Can Feminist Athletes Use Their Hegemony to Change the Social Norms for Women - Coursework Example

Can Feminist Athletes use their Hegemony to Change the Social Norms for Women? Table of Contents Bibliography 13 The social dominance theorycame up in the Nineteen Nineties as a result of research undertaken by various research psychologists, most notably, Pratto and Sidanius. Since its emergence, the theory has led to many debates. Nevertheless, it has been used to explain some of the occurrences that take place in society especially those that involve gender. Globally, people have witnessed a rise in the fight for gender equality and equity in the recent past and up-to-date. The struggle for gender equity and equality has resulted from the notion that many societies around the world tend to oppress the female gender in one way or another due to aspects such as religion and tradition. However, as time pass it has become necessary to do away with these ideas and incorporate females in various areas that touch on the society such as sports and leadership. Most of these ideas are social norms that cannot be changed quickly. They need time and to act in order to experience and see change. A sport is one of the areas that are male dominated. In fact, most male linked sports activities tend to attract large numbers of crowds, accolades, and even sponsorship unlike those of women around the world like Maria Sharapova that advertise for Nike and explain why is this so? The social standards are to blame for this along with the assumption that women are in a way dissimilar to men, which is a key aspect of many societies. The women who show behaviour regarded, as being of the male gender tend to defy the set male norms, which is influenced by hegemonic ideals. How can women in athletics and coaches who are women develop hegemony and Gramsci theory to alter the social ideals and use it as a platform to elevate their status and role in sports? Introduction Sport is the most widely recognized preserve for male domination and masculinity. Little has been done to increase the representation of women athletics and leaders in sport. Italian revolutionary Antonio Gramsci is the founder of the hegemony theory where he describes the dominance of one social class over others. His notion of hegemony has been used by many feminist and Marxist scholars to explain the power of various groups in the society. Many scholars have stated that sport serves a hegemonic institution since it preserves the power of men over women. It has long associated with men and masculinity in all societies all over the world. The notion of sports being a male domain is developed in childhood. In some societies, girls grow up knowing that some sports activities can only be played or dominated by men, starting from the athlete to the coach. As early as grade 1, gender related stereotypes pertaining to the sport are taught to both girls and boys. Boys are taught the importance of sports, teamwork and winning while girls are taught to be polite and care about their physical appearance. These trends continue in high schools where a study conducted by (Cohen, 2001, p.13) showed that boys were four times more likely to be remembered as an athletic star as compared to girls. Boys also showed a higher level of confidence in sports as compared to the girls. Cohen argued that people accept these stereotypes in sport due to the physical differences between men and women. This belief has brought about negative consequences for women, mostly to those who have a passion for the sport, whether to be an athletic or a leader. Questions How does hegemony play out in the sporting context? What does hegemony look like in sports coaching? Sport, Gender & Society with the concept of hegemonic masculinity Women do not have acceptance in certain sports at higher levels like coaches in a masculine hegemonic community. Competitive sports, for instance, it is mostly defined on the basis of masculinity language that helps advocate the status quo of male-dominated society (Jarvie, 2015, p 6). Young athletes learn this language on the playing field, but mass media reinforces it to the people that male athletes and men sports are the customs. It has been noted that mass media has played a major role in preserving this tradition whereby they attribute certain games to certain individuals who are always male. Media offers limited coverage of female athletes and women sports hence resulting to the public under-estimating the number of female participants in competitive sports. It is also evident that the media showcases games that reinforce stereotypical feminine images such sports include tennis and skating (Connell & Messerschmidt, 2005p 45). Feminine theorists argue that, women cannot change the language in society by simply getting into the public space because the boundaries of possible safety already exist in structured conditions of what people think. The conditions of valuing male thought over female actions have a long history and the differences have always been hidden by separation of private and public spheres. Symbolically the language of any community can be explained as a web where each strand reinforces and supports the others. Therefore, removal of a strand causes a breakdown of the whole web. In the same way, a change of notion about women including how the community sees them can lead to the breakdown of beliefs that the community ascribe to. There is a need to start changing the way things are done. For instance strong women should not be seen as unreal, more publicity should be given to women participating in the male dominated sports. Legislation that seek to give equal opportunities to all should be laid on the firm foundation. All this will go a long way in ensuring that women get their share in sports Jarvie, 2015, p 6). Implementation The implementation of the amendment, Title IX in the year 1992 has made things different. Women can use their femininity to participate in sports by proving that they are also capable of taking the lead in significant roles that are said to be preserved for men. Women can still participate in male-dominated sports and still maintain their femininity. They should make the society understand that femininity is not only defined by how a woman looks. This does not only include having a flawless and delicate body image, but it also includes women who are physically fit, and their muscles are well built. Women in today’s society understand that they do not have to sacrifice their femininity to participate in male dominance sports, but they only have to believe in themselves and take role in them, and this attitude has seen many women taking leading roles in sports (Connell & Messerschmidt, 2005 p 2). Implementation of legislation under Title IX has seen the female sport in America worthy of financial allocation. Administration and coaching of female teams in sports have become a highly paying profession. In colleges, female sports were made professional and they were also included in the male programs in sports. Consequently, the decision concerning who should coach the female teams was left with the director who was mostly male (Goldstein, 2001, p 63). Today’s preponderance of men as coaches in female teams is a result of homologous reproduction. It means that the male coaches were reproducing themselves based on physical characteristics. Women who needed to enter into this profession needed skills that would offset their physical appearance. Any woman that was equal to a man was considered less qualified. The preservation of male dominance in sport was much easier if a subjective preferred judgement was an indirect acceptable criteria that entered the decision making process and therefore determining the outcome regardless of the candidates qualifications (Poran, 2002 p 76). Before the implementation of Title IX, women who entered in coaching were seen as a threat to the leadership tradition that men had propagated. Critiquing the issue what constitutes a coaching ability? Coaches have an imagined special character with a quality that cannot be quantified. Before the legislation, athletic directors allowed subjectivity to enter in the qualification criteria. The non quantifiable characteristics were stereotypes that disqualified female as coach trainees. The people conducting the selection relied on stereotypic notions that sports as a male domain (Goldstein, 2001, p 62). Such a judgement is a wrong one because it produces a knowledgeable male from the difference between excellent sporting stereotypes and female stereotypes. Worse still is that, women themselves collude with the stereotypic belief that men know more about sports. Today, parents are hiring male coaches for their daughters due to the belief that men are superior in knowledge. The entry of women into professional and competitive sport has taken the direction of formal equality. The women now enjoy equal opportunities with their counterpart males. However, they cannot dictate the premises under which to participate despite the value of a sport being a determination of what a goal should be rather than achieving one. In the current world, the model of success is economically driven which combined with male domination in sports might make it difficult for women to get a space to speak autonomously with authority about their participation in sports. There are two ways on how to go about it in order to genuinely provide equal opportunities for both genders in sports. First is by crippling the long history of gender stereotyping which limits the effects of Title IX. There is need to draft a new legislation that will expand the equal opportunities since the current one is undermined by beliefs of participation in sports as being masculine. The beliefs have limited the expansion of protection and resources that are provided for women participating in sports. There is minimal that has been accomplished by the legislation in terms of changing the men’s intolerance towards women reformers in sports (Feinman, 2000, p. 31). One reason that is considered to limit the effects of legislation is the inability to challenge the symbolism used in male dominated sports like football. Female participation in sports has been incorporated in the existing symbolic episteme of a male dominated sphere. The second way is by redefining the foundation upon which the legislation is built. By expanding the utility of the legislation, the purpose will be shifted from that of equity in opportunities to equity in respect. Since time immemorial women have been through challenges of being discriminated against and every woman especially those in sports have her story. A legislation that provides for equal opportunities will protect women. By doing so, women will be able to venture into these sports and the male domination will be challenged(Amanda & Susan, 2004, p 244). Feminist theory in Sports The feminist theory came to be known throughout the globe. The theory was thought to be very crucial for sports women. They need to be aware of feminism and also must face men in the playgrounds (Pratto, 2011 p 34).Gramsci is the founder of the hegemony theory where he describes the dominance of one social class over others. Also in sport, hegemony has been used by many feminist and Marxist scholars to explain the power of various groups in the society (Pratto, 2011, p.21). Framing a sport as masculine or feminine determines who will participate in it. By participating in sports, the imbalances that exist in physical power are reduced. Therefore associating women in athletics helps in appreciating women capabilities (Goldstein, 2001, p 63). The sporting kits that expose women body are very attractive to men but do not add anything to the participant. On the contrary, it makes viewers forget the strength in the woman and focus on her body and the outfit. Instead of viewers accepting the strength of the legs and what they can achieve men take the legs as sex objects (Connell & Messerschmidt, 2005 p 3). In this women are reminded that their bodies are supposed to display credible femininity. According to a study conducted by journal of sports and social issues feminine is also described by the names used to describe athletes. Mostly female teams have a suffix on to their letter to sound appealing while men names remain as they are without any additions. This depicts that men teams are normal whereas female teams are marked as female. Men use aggressive names while women use nurturing names. However in athletics it may not work because the objective of these names is not to threaten a woman’s power by dwelling on the femininity but rather to appreciate its existence and admit that its being there shows that a woman is not an ordinary one (Amanda & Susan, 2004, p 245). One major challenge that is encountered by strong athletes or women in sports is the question about their sexuality. Stereotyping that has existed time immemorial has always contributed to strong women being referred to as lesbians. The linking of women athletes with lesbians scares women away from participating in the game whether lesbian or not. The fear that a woman may be labelled lesbian can make a woman lay much emphasis on their femininity to clear the notion that they could be or better still hide it if they are truly lesbians. Given the high levels of homophobia within societies these fears are justified. Women athletes cannot be able to fight homophobia since they earn so little compared to men. The same disparity also exists in media coverage where the public does not get the true picture of the athlete but rather rely on private sources of information which are sometimes distorted (Feinman, 2000, p 17). The accusation made against strong women not being real means that they are real males. Many times society has demanded that a woman who performs extraordinarily well be confirmed their gender biologically. Sex tests are also recommended in athletics to prevent extraordinary women from engaging in unfair competition with real women. One thing is clear that these tests were institutionalized when women started performing extremely well in competitions. The practice reminds women that they are a weaker being that cannot be trusted with high performance and so any exemplary performance must be supported by evidence that you are a female. Physical feminism in women should be highly valued and something to advocate for. Women are less violent by nature and should not compare to men on those basis because they are not entitled to be aggressive. The argument may lack basis as one cannot separate nature from society (Jarvie, 2015, p 12). Men are naturally violent as compared to women and this force is the one used to oppress women. For instance men dictate the rules in a game, they also dictate the kind of sports their wives, daughters, and girlfriends should engage in. As it is women should not use force to liberate them because they will be contributing to more oppression. However, the act of remaining non violent is a choice that can be made by women. In poorer countries, women are forced by situations to be aggressive to survive and therefore remaining non violent is a privileged. During slavery black women wer not considered real females and this gave them a chance to venture into sports much earlier than the white women (Rober, 2013, p 46). The justification for this is that during the first Olympic in U.S track majority of the women were black. In order to be equal to men in sports does not mean that women have to be masculine. It might be of much more help to remain nonviolent maintaining the strength that is acceptable. The appreciation that comes from that will make the women more powerful without being masculine (Connell & Messerschmidt, 2005 p 6). Value Despite the increase in number of females engaging in sporting activities, they are still a male-dominated spheres where attitudes of hegemonic masculinity are embodied (Goldstein, 2001, p 63). They are depicted by the media by covering men’s sports and the underrepresentation of women athletes. The question of Whether the efforts change the debate about female in sports or reinforce existing ideologies further is debatable. Nevertheless, online spheres, allow internet users to consume diverse content and also circulate alternative ideas about sports by making their own content (Pratto, 2011, p 3). Women experience difficulties while trying to gain space to express their expert comments in male sports. This is considered a threat to male leadership and trivial. Division of power inthe media sport has a conservative role in society. Televisions have played a hegemonic role producing ideologies of ethnocentrism and sexism in the popular culture. As a result of commentary in sports is a no go zone for women as it is considered by men who are in the interest of preserving the hierarchy. Since the old boy network is hard to break, women should assume commentary roles in sports for example in live games. The challenge that women face in sports commentary is sometimes contributed to their dressing and the judgement placed on their understanding of sports (Molnar & Kelly, 2013, p 23). Other comic challenges are how the feminist performance transgresses by way of eruption of body and speech in a public place. Sports are considered a men’s area and they are always very protective of the space. Female sports journalism Debbie Spillane back in the days made a comment about Mike Tyson by referring to him as “world champion rapist”. It did not go well with the male community as the journalist undercut the ability of sexual conquest in the sporting sphere (Susan, 2012, p 47). In athletics, males are protected by controlled analyses of his actions during the race. Female artists are thought to deliberately speak of things that are supposed to be kept out of public sight in the male world. The behaviour of female artist revealed how the female politics are widespread. Female commentator brings in a new dimension which is more controversial than celebratory in coverage of male sports. The appearance of such controversial scenes happens when there is lack of personal identity. When a male commentator is on job no much attention is given to the private lives of the participants. The dressing code for men is very simple with no revealing clothes. This brings out the difference between a woman commentator as an ornament and a male counterpart who is seen as a source of knowledge. Women tend to expose their body unnecessarily but for men it is only in sports where their bodies give opportunities of male gaze. Sports aired on television are seen to license the gaze and making it appear harmless (Theberge, 2000, p 43). Production techniques like a replay in slow motion Coupled with a male commentary make the male body an athletic object to be admired. The gaze of a male athlete by another male makes them derive pleasure by seeing other men without being considered homosexual. In athletics, behaviours like hugging and patting at the bottom that would otherwise be considered homosexual, are normalised. The transformation has helped athletes not to be viewed as homosexuals (Goldstein, 2001, p 63). The current acceptance of women gaze in football has allowed women to be commentators and not an audience. The men athletes, therefore, have been pushed to an uncomfortable position where they are converted to be objects of appreciation by others and prone to criticism (Anderson, 2010, p 89). Acceptance of women in sports where they do the production and commentary put the woman in the centre and women in the periphery has helped in giving more space to women in sports. It is very entertaining and it provides challenges by destabilising males in the sports spheres. Conclusion How women athletics and women coaches could use hegemony and Gramsci theory change the terms of the social norms and inform the success and the performance of the successful women same as men in any sport area and atmosphere and women could have same role and right as men in sport environment. Women who have a passion for sports have been up for a battle trying to gain appreciation in means field. Despite their effort, there still exists a huge gap. Parents to athlete girls contribute to these as they hire male coaches for their daughters. Coaching should be taken like any other viable profession for both men and women. Though there has been an increase in the numbers of women joining the profession it is far much below considered to male participants. Title IX prohibits discrimination of participants along gender lines, in any body that receives money from the federal government. However, the female athletes receive less social as well as economic support and their participating environments are inferior to those of men. Equal opportunities legislation remains an important part of the mechanisms available to females to obtain authority, both in sport and in society. Recommendations Women both young and old Need Role Model coaches to make them realise that to be strong does not mean you are masculine. Women should be more active in sports and should target higher positions like coaching. There is also need to support women in sports by offering finances and conducive environment which is level with men when they are in sports including putting an academy for women coaches. Creation of awareness to women on matters of sports can help eliminate the notion that sports are a men’s world. This will of course need to start by making women realise themselves and appreciate that they do not need to be violent to become masculine. Bibliography Amanda R. & Susan A. (2004) Femininity, Sports, and Feminism: Developing a Theory of Physical Liberation. Journal of Sport and Social Issues; 28; 245 Anderson, E. (2010). Sport, theory, and social problems. London: Rutledge. Cohen, G. (2001). Women in sport. Reston, VA: National Association for Girls and Women in Sport. Connell, R., &Messerschmidt, J. (2005). Hegemonic Masculinity- Rethinking the concept. Retrieved 22 April 2015, from http://www.engagemenme.org/.../Hegemonic%20Masculinity-%20Rethinking. Feinman, I. R. (2000). 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