Gender Issues in Our Society - Research Paper Example

 Gender Issues in Our Society Over the years, it has become more apparent that there are gender issues in our society. When and how can we over come that both sexes are created equal? A female can do anything a male can, and vice versa. However for the time being, males are still seen as superior over females. The question we need to ask is, “Why is our society like this by having certain judgments are genders?” It could be this way for many reasons. We evolved from man, our Constitution is referenced from man, and so is the Bible. In the Bible, it is stated, “women are viewed as deceitful and evil, and deserve punishment.” (Robinson, 2005) it is said that women did not have any rights and were of lower class because of Eve’s actions, and that it was her fault women are treated underneath the status of a man. “As regards the individual nature, woman is defective and misbegotten, for the active power of the male seed tends to the production of a perfect likeness in the masculine sex; while the production of a woman comes from defect in the active power.” Thomas Aquinas. All because Eve disobeyed God, all women were meant to be doomed for eternity. Was it fair that they suffered because of another person’s actions? “And a man will choose…any wickedness, but the wickedness of a woman…Sin began with a woman and thanks to her we all must die.” Ecclesiasticus, 25:18, 19 &33. Women had to fight and struggle to be where they are today, and yet they still have so much further to go. In the harsh reality of it all, I feel as though men will always be seen as superior, and will always overpower women. Gender is one of the universal dimensions on which status differences are based. Since the beginning of time, women have held a lower status than men. Another thing is that our society and the media as well as entertainment sources feed into and off of the male gender. Gender 2 We have to think back to realize that we all evolved from man first off. This probably why God is thought to be a man, and all other rulers are to be men as well. That is one reason our society is more favorable towards the male gender. Since day one we have looked up to and respected man. Everything is referred to in the sense of man. Lets use the Ten Commandments as an example. Are they biased as well? As stated in the Third Commandment, “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.” Exodus 20:7 (God’s Holy Law, 2006) In the Ten Commandments, he states “he” instead of “him or her”. Just think, a woman was created from man by man. If it were not for man, women would not be here is one way of looking at it. From there on out, men led the way through life. Having a son was more acceptable than having a daughter. The woman was meant to take care of the children, obey her husband, and take care of his sexual needs. The men were bedding several women, and it was justified. If a woman was to do any such, it was unthinkable. The worst fate would have been met upon her. Does this define a hypocrite? No, this is just how things were run back then when Adam and Eve were created. From here on out, this is how our society formed. From this the “ideal” housewife emerged. Women were known to stay at home, take care of the children, cook and clean. They did not have any other purpose, nor did they have any rights. Eventually women wanted to vote and get jobs. They all fought to be where they are today. Now they can vote, or get any job they want. Joanna Yarbrough, an author of Gender and Society stated, “Employers pay women a mere 70 cents for each dollar earned by men.” (Yarbrough) However, judgments are still arising faster towards them instead of men. These beliefs are so ingrained in our consciousness that many of us think that gender roles are natural, Gender 3 so we do not question them. If we do not consciously subscribe to them as part of our own belief system, our culture bombards us with messages about what it means to be men and women today. Another issue is within our very own government. All throughout the Constitution, it refers to “him” or “he”. As women gained their rights, why wasn’t the Constitution amended to fit women as well? Some consider our Constitution as sexist. It seems as though our government is ran as a man’s world since it is okay for men to do all the law making and debating. Yarbrough researched, “Only 8 percent of seats in the Senate and 10 percent of seats in the House are held by women.” (Yarbrough) No wonder that there are so many inequalities still existing in our society. Will the day ever come that a female is President? Women would love for this to occur, but men dread it. No man wants to see a woman in control of our government. Is this because it is hurting the their ego, or is it a woman may do us all some good in the White House? Our sexuality is another problem when it comes to genders. Men are portrayed as “dogs”, and to always have raging hormones. Some guys have contests on getting women, and give each other “props”. Since women are being more independent, they do not need a man’s company. For this, they get called demeaning names by men. If women were to go out and do things like that, people would be quick to judge while men get away with it. Women are expected to act “prim and proper”, and men can act like hormonal animals. Peter Duffy, an author of The Chronicle Herald stated, “Children are seeing this kind of behavior on and off television towards both genders, and it is possible for them to pick up the behavior as well. Gender 4 Teenage boys are learning that it is okay to ogle women and call out crude comments. We need to teach them that this is wrong before it is too late.” (Duffy, 1992) Many do not agree with that statement anymore because times are changing. If you notice, women are portrayed on television towards men. This leads to the influence thanks to the media. Millions of companies and services use attractive females to lure customers. This leads to them becoming rich. You cannot even go see a movie without seeing a half-naked or naked woman somewhere throughout the movie or previews. Adult situations have become an everyday thing on television. Flipping through the channels, odds are you will see some kind of portrayal towards the opposite sex on at least 900 of the 1,000 channels on satellite television. Another example is new products targeting the male gender. You will see some advertisement for a pill, video or cream that claims to increase a male’s stamina or build muscle. These things are marketed to improve a guy so that he can satisfy the girl. Whatever happened to improving yourself for you? Why aren’t we doing good for ourselves instead of trying to “impress the ladies” or vice versa? Also, men are stereotyped as being beer drinkers. Society claims wherever you see beer, you will find the male gender. It is possible mostly men drink beer, but females enjoy it as well. Media does not help on this topic as well. You always see beer commercials with guys drinking beer chasing after females. It would not hurt to get a few out there with a girl’s night out drinking beer while looking for guys. Guys put together with these beer commercials and advertisements can be very demeaning towards the female gender. I am sure there is a way to promote beer without portraying women and still have it interest men. No one is going to stop drinking beer just because there is not a female on the ad. Gender 5 Or are they? Our society has become judgmental on each of the genders, but more so on the male gender. There are several stereotypes as far as the male gender goes. We already discussed the “stay-at-home mom” stereotype of the female gender. However, men are seen as obligated to “bring home the bacon” while the women clean and cook. Also, men are supposed to me macho and strong. There is also the issue of only men being in the military. A lot of theses stereotypes are going around, but probably within the old-fashioned circle of people. In this new age, men want to be stay-at-home dads, and many women are enlisting in the military. Mr. Ricks, an author remarked, “According to the military, women and children have never been regarded as combatants. As an end result, women can get away with a lot more than men can when it comes to military issues.” (Smith, 1997) Mr. Ricks also brought up the “combat exclusion rule.” This is the rule of women can enlist in the military, but cannot fight in the frontline. Mr. Ricks remarked, “They are now putting women in the frontline, and I believe there are going to be a lot of dead women.” (Smith, 1997) This alone sounds like men can shoot a gun but women cannot. In reality, gender has no effect on a person’s capabilities. Does this mean times are changing? It is possible, yes. Women are becoming independent, and having the “I don’t need a man” attitude. It is causing some men to feel inferior while others are happy women can have that attitude finally. Men and women have been assigned roles by society. These are considered only the normal expectations. It may have been like this years and decades ago, but it isn’t anymore. Men are expected of the following: don’t be a sissy, be superior of others, be tough, and be Gender 6 powerful. This also means it is okay to resort to violence if necessary. A successful man is considered to be better by others, and capable of achieving things by making money. Their main goal is to become President. If they don’t have any of that, that are considered losers and not real men. Women are encouraged to be good mothers. Our culture expects them to be giving, emotional, unstable, weak, talkative about their problems, and be cherished for their looks not their brains. Women are considered a great catch if they have a pretty face and nice body. Women are also obligated to obey their husband, and commit to their children. The women-are-inferior attitude is now muted and concealed today. In order to get by in our society, both parents need to work to pay the bills. However, the sexual roles in the gender have not changed any. You are still obligated to fulfill that duty of yours. As of today, there are now many misconceptions of the role of genders. Some still do think of the roles in the past, but new ones are being founded on a day-to-day basis as our society changes. Guys rather have a woman who works and is educated rather than a stay-at-home mom. They rather pay a babysitter to watch the children then sit home with them as well. However, there is more and more stay-at-home dads emerging. This is a new trend. Throughout society, several factors weigh between the male and female gender. The roles however have changed a great deal from decades ago. Some are for the better and some are for the worse. They each have some sort of stereotype against the other. Does one gender have more freedom or advantages over the other? Yes, in some cases they do. Is it fair? No, not always but that is the times we live in. All we can do is improve on ourselves, and hopefully it will be contagious and catch on. Our society has come a long way with accepting women into certain Gender 7 roles, and there is probably a bit further to go. The main goal is for people to stop judging others making people so self-conscience of their actions. This has been claimed all of one person’s mistake, so lets change our society from here on out. Media Awareness Network teaches; “We do not have to accept the limits of stereotypes. We have the power to decide what makes sense for us.” (MEDIA AWARENESS, 2006) Works Cited Ballard, Chris. How to Write a Catchy Beer Ad. The NY Times. 2 January 2006. Duffy, Peter. Pondering Manhood’s Price. The Chronicle Herald. 13 June 1992. Exposing Gender Stereotypes. MEDIA NETWORK. 2006. www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources God’s Holy Law. Lifestyle Health. 2006. www.godsholylaw.com/commandments/3.cfm Robinson, B.A. The Status of Women in the Old Testament. Religious Tolerance. 6 May 2005. Smith, Dan. Interview with Tom Ricks. ADM Online. 3 November 1997. www.cdi.org/ADM/115/Ricks.html Yarbrough, Joanna. Gender and Society. www.msu.edu/user/yarbrou7/ Read More