Gender Roles Changes Through The Years Essay

Gender defined roles are continuously adapting to the new societal norms of the era. There is a surplus of historical events that have reimagined the traditional expectations of a man or women.

Women’s roles have changed greatly throughout history. As the advancement of culture, laws, and ideas altered ways of life, women’s lives also evolved in numerous aspects of society. Women’s roles changed greatly between 1815 and 1860. During this time, family dynamics changed as the mothers that were placed at the center of the household were given greater freedoms. In addition, women had more opportunity to take on jobs in the workplace. Women also fought for reform movements that altered their ways of life in the community. During the reform era of the United States, factors such as religion, education, and reforms greatly changed women’s roles in the family, workplace, and society.

Gender roles of diverse cultures have differed immensely throughout history. The evolution of gender roles first began in the Paleolithic Age and then began to transform with the transformation of the Paleolithic Age to the Neolithic Age. Women in Mesopotamia, India, Greece, China, and Rome were not treated as equals and viewed as inferior to men. Cultures like Egypt and Persia had similar laws for women and treated them with more respect out of any of the other cultures.

While social change has brought on more changes than what women are a custom too, at one point in history women actually felt a form of importance in fulfilling their roles not only in the home; but outside as well. “These demographic shifts account for many new or altered roles, such as increased number of duel-earner families, later and fewer marriages, fewer children, increased life expectancy, and the massive migration shifting employees across a nation and across the globe” (Lindsey, 2011, pg. 275).

Throughout history, men and women have been viewed in utterly different spheres. Men have been, and still are, believed to be the hard working individual who is in charge of “bringing home the bacon” and supporting the household finically. On the other hand, women are expected to have little to say, the house spotless, supper on the table, the children bathed, fed, in bed, and educated, all while maintaining a flawless hairdo and makeup. These stereotypes seem a bit offensive nowadays, but if you really consider it, it has been and most likely will be this way for our entire existence.

Women for years have been automatically given the role of the domestic housewife, where their only job is to cook, clean, and take care of the children. Men have usually taken the primary responsibility for economic support and contact with the rest of society, while women have traditionally taken the role of providing love, nurturing, emotional support, and maintenance of the home. However, in today’s society women over the age of sixteen work outside of the home, and there are more single parent households that are headed by women than at any other time in the history of the United States (Thompson 301.)

Gender roles became so complex in the twentieth century due how society has changed what men and women should be like. Men take being strong and independent as a God given right to them, while females on the other hand have had to work their way up in order to be titled independently strong. From growing up to early adulthood I faced the conflict of constantly worrying about how society wants me shape myself as a dependent and self-confident which was the complete opposite of me.

Women throughout time have experienced position changes more times than can be counted. Not just in modern times, gender roles began in the B.C.E era. In Egypt and India, gender roles were a huge part of society. In both locations, male’s word was law. What they said was the final answer and a woman could not change that. The gender distinctions were similar in ways that women had minimal power in familiar locations, like their homes. They had a small opinion about certain subjects, but they never ventured out of the comfort zone of subjects they were allowed to discuss. Men were treated better than women, yes, but the power women held was used for some of the most important topics.

Throughout life every man and woman fits into a specific gender role. We are told what is expected of men and women from birth until death. Many people influence our view of how we should act and what we should say such as our parents, friends, and even the media. Males and females play very different roles and these differences are apparent in our every day lives. These differences are not the same as they used to be. Society has changed the way it treats men and women over time.

To begin, gender roles are the expected behaviors that are associated with one’s sex (Croteau). Reiterating, women played the role of the nurturer for most of history. They cared for their children, kept the house tidy, did some farming and some labor but never as much as the men. When more defined jobs came into play they still incorporated a role that depicted women as a caregiver. During the 19th and 20th century, the medical profession was considered suitable for females. Even then, men for the most part worked in the hospitals as nurses. Home nursing was thought to be more proper for women (Women’s History In America).

Ever since the beginning of time we have always heard stories about men and their acts in society, but now over the past century that has been changing. Women have always been forced into the role of being a house wife set to raise children, clean, and cook. They have struggled to become more then what they are told to be, and now given the changes in society they have a chance. Although recently many women are taking this change to far.

Throughout History there has been defined gender roles that were set in stone. Men more often than not a the bread winner and had more physical roles. Women on the other hand had the less physical roles such as staying at home cooking clean and childcare. As we have went along we had seen as time moved on there has a been a change in this in a very big a and aggressive way. Starting back at the beginning of

It is amazing how the gender roles of women has changed since the 1900’s. in the 1900’’ women could do very very few things compared to men. But this has completely changed. Nowadays wome n can do almost everything a man can do.

Compared to contemporary society, the cliché stay at home mother is no longer the societal norm, as both genders are now assuming the maternal-home role.

The roles of men and women have changed in the last 30 years. In this