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Post 2: What Is Gender? By: Ashley Fung

There are many different ways to explain gender. According to google gender is a social construct that refers to various characteristics of women, girls, men, and boys. We see gender everywhere and all the time, whether it’s shopping in stores, gender reveal parties or on bathroom signs; gender to me is fluid. I believe that society does not represent all of gender to its fullest. I do not think that gender is only between two sexes, male and female, gender is more complex than that. Society ranks certain characteristics on how “masculine” or “feminine” it is, and differentiates between the two as if they were complete opposites; overlooking the infinite possibilities of the two having things in common. In addition, society tells us our gender “should” be our biological sex however, I do not agree with this. Society reinforces gender roles in a very outdated way. For example, society follows gender stereotypes such as only boys liking cars and only girls liking dolls or only men enjoying hunting and only women wanting to wear high heels. This is not a good way of depicting gender because what does the things an individual enjoys have anything to do with their gender? To add on, because society reinforces gender roles this way, they are also not giving much representation to people who are gender fluid, non-binary and transgender.

Unfortunately in the society we are living in, gender provides an unfair advantage of powers and privileges for one gender; leaving the people of other genders to have a harder time becoming successful. For instance, men usually have higher salaries than women do; and people who do not identify as male or female struggle to find jobs because of how our society is structured. Our society was designed to make a way of living easier if you are a male. Men face less obstacles and benefit the most compared to the other genders because our society follows a patriarchal way of living; which means that we follow a social system which believes that men hold more power than women. This is seen in many ways, such as lack of women in CEO positions and lack of female presidents; our society restrains from putting women in leadership roles. The unfair powers and privileges that men hold stem back to the old days when only men had access to achieving a higher education, while women stayed at home; cooking, cleaning and taking care of children. I think society is still in favor of men because it’s been that way for so long and there are so many people who still unfortunately believe that women are inferior to men, when instead we should be all considered as equals and have equivalent powers, privileges, and opportunities.

I feel that nobody should have the right to dictate which gender is legitimate because all genders should be legitimate and treated as equals. I do not see gender as a quantity, I see gender more as a spectrum because gender is not a binary concept, it is one’s personal identity, which could be an infinite number of different possibilities.

What is Gender?

Simply put, Gender is something that is assigned to us at birth. I think it is important to note that gender is NOT defined by biology. However, throughout life experiences and these readings, we learn that Gender is not as simple.

Gender seems to play a very large role, not only in America, but in many societies. This is supported by our TED Talk video. Society manages gender through a lot of set expectations, and the accessibility for each gender. These are expectations shared throughout generations, which result in people believing that gender is something that is one size fit all.

Society enforces gender roles through a lot of comments made. An example mention in the TED Talk video was the acknowledging of only the man when walking into a restaurant. Another example is, women are expected to be married and have children. A women who does not want children is looked at differently.

Gender relates largely to power and privilege because those who are considered males tend to benefit more than women. Men are thought to be powerful, be the “leaders” or the “boss” and often have more opportunities. While some males and females can have similar experiences, men tend to have an easier experiences than woman in many aspects. I believe this is a result of the idea of life being “A man’s world.”

A man is expected to be the sole financial provider for their families, if they are not, they are expected to be the one earning the most. As mentioned in the TED Talk, if your husband does not make more money than you, you must pretend he does. The only people who benefit from the expectations of gender, are men. Women deserve the same opportunities, the same power and privilege as their male counterparts.

However, it is also unfair for me to write this posts in terms of the most common genders- male and female. There are some people who do not identify with either of these two genders, who also deserve equal pay, power, privilege and not to have to be boxed in by labels or gender roles. The number of genders that exist today are over six.

What is gender?

            Gender is used in our society where we identify a person as a female or a male. Our biology/genitals make us who we are, and our society manages to set a line to identifying someone as a girl or boy. An example in which our society reinforces gender roles is when they separate both roles in bathrooms and fitting rooms but we also see that in movies, shows, commercials, and various careers one gender role dominants the other. We are now all asked by what pronouns we would like to be called by because a lot has changed within our society where people can be born a female or male, but they may identify themselves as the opposite sex.

I personally think that men do have more privilege than women when it comes to getting a job or they don’t have to deal with the same things as women do. I feel like women need to work 10 times harder than man and they need to gain respect from others around them. This has always been a problem where society built a belief that women should be housewives and take care of their children, but over time women are still fighting to become recognized as strong and well-respected individuals. I think that men have been always been seen as the stronger and knowledge type which leads people to believe that it’s okay to treat women differently. I feel like we as individuals shouldn’t base an interview, or a job based on our gender because we need to work together in our society and not let gender become a problem that divides us. 

Gender has and will always be a hard topic because people to this day still believe in either the baby/child is a girl or boy and not in between. Since there has been a lot of controversy over this topic but with pronouns where individuals get to become comfortable in choosing and deciding what they personally believe they are. Some people can go by transgender, non-binary, gender-neutral, transgender, and male or female.

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What Is Gender?

Gender unlike sex is a social construct that distinguishes characteristics between men and women. These characteristics can include physical appearance, personality, relationships, etc. which we consider as “normal”. We are constantly surrounded by the concept of gender. Growing up we are taught that there are only two genders, men and women. Men are typically portrayed as a leader, strength, power, and dominant whereas women are portrayed as kind, caring, nurturing, and typically submissive. Society has reinforced gender norms in media such as movies and shows, books, toys, etc. Toys for instance are targeted for a specific gender which is something we grow up learning. We rarely ever see toy cars marketed towards young girls the way they are for young boys. There are cleaning toys marketed towards girls but you will not find any other toy like that in the boy’s section. Many advertisements also reinforce gender norms often depicting women as a sex symbol and men as power. In society, we grow up learning that women are feminine and men are masculine. However, those are traits that anyone is able to embody regardless of what gender they identify as. Over the years society has been progressing; slowly but surely we are breaking through these stereotypes and gender norms.

Gender is interconnected with power and privilege. Again, in society men are portrayed as a symbol of power rather than women. This is a persistent issue today. A great example of this is the wage gap. Men are paid more than women for the same amount of work. Women tend to face more obstacles than men. Men are more likely to be hired for a job than a woman who is equally qualified and men often are more likely to be considered for a promotion than women as well as leadership positions. Women often times have to face harassment and sexism in the workplace. It is also harder for women to be taken seriously especially in the STEM field than it is for men. This concept has been embedded into society however, we see more women breaking through the glass ceiling.

Because gender is socially constructed, it is hard to say there is a definite number on the number of genders. Some societies have as many as nine different genders and others even more. We have to be understanding and respectful of people who do not fit in the two-gender system we were taught.

Post 2: What is Gender?

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines gender as “socially constructed characteristics of women and men, pertaining to their norms, roles and relationships of and between groups of women and men” (2021). Gender is seen everywhere in our society. Until very recently, society had a clear distinction on how men or women should dress, behave, and present themselves. For example, women were usually expected to dress feminine. Men were generally expected to dress more masculine. Additionally, women are expected to be more nurturing, kind, and caring. Men should strive to be aggressive, confident and powerful. Such examples are clear examples of societal gender stereotypes. However, these gender stereotypes are clearly changing in our society, as we progress and learn to accept different types of gender identities.

Gender relates to power and privilege all too well. The problems between gender and privilege have been an ongoing issue, especially relating to men vs women. Men have had an advantage over women for years. Men have had less obstacles in being able to obtain a well paying job or even obtaining a promotion. Women face more hardships in not only trying to gain a financially secure job, but they also face harassment, often times more so than males. Much of the power and privilege that men have over women has been instilled in our society for far too long. Nonetheless, we are moving towards change to minimize the issues surrounding gender privilege.

Gender should not be limited to just male and female. It’s important for people to identify with a gender that they truly feel comfortable with. Moreover, it is just as important for all of us to learn to accept all different kinds of gender identities.

What is Gender?

Gender is a social construct where men and women have certain characteristics that differentiate them from one another. Gender is seen through the people we interact with, the shows we watch, and even how we view ourselves. We are taught that only two genders exists, male and female. Males are suppose to be tough, assertive, cut-throat, breadwinners, and they usually like sports, the great outdoors, building things etc. Females are suppose to be soft, quiet, passive, and nurturing with the main goal being able to carry offspring and raise a family.

Since we live in a patriarchal society, men are perceived to have more power. They are taught to be ambitious and to be the head of the household. They are taught to become CEOs and leaders. Women are not given that privilege. They are not taught to become leaders; rather they are taught to be the wife of a leader. They are taught to be submissive to their husbands and to not dream too big. As a result, women tend to have limited career opportunities, lower wages to their male counterparts, and face discrimination in the workplace. When it comes to what society values most in women, traits associated with physical appearance are the most mentioned. Since we live in this patriarchy, women are pressured to appeal to the male gaze, which leaves them at risk for harassment and even assault. I am relieved to see that women are making amazing breakthroughs in this male dominated society and are knocking down barriers to allow for more amazing women to make necessary changes.

I think the legitimacy of gender is determined through self; how you view yourself as. Quite frankly, I don’t think its anyone’s responsibility to define another human being. I agree that only having two-genders is very restrictive and neglectful to people who don’t identify with either male or female. I also find it dangerous to force people into a box where they don’t fit. Thats a recipe for gender dysphoria, the distress felt in a person whose gender identity does not align with their assigned sex. This constant unhappiness and discomfort that occurs when a person is forced to adhere to a gender where they don’t feel they belong can take a serious toll on one’s mental health, leading to severe depression or even suicide. I’ve heard the number of genders range from 4 to 12 to 64 to even over 100! I say the more the merrier. The more awareness brought to the different genders, the more one can feel comfortable in their own skin.