Social Norms In 'Being A Gentlewoman'

According to societal expectations, women are expected to be docile and submissive to men. Daisy, a character in The Great Gatsby, claims that she hopes her daughter will “be a fool- that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool” (Fitzgerald 17). Put simply, women are expected to look pretty and keep their mouths shut and opinions to themselves. By being a “beautiful little fool” a girl would grow up, unaware and ignorant of the constraints put on her (Fitzgerald 17). Similarly, Rugen from The Princess Bride says, “Your

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

As one looks through society, one starts to see many cracks and loopholes where one set of standards does not apply the same way for men as it does to women, and vice versa.

As a country, we have come a long way to reaching equality between women and males. During the 19 centuries women fought for their right to vote. When talking about gender, there are a lot issues that continue to be present until this day. Women had to fight for equality during the 19 century which lead up women in today’s society to have a voice. Despite of all the improvement close to gender equality, society still expect particular things from females and males.

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.

As the world is evolving, so is respect for women. However, it was not always like this. Historically, women were seen as objects that men could use at their disposal. The men saw them as vulnerable human beings and took advantage of the fact that they did not see themselves as anything greater than making their husbands happy. This, in turn, was the mindset embedded in women.

In today’s society, men are more likely to be respected than a woman is, and this could be because men look like they know what they're doing, but this is not always true. Another reason is because men create clicks in the workforce, “an intimate cabal of manliness where co-workers become friends, while women are ousted to the outskirts” (D'Alimonte, 2013) and this causes a division between men and women when it comes to

Society gets to pick and chose what is acceptable or not for each gender. Society has built up the idea that men should be handsome, strong, athletic, and forbidden to show any emotion. For women, they should be pretty, girly, wear makeup and dresses, and can talk about their feelings. All these typical gender roles are seen as acceptable in

Manners is something long forgotten and women are again treated as trash. People have forgotten the code of conduct that people should be held accountable for. The world has faltered and there is no way to tell if they can find their way back to a time filled with

Since the beginning of human civilization, societies have always held certain standards and behavioral codes that the members of the society had to follow. Even though these standards weren’t ‘written in stone’, so to speak, there was an unspoken requirement that men and women were supposed to follow them. Also, there were different codes for the different genders and ages. A female child had different codes to follow than an old wise man. Today, there are still behavioral codes that societies follow and adhere to.

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.

Gender equality is promoted for women's self-esteem and universal recognition, but in the process of respecting each other in the society, chivalry is also a right which men choose to perform. Chivalry is a promotion of gender equality due to the basis that men are polite and supportive to women. If women as independent human beings who have the rights to function the same as men in the society, men should have the same rights. Chivalry is men's behavior and conduct, and their choices represent gender equality as well. If men offer to carry heavy bags or hold the door for women, most women would feel pleased due to the respects they receive. However, some might argues that men who offer helps to women are offending them and hurting their dignity

I am the only female in the house. I grew up with two sisters, my mom and dad. I had never been concerned with making sure my boys respected women. I thought it was a given. My husband is very pro-woman. He never insist that something is woman’s job or a man’s job. He cooks, does the laundry, change diapers, etc. I seriously think the man would have carried our babies for me if he could. So where did get these gender role notions?

Throughout history, humans have always been expected to act a certain way depending on their sex. These societal expectations are called gender roles. (Rathus, 2010, p.447). These roles begin to develop even before a child is even out of the womb. A mother may decorate their nursery pink if they are having a daughter because “girls like pink,” and “boys like blue.” Gender roles should not be confused with gender stereotypes. A gender stereotype is a narrow way of thinking about how men and woman are obligated to behave. For example, men have always been considered to be the breadwinners of the family. Females, on the other hand, are seen more as the gentle homemakers that stay home to clean and take care of the children. (Rathus, 2010, p.447). These types of stereotypes have caused certain out-of-the-home jobs to be mainly categorized for either women or men, causing an even more distinct line between the genders.

November 24, 1922 12pm.: Ever since I cut my hair I’ve never felt so free. I refuse to wear the corsets that I have been obligated to use since childhood. You cannot believe how relived I am to not have to wear those tight close fitting undergarments. So instead I have started wearing loose dresses that I feel more comfortable in. My mother always told me that men liked women with a slim waist and emphasized breast and with my new look no man will want to marry me. Of course she is livid. Not only at the fact that I cut the “beautiful long cascade of never ending long dark hair” as she says, but mostly because I’m rebelling against society’s norm. I’ve decided that it is time to take a stand for my rights and fight for my independence. I refuse to comply too these social norms. The submissive woman, restricted from freedom due to her traditional modest, accustomed, womanly gender roles. I will not be that woman. I will be the change. I’ve seen my mother, grandmother do it for years and I’ve had it. We have been repressed, and made slaves of the household generating a perspective that all we have to offer is pleasing our men and doing chores. But these social conventions will finally come to an end. Thanks too many women who have decided to be the change for today’s society. The Voting right for women has already commenced. And I can’t find the words to describe how incredibly joyful I am that now we have the right to vote. As of now we have a whole new sector of power and