University:
University of Alabama
Course:
WS 200 | Intro To Women Studies
Academic year:

2023
Views:

327

Pages:

1
Author:

Izabella Cooper

WS Module 4 Short Writing Assignment Gender has always been apart of our lives. Since birth, we have been playing the role of a gender. Based on our genitals, we are placed in a category of male or female and are placed in a world of stereotypes and how civilization perceives you. This is where social construction comes into play. People have associated many things with gender including clothes, hair, colors, mannerism, etc. Judith Lorber talks about this in the article titled "Social Construction of Gender". Lorber was on the subway and saw a baby with dark colored clothes on along with a baseball cap. This led Lorber to believing the baby was a boy due to its appearance but after seeing the earrings and flowered shoes, she realizes the baby is a girl after all. In the article, Lorber mentions "Every society classifies people as "girl and boy children," "girls and boys ready to be married," and "fully adult women and men," constructs similarities among them and differences between them, and assigns them to different roles and responsibilities." Society needs a way to label people that can't think or choose fore themselves which is why it always starts at birth. Over time, as children hit puberty and go through different life experiences of their own, they choose what gender they want to continue being perceived as. There are characteristics that go along with gender as well. Boys or men are seen as aggressive, competitive, and stronger. Girls or women are seen as fragile, timid, and "lady-like". These characteristics are what make you masculine or feminine. Femininity includes painted nails, dresses, makeup, and accessories. Masculinity would include baggy clothes and being rough. As a society, females were expected to act lady like in respect to boys. You are expected to cook and clean, watch the kids, and serve as a good wife your husband. This stereotype was pushed for years by civilization and it increased the idea of masculinity and femininity. Women and men were limited because of stereotypes and the traditional gender roles like these. "Girl" by Jamaica Kincaid talks about the day to day life of a female and what is expected of them. The article repetitively states "not like the slut you are so bent on becoming". There are expectations of women that aren't on men and this article clearly shows that. Everything the girl is learning how to do or has rules on is to please a man in the long run. On men, they are expected to be the boss of the household and can never be anything less. A man can't wear makeup or want to be a stay at home husband because that isn't appropriate according to society's traditional gender roles. Many people are now breaking the standards and doing what is best for them. Gender is no longer picked for you and expected because there are many other ideas that differ the ways of living.