Anthony Ornelas Ornelas 1 Sociology 440 6/10/2013 Professor Inoue Gender Inequality The tendency of society to favor males and their masculinity has been a recurring theme throughout history and culture. As a result of these ideas, to be masculine is synonymous with dominance, while femininity directly correlates to weakness. These attitudes are responsible for the belief that women should stay at home and out of the way while men rule the world and control the money and society. That males enjoy social privilege is apparent even in American culture, though males do not often realize their own biases against women or the male privilege that they regularly enjoy and manipulate. Since claiming their role in society as capable human beings, women have been treated unfairly in the society when they haven’t been directly excluded from various fields that are socially less “suitable” for a woman.
For example, in the U.S. society males are traditionally expected to demonstrate aggressiveness and toughness, whereas females are expected to be passive and nurturing. There are a lot of dimensions to gender-role socialization, sexism for instance. Sexism is the subordination of one sex, usually the female, based on the assumed superiority of the other sex. Sexism directed at women has three components: (1) negative attitudes toward women; (2) stereo typical beliefs that reinforce, complement, or justify the prejudice; and (3) discrimination- acts that exclude, distance, or keep women separate. Women are more often target of sexism; men can be victims of sexist assumptions.
Breaking Stereotypes: The Millennials Perception towards Gender Roles” Abstract Gender stereotypes are simplistic generalizations about the gender attributes, differences, and roles of individuals and/or groups. Stereotypes can be positive or negative, but they rarely communicate accurate information about others. Gender stereotyping can limit the development of the natural talents and abilities of girls and boys, women and men, as well as their educational and professional experiences and life opportunities in general. Stereotypes about women both result from, and are the cause of, deeply engrained attitudes, values, norms and prejudices against women. They are used to justify and maintain the historical relations of power
Another characteristic may be a child showing a preference for playing with and sharing in stereotypical games of the opposite sex. The characteristics once exhibited may be a sign of gender dysmorphic behaviour in children stated by the DSM IV. There are two major explanations for the development of gender dysphoria; the psychological and biological explanation. The psychological explanation states that gender dysmorphia is due to two factors; separation anxiety and parental influence. The first adopts a psychodynamic approach and refers to a child’s anxiety when separated from a primary care giver.
For example, Antigone seems to be impervious toward Creon’s misogynistic ways; however, her sister, Ismene, is seen to be internalizing the idea that women are insignificant compared to men. We see the impact that this sexist culture has on Ismene when she tells Antigone, “We must remember that by birth we’re women, and, as such, we shouldn’t fight with men. Since those who rule are much more powerful, we must obey in this and in events which bring us even harsher agonies… Since I’m being compelled, I will obey those in control. That’s what I’m forced to do. It makes no sense to try to do too much” (77-85).
Additional differences between men and women are that they differentiate as they often inhabit different social roles as well as occupational. Finally, sexual reproduction is a biological constant that is ultimately related to men and women being different since a woman is defined as childbearing and child rearing (Eagly, 1987) and promotes intimacy between the men and women. Furthermore, men often employ their power over women as well as their sexual relationships, which at times women counter power through sexuality by using sexual attractiveness to control the man. Therefore, concerns about power and the differences regarding the sexuality are bound together. Modern context in where social movement and increasing gender and equality threaten the traditional male dominance may be directed on those woman who challenge the power of a man and the status (e.g.
Spanking Children Many parents think that spanking is a good way to correct the bad attitudes and bad things that children usually do. Parents usually spank children for these reasons, but parents should know that children can get some different [additional] problems because of spanking. Children can get depression, bad relationships and mental problems. Parents are asking themselves if spanking children is a good way to discipline children or not? Therefore, according to the latest studies of some organizations such as children protection, spanking can create physiological problems such as depression in a child.
Sex-role stereotypes are magnified in male-dominant firms and are harmful to women psychologically as stereotypes generate violence and gender inequality that is a form of exclusion (Forret & Dougherty, 2004). Stereotypes place women in a subordinate position to men in a patriarchal and sexist model in which their function is to serve the other and not to lead (Llopis, 2006). Men can handily adjust to male-dominated structures because they can read masculine culture better than women and because their peers are just as them. Increasing internal visibility is greatly related to the number of promotions and total compensation for men but not for women. There can be several explanations but one explanation might be that the work assignments
Gender Constraints: Alice Munro’s “Boys and Girls” “Boys and Girls” written by Alice Munro uses several literary strategies to engage in the problems of oppression within a patriarchal society. In this story, a young girl is searching for her identity but realizes the restrictions that are going to be set on her because she is female. Munro’s text reveals the specific gender roles, which cause problems of oppression within a patriarchal society. Society sets certain standards and roles that are apparent for men and women to specifically follow; most members of society fall into these just by blindly doing what is expected of them, but like the main character who is a binary of what is expected of women in society, not all think they fit these standards. From the vivid descriptions, it is known that the girl is physically strong, adventurous and enjoys working outside, as the text states: “Besides carrying water I helped my father when he cut the long grass, and the lamb’s quarter and flowering money-musk, that grew between the pens”(572), typical characteristics used to describe male characters.
Social inequality and social stratification, according to this view, lead to a meritocracy based on ability. Conflict theorists, on the other hand, view inequality as resulting from groups with power dominating less powerful groups. They believe that social inequality prevents and hinders societal progress as those in power repress the powerless people in order to maintain the status quo. Positions are important so long as those in power consider them to be significant. Gender is seen closely related to the roles and behavior assigned to women and men based on their sexual differences.