Gender
9/21/2010 11:43:00 AM Gender and Sex y Gender is the social y Sex is given at birth Women are seen as y Male property y Rape in marriage was dismissed y Woman¶s place was at home y Working women were considered irresponsible or an embarrassment y Unwed mothers were shunned y University was only to find a husband y Women could not own property y Women could not file for divorce because they did not hold any say (1800s) And now« y They decide if and when to have children y Raise children on their own or with partner y Suing employers fro harassment/discrimination y Exerting pressure on institutions to change y The change from then to now is referred to as the: ³Gender Quake´ Gender as a Social Problem y Gender relations are unequal with respect to: power, privilege and property y Gender is a social problem when inequalities continue to persist in a society that espouses gender equality y Gender is problematic when the scripting of masculinity and feminity into rigid roles that restrict person choice and create unequal outcomes Worldwide Gender Inequality y 500,00 women die each year from complications related to childbirth y 2/3 of women worldwide are illiterate y 1 in 3 women has been abused, beaten, or coerced into sex y Millions of women have undergone female genital mutilation (makes it so that women cannot feel pleasure out of sex, so only men can feel it)
Gender Inequality in the U.S. y Women in the US: o Have lower incomes o Hold fewer prestigious jobs o Earn fewer academic degrees o Are more likely than men to live in poverty Especially female headed households Structural Functionalism y In hunting gathering societies, men and women were economic equals y Pre-industrial society required a division of labor based on gender o Women nursed and cared for children o Men were responsible for material needs y Industrialization made tradition division of labor less functional, but the belief system remains Conflict Perspective y Continued domination be males requires a belief system that supports gender inequality y Two beliefs: o Women are inferior outside the home o Women are more valuable in the home Symbolic Interaction y Gender and gender roles are learned through socialization process y Women are socialized into expressive roles y Men are socialized into instrumental roles Assumptions about Gender y Masculine: Active (more opinionated, assertive), Independent, organized, rational, logical, Intellectual y Feminine: Passive, Dependent (dependent on the mood of the partner), scattered, emotional, illogical, intuitive/imaginative Politics and structural Sexism y U.S. women received right to vote in 1920 with passage of Nineteenth Amendment y In 2001, women comprised only 10% of all governors and held only 13.5% of all U.S. Congressional seats y 80% of U.S. women believe that by 2024, a woman will be elected
Gender Occupations Highly Sex Segregated Occupations y Male nurses make more than women nurses Gender Theory y Housework allows men and women to define and express their gender y By doing housework women display their femininity y By avoiding housework men display their masculinity y The difference is that men¶s work does not have to be done EVERYDAY, unlike women who take on the second shift once they get home. y