Category: Gender

Introduction

Gender mainstreaming entails assessing the effects to both men and women of any planed undertaking be it legislative, a program or policies covering all levels and areas of development. It is aimed at ensuring that both men and women are involved in designing, implementing, evaluating and monitoring all policies and programs related to political, social or economic fields thus ensuring that they all benefit equally. It involves bringing the contributions, ideas and rights of both genders to the center of focus in order to come up with the design, realization, strategies and results of policies and programs. It is a vital consideration not only in achieving gender equality but also in promoting development on the side of economy. Most of the microeconomic policies fail to meet their goals due to undermining factors pertaining gender. Efforts aimed at introducing gender consideration in most of current institutions have little effect on their own. This underlines the need of mainstreaming gender perspectives in order to achieve gender equality and improve the significance and efficiency of development agendas as a whole for the good of both women and men (International Labour Organization, 2009, par.1-4).

Brief history on gender mainstreaming

The idea of mainstreaming emerged in early 1980s when international womens movement felt that most of the programs that involved women were neglected thus yielding poor results. The little resources that were being set aside for projects spearheaded by women, resulted in small, inferior ventures leading to women being ignored when it came to development issues. After women discovered this, they started looking for alternative measures to ensure that their views were not sidelined any more but they were also integrated in decision-making. At this time, the term mainstreaming had varied meaning among different people. Some perceived it to mean integrating women in coming up with development plans and their realization while others took it to mean ensuring that institutions allocated resources for women programmes. This resulted in surfacing of debates about the significance of the activities that targeted women and the need of involving them in other programs (United Nations Fund for Women, 2005, par. 1-5).

As the recession widens and become severe in the world economy, all genders will suffer the labour force penalties and gender biasness is likely to be accelerated by this catastrophe. In this period, women are most likely going to be affected negatively than men. Most of the Europeans are focusing on ensuring that they have secured their jobs without regard to issues such as impartiality in pay among the gender, elastic working hours to harmonize work and family life and protection of parenthood rights. With most of the industries closing down, women are the most adversely affected. This calls for gender mainstreaming to enhance social sustainability and development. There is need to ensure that both men and women meet their aspirations in participating in working force in order to safeguard the economy of any country.

To ensure that there is gender mainstreaming, the government and other non-governmental organizations use several measures such as safeguarding employment and providing education and training to workers in the supply chains where most of women are employed under insecure terms without any security hence vulnerable to being fired. They also stop reduction in public spending which threatens most of public institutions which have the majority of the employees as women and encourage stakeholders to reinforce and expand social protection through ensuring equitable pensions, unemployment benefits and quality health care to all regardless of gender (ETUC, 2009, par. 1-7).

With this in mind, let we bring to your attention the need for gender mainstreaming in our company. All the participants in this company are requested to give greater attention to gender perspectives when it comes to work programmes and to support the effort of the company executives in seeing that these objectives have been attained. Experience from other companies have proved that allowing sharing of ideas, experiences and emphasizing on gender mainstreaming is a viable means of ensuring commitment, awareness and developing capacity among the employees. There is need for the company to organize for a series of workshops on gender mainstreaming to educate our employees on its importance and how to implement it. Based on the findings from the workshops held on the Asian and Pacific region which brought together eighty representatives fro the government, civil societies and organizations and United Nation bodies for constructive dialogue on gender mainstreaming, workshops proves to be productive in ensuring the success of the companys endeavor. The workshop consisted of six important sessions that covered the forty-sixth session of the commission on the position of women in eradicating poverty through empowering them. The great focus on the advancement of women and gender equality throughout the United Nation over the past decades brings about an increased recognition that there are significant gender perspectives with relation to development. Among them includes, human rights, good governance, suppressing poverty, ensuring sustainable development and promoting peace and security. The company needs to deliberate on the prospective results of planed projects on women and men before making decisions pertaining resource allocation, targets and the steps to be followed.

As we are aware, bringing gender perspectives to the center of deliberation will not only lead to gender equality but will also facilitate in achieving other development goals of our company. It has been noted that women makes major contribution in management issues in areas such as agriculture and water resources supervision in most of the countries. Therefore, neglecting women in decision making and implementation within our company will lead to retarded growth of key sectors within our company in which we will be doing harm to our company and to ourselves. We have to put into consideration the needs of all genders within our company if we wish to accomplish our development goals. In sectors such as macroeconomics and trade, where gender views were initially considered immaterial, people have started realizing the importance of assessing the contributions of women and men in making these sectors productive. There is a concrete increase in evidence that gender disparities and inequalities directly and indirectly play a major role in achievement of overall organizational development goals (Tiessen, 2005, pp.1-8).

However, we should be careful not to use gender mainstreaming as the only tool for achieving development goals within our company while assuming gender equality. Gender mainstreaming should be perceived as a means of promoting gender equality that, subsequently, will promote in the achievement of our companys development goals. Gender mainstreaming does not concern including women in growth agendas that have already been drafted by others. It demands for alteration of the objectives and plans of operations to ensure that both men and women partake, control and gain from development programs. It also calls for changes in the company configurations and customs to nurture a gender equitable environment. Gender mainstreaming does not pertain increasing the number of women in our company, but ensuring that both women and men are accorded equal opportunities in making decisions concerning the running of our company.

There has been a misconception within our employees on gender mainstreaming. This prompts us to make some clarifications here and now. Gender mainstreaming is not about gender balance within our company, though this is an important feature in promoting gender equality. It focuses on the activities of our company that is the goals, strategies, resource distribution, organization and execution processes. In addition, specific activities assigned to women within our company do not imply that there is gender mainstreaming but a basic accompaniment of it. Gender mainstreaming will therefore be employed in programmes where the main objectives will be allied to development goals and enhancing gender equality (Hannah, 2003, pp.12-14).

Result of gender mainstreaming

Gender mainstreaming will lead to all our staff members developing the attitude of participating in policy making of our company. This is because it will require the policy makers to make decisions by evaluating every single policy according to its impact on individual staffs in the company and the overall company. This will create new methods to replace the traditional ways of making decision where we used theoretical economic and ideological indices. The policy makers will also learn on how to pay attention to the wide impacts of policies on the employees life within the company. We will also be able to introduce other very important features to the employees lives here in the company, features that have been ignored by the management in the past.

The mode of management in our company will also be enhanced through better informed policy making process. This is because it will confront the general belief that policies have no connection to the gender, unraveling the concealed assumptions on veracity and ideals. As gender mainstreaming involves both men and women, it makes full use of human resources. Since currently most of the women are the ones fighting for gender equality in our company, implementing gender mainstreaming will see an increase in the number of people fighting for this both men and women. This will lead to our employees understanding that for the sake of progress within our company, there is need for them to seek the experience of both men and women. Gender mainstreaming will also lead to appreciation of the diversity between women and men within our company thus improving its growth. To achieve this, policy makers should come up with policies taking in to consideration the varied diversities between men and women. To highlight, other benefits accompanied with gender mainstreaming that our company is likely to experience includes:

• The company will be able to foster equal opportunities in matters to do with resources distribution and ensuring that the interests, views and ambitions of all employees are taken into account.
• We will be able to support policies that spearhead the establishment of equal opportunities at all levels within our company.
• We will be able to instill awareness, skills and approach on liberation and gender equality as well as developing skills on gender mainstreaming and gender equality among our staffs (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, foreign Information and Communication, the Netherlands, 2002, pp. 2-5).

Implementing gender mainstreaming

Although gender mainstreaming has been established as a world strategy for ensuring gender equality, we have a lot to do in our company before gender perspectives are regularly considered in all areas of development. Its implementation proves difficult than we originally thought. This is because it will require us to make great changes in the way we have been running our company. There is need for the company to ensure that all its issues and problems with respect to operations are defined in a manner that will help in identifying gender differences and disparities. We should never make assumptions that issues and or problems are free from gender views. We should make analysis on gender issues and our recommendations on operations and policies made based on the analysis keeping in account gender disparities. Once all gender perspectives have been identified in varied areas of development, we should come up with a strategy to address these problems. We should ensure that we successfully include gender perspectives into our work-tasks in a way that helps in attaining the ultimate goals, resource distribution and overall outcomes.

To support gender mainstreaming, there is also need for company to advance in terms of identifying roles and responsibilities, developing guidelines, consulting gender experts and improving the competence of all personnel. To achieve this, we intend to distribute various responsibilities to different arms of administration within our company. The duty of ensuring that mainstreaming is achieved will be bestowed to the directors with the management team bearing the responsibility of coming up with methods to monitor the advancement of mainstreaming. This will be through devising the indicators to be used over time in determining the progress being made by our company. The policies should explicitly elaborate the goals of our company, procedures to be used to conceptualize these goals and the expected outcomes. There should also be a common agreement among the staffs on what our company will be aiming to achieve with respect to gender equality matters. The staffs need to have a clear understanding on what is expected from their respective areas of operations (Hannah, 2003, pp. 15-7).

This asks for a political will among the management in promoting gender mainstreaming. The company should define gender equality as one of its major aims. Gender mainstreaming has been made a political issue through the help of non-governmental organizations. The management is required to issue a clear statement of its undertaking in ensuring that all policies are developed based on gender equality. It should also come up with clear criteria to be used in achieving gender mainstreaming to help the policy makers come up with effective policies. The management ought to be willing to question present gender affairs and the framework, regulations and processes encouraging inequality and to respond to them accordingly. The policy makers need to have a comprehensive knowledge of gender issues before they embark on making policies. This will require them to conduct thorough research on gender matters by analyzing the current gender disparities in all fields within our company as well as predicting on how future undertakings will affect women and men.

Financial support is an unconditional requirement in implementing gender mainstreaming as it is to other policies. Mainstreaming means reallotment of existing funds. Even if the company exhibit the political will and have all-inclusive gender equality policies and competent knowledge on gender at its disposal, this will not facilitate in it adapting the presented policies or provide the necessary gender education to policy makers, as all these require money.

We would also urge our women to be participating in political and public life as well as in decision making processes within our society. It is true that it will be hard to get political will for gender mainstreaming if women will not participate in its decision making. By women getting involved in public life and decision-making process, they will gain ideas regarding gender equality and this will help in ensuring that when we come to decision making in our company, the different interests, principles and life understanding of women are not left out. There is concrete evidence from experience that most of the companies where women participate in great numbers in decision making processes, changes are more effective and are effected at a faster rate (Gender mainstreaming, 2006, pp. 15-17).

Having said these, it is vital to present to you some of imperative conditions that the company has to meet for the success of this assignment:

• The company has to come up with clear definition of all policies regarding equal opportunities and development especially those that concerns women.
• The directors and departmental heads should sacrifice their time to address issues to do with equality and equal privileges within the company, as the ultimate goal is to promote justice and integrity within our company.
• The project will not be a success if all the stakeholders of our company are not willing to actively participate. Every one in the company must know the role he or she is entitled to play in his or her respective area.
• The company needs to consult gender experts in some areas as currently it does not have such experts in order to ensure that all gender based problems are fully addressed in our policies.
• The project will not yield if the company is not willing to fully support it financially. It is therefore the duty of finance manager to ensure that the company avails enough money to facilitate this mission.
• The company also intend to come up with a committee that will be assessing the progress of this venture stage by stage and alerting us where we appear to go out of the guidelines (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, foreign Information and Communication, the Netherlands, 2002, pp. 1-2).

Challenges we are likely to meet

As the company embarks on implementing this crucial endeavor, there are different challenges that it should be ready to face. There is great misunderstanding among the staffs on the concept of gender mainstreaming and this might lead to conflicts between them. Some of the staffs might take it as a new undertaking aimed at replacing specific gender equality policies and hence use it as reason for not going on with the implementation of other policies aimed at ensuring gender equality within the company. This requires the company to clearly distinguish the difference between gender mainstreaming and gender equality to the staffs to avoid cases of conflicts happening as well as ensuring that they are not exploited by the management staffs. Another problem the company is likely to meet concerns its current approach to policy-making. There is a significant difference between mainstreaming and various equality policies with respect to those who implement the policies. As gender mainstreaming involves integrating new approaches such as gender equality approach to what was perceived to be thematic approach, it calls for a strong cooperation between policy making departments. It will involve restructuring various policy-making guidelines as well as cooperating with other external organizations such as non-governmental organizations in coming up with policies that address are areas of concern. It will also require us to make changes in our approaches on matters pertaining to our companys culture and to look for new sources of consultation and cooperation (Wells and McEwan, 2009, pp. 2-7)

There might be a danger of the company talking about gender mainstreaming without taking the initiative to implement it. The executive team might decide that equality will be incorporated in all policies without taking steps to ensure that it has been done as per their proposal. This requires the will and stiff commitment from all our policy makers to redress not only the present disparity in gender but also to deal with the causes of these disparities. This asks for the determination to avail the required financial and human resources. Without enough resources both financial and manpower, we will not be able to achieve our goals (Gender mainstreaming, 2006, pp. 13-4).

Conclusion

With all the above challenges, the company needs to look for means to triumph them. As gender mainstreaming seem to focus more on empowering women, men folk might feel to be threatened and hence be reluctant in implementing proposed policies. The company needs to educate all the employees on the importance of gender mainstreaming. They have to realize that we are aiming at improving our company and the status of the employees but not discriminating people along gender lines. Money also needs to be set aside in advance to ensure that we do not delay our scheme due to financial constraints. If we keep to these recommendations, our venture will be successful and we will be able to work in harmony throughout the company.

Reference

European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC). (2009). ETUC calls for gender mainstreaming in handling the economic crisis. Web.

Gender Mainstreaming. (2006). Conceptual framework, methodology and presentation of good practices. 2009. Web.

Hannan, C. (2003). Putting gender mainstreaming into practice. 2009. Web.

International Labour Organization. (2009). Definition of Gender Mainstreaming. Web.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, foreign Information and Communication, the Netherlands. (2002). Institutional and Organizational Change: Gender Mainstreaming. 2009. Web.

Tiessen, R. (2005). Mainstreaming Gender in HIV/AIDS Programs: Ongoing Challenges and New Opportunities in Malawi. Journal of International Womens Studies, 7(1),1-8.

Wells, J. and McEwan, T. (2009). Gender mainstreaming: Moving from principles to implementation  The difficulties. Web.

Introduction

If we have to speak about the issue of the interpretation of interrelation of gender and contemporary society, it is difficult to find more suitable and impressive example for the analysis than the iconic image of Madonna. There is no denying the fact that she may be considered a post modern feminine icon. However, the fact remains that the disclosure of this iconic figure may be exercised in different ways: Madonna as the embodiment of political indeterminacy and constant representation of prevalence of sexuality over political power or as a message for contemporary women, which reminds them that their task is to be sexual women of style. We think that these two points of view should be synthesized and, in this case, the correct statement will appear: the image of a post modern woman, as presented by Madonna, suggests a self- sufficient sexually attractive but socially active and powerful woman.

Main Body

In the first place, the explanation of the creation of this new image of a woman in society is necessary. In order to carry out the task, we should follow the evolution of a woman in society during the twentieth century. It is commonly known that the beginning of the century was marked by the intense development of the powerful trend called feminism, though the first prerequisites for this movement go back to the eighteenth century (Walters, 2005, p. 26). This movement underwent several stages, and each stage was marked by the central task for women. As the result of the first stage, women won the right to vote; feminism of the second generation was aimed at the acquisition of equal rights of men and women, especially it concerned access to work places and equal amounts of salary for the employees of both sexes (Walters, 2005). It may be stated that the tasks of both stages of feminism have been successfully completed, but here the question of contemporary stage arises.

Madonna presents a complex image of a contemporary woman who has accomplished the second stage of feminism and represents the ideal image of a contemporary woman. Her example vividly shows the difference between a modern woman and a woman of the second stage of feminism. Besides, it should be mentioned that the current stage may be called post feminism. Now it is possible to explain the emphasis on sexuality that was eliminated on the second stage. Today women have become successful businesswomen; they rule corporations and make serious decisions concerning finance and prosperity of the businesses. However, in their hunt and chase after independence, success, and financial prosperity women have overlooked the awful side effect of their activity. As the result they have almost become agamous, the difference between sexes started to vanish, women and men started moving to one common gender. Fortunately, it dawned upon humanity that this type of development is doomed to awful results, such as extinction. And here sexuality comes back as the salvation of humanity.

The sexual image of Madonna has no intention to distract women from politics or business. The emphasis on sexuality is the desperate cry for help. In the book The Gendered Cyborg: A Reader, the author suggest the image of a woman-cyborg (Kirkup, 2000). Madonna simply suggests the way out of the problem and the only possible rescue for female inhabitants of this planet.

Though the advantages of Madonna as the icon should not be underestimated, it is also possible to set some other examples of the contemporary women who send the message of sexuality and power to all women. The picturesque example is the actress Riz Witherspoon and her character of Elle Woods, a blonde and a lawyer. At the first sight this combination is absurd, but as we know from the popular movie it has appeared to be winning. Elle Woods destroys stereotypes that hamper the progress of society. Sexuality is not the evidence for stupidity and shallowness of a woman. Certainly, such cases occur but they should not be treated as the only possible variant. On the contrary, sexuality, sense of style, and self-sufficiency are the keys for success for a modern woman. Besides, this statement may be proved by the example of the actress herself, for he is, definitely, the icon of female beauty, a successful professional in her sphere of work, and a businesswoman simultaneously.

However, the range of women who represent female gender in contemporary society should not be reduced to celebrities from the sphere of show business only. A lot of women who represent complete image of a woman of the 21^st century may be found in different spheres of society: among educators, doctors, lawyers, etc. Their names are not important; the most important thing about them is that they are successful and still remember that they are women.

Conclusion

Drawing a conclusion, it should be mentioned that the analyzed problem, certainly, deserves attention of humanity, as it directly concerns its future. Most of all, it should make emancipated women think about their nature and mission. They should reconsider their priorities, and, finally, they should make up the new model of a woman of the 21^st century to follow: a sexual, beautiful, educated, independent, prosperous, and self-sufficient woman.

Reference List

Kirkup, G. (2000). The Gendered Cyborg: A Reader. NY: Routledge.

Walters, M. (2005). Feminism: A Very Short Introduction. NY: Oxford University Press.

Recent years, gender approach becomes a part of a broader human development approach based on equal opportunities and gender equality principles. Historically, women were seen as a secondary class citizens identified with childbearing and housekeeping activities.

Today, gender equality becomes an issue of the day affected the economic sphere and trade relations. For feminists, gender differences are seen as a gender neutral activity permitting both men and women to participate in business practices and trade negotiations. Insofar as it affects women, a definition of gender discrimination is necessary since there will be many references in this book to discrimination, segregation, and differentiation. Gender approach is a part of human development process because women are involved in social life and economic activities on the global scale.

Liberation theologians do not have all the answer to gender issues. Their activities and those of the Base Communities have already produced leaders and numerous social organizations. The overall impression of family life in the Bible is a positive one, especially by comparison with contemporaneous sources. Sibling rivalry is relatively prominent in the early biblical narratives, and the house of David had its share of strife, but there is nothing in the Bible to compare with the cycles of internecine slaughter involving wives, husbands, and children which the Greek tragic tradition contains.

In religion, Jesus identity as the son is constituted by his relationship to God as the father; this is the unanimous witness of the traditions. In representing his most intimate understanding of God by the symbol father Jesus drew not only on religious tradition, but also on his own family experience. A man therefore had authority within his household over his wife, children, and other members (Alford 31).

The social status of women in general was low; and the religious tradition was particularly cruel, suggesting that women were ontologically inferior to men. In the time of Jesus the pious man thanked God in his morning prayers that he had not been created a Gentile, a woman, or as one unschooled in Judaism. Under the law women were classed with minor children, slaves, Gentiles, and idiots, obliged to observe all prohibitions but not all injunctions; indeed, there are only three injunctions which women had to obey without exception: the proper purifications after menstruation, the conscientious removal of yeast from the house at Passover, and the lighting of the Sabbath candles.

Women were not taught the Torah, they could not enter the inner courts of the temple, and they did not count in the synagogue towards the quorum of ten souls required for worship. Women could not be witnesses in a court of law A famous rabbinic saying, Do not speak much with a woman, was interpreted as applying specifically to conversation with ones wife.

One custom which made this vividly apparent was that in return for his feeding, clothing, and supporting her, a woman was obliged not only to render the usual domestic and sexual service but specifically to wash her husbands feet, a task to which a slave could not legally be compelled. With reference to his daughters, the fathers chief concern was to transfer them to their eventual husbands without blemish; to his sons his obligations were more extensive. He was responsible for teaching his sons the law and customs of religion, and, in the level of society to which Jesus belonged, he introduced his sons to the secrets of his trade (Bhagwati 310. If Joseph was indeed a carpenter, he would have initiated Jesus into the skills of carpentry.

At all times the son owed his father obedience, and in their old age he owed both parents support and care. From the point of view of a modern understanding of human rights, the position of women in this patriarchate is shameful. It does nothing to mitigate this judgment that Rengstorf can find an early example of the anti-feminine morning prayer in Greek sources, although his claim that such chauvinism entered Judaism only as a result of Greek influence is worth serious consideration, in view of interpretation of the Old Testament evidence as giving women relatively favorable status (Fausto-Sterling 43).

The family was much less stable at the turn of the age than it had ever been before. Indeed, that situation has been compared with our own; the rate of divorce was high, the reputation of fidelity low. Children were a nuisance, and infant exposure, a rudimentary alternative to abortion, was widely practised. The evidence we have shows that while children in general were undesirable, female children were more so than male. The wife had the legal status of a daughter and so was subject to the same absolute authority, although her husband could only punish her with the consent of the council of the extended family.

Marriage took place by a solemn ceremony before witnesses; the wife and her goods passed into the possession of the husband; divorce was impossible. Men married at 18-20 years of age, women at 13-15 years. A wifes status was reasonably high within the family, she took part in the council, received visitors, and appeared in public (Bhagwati 13).

Philosophy did make its impact on the relations between the sexes. Most widespread was the idea that a man should love his wife rationally  a union of mind and soul as it were  and save his passion for slave-girls. Also popular was the idea that marriage, not being found among the animals, was contrary to nature. In sum, philosophy contributed to the misery rather than the joy of marriage.

The New Testament suggests, however, that there was a serious ambivalence in the early Christian attitude towards the fathers authority (Brannon 42). This situation represents the confrontation between the impulse for reformation of the patriarchy on the one hand, which we hope to show emanated from Jesus, and the resistance of entrenched privilege on the other. Jesus broke the forms of the patriarchal family in the name of God the Father, and recognized the natural right of women to equal humanity with men.

The records of his life are clear in their witness: he had women in his entourage, he spoke with women in public, spent time teaching them; and in a breathtaking scene, whose full significance has yet to be understood, he let a whore wash his feet, let her perform a service for him which was the characteristic sign of a wifes duty to her husband (Austin 87). He paid special attention to mothers and children, over the characteristic objections of his disciples, and he refused to condemn an adulteress, knowing how unfair the law on adultery was to women, upon whom alone it laid the obligation of absolute marital fidelity; he refused to be a part of the double standard.

He forbade divorce, and based the marriage relationship on the one flesh idea of Gen. 2:24, an idea which allows neither the subordination of one partner to the other nor the treating of the woman as a chattel whose adultery infringes the mans property rights. Finally, it was to women that he entrusted the initial witness to his Resurrection, because only women-followers stood by his cross (Fausto-Sterling 21).

Policies that ignore the economic role of women may, in fact, be detrimental to women. For example, attempts to implement new agricultural techniques have often assumed that men are in charge of all agricultural production. Giving all new information to men places women at a disadvantage, even though the women play an important role in many forms of agricultural production. The results indicate that a substantial percentage of women work in some countries, and these women often have important roles in family businesses. Inclusion of working women in the dissemination of new programs should be a high priority.

Policies are implemented through administrative and managerial positions. Our results show that women do not generally hold these types of positions. Indeed, fewer than 3 percent of employed women are in administrative or managerial positions in each of the three countries considered. Although there are more female professionals, these jobs are in education and health care. Thus, women have very little input at the highest levels of organizational control. Unless policy implementation penetrates beneath the upper levels of control, it is doubtful that the policies will be directly responsive to the needs of women. Development efforts undertaken to help Third World women have often been in the form of welfare-oriented programs (Austin 44).

The evidence that Jesus recognized the natural rights to which their humanity entitled women is clear, and especially moving when considered against the background of the regnant patriarchy. The price he paid for this fearless love was his own life; and before that final reckoning he lost his family and his respectability. He was crucified because he contravened the religious law in the name of God who gave the law.

His contraventions were all in favor of those whom the law oppressed  the people of the land who were ritually unclean because of their daily work, the whores and tax officials who collaborated with the occupation forces, the women and children who were at the disposal of their men. The heart of his message, in word and deed, was that God is a father who frees us from oppression by including us in his family; that when Gods will is done on earth all will be included and none excluded; that his fatherly care means equal dignity and worth for all.

This message was a threat not only to the interests of a religion that used the law to establish an elite, but also to a society which used religion to oppress the weak. The impulse that went out from Jesus caused him to be crucified; it is not surprising that his followers tempered it to their times (Burman and Parker 87).

The harshest reaffirmations of patriarchal power in the New Testament occur in the later layers of the tradition. When these strata were formed the church was settling down to the long haul of history, realizing that they had been mistaken in thinking that Jesus had promised an imminent end to the world. The powers of the new age which had attended his teaching, and flashed forth in his Resurrection, had to be contained within the forms of the old (Cloke et al 87).

The new age and the old led a parallel existence in this strange time between the times; therefore social attitudes were bound to be ambivalent, formed as they were by influences from different worlds. Rather than attempt to revoke this new liberty, which would have been against his convictions, Paul tries to mount an argument for the custom of the veil. He summons Adam and Eve to testify that man was created before woman, and indeed that woman came out of man. On this basis he constructs a hierarchy with God at the top, woman at the bottom, and Christ and man in descending order in between. The covered head is a sign that woman is under man in this hierarchy (Fausto-Sterling 42).

Both Luke and Matthew place the saying at a strategic point in their treatment of the meaning of discipleship. Luke has it at the beginning of the long journey to Jerusalem which is the image by which he portrays discipleship, namely, as the following after Jesus. Matthew has it before the storm on the lake which tested the disciples resolution and found it wanting. Only Luke has the injunction, Go and announce the Kingdom of God, and in this surely perceives the source of the urgency implicit in the command.

The call of the Kingdom of God brooks no excuse, no delay, and leaves in shreds the ties that bind. The duty of a son to bury his dead father promptly was solemn, and indeed, given the fact that a dead person had by law to be buried the day after death, an urgent matter; but the call of the Kingdom takes precedence. The setting of the saying  a young man asking to be allowed to delay following Jesus until he has performed his last and most solemn filial duty  may be a product of the tradition; it may be a frame constructed for the enigmatic word, Leave the dead to bury their dead, and come follow me [announce the Kingdom]. Be that as it may, it is an accurate explication of the sayings intention. Jesus not only renounced his own family obligations but called others to do so as well (Cloke et al 54).

In Mark 7:9-13, Jesus attacks the Pharisees for the corban custom, by which a man could evade his duty to support his aged parents. One did not actually have to deliver the goods pledged to religious ends under the corban vow; they merely became available to ones own use, free of obligation to parents. It might seem a contradiction that Jesus, who claimed for himself and his followers the right to abandon their parents, should castigate the Pharisees for doing the same thing. However, the issue is not whether the parents should be supported or not, it is rather the grounds on which the claim to be free of that obligation is made. In the case of corban, it is the unwritten law which renders the written law inoperative; but Jesus does not accept the unwritten law in this case (Easterly 51).

Historically, one of the most important implications of this was the change in social status of women and children. Family life takes on a new dimension when human beings are no longer regarded as property, when the foundation of family life is not just the prevailing pattern of social organization but the relation of persons mutually bound to Christ. Roles are no longer defined by law, but by the will of God.

Authority rests on the claims of love (Webber and Fort 51). It is on this basis that welfare programs are conducted, and if they have matured from the older charity to methods of self-help that maintain self-respect, it is because more knowledge and greater wisdom have channeled this basic respect more constructively (Kimmels Michel 55). On this same basis medical benefits are extended to all who need them, education is made available for all who will receive it, and the responsibility and privilege of government are shared democratically (Fausto-Sterling 44).

Christians simply do not agree at this point on the reason behind missions, though instinctively they recognize their importance. Perhaps the emphasis on Gods revelation in history that we have carried throughout this book can shed other light on the situation. This emphasis reminds us that basically the Gospel is not an idea, but good news, and that Christianity is the whole response of people called forth by the proclamation of that news.

This means that to consider merely the beliefs of a religion is to miss the important aspects of that religion (MacGillivray, 2005). This of course means that Christianity is definitely exclusive-one cannot serve two mastersbut exclusiveness is not narrowness, incapable of recognizing good in other people. which a man and a woman bind themselves to each other exclusively for life; yet it is only in Christian lands, where this concept of marriage prevails, that men and women may associate socially with freedom. The harem, where women are secluded, is never associated with the exclusiveness attendant to the Christian idea of marriage (OBrien et al 43).

At the same time that equal opportunity policies ar beginning to be implemented, many policy-makers and activists are questioning the extent to which equal opportunity policy is an effective strategy for reducing the wage gap. Instead, it is being suggested that equal opportunity policy needs to be supplemented by other policies specifically designed to attack that problem head-on.

Works Cited

Alford, R.D. Naming and identity: a cross-cultural study of personal naming practices. New Haven, CT: HRAF, 1999.

Austin, J.L. How to do things with words. Oxford: Clarendon, 1999.

Bhagwati, J. In Defense of Globalization. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.

Bem, S.L. Lenses of gender. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2003.

Brannon, L. Gender. Psychological perspectives. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon, 2004.

Burman, E., and Parker, I. (eds). Discourse analytic research. Repertoires and readings of texts in action. London and New York: Routledge, 2006.

Cloke P, Crang P, Goodwin M, Eds, Introducing Human Geographies, Second Edition, London, Arnold, 2005.

Easterly, W. The Elusive Quest for Growth: Economists Adventures and Misadventures in the Tropics. Cambridge, MA, The MIT Press, 2001.

Fausto-Sterling, Anne. Sexing the Body. Oxford University Press, USA; illustrated edition edition, 2000.

Kimmels Michel S. The Gendered Society. Basic Books, 2000.

MacGillivray, A. Globalization. Carroll & Grafm 2005.

OBrien, R., Goetze, A., Scholte, J., Williams, M., Helleiner, E. Contesting Global Governance: Multilateral Economic Institutions and Global Social Movements Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.

Webber, D., Fort, B. Regional Integration in Europe and East Asia: Convergence and Divergence? Routledge, 2005.

It is necessary to find out which factors provoke the current situation of a gender pay gap. Understanding if this difference might be the consequence of discrepancies in the qualities and characteristics of male and female workers can help to address the issue and select the methods of making change. Thus, it will be first analyzed whether men get higher wages than women because they have observable characteristics or traits associated with higher labor productivity, such as better education.

The characteristics of the labor market are the so-called characteristics of human capital, and the most common ones are age, experience, and education. Other parameters characterizing the workplace, such as the industrial sector, geographical location, and other factors, also play a role in labor market definition. Thus, it will be checked whether men have higher professional and educational levels justifying their higher wages.

Despite significant differences between countries, such factors as education, and other characteristics of the labor market explain only a relatively small section of gender difference in salaries. An almost entirely unexplained wage gap between men and women generally prevails in nearly all countries, regardless of income level. In high-income countries, education has an average of less than one percentage point in the wage gap between men and women; therefore, a lower educational level cannot explain the gender pay gap. Moreover, women get less for work of equal value, which proves the necessity to raise this issue.

The situation of social injustice being detected, the essay explores what citizens can do to gradually reduce the pay gap for men and women with the conscious effort of society. An increasing number of countries are paying attention to national legislation prohibiting discrimination against women in workplaces. Although they take measures to promote equal pay for women and men, there is still a long way to go, and the strategies of nonviolent civil disobedience introduced by King and Chavez can help in addressing the problem.

Both activists were advocates of the struggle against injustice and oppression, and their methods can be applied to bridge the gender pay gap. In 1963, King was imprisoned in Birmingham because of the demonstrations; and he used his case to attract public attention to racial discrimination and raise public awareness. The letter he wrote in prison became a programmatic text; thus, the strategy to apply is to use every opportunity to talk about the cases of oppression. Following Kings approach, it is necessary to gather evidence of inequality and to proceed with negotiation to improve the situation. The final steps are self-purification and direct action (King 12), and all these steps are still relevant in any civic struggle. Chavez claims that nonviolence is more potent than violence because it attracts more support (28). Thus, nonviolent disobedience and manifestations can serve not only to secure higher wages for women but also with a strategic goal to attract public attention and raise awareness.

The example of the educational levels role proves that women are often subject to discrimination regardless of their qualifications and other achievements. In many countries, women have a higher education level than men within the same professional category but receive lower wages in their occupational group. This evidence refutes the assumption that women receive lower fees because of their insufficient educational level. Further civic action is to follow four steps suggested by King and to secure fair policies for women.

Works Cited

Chavez, Cesar. He Showed Us the Way, Civil Disobedience. Module Texts.

King, Martin Luther, Jr. Letter from Birmingham Jail, Civil Disobedience. Module Texts.

Gender equality has become a global area of concern that has created gaps both in education and the labor market. Many employers in the twenty-first century consider a persons level of learning as a determining factor for job placement. However, both men and women have various advantages and disadvantages that may allow them to seize or miss particular career opportunities. Gender-based discrimination in the course of ones education is one of the critical issues that have resulted in restrictions to the acquisition of skills, occupational stature, and employment. In the United States, there have been many cases of gender bias in learning institutions denying opportunities to students. This paper provides an insight into the problems, solutions, and barriers to gender equality in education and labor market in Ohio state.

Problem

As discussed earlier in the problem analysis paper, gender equality is an issue that permeates all tiers and levels of learning and living. Main factors that lead to unequal education opportunities among male and female students in the United States include minority status, poverty, disability, distance from learning institutions, marriage, pregnancy, and gender-based violence. Although women are known for abandoning schools due to primary elements such as stereotyping, sexual abuse, early marriage, and gender discrimination, there are emerging cases where men are excluded from certain learning courses (Cimpian, 2018). Indeed, some US states such as Ohio have recorded cased of excluding male students from various engineering and scholarship programs. Perry (2020) reveals that Ohio State University was sued for offering, financing, and operating nine female-only courses, an act of gender-based discrimination pursuant to Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972 (Perry, 2020). Cimpian (2018) also reveals that the measurement of academic proficiency by gender has created enormous problems in creating equal opportunities for male and female students.

Most schools in Ohio are perceived to underestimate the intellectual abilities of young women, which devalues their contributions to the labor market and society. A more systemic problem that is observed in most learning institutions is the measurement of equity using math or STEM parity. The roles of women in society, which accentuate their real-life differences with men, are severe societal issues that need enduring solutions if nations have to achieve the finest economic development and productivity.

Gender disproportion in education, partly due to socio-cultural origins, is a serious problem that may have adverse effects on the choice of career opportunities. The most recent evidence from Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences show that the education of women precedes men in some areas. Overall, profound problems exist in Ohio States education system and researchers and policymakers to devise ways of ensuring equal access to learning opportunities for both male and female students.

Solution

Education is a fundamental right that should not be restricted to gender-based standards. Even though governments, authorities, and organizations have attempted to come up with solutions, assuaging gender disparity has proved to be a challenging task. Regardless of this standing, finding a solution to this social flaw will play a critical role in shaping the financial status and overall economic growth of Ohio state (Begum, 2015). Gender equality should spearhead efforts to promote the right to education and the attainment of sustainable economic development.

The creation of a balanced learning system, which offers impartial opportunities, is a first step towards the empowerment of both male and female students in Ohio. A few issues need to be addressed. First, gender specifications should be adjusted for all programs and scholarships to ensure equal educational opportunities for both genders. In a case involving Ohio State University, some courses have been discriminately selected for female students, a move that defies the requirements of Title IX of the Education Amendments Act. Gender disparity in education has a direct effect on the labor market. In this case, it implies that certain jobs should be preserved for women. The university should allow full participation of male students in such courses to fill gaps where men are needed in the workforce. There have been a plethora of theoretical and empirical surveys asserting that gender imbalance in education and the labor market slows down economic development. Restricting learners to specific courses based on gender has a direct effect on the amount of human capital in society (Stier & Herzberg-Druker, 2017). In the case of Ohio State University, excluding men from engineering and scholarship programs may restrict a pool of talent from entering the related labor market. This scenario implies that the marginal return to educating boys is lower than that of girls and may result in reduced economic performance.

Enforcement of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is paramount to reminding educators that federal law bans gender-based discrimination in schools. Recently, Ohio State University established a new centralized office to deal with grievances of sexual pestering and misconduct. However, the institution should also address restrictions that prevent male students from pursuing some courses (Howie & Tauchert, 2019). Social questioning and assessment of bias from the entry point at the kindergarten level to the labor market will play a central role in narrowing the educational gaps that result in gender-based discrimination in educational facilities.

Barriers

Despite efforts to discredit gender inequality, numerous barriers have inhibited the process of empowering and ensuring complete education cycles among men and women in Ohio. Large gender gaps determine access, the accomplishment of learning goals, and the pursuit of higher-level education, especially among girls (Howie & Tauchert, 2019). The United States regards science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) as the primary drivers of innovation and growth. As a result, these disciplines demand the full involvement of men and women to fulfill Ohios pledge to economic progress. Although women account for approximately 50% of the states workforce, they make up 25% of the STEMM jobs (Chen & Crown, 2019). Wyn, Cuervo, Crofts, and Woodman (2017) note that women are underrepresented in these faculties with 13.7% pursuing physical sciences, 20.6% IT-related courses, and 7.2% engineering. Further surveys also indicate most women suffer from systemic educational barriers such as typecasting, implicit bias, cultural issues, and lack of access to informal networks and mentoring.

It is important to understand that the development of future engineers and scientists will depend on whether colleges and universities will solve social and environmental hindrances to the success of underrepresented groups in STEMM (Stier & Herzberg-Druker, 2017). Some institutions of higher learning in the US, including Ohio State University, lack proper policies to address gender bias at the point of enrolment (Wyn et al., 2017). Creating opportunities for female participants in STEM programs does not warrant the University to restrict the male students from pursuing such courses as this approach will only result in the loss of significant talents necessary for the labor market.

Besides, male leaders have consistently shown an unwillingness to promote women to leadership roles, especially in positions that are stereotypically deemed suitable for men. This traditionalist behavior has denied about 57% of female workers opportunities to ascend to powerful positions both in the private and public sectors. 54% of male employees have also shown reluctance in the performance of duty and adherence to instructions under the leadership of lady bosses (Stier & Herzberg-Druker, 2017). Chauvinist believes that ladies have to work harder to prove their importance and contributions to the workplace have undesirable effects on a womens career. This standing also affects decisions on careers among female students due to the fear of gender discrimination in the labor market.

Conclusion

Education is essential in building up human capital and it has become one of the most treasured assets in the twenty-first century owing to intensifying globalization and international competition. Any development approach that does not consider the need for embracing gender equality cannot attain comprehensive socio-economic growth. A balanced education system that caters to the future employment requirements for both women and men is vital for boosting economic development. However, many institutions across many states in America, including Ohio, suffer from gender inequality and typecasting. The choice of study programs based on gender poses a great risk to the economy due to the development of talent gaps in the labor market. Governments, authorities, and organizations need to understand the building blocks for ensuring gender equality in education and the labor market by advocating for equal opportunities for men and women at all levels.

References

Begum, A. (2015). Gender in education: policy discourse and challenges. Development in Practice, 25(5), 754768.

Chen, J. J., & Crown, D. (2019). The gender pay gap in academia: Evidence from the Ohio State University. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 101(5), 1337-1352.

Cimpian, J. (2018). How our education system undermines gender equity: And why culture change  not policy  may be the solution. Brookings. Web.

Howie, G., & Tauchert, A. (2019). Gender, teaching, and research in higher education: Challenges for the 21st century. Routledge.

Perry, M. (2020). Ohio State University busted for multiple violations of Title IXs prohibition of sex discrimination. Web.

Stier, H., & Herzberg-Druker, E. (2017). Running ahead or running in place? Educational expansion and gender inequality in the labor market. Social Indicators Research, 130(3), 1187-1206.

Wyn, J., Cuervo, H., Crofts, J., & Woodman, D. (2017). Gendered transitions from education to work: The mysterious relationship between the fields of education and work. Journal of Sociology, 53(2), 492-506.

Introduction

Gender refers to behaviors, mindset, and feelings associated with one being male or female. The tendency of using pink hat for a baby girl and blue hat for a baby boy leads to children learning their roles with respect to gender. Once children are born, their parents play a major role in molding them according to gender. It has been proved that a child is able to learn about its gender as early as when it is one year old and can be able to distinguish sexes at the age of two or three years. Generally, children learn about their gender through the kind of clothes they put on as well as the toys they play with. Once the children are able to identify their sex, they start associating themselves with certain categories of toys and clothes.

Patterns in clothing and toys stocking in store

On visiting various stores that sell baby toys, it was possible to identify different categories of toys. The stores stocked their toys based on the gender. Toys attributed to girls were organized separately from those attributed to boys. In girls section one could find varied toys colored pink ranging from dresses made from different designs. There were also a lot of household toys such as tea sets, cups, plates as well as Barbies. The boys section was one of the areas that were easy to recognize. The section was staffed with toys that made loud noises ranging from fake guns and beeps. Engine sounds could also be heard from all corners within the section.

From using various toys and clothing during their life, children learn different issues pertaining to gender. Most of them believe that by using various toys or wearing certain clothes they violate gender norms. For instance a boy who tends to play with toys attributed to girls is reprimanded by his friends while girls do not entertain their fellow girls who tend to wear clothes attributed to boys. From the kind of toys and clothes these children wear, their character is also greatly influenced. By girls playing mostly with domestic toys such as kitchens and dresses, they tend to develop a passive character. Most of the girls become very humble and submissive. They give great value to looking gorgeous as well as developing household skills. To the contrary, Boys who play with toys such as fake guns, tractors as well as action packed games tend to be very radical and hostile. It has also been found that, through boys using various toys that are linked with mathematics and science; they have been able to develop great skills in these fields. Most boys have been seen to do well in areas pertaining spatial abilities and mathematics (Serbin & Connor 315- 316).

What clothes and toys teach children about gender

Through various toys such as doll sets, girls are able to learn that their roles revolve around domestic chores. They learn that it is the responsibility of females to look after their young ones and to attend to household jobs. Various toys contain some descriptions on their packages which helps the children know of their roles. Most of the girls toys attach a lot of value to appearance for one to be accepted in society. Through these girls learn how to keep themselves stunning to be acknowledged in the society (Singleton PP. 1&2).

By playing with Barbie dolls, most of young girls develop interest in attaining small hips and flat tummies. They also desire for clothes designed as those worn by these dolls. Eventually, it leads to them adopting various practices in an attempt to achieve a body type that resembles that of the Barbie. They start admiring grown up ladies. This is because the Barbie is designed to have the features of a woman. In the attempt to resemble the Barbie, the young girls end up coming up with ways to make them look as if they are grown ups. With boys using toy guns, most of them develop the interest of playing and acting like soldiers. This eventually leads to most of them developing an interest of serving in the military. This implies that various toys arouse different interests to children depending on their gender.

It is possible to distinguish people according to their gender depending on the kind of activities they most prefer to engage in. Toys and clothes best distinguish between a boy and a girl. There are those clothes and toys that are specifically attributed to boys and vice versa. According to Warren (Par. 7-11), a child born and its gender not being made public can be identified by the kind of toys or clothes it prefers to ware. No matter how one tries to hind its gender, its selection of toys and clothes will eventually declare its gender.

Toys that are gender neutral

Some of the toys that are gender neutral include blocks, board games and cards. Most of these toys are aimed at entertaining as well as educating children. Due to the society attributing different toys to specific gender, boys and girls become restricted to their genders. They are not given an opportunity to discover other roles that are outside their genders. This also has played a role in creating a difference in matters to do with cognitive and collective skills between the genders. Girls loose personal identity making them unable of developing whereas boys are given opportunity to pursue their dreams to their best (Starr Par. 1-6).

Conclusion

Gender alignment through toys and clothes encourages conventional gender roles. Most of the parents do not understand the effects of the toys they buy for their children. There is great need for parents to know of the consequences of the toys they buy to their children. They should also encourage games that are gender unbiased as early as possible for their children to grow to respect all genders.

References

Serbin & Connor. Sex-typing of childrens play preferences and patterns of cognitive performance. The Journal of Genetic Psychology 134 (1979): 315-316.

Singleton, Karen. Educational Toys For Girls And Boys  Is There A Difference? 2009. Web.

Starr, Denise. How Toys Teach Children Stereotypical Gender Roles: A Look Inside a Local Toy Store. 1999. Web.

Warren, L. Beyond Barbies Influence on Girls Self-Image, 2007. Web.

Socialization is the process of internalizing norms and behaviors accepted in a given society plays a significant role in the development of a persons self-concept. Symbolic interactionist, functionalist, and conflict perspective alike take different approaches to socialization but ultimately agree that an individual only develops a sense of self within the social context (Kendall, 2018). This development of self-concept invariably involves gender and racial socialization. These mainly occur in the early stages of a persons life, although sometimes they may begin even before said persons birth and contain messages on the appropriate behavior for males, females, and different racial groups.

Gender socialization covers the norms and practices associated with being male or female in a particular society. In the vast majority of cultures, men and women are expected to fulfill different social roles and partake in different activities (Kendall, 2018). Gender socialization as a process relies on reiterating messages on what is befits males and females according to the accepted social norms and rewards socially appropriate behaviors while discouraging the inappropriate ones (Kendall, 2018). Apart from assigning socially acceptable roles, gender socialization also produces value orientations that serve to reinforce and promote these roles (Strapko et al., 2016).

Boys may be expected to play more roughly, corresponding to their supposedly higher ambitions, and girls may stay out later as corresponding to the higher value they supposedly assign to responsibility (Kendall, 2018). Gender socialization is a lifelong process, but it often starts even before a child is born, as the parents, upon learning of the kids biological sex, may but gender-appropriate clothing and toys in advance (Kendall, 2018). Family plays the foremost role in gender socialization, but media, school, and peer groups are important as well.

Racial socialization is the process of self-identification as a member of a specific racial group among those represented in society. As with gender socialization, racial socialization contains specific messages and practices concerning the nature of our racial and ethnics status (Kendall, 2018, p. 82). The process involves direct statements assigning specific values to different racial groups and indirect activities that send implicit messages of similar nature. These messages may often create a hierarchy of racial groups and designating some of them as better and more deserving of opportunities and privileges than the others (Kendall, 2018).

As with gender socialization, the family is the primary agent of racial socialization, although peer groups, media, and other factors play their roles as well (Kendall, 2018). Children usually become aware of the importance of race in their social contexts near the age of four, which is when racial socialization begins in earnest (Kendall, 2018). Racial socialization, just like any other type, is a lifelong process, as the people continue to learn and reinforce or modify their notions of acceptable and inappropriate practices throughout their lives.

As one can see, racial and gender socialization are essential components of socialization as a whole and contain the messages on activities and behaviors befitting of unacceptable for males, females, and different racial groups. Gender socialization assigns roles and sets of values to boys and girls alike and may begin even before a child is born due to parental efforts in surrounding him or her with the gender-appropriate entourage. Racial socialization usually begins around the age of four, when the child becomes aware of race, and also contains messages on practices, relationships, and social hierarchy insofar as they relate to racial issues.

References

Kendall, D. (2018). Sociology in our times: The essentials (11^th ed). Cengage Learning.

Strapko, N., Hempel, L., MacIlroy, K., & Smith, K. (2016). Gender differences in environmental concern: Reevaluating gender socialization. Society & National resources: An International Journal, 29(9), 1015-1031.

Introduction: A New Way of Looking at Manliness

Gender stereotypes have existed since the beginning of time. Even though the tendency to subvert some of the existing gender related clichés has emerged since recently clearly not enough is being done in order to address the problems that gender profiling creates. While, in most cases, women happen to be the victims of gender stereotyping, men also suffer from the clichés concerning masculinity, which Zeilinger and Jensen address in their essays. Though both authors use unique and easy-to-identify styles, including specific and original imagery, they both succeed in trying to convey the same idea of the concept of masculinity not being worth imposing on men.

Two Ideas, Back to Back: In Search for Connections

Seeing that both narratives belong to the genre that does not require the introduction of any characters, it is rather surprising to see that both Jensen and Zeilinger introduce ones into their essays. The functions of these characters, as well as their purposes, are quite different, though. While the homosexual friend of Zeilinger, whom she mentions at some point, is quoted in order to subvert the existing stereotype of gay men, the friend of Jensens, in his turn, only plays the part of a sad example of what masculine stereotypes do to people that cannot or are unwilling to follow the roles that were foisted on them by the society.

Imagery

Both Jensen and Zeilinger create a range of unique images in order to support their point of view and get their message across. The images themselves, however, bare distinctly unique features; neither of the authors resorts to clichés in their attempts to render the issue in question, i.e., the concept of masculinity and the image of a man in the contemporary society. While Jensen tends to create the images that would appeal to the male audience, Zeilinger clearly tries to find a compromise between targeting at her female readers and at the same time trying to draw mens attention to the issue discussed.

Indeed, Jensen creates the images, which speak mostly to men, by mentioning the subject of rivalry and fight for the place under the sun. In order to represent the struggle that men have to put up in order to get rid of the annoying and often harmful stereotype, Jensen creates an array of images that are traditionally attributed to the men, who dare to show their emotions explicitly: Men who dont measure up are wimps, sissies, fags, girls (Jensen 535).

The use of graphically negative imagery is justified by the immense efforts that the author has to make in order to convince his audience. Zeilinger, on the contrary, is much more reserved in her portrayal of gender issues and the masculinity trope; as a result, the occasional graphic imagery used, such as the contrast between feral beasts and a tiny bunny (Zeilinger 539) makes a much greater impression.

Point of view

On the one hand, it may seem that Zeilinger and Jensen make the same point, even though they clearly use different approaches to convince their readers. Indeed, both authors seem to be certain about the negative effect that the trope of masculinity has on the modern society, and persuade their readers to abandon the concept that has clearly worn out its welcome. On the other hand, the focus of Zeilingers article is somewhat different from that one of Jensens essay.

Zeilinger is obviously trying to analyze the stereotype of men being emotionless and cold, whereas Jensen pays admittedly more attention to the concept of masculinity in general, including not only the emotional coldness, but also such exaggerated character traits as striving for dominance and the ensuing need for competition, as well as the outbursts of violence, which may be viewed as the side effects of the concept of masculinity being foisted onto men.

As a result, both authors come to the conclusion that a stereotypical understanding of masculinity is harmful, yet each retains their own vision of the problem. Zeilinger scrutinizes the emotional aspect of mens lives, stressing the negative effects, which stereotyping has on the former; Jensen, in his turn, pays considerably more attention to the effects of the aforementioned stereotypes on mens social and family life.

Themes

The themes that Zeilinger raises in the work are quite numerous; apart from the discussion of masculinity and the problems that masculinity related clichés cause, she also introduces the reader to the key tenets of feminism, therefore, making it clear that the latter is not focused on solely women, but allows for an analysis of interactions between men and women.

Moreover, Zeilinger links the concept of masculinity and the current backlash that gay people all over the world receive. Jensen, on the other hand, talks mostly about gender and masculinity related stereotypes. Much to his credit, though, Jensen integrates such subjects as career chase, violence towards women, and even glances over the concept of sexuality in the modern world.

Setting and atmosphere

As far as the atmosphere is concerned, both essays seem to share a number of characteristics. Both Zeilinger and Jensen seem to depict a traditional urban setting in their essays. Jensen keeps talking about mens desire for ultimate power being transformed into a career chase and the transfer of their battles into the workplace setting, whereas Zeilinger focuses on the analysis of emotional evolution of men without tying the process to any particular environment.

This does beg the question whether Jensens theory is only applicable for the people living in the urban setting; indeed, the authors tendency to consider typically urban examples, including the mentioning of CEOs and the introduction of an office worker as one of the key examples to illustrate his theory. However, much to his credit, Jensen still manages to create a relatively neutral atmosphere, therefore, allowing suggesting that his assumptions can be adapted to any scenario, in which the masculinity related dilemma emerges.

Conclusion: What It Takes to Be a Man

Admittedly using two entirely different set of strategies for the most part, both Zeilinger and Jensen introduce their readers to the same idea of masculinity related stereotypes being extremely harmful to both men and women. At certain points, the strategies, which the writers utilize in order to convince the readers, cross; however, for the most part, neither the stylistic devices utilized by the authors, nor the manner, in which they persist in their opinion, are entirely different. As a result, they both make a valid point concerning society and the stereotypes that it creates, and they do so in an original way, which makes each of the essays truly impressive.

Works Cited

Jensen, Robert. The High Cost of Manliness. The Bedford Guide for College Writers. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martins. 2011. 534538. Print.

Zeilinger, Julie. Guys Suffer from Oppressive Gender roles Too. The Bedford Guide for College Writers. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martins. 2011. 538541. Print.

In recent times, people are increasingly putting their trust in media and especially the television more than ever before. The media has become a common playfield where political, social, and financial information is relayed to people. Naturally, children tend to remember what they see more than what they hear. On the other hand, television commercials can be very expensive but reliable due to their ability to reinforce images with sound.

This makes firms that want their products and services advertised rely more on television. Images in this case will readily appeal to both children and adults while at the same time deliver the intended message. Other than promoting products and services meant for children, the images in cartoons and the commercials that accompany them tend to subtly promote and shape certain gender roles as discussed here under.

Gender roles depicted by cartoon characters do not indicate an instance where roles played by men and women overlap. It is evident that the non factual information conveyed to children through cartoons is meant to help them understand the world they are living in. This information is often stereotypical and it makes it possible for advertisers to associate their products and services with certain gender oriented stereotypical characters (Lindsey, 1994, 44).

Male characters are in both cartoons (Dexter and Ben Ten) are depicted to play major roles while female characters hold lesser or no roles. In both cartoons, it is quite difficult to identify a character performing cross-gender activities. The roles played by boys differ from those played by girls in that girls are portrayed as attending to household duties and making each others hair while boys are involved more in outdoor activities that are much rigorous.

Closer looks at most of the commercials that take place in between the cartoon shows reveal a certain trend. Women are shown to be the principle characters when it comes to advertising indoor products while men tend to advertise products for outdoor use only. These commercials mostly depict women as end users while men are shown to be the producers. Women are also associated more with the role of being a wife or mother while men tend to be holders of high end jobs.

The number of males in both cartoons is hire than the number of females not forgetting to mention that boys are portrayed as being smarter and stronger than girls. This is symbolic of a male dominated society. Advertisers take into account such stereotypes when determining the kind of advert that would most likely appeal to girls when promoting girls products and vice versa (Rook, 2005, 55).

For instance, for food related advertisements, the number of boys seemed to be larger than that of girls. Other advertisements that dealt with non food products had the tendency of being dominated more by female characters. This is a direct suggestion that girls ought to eat less compared to boys. This can be used to explain the roots of the dieting culture among females (Frost, 2001, 97).

The foregoing gender based stereotypes indicate the difference in roles played by men and women in television commercials. These commercials also tend to put emphasis on the beliefs that adults have concerning feminine and masculine attributes. Cartoons and the accompanying commercials act as powerful agents of socialization by promoting certain roles played by men and women to children whose belief and value systems is easily influenced.

Works Cited

Frost, Leah. Young Women and the Body: A Feminist Sociology. New York: Palgrave, 2001. Print.

Lindsey, Lillian. Gender Roles: A Sociological Perspective, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1994. Print.

Rook, David. The Ritual Dimension of Consumer Behavior, New York: Rutledge, 2005. Print.

In addition to existing as a part of peoples perceptions, both terms of gender and race have underlying deeper aspects that extend to broader social concepts. The world is made by social constructs through an ongoing dynamic process, and the existing reality represents a construction of societys perception of reality (Marmol). The term gender exists separately from the biological definition of sex. Gender as the representation of a social construct is associated with societys expectations from a specific individual based on their gender identity. Overall, gender as a social construct in the set of expectations from society determines individuals characteristics, such as behavior and moral statements.

Next, another example of a social construct is race; similarly to differences between gender and sex, the term of race is separated from ethnicity. One could determine that race is a social construct by analyzing how its meaning was shaped and manipulated through history. Moreover, besides its initial purpose of representing physical markers, race as a social construct comes with a set of requirements for affiliation, such as shared birthplace and language fluency.

Both social constructs of race and gender are similar as they represent a set of expectations and stereotypes created by society and manipulated by the powerful stratum of society. Moreover, both race and gender as social constructs are founded on the concept of difference, which explains the human tendency to connect with people with similar visual appearance or social position. However, while race as a social construct mainly represents an external process in which an individual is treated by society accordingly to physical markers, an individuals definition of gender identity comes from internal processes.

Works Cited

Marmol, Brian. Socially Constructed Society. Baruch College, 2019, Web.