This essay is written in response to Go Terps remarks about how we are constantly making changes in order to make things right in our society. She provocatively states: “There will always be problems that individuals will find in the structure of society, but it will get better in time. It is a process. We are only human and mistakes happen, but it seems like our society is constantly practicing trial and error until we get it right. Our social structure has already changed immensely over time, and this should be acknowledged for what it is — very impressive.” It is true that our society is changing. However, we should not assume that those changes are necessarily good. What is truly important is not change but the kind of change that happens. Go Terps brought up interesting areas in which changes are occurring but fails to demonstrate how these changes will eradicate the gender related problems in our society. In the 2005 film TransGeneration, we see how difficult it was for transgendered students to discuss their gender with new friends and colleagues. It took them a whole lot of courage to openly explore issues related to their identities and how they feel as human beings. Lets take for instance one of the characters, Raci, who transitioned from male to female. Even though she was born with male genitalia, she didn’t feel that she was a man. She couldn’t live the norms associated with our social construction of gender. She struggled emotionally and physically with how people perceived her, and it was only after the transformation of her gender from man to woman that she was able to live and feel comfortable. This is an example of how problematic our social construction of gender is. I think it is important to be able to live according to how we feel about ourselves and not necessarily by the demands of others. . I feel it is imperative to allow individuals to explore their own identities. We are all created differently by God and have different aspirations in life. And if we want to impose onto others a rigid definition of what constitutes an appropriate gender, then people will suffer. It is important to realize that no matter how we construct gender, there will always be deviations. Therefore, what needs to change is rigidity. A “constantly improving” society is one which demolishes rigid gender categories. In a recent online post entitled “The Social Construction of Gender,” the author writes that the construction of gender “reveals that gender is not immutable or set in stone. Harmful aspects of our construction of gender can and should be discarded. But beyond that, if gender exists to support hierarchy, then gender, as it is viewed and practiced in our culture, is not only uncomfortable for many people, but a tool of oppression.” This post suggests that gender is not constant and the way we construct it is often offensive or distasteful to others who do not identify with the social construction. As long as we continue to have a rigid gender system, then the system will need to change. Again, the problem is the rigidity of the system, and this is precisely what Go Terps fails to understand. ~ Wenty
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In this essay, I would like to argue that Lady Lazarus is wrong about how problematic our society is in terms of being "catalogued and ranked" by a rigid gender category. She states, “gender also creates a stratification system within our society which gives men a higher status than women. In order to eradicate these issues, we need to rethink our rigid ideas about gender and recognize that more than two types of gender are possible.” I believe that our society makes changes and adjustments whenever an issue arrises. Our ideas are not so rigid, and in fact, they are constantly changing. Lady Lazarus does not give our society enough credit by acknowledging how much we have improved. I believe our society has been flexible, and while there may be some problems, our society has the capacity for reform. We are constantly changing, reevaluating our norms, and improving. There will always be problems that individuals will find in the structure of society, but it will get better in time. It is a process. We are only human and mistakes happen, but it seems like our society is constantly practicing trial and error until we get it right. Our social structure has already changed immensely over time, and this should be acknowledged for what it is – very impressive. In the book Manliness and Civilization, Gail Bederman writes about the history of white men lynching blacks. For instance, if a black man had relations with a white woman the black man would be hung. These actions by white men were normative in the past and were accepted. Currently, these sorts of behaviors are rare and forbidden. Our society has realized how barbaric lynching is and has made drastic changes for the better. Today, blacks and whites commingle daily and are equal under law. Furthermore, there are now interracial relationships and marriages that occur constantly and that are widely accepted. Lastly, we even have a black president which would have never happened in the past. In the past, our society was not accepting of homosexuals. Most individuals were afraid to come out of the closet because they might be killed and they were afraid they would bring shame to their families. I am not saying that our society has become extremely accepting of homosexuality, but it is improving. Recent discussions have arisen about incorporating education on homosexuality in elementary schools. For example, a few schools in New York and Massachusetts incorporated a “Gay and Lesbian Pride” day for elementary students where they openly talked to elementary school children about gay and lesbian families. In the past homosexuality was never discussed or brought up in front of children because it was believed to be inappropriate. Furthermore, several states have begun discussing same sex marriages and some states have even passed laws allowing these marriages. Also, in some doctors offices one can find “transvestite” as a gender category on patient registration forms, and it was recently reported that changing rooms and bathrooms at New York Universtiy are now being designated as gender-neutral. Our society is beginning to realize that it is unfair to ban openly gay and lesbian people from enlisting in the army, and President Obama is now trying to pass a law to this effect. These examples demonstrate that society is changing, although it is a process. Another issue in the past which is now changing is the way women are discriminated against. In the book Queer theory, Gender Theory, by Riki Wilchins, she discusses the position of women in society when she was in elementary school. “This was a time when girls didn’t grow up to go into politics, practice medicine, work construction jobs, become soldiers, or play rock and roll. Nor did they jog, play basketball or pump iron” (6). She also states that women “were considered socially and psychologically incomplete until they had a man to marry, bear children with and make a home for” (6). I would argue that this social system is completely different now. We have female politicians, doctors, soldiers, and more. According to the United States Department of Labor, in 2008 “women accounted for 51 percent of all workers in high-paying management, professional and related occupations.” Our society has managed to change from one with relatively few women laborers to one where the majority of high-paid management and professional positions are held by women. President Obama is even trying to pass a law that ensures women receive the same amount of money as men for comparable jobs. Furthermore, in our society women no longer have to get married and have children if they don’t want to. It is becoming less of a social norm. As you can see, our society has made drastic changes. Society is constantly adjusting in an effort to make everyone equal and to make life fair. Of course it is a process and our society has its problems, but we are constantly evolving and trying to change for the better. Our socially constructed system keeps improving and perhaps the generations to come will not have to worry about the issues our society is dealing with now. If you compare our past to the system we have today, it is plain to see we have come a long way. ~ Go Terps In order to explore the ways in which the concept “gender” structures contemporary society, I will first discuss how gender is constructed. I will also address how a binary system of gender is maintained in society and the problems that consequently arise from this organization. To do so, I will use an intersectional lens to illustrate how gender interacts with other socially constructed categories. In her essay, “The Social Construction of Gender”, Judith Lorber opens up with a metaphor about gender, stating that “talking about gender for most people is the equivalent of fish talking about water” (13). The main point she is trying to make by using such a metaphor is that gender is everywhere. It is so pervasive in our society it seems natural and most individuals make the assumption “it is bred into our genes” (13). Lorber does not accept this idea of naturalness, but instead posits that gender is a socially constructed category. The construction of gender starts as early as the womb. Once parents are informed of a child’s sex, they buy gender-typed toys and paint their child’s bedroom in a gender appropriate color. Gender is not natural or inherent and thus should not be thought of in terms of biology. Instead, gender can be regarded as a historical and ideological process. Ideas about gender change over time and what may be considered masculine or feminine in this century will likely be different in the next. Baby Franklin D. Roosevelt The image of Franklin D. Roosevelt as a child on the cover of Life Magazine can be used as a prime example of how the definition of masculinity has changed over time. When the image was shown to our class, most people assumed that it was of a girl because the child was wearing a lacy dress and mary janes. By today’s standards, this type of dress would be considered feminine, but during the time in which the photograph was taken, this was normal apparel for little boys. In the chapter, “Learning Gender in a Diverse Society”, Susan Shaw and Janet Lee discuss how making gender seem natural is key to upholding a stratification system within our society which gives men higher status in relation to women. Shaw and Lee state that “the differences between femininity (passive, dependent, intuitive, emotional) and masculinity (strong, independent, in control, out of touch emotionally) are made to seem natural” (126). In society, masculine traits are given greater value and since masculinity is often equated with maleness, males are given higher status than women. Shaw and Lee define gender as a “process by which certain behaviors and performances are ascribed to women and men” or in other words, gender “can be understood as the social organization of sexual difference” (124). This idea that gender has been socially constructed has been a pervasive argument within feminist discourse because if gender is not intrinsic or biological, then gender as a social institution can be restructured. With this said, an important question to consider is, if we have constructed gender then why does it look the way it does? The answer to this question is power. The idea of power addresses both how gender is maintained in contemporary society and also why this structure is problematic. The way that gender is constructed in contemporary society highlights hegemonic masculinity and emphasized femininity. In her article “Hegemonic Masculinity and Emphasized Femininity”, R.W. Connell states that “hegemonic masculinity is always constructed in relation to subordinated masculinities and femininities” (183). Women as a whole are subordinate to men, but within the male population, there is a division or hierarchy of masculinities. The basis for division is based on various categories including sexuality, sexual orientation, race etc. The main problem with this system of categorization is that every individual assumes the role of both victim and oppressor. As Patricia Hill Collins states in her essay “Toward a New Vision”, “each one of us derives varying amounts of penalty and privilege from the multiple systems of oppression that frame our lives” (69). Caster Semenya Another major problem lies in the way that society assigns gender. Males are taught that they should prescribe to masculine traits while females are taught to act in a feminine manner. In a society that gives higher value to masculine traits, males are given higher status than women. Also, when individuals transgress gender boundaries, there can be severe consequences for their behavior. Take for example the case of South African runner Caster Semenya. Caster outran her competition in the 800 meter world championships by more than two seconds. This coupled with her masculine physique caused people to call Caster’s sex into question. Caster was subjected to several “gender tests”, media scrutiny, and ridicule. This really took a toll on Caster’s psychological health and at one point she was even on suicide watch. As we can see, our society's binary categorization system of gender is problematic for several reasons. By structuring gender the way we do, individuals are forced to abide by prescribed sets of behaviors or face consequences if they transgress these boundaries. Gender also creates a stratification system within our society which gives men a higher status than women. In order to eradicate these issues, we need to rethink our rigid ideas about gender and recognize that more than two types of gender are possible. ~ Lady Lazarus |
AuthorsThe Class Blog Project, or CBP, is a blog featuring undergraduate students forming a critical dialogue with each other around ideas related to the sociology of gender. Archives
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