norms are reflected in the film, She’s the Man.

The progress in the education of gender norms has significantly advanced in recent years. The labels people used to use to identify someone’s gender has changed as more and more people start to identify outside of the original male/female genders. Sara Leifeste mentions in her article that kids are “still being socialized into their designated gender” meaning that after kids have somewhat developed, they are still being put into predesigned gender roles and are not given a choice (1). I agree that gender and sex are not the same, and that education on what the gender norms are starts with identifying the difference between gender and sex and evaluating the gender binary and going to a deeper understanding the people who live in and outside

Throughout history, women have been seen in many different lights. From a woman’s perspective she is strong, smart, helpful and equal to men. In the eyes of men, she is seen as the weaker being, the housewife, and the caretaker. By looking at the following pieces of writing, one can see that through the centuries, women have struggled to break out of the mold that man had put her in and make themselves known in society as important.