Identification of Gender Roles - Coursework Example

Inserts His/her Inserts Inserts Grade (23, 06, Sociology of Gender Introduction It was notlong before that woman was not treated equally to man. She was similar to cattle that could be turned into a direction. For a long time women did nothing to stop this treatment. It was only until the industrial revolution that women came out of their normal roles and started working in factories. This was the time when labor was required by the economies so this gave women a chance to participate in the work force. After this women started to raise their voices and voting and other rights of women were accepted. It was however not until the feminist movements of the 60s that women became fully emancipated. But this independence came without the shift of the mentality of the society. The attitudes were not changed and that even today causes great trouble to women. Especially when it comes to work force participation women are expected to perform ‘certain’ kinds of jobs. In this essay we will try to analyze why men are not moving into jobs that in the past has been identified as feminine jobs. The ramifications of such a practice and mentality will be discussed along with the proposed solutions to this issue. The issue will be discussed in the light of sociological theories and history. Identification of Gender Roles It is vital to understand the difference between gender and sex. We usually use these words interchangeably but these are not same. Sex refers to the biological differences between men and women. These differences are natural and cannot be changed. Gender however refers to the concept of men and women in the society. Gender has a more social definition and it includes the speech and other characteristics of males and female. Human beings used to live in caves and survival instinct helped them evolve. This survival instinct required males to go outside and hunt for food while women stayed in homes and looked after children because they were too weak to defend themselves. This was the practice of our earliest ancestors and this has been carried forward from their times till today and people still think in same terms. The attitudes of people regarding gender are shaped by evolutionary process and this is the reason why women are expected to perform certain roles in the society. It is true for all cultures and has nothing to do with different cultural practices in different regions. This mindset has evolutionary basis and that is why it persist in some form or another in all societies of human beings. Gender roles are inculcated in the minds of children at a very early age. The behavior of parents towards male and female child provides the basic learning of the differences between the genders. The behavior of parents also informs children as to how to behave. Male children look towards their father and female children towards their mother. All this provides basis for gender roles in the mind of the children. Research has suggested that at school level boys and girls develop different ideals. Boys attain high status on the basis of their abilities in sports, toughness, social skills and their cross gender relationships while girls achieve high status on the basis of the socio economic status of their parents, their looks, academic skills and social skills (Adler, Kless, & Adler. 1992). This clearly depicts how early in life attitudes start to change about life and status among opposite genders. It is because these subtle changes in behavior of the two genders that particular role is associated to specific genders. For example women are expected to cook while men are expected to earn. Gender role theory also agrees that it is through socialization that differences (non biological) in gender exist. In Canada similar attitudes exist although due to individualist culture the affect is not as potent as in other cultures. The attitudes of people in Canada have shifted significantly since 1970 and 80s. The problem Canada is facing today is uncertainty in Gender roles and a restructuring of both families and gender roles for both men and women (Moen, 1992). Women have achieved a relatively equal status in Canada to men but the problem is that men are not entering into feminine professions because they feel problems in adjusting to the feminine profession (Evans & Frank, 2003). They spend all their time defending their choice of career and exhibit tension regarding their profession (2003). Female Participation in Work Force It all started when women began to enter into workforce and started doing jobs with men. This was the time when attitudes of people were not refined and they never accepted the concept of working women. It was only out of sheer necessity that women were allowed to work outside their homes. But when women began to break the shackles of conventional norms and started to actively participate in the work force and at the same time stared to raise their voice for their rights this attitude was changed. The female participation in the work force made the world change its opinion about women and this granted women equal rights. Slowly and gradually society evolved gave women their due space. It is important to understand here however that the attitude of the society was transformed only and not completely reversed. They had allowed women to work but still the parochial biologist thinking made women more likely to work in jobs that were considered ‘feminine’. Women are by nature caring and look after their children so society believed that they should be offered jobs like that of a secretary or nurse. This was the start of feminization of certain professions. It was highly unlikely that men would switch to feminine jobs and vice versa. It is because of the mentality of the society that issues such as these are staring a country like Canada. It is not just Canada but all over the developed world men face problems in adjusting to their ‘feminine’ professions. It is actually a mindset that restricts people from changing their roles. It is extension of the gender roles that society had made. Society forced people not to interchange or shift their roles. But when women were free gender roles were transformed into work roles. There are now particular jobs that women are expected to do. This is again the same gender role that society made previously. The difference is that it is now disguised in this way and is ubiquitous all over the world. It is actually a method devised by the chauvinistic society to restrict growth of women. The mindset still is that women are not equal to men. Only the display of this mindset has refined instead. Women are expected to perform better at particular jobs so that is why they should go in those professions; this is just another way to say that you have a role in the society just play that role and do not try to change the roles assigned by the society. It is the same naturalistic thinking that is cloaked with pseudo logical arguments. Because it is impossible to restrict women completely from entering the work force these arguments are used in an attempt to keep the status quo unchanged. Men Feeling Inferiority in some Jobs We have discussed so far as to why some jobs are considered ‘feminine’. Now we will highlight why men feel inferior in doing jobs that are considered ‘feminine’. Evidence has shown that men feel dissatisfied and tensed when doing jobs that are expected to be that of women. This is mainly because of the stigma that is attached to those jobs. Society actually is failing to treat the two genders equally. The emancipation of female is only completed to a certain extent but minds are needed to be free. Men still themselves think that they are superior to women. This is the main problem in the society. This superiority complex is based on a fallacy because men and women can do all jobs equally well. Technology has developed so much that hard labor jobs are very few now. This makes any argument regarding the physical strength of women invalid. But still men believe that they are better than women, and because of this mentality they feel problems in adjusting to jobs that are feminine. Also the response of society is not very good when. Men are not given respect when they are known to have professions like nurses and secretary or receptionist. These are labeled as female jobs and although it is not said blatantly, these jobs are considered lower level jobs. Income has nothing to do with it. It is only the mindset of the society that creates problems for men who take feminine jobs. In Canada due to individualist culture this problem tends to amplify. The reason for this is that people want their own identity to be projected in front of the society. In collectivist culture people go for families and friends for support, therefore this problem is less prominent. Also identity of is of a family, instead of an individual, in collectivist culture so people tend to hide such problems. Individualism requires construction of a self identity that is different and is perceived highly by the society. I believe this is the reason why Canada is more prone to such problems than other collectivist cultures. Different Sociological Theories of Gender Inequality Sociologists have worked on gender inequality for a long time. They have come up with theories that explain the reasons of the in equality between the genders. These theories can provide important insights as to aid our understanding on the issue of gender inequality and oppression of women. Gender stratification theory was given by Blumberg in which he argues that economic power of women indirectly proportional to the oppression of women meaning that as long as women control more means of production than men they will feel free and will be less oppressed (Turner, J. 2003). The focus of the theory is on economic power of women relative to economic power of men. Less economic power of women, according to the theory, becomes the basis of gender inequality. Structural functionalism is also a perspective in sociology that deals with gender inequalities. This perspective argues that gender stratification can be good for the society as a whole (Mooney, Knox, & Schacht, 2010). This perspective provides a justification for gender roles and argues that it helps family life by maintaining balance in the life of families in the society. Strategies to Overcome Gender Inequality It is important to change the attitudes of the society if we want overcome the problem of gender inequality. It is harder to fight gender inequality today because it is more disguised today. Women are allowed t work and are offered jobs but still gender inequality still exists. As discussed earlier there are jobs that are considered ‘feminine’ and this is nothing less than gender discrimination. The best way to stop this is to make children realize from early childhood that both the genders are equal and they may have different dispositions but this has nothing to with rights of females. It should be inculcated from childhood in children that males and females are same and they should be treated equally. Children learn gender differences at an early age so it is in that age that steps should be taken to counter gender discrimination from entering in the mind of the children. Normal school activities can help in his a lot. Students should be encouraged to take part in plays where plays where male students should be given roles that are ‘feminine’ and vice versa. In this way the reluctance to accept different gender roles can be eradicated in a very small age. Also students should not be given different tasks because of their gender. Male and female students should be made to do similar exercises and in this way they will be more willing to accept gender equality. Even in sports boys and girls should be encouraged to play together s that this mentality of gender inequality can be avoided. Economic independence of women is also important to eradicate gender inequality (New Zealand Aid & Development Agency, 2007). If women are in a poor condition then they will be dependent on the other gender and this breed in gender inequality. Also men should be encouraged to take up jobs that are considered ‘feminine’. This can be done by raising pays of those jobs. Nurses should be given high salaries and this will compensate men for the embarrassment they face in getting into such jobs. Steps like these can help Canada and in fact the whole world to fight gender inequality. Gender inequality is not desirable and its time we get rid of it. The developed world will have to develop in the real sense of the word. Conclusion Gender inequalities still exist even in a developed country like Canada. It has only changed its form. There is overwhelming evidence that men feel dissatisfied and tensed when they get into professions that are considered to be ‘feminine’. This aversion of men from getting into female professions tells us that gender inequalities still exist in the country. The roots of this inequality are in the parochial naturalist thinking that is still haunting the world today. It is therefore important that children are taught at a very early age that genders are equal and this can be done through role play in school activities. Works Cited Page Adler, Kless, & Adler. Socialization to Gender Roles: Popularity among Elementary School Boys and Girls. Sociology of Education Vol. 65, No. 3, pp.169-187, 1992. Print. Evans & Frank. Contradictions and Tensions: Exploring Relations of Masculinity in the numerically female dominated nursing profession. The Journal of Men Studies, Vol.11 No. 3, 2003. Web. http://www.deakin.edu.au/hmnbs/chase/docs/journal-of-mens-studies.pdf Moen, P. Women’s Two Roles: A Contemporary Dilemma. New York: Auburn House, 1992. Print Mooney, Knox, & Schacht. Understanding Social Problems. London: Cengage Learning, 2010. Print New Zealand Aid & Development Agency. Government of New Zealand, 2007. Web. http://www.aid.govt.nz/library/docs/gender-doco.pdf Turner, J. The structure of sociological theory (7th ed.). California: Thompson/Wadsworth, 2003. Print Read More