Category: Gender

Introduction

Life for gays and lesbians has been very hard in a society where majority of people are heterosexual. It is very hard for many people to come to terms with how somebody can have an affair with another person of the same sex.

This paper will explore the struggle that gays and lesbians have gone through and especially in the 1940’s and 1950’s in order to be recognized as normal human beings and live comfortably with other people without various forms of discrimination like discrimination in places of work or in other places. The contribution of various groups for instance the community, the media and the legal system towards the gay and lesbians fight for their freedom and rights shall also be explored.

The community

To discuss the community’s contribution, the stonewall riot will be used to give important insights. During this period, the community did not appreciate the presence of the gays and lesbians in its midst. Those belonging to the gay community lived this kind of life secretly and did not want to disclose their sexual orientation to anyone else for fear of stigma. This is because, these people were highly stigmatizes and discriminated against in work places and other public places. To avoid this, they thought it was wise to remain silent about their status.

Gays and lesbians have been thought to be people who are sick mentally, engage in promiscuous behavior and notorious for spreading HIV/AIDS among other myths. However, according to people who belong to this group, gays and lesbians are as normal as any other person in a heterosexual relationship.

The only difference is that they find members of the same sex more attractive and choose to start a life time relationship with them just like others do. They are neither mentally ill nor promiscuous because they carry out their relationships the way heterosexual people do and are comfortable in their gay relationships.

Also, contrary to many people’s beliefs, it is not true that those in same sex relationships do so because they have lacked someone of the opposite sex and in case they get one, they would be comfortable to move with them and abandon their gay partners. Due to the stigma that gays and lesbians suffer because of their condition, many have been unable to openly declare that they are gay.

It is not yet very clear what causes one to be in this condition but there have been claims that it could be a combination of both biological and environmental factors. To dispel some myths, for example the claims that they are psychologically ill, this group is comprised with members from all professions for example lawyers, pilots and psychologists among others.

Being a gay or a lesbian is less stigmatizing in the current world than in the past mostly in the 1940’s and 50’s. Members of this community suffered a lot because of discrimination and other forms of harsh treatment from the people and especially when they tried to come out and publicly declare their status and demand their rights as human beings.

Wright (p1) notes that the gay community sought to emancipate itself from these kind of suffering during the stonewall riot. Previously, it was normal for the police to go inside the bar that most gays frequented and arrest people but on June 27, 1969, it was not so.

The people defied orders from the police and shouted slogans to demand their liberation. Due to the commotion that had arisen because of the struggle between the police and the gay members who were resisting arrest, other people gathered and helped the gay community in fighting against the police.

They jeered at the police and mocked them while accusing them of being after money. To show mockery to them, they threw coins to them as they continued with their insults directed towards the police (Wright p1). This was just but the beginning of liberation of the gay community because what followed next were a series of demonstrations as the gays demanded for their rights. People came out in large numbers to support the gays who could not be deterred from their protests even by the police who tried to disperse them.

The media

The media is a powerful tool of influence to the people because many trust the information disseminated to be the absolute truth. This is true also for the information about gays and lesbians that they disseminate. According to Wood (pg1), whether the information is true or prejudiced, it has an effect on those who access it.

The media participated greatly in fighting against the spread of gays and lesbians. In some districts where employment of the gays and lesbians was banned, the newspapers were used to publish the names of those who were arrested and accused of being gay. Details of their place of work were also given. This made it easier for the employers to know the people who were gay in their organization. This was a major blow to those arrested because if the employer saw their names, they were laid off immediately.

The media has portrayed the gays and lesbians as being the ones who are the cause for the rapid spread of dangerous diseases like HIV/AIDS. Many people have been lead to thin that the gay community is to blame for the spread of this disease. At times, this information has been inaccurate because there are a number of ways that it can be spread through and other people too have contributed to its spread.

In the current world, airing of programs with homosexual characters is not very common. In case some programs have such characters, they are portrayed in a negative manner creating a negative impression on the viewers concerning the homosexuals (Dyer pg19).

This image is usually hard to erase because this is how people will continue thinking about the homosexuals and also form stereotypes using the same information because they may never get a chance to interact with a homosexual and rectify their thinking. This shows that the society has not fully accepted these people.

The legal system

The legal system participated very much in trying to do away with the gay community. Prior to the stonewall riot, the police would occasionally raid the bars where they suspected that gay people had gathered to have fun. They would then arrest some of them and also demand for money from them.

Whenever the gay people sensed that the police were around, they would hurriedly stop engaging in any activity that would suggest that they are gay because of fear of being arrested. Due to such incidents, many gay people lived under oppression and fear because they did not know their fate.

It had also been declared by the government that those who claimed to be gay were people who were mentally ill and therefore; they were taken to hospitals where they would be treated for mental illness. The government too failed to recognize that they were normal people and they were discriminated even in places of work.

During the protests that arose after an attempt by the police to arrest members of the gay community, the police were also involved in efforts to try and deter the members of this community from coming out publicly and demand for their liberation.

It never took the community long to see the fruit of their labor. By the beginning of July, talks on how a movement to fight for their rights would be formed had already started. To conclude on the talks and establish an organization, it took them close to a year after which Gay Liberation Front (GLF) was formed.

Comparison between gay community of the 1940’s and the current gay community

Although the stonewall riot was there many years ago, many gays still consider it a something of great importance to them. It is seem as a symbol of liberation from years of oppression. Although there still remains a lot to be done before there is total liberation of the gay community, there have been major developments that have taken place since the stonewall riots, which was the first attempt to openly and publicly fight for the rights of gays.

For example, in the past, one could not publicly declare that they are gay but nowadays it is possible to do that without raising a lot of suspicion from the community. To further show their pride in their sexual orientation, the gay community engage annually n what is commonly knows as the “gay pride”. During this time, the gay people come out and walk to a designated place where they hold a meeting and discuss their issues.

In the past also, those who were thought of to be gay were punished severely. The harsh treatment of the gay community was seen in the various governments’ decisions to punish even those who they suspected to be gay through simple acts like holding of hands in public between two people of the same sex. However, this has changed drastically and it is possible for the gays to enjoy such freedom like holding of hands without being punished.

In the past, it was generally hard for both gays and lesbians to economically sustain themselves but it was especially hard for women because of how the society views women in same sex relationship. It was harder for the society to accept lesbians and therefore they were majorly affected by the problem of discrimination at work or being terminated from their places of work when the employer learnt of their sexual orientation.

Although there are still problems with this kind of relationships, lesbians are much better economically because the level of stigma they used to suffer in the past has reduced and people have become more tolerant of other people so long as they are able to deliver quality work professionally.

Tolerance to the gay community has been shown by some religious groups like the Anglicans, have even ordained gay bishops and allow gay marriages. Although this has been strongly condemned by other denominations under Christianity, it shows some level of tolerance to emerging cultures compared to the 1940’s when such things were unheard of. Significant change has taken place in the gay community even in the area of religion where many are able to practice their religion just like any other person without feeling like they are the odd one out.

The legal system in many countries has also been reformed concerning its treatment towards the gay community. Such incidents of arrest that were common in the past have reduced and the gay community is able to meet in certain places for recreational purposes without interference by the police.

Conclusion

Although gays and lesbians are living more comfortably these days than in the past, they still have a long way to go before they are completely assimilated in to the community and accepted as part of it. With many people condemning such acts, for example some Christians and other religions, it may be impossible for the gays and lesbians to ever achieve a state of total comfort in the society.

This is because the society still has some issues against same sex relationships with some raising moral issues like how the family unit is to be perpetuated if all people turn to gay or lesbian relationship.

The role of the media in shaping people’s attitude towards the homosexuals cannot be ignored. Acquiring either positive or negative attitude towards the homosexuals can be greatly influenced by the media, among other factors. Religion is another key factor that determines one’s view of the homosexuals, with some harshly condemning those in this community while others showing a more tolerant attitude towards them.

Works Cited

Dyer, Richard. The Matter of Images: Essays on Representation. London: Routledge, 1993.

Wright, Lionel. The Stonewall Riots – 1969 — A Turning Point in the Struggle for Gay and Lesbian Liberation. Seattle : Socialist Alternative, 1999. Web. <https://www.socialistalternative.org/stonewall-riots-1969/>

Wood, Matthew. The Portrayal of Gays and Lesbians on TV,and How Viewers React, 1996. Web.

Introduction

Different societies and countries have had unique gender relations, gender rights and national identity characteristics during different eras of their history. This uniqueness and diversity is a function of various factors including religion, history of a society, socio-political fundamentals, as well as unique societal cultural factors.

It is needless to mention that most societies in the West, Africa, America, and in the East have been largely patriarchal in the sense that the male gender tend to dominate the social, economic and political spheres of a society for a considerably long period of time (Moghadam, 1999).

The female gender has largely been denied the right to take part in governance or to own property. Even in Western countries, which are largely the origins of our notions of democracy, citizenship started to take on a more all-encompassing framework of reference during the early 20^th century when the right of adult universal suffrage was established (Moghadam, 1999).

In fact, in most societies, women were treated as property by men, whether fathers or husbands. The purpose of this essay is to assess how women in the UAE participate in building and maintaining an Emirati national identity. It also seeks to find out gender-specific discourses and practices that the state employs to interpolate women into nation-building process and how women appropriate or resist these gendered state practices.

How women in UAE participate in building and maintaining an Emirati identity

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) commonly known as The Emirates is a federation located in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula (Archive editions 1994). It borders Saudi Arabia and Oman and shares sea borders with countries like Qatar, Iran, Iraq, Bahrain and Kuwait (Archive editions, 1994).

It is called The Emirates since federal regions which include Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, Umm al-Quwain, Fujairah and Ras al-Khaimah are governed by emirs. Abu Dhabi is the country’s capital and its center of industrial, political and cultural activities. UAE’s political organization is based on the country’s constitution, enacted in 1971. Islam is the national official religion while Arabic is the official language (Archive editions, 1994).

United Arab Emirates (UAE) is one of the Arab Gulf countries that have succeeded in embracing and institutionalizing a genuine sense of national identity and nationhood. According to Carreiras (2008), in the recent past, tribal arrangements have begun to fade away and state institutions are slowly taking their place.

As a result, ethnic and tribal conflicts are no longer common in most Third World countries, especially in Africa. Currently, UAE citizens are highly unified in a way that has never been witnessed in the history of the Emirates before.

One of the main contributing factors to this commendable socio-political trend has been the tremendous change in the country’s demographic structure which has been replaced by new cosmopolitan population. For instance, many people do not dwell traditionally in the same towns and villages, under the same roof, or in the same community as the older generations used to before national economic breakthrough following the discovery of oil which has culminated into rapid and enormous social change (Carreiras, 2008).

In particular, the younger Emiratis who make up the bigger portion of the ‘s population are more attached to a national identity as Emiratis as opposed to a tribal identity which was common with older generations before attainment of economic prosperity which have been critical in establishing a stable government and a calm social structure of the federation. In fact, in some emirates, ethnic or tribal attachment is nothing more than a mere last name (Carreiras, 2008).

However, it is important to note that being identified as UAE citizen does not necessarily imply that one must absolutely denounce or deny his or her tribal identity. Nevertheless, majority of the young people are fond of identifying themselves as Emiratis proudly without despising their tribal roots.

In fact, a considerable percentage of the UAE nationals perceive these two as being well-matched to each other and even manage to put together their national integrity with tribal idealism (Carreiras, 2008).The big question is given the conventional place of a woman in the UAE where Islam guides individuals and the society’s daily life, how do women take part in building and maintaining an Emirati national identity?

Even though the UAE is evidently trying to diversify her political organization and establish a particular level of equality that is fair in the eyes of the ordinary people who have been slowly embracing western values by shifting away from tribalism, religion, class, as well as race, gender inequality is still rampant (Carreiras, 2008).

This is an important issue that brings up the question of equal opportunity for both male and female genders within the UAE society. There is certainly an organizational relationship of inequality between men and women founded up on apparent sex differences in the national-identity formation process in the UAE. Like in most Middle East societies, UAE women have been accorded a second-class citizenship which has long been institutionalized (Moghadam, 1999).

This denies women an equal opportunity in the process of creating shared perceptions relating to members of the community, nation-state, heritage and national culture especially at the national and public levels mainly because women have not yet realized their political rights. According to Moghadam (1999), the problematic element of women’s citizenship rights arises partly from lack or underdevelopment of democratic institutions in the country.

However, it is to a large extent an outcome of inconsistency between the country’s constitution that give equal rights to both men and women and family laws which are exclusively based on the Sharia law that does not recognize equality between men and women in anything within an Islamic society.

Nevertheless, women take part in building and maintaining Emirati national identity through their natural roles in the biological birth of UAE nationals and tribal groups, socialization of the young whereby they pass up on their children the assignation of spreaders of culture and identifiers of national or ethnic differences (Moghadam, 1999).

They also participate in national-identity formation process through their representations which usually takes on a political importance. Moghadam (1999) points out those particular women images characterize and differentiate tribal communities, cultural projects or political groups.

Furthermore, women’s behavior and out ward look, as well as their different activities plays a significant role in establishing a county’s identity. For instance, in Islamic societies like UAE unveiled modern woman is a sign of modernity, development and progress while on the other hand veiled woman symbolizes legitimacy, cultural renewal and societal potency to give rise to new ethnic or national group.

Gender-specific discourses and practices that the state employs to interpolate women in nation-building process

As mentioned earlier, UAE government is slowly moving away from the conventional formations of class, religion and tribe up on which her political system has operated for a considerable period of time.

It is trying to establish a certain level of equality, attain a certain level of democracy and realize certain legitimacy objectives by allowing more and more women and men to participate in national politics. Both men and women are gradually introduced to their political entitlements.

The state is including women in the national-building process by randomly choosing women voters and political contestants through governors of individual emirates. Some female, as well as male appointees are entirely selected by state officials (Carreiras, 2008).

Surprisingly however, majority of the appointed members of the Federal National Assembly Council (FNAC) both men and women are ordinary average members of the society. In other words, they were not chosen on basis of their economic background, affiliation to a given tribe, or their last names but on citizenship basis (Carreiras, 2008).

In the recent past, women have been resisting gender based state practices mainly through women’s organizations which have been vocal in agitating for equal political, social, economic and cultural rights for women. Women organizations have been challenging their institutionalized second-class citizenship (Moghadam, 1999; Hasso, 2010; Joseph, 2010).

These organizations are generally campaigning against women’s state declared position in the private sphere and men’s control of the public realm. According to Moghadam (1999), women’s organizations have particularly been calling for modern transformation of family laws which are currently abusive and discriminative to women, illegalization of domestic violence, establishing bigger access to employment and participation in governance and women’s right to hold their own nationality and to carry it down to their children.

These organizations have also been drawing attention to the current family laws which are incompatible with universal standards of equality and nondiscrimination enshrined in the international laws like the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (Moghadam, 1999; Joseph, 2010).

Reference List

Archive Editions. (1994). The UAE: Arabian geopolitics. Cambridge: Archive Editions.

Carreiras, H. (2008). Women in the military and in armed conflict. VS Verlag.

Hasso, F. (2010). Consuming Desires: Family Crisis and the State in the Middle East. Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University Press

Joseph, S. (2007). Encyclopedia of women and Islamic cultures. Tokyo: Brill.

Moghadam, V. M. (1999). Gender, National Identity and Citizenship: Reflections on the

Middle East. Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, 14(199), 137-157

Introduction

In March last year, women and labor groups made a rather bold move against the federal government on gender inequality in Canada by submitting to the United Nations conference on women, a statement stating that the Harper government has failed to implement women’s equality actions.

They continued to say that progress has been made but not enough as the government wanted the world to believe (Hanson). Jasmeet Sidhu says in his article in the Star ‘Gender inequality distorts Politics,’ that since Canada elected Agnes MacPhail into the House of Commons in 1921, the country has made major steps in bridging the gap between men and women in terms of opportunities. Gains have been made on access to higher education where more than half of all students in undergraduate level programs are women.

In the labor market though, a lot of inequalities still abound. In academia for example male doctorate holders have twice as much chance as women to be appointed as full professors. Women in this sector also earn about 79 cents of every dollar men take home (Hanson).

Political inequalities

The domain that brings a lot of contention and which is very important according to Sidhu is the political roles. In order for the country to consider itself truly an equal opportunity society, as the government wanted to portray in the last year’s UN conference on Women, providing equal opportunities to women in political arena is very important.

Women in politics are fully engaged in decision making which affect the whole country rather than waiting for policies to be made without their input which affects them negatively. Engaging women in politics also benefits other aspects of their life as Sidhu says by equipping them with skills that are very essential in this rapidly changing and competitive society.

Active participation in politics also develop women’s confidence, leadership skills and self esteem since in politics one is able to horn her communication and public speaking skills. Another benefit for women engaging in politics is that they gain an understanding of issues and their root causes and thereby becoming active and well equipped citizens who seek solutions to community and world needs.

Despite all these benefit women can gain from political involvement, our women, who are considered as the most talented and progressive in the world, are left out when it comes to political representation as Sidhu states. In the last federal elections for example, only 20.7% of all positions were held by women who constitutes 52% of the total population of the country.

In the provincial elections, things were the same with states such as Ontario recording only 26% of seats won by women. As if this is not enough, Canada is placed at the 47^th position internationally in female representation in national parliaments; a clear show of how our democracy is failing day by day. Countries such as Rwanda, Afghanistan, Uganda and Iraq which come among the poorest in the world or the most conflicted areas come ahead of us in this one (Hanson).

Sidhu wonders in this article how come women who are ranked so highly in the world in terms of education and skills are ragging behind in the most important roles as decision makers. This should be blamed on the political systems which has flowed opportunity structures that do not appeal to women. This fact was established by the 1970 Royal commission on the status of women. 30 years on and political parties have yet to put in place practical mechanisms in recruiting and supporting women at the constituency level.

Conclusion

Gender inequalities in the political arena are the most embarrassing for our democracy. Being ranked lower than some of the poorest and most conflicted countries of the world is no laughing matter and should be addressed radically. This will start from the political parties at the grass root recruiting and supporting women and changing their nomination process. They should create quota systems to encourage more women to participate in elective positions.

Works Cited

Hanson, Tom. “Gender equality in Canada stalled or regressing: report.” The Canadian Press 21 February 2010.

Sidhu, Jasmeet. “Gender inequality distorts politics.” The Star 27 November 2007.

Sports is a part of the human culture, which means that sports can be regarded as the reflection of the society. It is possible to note that sports world is associated with controversies related to race, gender and sexuality. Researchers claim that the modern sports can be characterized by such notions as discrimination as well as white and masculine dominance (Knijnik, 2015). Importantly, the world is evolving so does the sports community. The aspects mentioned above have shaped the society, but it is still premature to state that race, gender, and sexuality issues have been resolved or can be resolved in the nearest future.

As has been mentioned above the central features of the contemporary sport are white and masculine domination. Elsey (2014) stresses that such sports as football are still associated with strong masculine players (or rather machos). This trend is specifically prevailing in some countries. For instance, Argentinian football fans do not find Messi or Ronaldo good enough due to these players’ unconventional behavior as they do not try to prove their masculinity in the way other players do (Elsey, 2014). Furthermore, issues associated with sexuality are still tabooed in many kinds of sports. Butterworth (2006) emphasizes that gay players in baseball have to silent their identities to remain in the game as people (fans, directors, and so on) still see the game as the manifestation of masculinity. More so, the division between the feminine and masculine is still very strong in the USA and in the global arena. Pieper (2012) sheds light on the way the life of Renée Richards, a male-to-female transsexual, is an illustration of the way gender distinction is central in the world of sports. People still perceive male and female bodies as fit for a number of specific activities and sports, and any deviations are unaccepted with only a few exclusions.

However, irrespective of the prevalence of the traditional norms, the world of sports has changed significantly during the past decades. The major shifts have taken place in the sphere of the race. Many societies have become less concerned about the race of players especially if those are high-achievers. For instance, Brazilians (who used to be rather ethnocentric decades ago) do not focus on their football players’ race but concentrate on their achievements (Maranhão, 2007). Nonetheless, when the team is not winning, some players (usually those pertaining to ethnic minorities) are accused of playing non-Brazilian football. Burgos (2009) notes that African Americans and Latinos had to fight for their inclusion, but the fight is not won to date. When it comes to gender and sexuality, the changes are even less apparent, but they are still present. The mentioned case of Renée Richards shows that some societies are ready to be more liberal when it comes to gender distinctions as the athlete won in the New York Supreme Court (Pieper, 2012). Nonetheless, the international sports committees are more traditional, which means that different nations have different views on the matter.

On balance, it is possible to note that the world of sports can be characterized by such features as white and masculine dominance. Such areas as race, gender and sexuality are still associated with prejudice and bias. It is noteworthy that the major shift in people’s perspectives has occurred in the sphere of race and ethnicity. As for gender and sexuality, sports remain very traditional even though there is some tokenism. Nevertheless, the presence of tiniest changes shows that the world of sports is evolving and discrimination (in all aspects) is likely to disappear.

References

Burgos, A. (2009). Left out: Afro-Latinos, black baseball, and the revision of baseball’s racial history. Social Text 98, 27(1), 37-58.

Butterworth, M. (2006). Pitchers and catchers: Mike Piazza and the discourse of gay identity in the national pastime. Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 30(2), 138-157.

Elsey, B. (2014, November 17). Messi, Maradona, and Argentine machismo. The Allrounder. Web.

Knijnik, J. (2015). Femininities and masculinities in Brazilian women’s football: Resistance and compliance. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 16(3), 54-70.

Maranhão, T. (2007). Apollonians and Dionysians: The role of football in Gilberto Freyre’s vision of Brazilian people. Soccer & Society, 8(4), 510-523.

Pieper, L. (2012). Gender regulation: Renée Richards revisited. The International Journal of the History of Sport, 29(5), 675-690.

Thesis statement

Nowadays, it became a common trend among many anthropologists and sociologists to refer to the very concept of gender as an essentially social/cultural construct. This trend’s origins can be traced to the works of Margaret Mead, who was the first anthropologist to suggest that the notions of ‘femininity’ and ‘masculinity’ are culturally relative: “We are forced to conclude that human nature is almost unbelievably malleable, responding accurately and contrastingly to contrasting cultural conditions” (280).

Such culturally-relativist perspective onto the actual significance of people’s gender affiliation became especially popular during the course of recent decades, as it correlates rather well with the conventions of political correctness. Therefore, it does not come as a particular surprise that, as of today, Mead’s ideas are being often referred to as such that represent an undeniable truth-value.

This simply could not be otherwise, given the fact that people in Western countries are now being encouraged to indulge in quite literally ‘unisex’ living. After all, as it was pointed out by McEwan: “The mind is an all-purpose, infinitely adaptable computing machine operating a handful of wired-in rules. We are born tabula rasa, and it is our times that shape us” (52).

Nevertheless, the closer analysis of culturally-relativist view on gender leaves few doubts as to this view’s conceptual fallaciousness. The reason for this is simple – even today, just about all the aspects of people’s social functioning cannot be discussed outside of what happened to be the specifics of these people’s affiliation with a particular gender.

In its turn, this presupposes that, even though one’s gender-based attitudes are often being influenced by a variety of purely environmental factors, these attitudes nevertheless never cease reflecting the essence of his or her physiological constitution. In this paper, I will aim to explore the validity of an earlier articulated idea at length.

Argumentative part

The fact that men and women address life’s challenges in qualitatively different manner, which in turn defines the nature of their socio-cultural positioning, has been recognized since a long time ago. After all, it does not take a psychologist to realize that, when it comes to assessing the emanations of a surrounding reality or tackling life’s challenges, women tend to be much more emotional and irrational, as compared to what it appears to be the case with men.

It also does not take a historian to be aware of the fact that, as compared to what it used to be the case with women, men played a substantially greater role in establishing objective preconditions for the continuation of social, cultural and scientific progress, which even today allows Western civilization to enjoy an undisputed geopolitical dominance in the world.

According to culturally-relativist (politically correct/feminist) point of view, this is nothing but a direct consequence of men having been subjecting women to different forms of ‘patriarchal oppression’ for duration of centuries.

As particularly ‘progressive’ social scientists imply, this continues to be the case even today: “Job segregation by sex… is the primary mechanism in capitalist society that maintains the superiority of men. Married women must perform domestic chores for their husbands. Men benefit, then, from both higher wages and the domestic division of labor” (Hartmann 139).

Nevertheless, while discussing what they consider the sheer inappropriateness of women’s traditional submission to men’s authority, these scientists never make an inquiry into what made such a submission possible, in the first place. Had they done it, however, they would come to realize a simple fact that it is namely the objective laws of nature that are predetermining such state of affairs.

It is important to understand that, as representatives of Homo Sapiens sub-specie, people are essentially primates. In societies of primates, males dominate over females – pure and simple. The same can be said about human societies, in which, as compared to women, men have traditionally been enjoying a much higher social status.

However, unlike what it is being the case in the societies of apes, men’s dominance over women cannot solely be attributed to the fact that the latter simply happened to be physically weaker. Let me elaborate on this at length.

Nowadays, it is being rightly assumed that one’s chances to attain social prominence are being reflective of the level of his or her educational attainment. After all, we do not get to see many successful politicians, businesspersons or scientists who do not hold university diplomas.

In its turn, people’s varying ability to succeed in educational pursuits is being reflective of their endowment with low or high Intellectual Quotidian (IQ), which is essentially the biologically predetermined measure of one’s ability to operate with highly abstract categories.

And, as most recent anthropological studies have shown, people’s rate of IQ relates to the strength of their animalistic urges in counter-geometrical progression. To put it plainly – the more a particular person’s physiological/psychological constitution has in common with physiological/psychological constitution of our biological ancestors (apes), the slimmer are the chances for such a person to succeed in academia (Lynn & Vanhanen 2002, 64).

The earlier observation directly relates to the subject matter, discussed in this paper, because it is specifically the fact that, as compared to men’s lives, women’s lives appear being much strongly affected by a number clearly biological (animalistic) factors, which prevent many representatives of a ‘weak gender’ from establishing themselves socially on their own.

Despite the fact that this suggestion may be well labeled ‘sexist’, it is nevertheless thoroughly scientific. After all, contrary to feminist claims, female sexual urges have long ago been proven much stronger than male sexual urges. As it was noted by Weininger: “The condition of sexual excitement is the supreme moment of a woman’s life.

The woman is devoted wholly to sexual matters, that is to say, to the spheres of begetting and of reproduction… The female principle is nothing more than sexuality; the male principle is sexual and something more” (54). The legitimacy of Weininger’s suggestion can be illustrated in regards to how the particulars of men and women’s bodily constitution define the workings of male and female psyches.

It is a well-established fact that; whereas, men have penises, women have vaginas. It is turn, men’s possession of penises, on the one hand, and women’s possession of vaginas, on the other, affects the nature of representatives’ of both genders mental predisposition. Given the fact that men’s penises are essentially ‘external’ organs, it comes as not a particular surprise that most men tend to draw parallels between how they deal with sexual arousal and how they deal with some skin itching, for example.

Just as it is being the case with a skin-itch, which goes away after having been scratched, men’s sexual excitement disappears into the thin air, after the act of copulation. This is exactly the reason why, as many women are being fully aware of, after having had sex, their partners simply turn around and fall asleep.

Apparently, men are being capable of mentally detaching themselves from their sense of sexuality, which explains the phenomenon of many men referring to their penises as ‘little friends’, as if men’s genitals were endowed with the mind of their own. This also explains why most men think of their sexuality as something incidental, as something that comes and goes and as something that the least defines the essence of their self-identity.

In its turn, this causes many men to experience a sense of shame due to having acted as ‘wild beasts’, while having sex. On subconscious level, men understand that, during the act of copulation, they were not ‘themselves’. This is the actual reason why, after having participated in ‘bed activities’ with women, most men do not want to reflect on what just had happened – hence, causing their sexual partners to come up with rather silly questions ‘why don’t you want to talk?’.

After having had sex, men return to their ‘normal selves’, which in turn create objective preconditions for them to consider indulging in a variety of ‘non-biological’ pursuits, the most prominent of which is studying. And, as it was mentioned earlier, in human societies, it is specifically the level of people’s educational attainment, which is being reflective of their chances to act as society’s productive members.

Thus, there is nothing incidental or oppressive about the fact that men have traditionally been discussed as the representatives of a ‘socially preferred’ gender. The particulars of men’s biological makeup naturally cause them to act as ‘semi-sexual’ beings, which in turn allows them to have a ‘spare time’ to indulge in science, sports, business, art, etc.

The same can be said about how the specifics of women’s physiology define the essence of their existential mode. Given the fact that female genitals are essentially ‘internal’, there is nothing odd about the fact that most women experience a hard time, while trying to distance their inner ‘selves’ from their sexuality. The reason for this is simple – women’s sexuality is in fact an integral part of their innate sense of self.

Whereas, male sexuality can be compared with an accidental skin-itch, female sexuality is best compared with an allergic skin-rash, the scratching of which only increases itch’s severity: “The sexual instinct is always active in woman, whilst in man it is at rest from time to time… the sexual impulse of the male is eruptive in character and so appears stronger. The real difference between the sexes is that in the male the desire is periodical, in the female continuous” (Weininger 55).

Whatever inappropriate it may sound to one’s sensitive ears, but from biological perspective – woman’s whole body is in essence one big sexual organ. This is exactly the reason why, whereas, men have only one ‘G-spot’, women have a number of ‘G-spots’ all over their bodies. After all, it does not represent much of a secret that most women become sexually aroused because of being simply touched.

In its turn, this indirectly explains why the majority of even hard-core feminists do not think that there is anything wrong about them appearing in public in sexually suggestive clothes – that is, if these women happened to be physically attractive, of course. Even though that feminist women’s rationale causes them to think of ‘sexual harassment’ as something utterly inappropriate, their subconscious psyche nevertheless prompts them to seek such‘harassment’, as the actual pathway towards self-actualization.

Apparently, nature itself intended women’s foremost social function to be almost exclusively concerned with childbearing, which is why the observable emanations of femininity appear biologically rather than socially predetermined. For example, it has been noted that, even those young girls that had never participated in socialization with their peers, nevertheless chose of favor of playing with dolls, as opposed to playing with toy-trucks.

What it means is that, contrary to what politically correct social scientists imply, children’s (as well as adults’) gender-reflective behavior has very little to do with environmental/social aspects of their upbringing: “It is becoming less and less likely that ‘gender socialization’ is the reason why boys and girls prefer different toys, and more and more likely that there are some genetic, hormonal, and other biological reasons for the observed sex differences in toy preference” (Kanazawa 2008).

There can be only one possible objection to the above argument – the fact that the qualitative nature of some people’s behavior does not always correlate with what happened their gender affiliation (the phenomenon of feminine men and masculine women).

This phenomenon, however, can be well explained within the theoretical framework of genetics, without any references being made to the specifics of these people’s social upbringing. Apparently, feminine men have an abundance of a female hormone of estrogen in their blood, which causes these men to preoccupy themselves with polishing their fingernails, as one of their foremost priorities.

Alternatively, masculine women have an abundance of a male hormone testosterone in their blood, which results in both: these women’s physical unattractiveness and in their tendency to choose in favor pursuing clearly masculine professional careers, such as police officers, firefighters and truck drivers.

Conclusion

I believe that the earlier provided line of argumentation, in defense of a suggestion that biological factors do account for the making of male and female self-identities rather substantially, is being fully consistent with this paper’s initial thesis.

We need to understand that it is namely the basics of male and female biological makeup, which define the essence of men and women’s social functions, and not the specifics of their mental predisposition towards these functions. To suggest otherwise, is to be consciously striving to violate the most fundamental laws of nature.

Nevertheless, it would be equally wrong to think of men and women’s biologically predetermined differences in how they assess surrounding reality and their place in it, as such that correspond to the notion of inferiority/superiority. Even though men and women are being endowed with differently functioning mindsets, which in turn reflect the particulars of their physiology, the affiliates of both sexes are absolutely equal, in social and legal senses of this word.

After all, it would prove impossible for women to be able to survive without men, as well as for men to be able to survive without women. It is specifically the realization of this simple fact, upon which social policies, designed to facilitate ‘gender equality’, should be based, and not upon the politically correct but utterly anti-scientific assumption that the psychological differences between men and women are merely superficial (culturally relative).

Bibliography

Hartmann, Heidi. “Capitalism, Patriarchy, and Job Segregation by Sex.” Signs 1.3 (1976): pp. 137-169. Print.

Kanazawa, Satoshi. “Why do Boys and Girls Prefer Different Toys?” Psychology Today. 2008. Web.

Lynn, Richard & Vanhanen, Tatu. IQ and the Wealth of Nations. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2002. Print.

McEwan, Ian. “Literature, Science and Human Nature.” Human Nature: Fact and Fiction. Eds. Robin Headlam Wells & Johnjoe McFadden. Cornwall: MPG Books Ltd., 2006. 40-63. Print.

Mead, Margaret. Sex and Temperament in Three Primitive Societies. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1935. Print.

Weininger, Otto. “Sex and Character.” The Absolute.net., 2003 (1906). Web.

How often do we need to distinguish our roles in society according to our biological sex and social gender? Several centuries ago people did not determine the notion of gender. However, the roles of women and men were distinguished more strictly than today. The history of the 20^th century has begun with the revolutionary movement of feminists for their rights. It was not obviously clear what rights were defended by feminists because many women were not ready to admit new social roles imposed by active feminists.

Nevertheless, our society has learnt the notion of gender as distinguishing masculine and feminine features in social behaviour of men and women which are the results of their biological sex. Gender reveals its social origin with references to a lot of different theories the main idea of which is that social roles depend on gender which can emphasize their inequality.

Today there are many theories which describe and explain the character of gender as a social phenomenon. However, the most controversial questions which are widely discussed by scholars are the relations between gender and biological sex, gender roles and social roles, gender roles and social institutions.

For instance, Barbara Risman has proposed to discuss gender as an absolutely social structure which depends on definite aspects of the social development (Risman). To understand the nature of gender, it is necessary to pay attention to certain visions of the issue. Many scholars agree that the gender theory can be based on the combination of viewpoints on the biological sex and its role in forming the peculiarities of personal behavior according to a definite gender.

Moreover, it is also significant to focus on the social aspects of forming gender as opposite to the vision of the problem as connected with a sex (Renzetti and Curran). The next important detail is the idea of gender inequality in association to gender roles. That is why it is rather difficult to determine a single vision of the issue of gender theory which can be considered as the most objective one.

If we discuss gender as a social structure, we should determine all its peculiarities according to the social theories and viewpoints on the question. The consideration of gender as a definite social structure also can bring it to the same analytic plane as politics and economics in society (Risman).

Thus, Risman makes accents on the social inequality which can be the result of the gender differentiation in our society (Risman). What is the first social structure which children can observe when they do not realize the notion of gender or social roles? It is a family. Families can be considered as the first social institutions with the help of which children become to observe the difference in the roles of women and men which they can play not only in society but also in their families.

Every day a child can examine the inequality of roles of his parents in the family. When this child becomes to act in the society as a schoolboy or schoolgirl or attend different clubs he or she can see the difference of those roles which men and women play in society (Risman).

They are gender roles which are influenced by feminine and masculine qualities. They become to determine certain social roles. However, is it possible to grow the child who has not any social gender? On the one hand, a child can be considered as acquiring definite gender when he or she actively interacts in society.

That is why this child should be isolated from any communication with the other people. On the other hand, each child has a biological sex. When this child grows he or she begins to act according to the behavioral peculiarities common for this or that sex. If this child begins to interact in society and reveal the behavioral peculiarities common for his or her sex, we can speak about the inclination to a definite gender.

Thus, social gender is determined by our biological sex. Nevertheless, should all the social roles be dependent on our gender and, as a consequence, on our sex? Today this question is mainly discussed by those women who state that gender roles and social roles can be thought of as the way to implement the principles of discrimination in society.

Feminists declare that only social transformation can be effective for reducing inequality in our society (Risman). Women should have the right to choose their roles not only according to such characteristics as their sex and gender. However, today we can observe definite transformations in community and can state that the notions of gender and gender roles develop every day.

Different gender theories can be based on various aspects connected with the peculiarities of social and personal development. Some of them accentuate the fact of gender as a social structure for which certain level of inequality is typical. Distinguishing between social roles can be the result of a certain consideration of gender roles and the notion of gender. Moreover, the first institution in which we can observe the differences between genders is our family.

Works Cited

Renzetti, Claire, and Daniel J. Curran. Women, Men, and Society. USA: Pearson, 2002. Print.

Risman, Barbara. “Gender as Social Structure: Theory Wrestling with Activism”. Sociologists for Women in Society 18.4 (2004): 429-450. Print.

Introduction

Gay and lesbian persons should be granted full civil rights. In this essay, I will make use of three relatively recent newspaper articles to explore the current status of gay rights in the world.

Article 1 is titled ‘Genetic or Not, Gay Won’t Go Away’ and it was published by “The New York Times” on 12^th January 2012 (. Bruni is openly gay and he is published in “The New York Times” which is an independent, reputable, cosmopolitan newspaper with a worldwide scope of coverage and circulation. The newspaper is also largely perceived to have a liberal bias.

The second article, is ‘Gay Rights: A World of Inequality,’ penned by Zoe Williams and published in “The Guardian” on the 13^th of September, 2011, uses statistics to show that a greater part of the world does not seem ready to accept gay people and accord them the humanity they deserve. The Guardian newspaper has a large middleclass readership and is often associated with left-wing politics. Zoe Williams, the author, describes herself as a felt-wing feminist.

In the third article, Scot Rose criticizes “The New York Times” in an article titled ‘The New York Times Gets into the Gay-Bashing Gutter’ published on 27^th January, 2012 in the Bigotry Watch section of The New Civil Rights Movement. The New Civil Rights Movement magazine describes itself as ‘a journal of news and opinions on gay rights and marriage equality. It was established by David Badash with the aim of addressing the ignorance problem regarding gay rights both by those who are against them and gay people themselves.

Discussion

The basis of Bruni’s argument is that whether there is proof that gay persons are born that way or not is a matter of no insignificance since homophobia is not rational and would therefore not be assuaged even by scientific findings to that effect. Indeed, he posits, finding a genetic divergence of gay and lesbian persons from their straight counterparts might even heighten homophobia.

He cites the case of the Black people in the United States saying that their race having naturally occurred has never stopped discrimination against them. He argues that just like religious affiliations have no genetic basis and yet they are protected under the law, so should one’s sexual orientation; whether founded on nature or choice.

Actually, the contemporary need for same sex attraction to be recognized as naturally occasioned by gay rights activists runs the risk of their being intolerant against those who admit to being gay by choice. Eventually, he argues, it is of more advantage to society to accept gay and lesbian people than to oppress them. And, he concludes, while research points towards the possibility of its genetic links, there need not be a biological basis for same sex attraction for gay rights to be granted.

Statistics show that same sex relationships are unlawful in 82 countries around the world, about half of the world’s nations. The most extreme cases of abuse against gay and lesbian persons have taken place in Iran where two teenage boys were publicly hanged in 2005 for the crime of consensual coitus between members of the same sex and a further three on the 8^th of September, 2011 (Williams, 2011).

The situation is not all that better in Uganda, where there are “penalties for teachers, doctors and even parents who suspected that someone in their care was gay but didn’t report them” ((Williams, 2011), or in Belize where a cabinet minister was quoted saying he would fight ‘tooth and nail’ against decriminalization of homosexuality.

While this is taking place, there are organizations that are working to address these disparities some from the gay and lesbian rights perspective, some from diplomacy and others by invoking international law such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. William infers that great strides for the gay rights movement would be made if funds were available to petition national governments against the criminalization of same sex relationships through the courts.

The New York Times article referred to by Rose was published on 22^nd January, 2012 and it was titled ‘G.O.P. Ventures into Florida, a State Harder to Pigeonhole’.

Rose argues that by using ‘family values’ in that article, the New York Times was endorsing anti-gay sentiment by insinuating that they were inherently against the ideals implicit in the term. ‘Family values,’ Rose argues, is almost synonymous with gay intolerance in Florida.

Doubting whether this was an editorial oversight on the part of The New York Times, Rose questions the viability of the claim that the newspaper really is for gay rights. He cites instances where that raises suspicion about the loyalty of the newspaper’s editorial board such as their ‘allowing’ Ross Douthat “to allege that ending sexual orientation apartheid is tantamount to abandoning Western civilization (Rose, 2012).

Bruni makes a valid point: whether arrived naturally or by choice, one’s sexual identity shouldn’t be a basis for discrimination. On the other hand, for the first battle towards the acceptance of gay and lesbian persons in society to be achieved, (through legal means) financial investment will be needed.

This would definitely turn the tide in countries which are most hostile to gay and lesbian persons. William’s argument is sound as the history of the civil rights movement would show. Lastly, the media has a great role to play towards the eventual achievement of gay rights. It’s in a position to influence public opinion and should therefore be ardently analyzed and objectively criticized whenever it seems to falter.

The article raises a significant issue of whether newspapers don’t support such causes of the gay rights movement for political and public relations reasons while secretly undermining them. This is especially so for newspapers that are authoritative such as The New York Times. Rose’ article serves to make this issue public and therefore make the media more responsible.

Conclusion

Sexual identity is recognized by International Convention on Civil and Political Rights as a human right (HREA, 1997). On this basis, full civil rights should be granted to gay and lesbian persons the world over. The question of whether it results from one’s genetic make up or choice should not arise (Bruni, 2012). Enough funds should therefore be dedicated towards the fight for these rights in view of the intolerance evident in the contemporary world (Williams, 2011).

The issue of gay rights is fraught with controversy. The above articles attest to that. Foremost, the extent to which same sex attraction is the result of genetics remains a matter of speculation. Secondly, the status of gay and lesbian acceptance seems to be worsening in more than half of the world’s countries. Lastly, it presents a highly sensitive issue as Rose’ article shows. Still, gay rights should be granted consistent with other civil rights.

References

Bruni, F., (2012). Genetic or Not, Gay Won’t Go Away. The New York Times. Web.

Human Rights Education Associates. (1997). Sexual Orientation and Human Rights. Web.

Rose, S. (2012). The New York Times Gets Into The Gay-Bashing Gutter. The New Civil Rights Movement. Web.

Williams. Z. (2011). Gay rights: a world of inequality. The Guardian. Web.

Introduction

We live in a society where the roles of the males and the roles of the females are getting redefined with each passing day (Archer and Barbara). It seems that everyone has an idea about the nature of how men and women should operate and behave in the current society.

The beliefs which have been handed down through generations provide a way of understanding this subject better. This is because they offer firsthand experience into the nature of men and women, and their place in the wider society (Archer and Barbara). Toys and gender Toys bring to the fore different aspects of functioning among the children.

This is because these toys have got different impacts in children development. In the case of boys, it has been realized that they have got more toys than the girls. Furthermore, boys have got a greater variety of toys as compared to the girls. Boy’s toys bring out their masculine and aggressive nature (Archer and Barbara). For instance, the boys’ toys are largely made up of vehicles, that is, toy cars and automobiles.

Boys have got more violent looking toys. Examples of such toys include skates and kites. It is more likely that you will find boys with soldiers and guns as toys. In essence, this is aimed at transmitting the message that boys are supposed to be rough and a bit aggressive. On the other hands toys which resemble the girls are supposed to be soft and tender (Archer and Barbara).

Toys which are associated with girls are largely made up of dolls, doll houses and the domestic items such as spoons and dishes. This aims at instilling in girls the motherly role they are likely to play in their adult years. At this point it is worth noting that colors associated with toys also define the gender which that toy belongs to. In girls’ case it is assumed that they prefer a certain color of toys while boys prefer a different type of color.

The girls’ toys are largely pink in color. This is noticeable in the dolls that are found in most toy stores. On the other hand, the boys are associated with bright colors such as red and blue in most of their toys. This notwithstanding, the society has realized that there is need to have toys which bring the girls and boys to the same playing field. In this case, the manufacturers have come up with the unisex toys.

These are toys which can be used by both genders without any form of prejudice. These toys encourage the boys and the girls to play together. Some of these toys include toys which can be used in outdoor activities such as music toys or remote controlled gadgets. In addition, there are games such as the scrabble and monopoly which offers both genders an opportunity to take part in play without any bias.

Conclusion It is important to give children an opportunity to learn express themselves using toys early in life. However, it is fundamental to note the fact that these toys will have implications on the kind of personalities that they develop in future. It is therefore important to ensure that the toys that one brings for the child are suitable for a certain age and meet certain objectives.

Works Cited

Archer, John and Bloom Barbara. Sex and Gender, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. Print.

The negotiation of gender identity is an issue that has raised a lot of mayhem at the workplaces. This paper will outline the issue by critically analyzing the GI Jane movie. The movie, GI Jane, is a fictional artwork whose plot revolves around the first woman to undertake sea training in the United States Navy Special Welfare Group. It is ironical that the lead actress, Demi Moore, who plays Jordan O’Neill in this male dominated film, is a woman.

The main actress is striving to be treated equally as her male counterparts in the training. She even goes to the extent of sharing the same sleeping place with her male colleagues. All the things she does throughout the movie are intended to bring equal treatment for both sexes. The main actress wants to prove to other actors that even women are capable of handling the duties perceived as men’s. This paper uses the movie to outline the ways through which gender bias can be eliminated.

This female subject becomes the lead character of this movie and behaves as if she was equal to the other male trainees. Despite the rigorous procedure used for recruiting the naval officers and the enlisted personnel, she is able to sail through and impress the panelists. Despite the numerous barriers the main lead actress encounters during the training, she doesn’t give up on the training.

The O’Neill lives by the same principles, upholds the same values and lives in the same quarters as them. In fact, as a result of the lead’s actress’ box of tampons, one of the male trainees was so terrorized by her sharing the same sleeping place with them. Although she portrays to be as strong as men in this challenging training, she almost gives in to a sexual relationship with her lead training instructor, Master Chief. Such relationships are some of the factors, which interfere with the efforts of the lead actress to fight for equality.

Women are most often discriminated or exempted from certain jobs or activities. Such jobs, which involves a lot of risks are said to belong to men (Inness 54). In the movie, Jordan who is the main character gets into training in the Seals Otters. It has never occurred before that a woman can undergo such rigorous training.

Even though there are thousands of women serving in the navy, it is still regarded by majority as a men’s career. The fact that Jordan plays a major role in the movie is a clear indication that even women can be as strong as men in any given career (Zeigler and Gunderson 72).

The masculine characters are portrayed in a manner that looks down upon women especially in the military. The fact that Master Chief develops intimate feelings for Jordan indicates that there some men who still view the women as sexual objects. In the United States the attempt to review the law in order to incorporate female characters in the military service has been thwarted by the male chauvinists.

In most cases, the party that is interested in upholding gender-based discrimination must prove that such a move meets or helps in achieving important governmental objectives (Zeigler and Gunderson 70). Irrespective of the ability of women to perform certain duties such as service in the military, they cannot be integrated into it just because of their gender (Zeigler and Gunderson 73).

There have been campaigns in various organizations and governmental agencies to allow equality of gender in the work place. Women want to be included in every sector of leadership and governance. “While change may come slowly, as women continue to gain inclusion in all spheres of the civilian world, they will eventually do so in the services as well.” (Zeigler and Gunderson 73, Para. 2). This shows the determination and zeal that the women activists have in ensuring equality in jobs (Zeigler and Gunderson 73).

In GI Jane movie, there is a concern that the services of men in the military will be compromised due to mistreatment of women. The point is proved right when a male colleague, who is a leader of the seal squad, helps Jordan in some of the difficulties she encounters. She was expected to handle herself, and she is also assaulted sexually before her teammates during sere training.

This is aimed at making them reveal their information to the enemy in defense of the female squad member. This indicates that the presence of female members in a military squad can jeopardize their missions. This is also another discrimination criteria portrayed in the movie (Zeigler and Gunderson 73).

In the contemporary society, it is reported that quite a number of leaders and Presidents have plunged their countries with a perspective that they are defending the manhood of their countries. A nation that accepts bloodshed as the last horror has lost what is regarded as its manhood. This was a declaration after the World War 1. After this, so many wars that took place were in defense of the nation’s manhood.

The Vietnam War, the gulf war were paradigms of manhood. President Ronald Reagan, because he wanted America to display firmness of manhood, intervened in Nicaragua. Men’s work is regarded as real while that of women is an insult. Therefore, no leader or ruler wants to associate his country with feminism (Zeigler and Gunderson 74).

The GI Jane movie depicts a woman character that is willing to sacrifice a lot in order to be accepted into the military, it is a portrayal of masculinization of a female person. At the onset, it is said that “Demi Moore Takes It like a Man” (Brown 49, Para. 2). This is an indication of women not being in a position to carry out some tasks as they are. They have to live behind their womanhood and do it as men do.

This means that if they face the situation as women, then the possibility of completing the task effectively is very low. She loses part of her womanhood in the training and adapts men’s masculine nature. She cuts her hair short and her training routine makes her to lose period. Her body too becomes more masculine like those of men (Brown 49).

In adapting and changing into masculinity, Jordan eventually becomes the most respectable member of the seal. She does it better than all her colleagues by displaying spectacular skills in rescuing her boss. After rescuing her commanding officer, she then proceeds and delivers the whole platoon.

This is a display of the ability of women having equal or even better chance of competing in anything. She can attain all the heights in life if she dedicates time and energy. However, this does not come for free for she has to sacrifice a part of her womanhood in order to achieve her goals (Inness 56).

The master chief of the group mistreats her in order to discourage her from continuing in the military. He employs all the cruelty skills earned from training on her. Nevertheless, the determination of Jordan becoming the first military navy woman could not fade off. Even when she had been brutally beaten by her boss with the perspective of intimidating her, she retaliates at him with insults of “suck my dick.”

She receives applause from the fellow compatriots and regains composer and fame. This mistreatment reflects on the contemporary society’s position on women. They are treated as objects for certain specific activities. Any attempt to break lose will result into enduring pain and hardships (Inness 57).

Another aspect elaborating gender discrimination is the cold and casual treatment that Jordan receives from her boyfriend Royce. To him, she has lost her womanhood for military and therefore incomplete as a woman. The way men treat her too at the receptionist, others even whistling at her indicating that she is just a sex object.

To them, she is not expected to complete the training. This explains the society’s view of a woman’s position in the community. The community cannot expect a woman to be able to perform rigorous activities that require masculine bodies (Schubart 338).

The defiant behavior of Jordan to have sex with men in the seal squad puts her on the spot. Most critics say that her unusual behavior suggests that she might be a lesbian.

Together with the other two actors alongside her, the question of womanhood is raised. As usual, it is expected that the ladies cannot afford to stay with men for a long time without having sexual intercourse this shows the society’s position concerning female characters. They are regarded as gullible, fragile and without a firm position in decision making (Cook 183).

Just like in most movie and story books, feminism is criticized when it comes to jobs or roles that have been culturally associated with men. It becomes more difficult for the male counterparts to comprehend and accept the challenge offered by women. Without the support of men, women may not fully exploit their potentials in various fields.

The western culture has over a long time conflated masculinity. It can redefine any word it finds necessary in order to emphasize a point against feminism. To some extent, masculinity or masculinities are words that are used in informing intellectual cultures that are not necessary (Eberwein 176).

Another degree of gender biasness is found in the American leadership and the government. During the time Patricia Ireland served in the government as an executive vice president of a nationwide organization for women, elaborated a number of things of the government and the constitution. One of them is that combat exclusion only offers protection for men’s jobs. Women are excluded. This means that they can lose their jobs as easily as they are obtained (Zeigler and Gunderson 73).

On the other hand, women do not see sex as a deterrent to attaining their goals. It is reported that sex was common during the veteran war just as it was in the desert storm. This does not alter the performance of a lady. It is also noted that gender integrated crews have no and will not combat the readiness and the capabilities of a leader or commandant.

Soldiers do make friendship, they do it either way. That means subordinates can have friendship with their bosses and vice versa. However, this does not alter the ability or the inability to perform their duties. One soldier remarked that the military should be able to train its members and avoid dwelling on unnecessary misconduct or relations. These issues are brought down to nature and they are not related to occupation (Zeigler and Gunderson 76).

There was another claim that women cannot be able to work in some particular sectors. One of them was firefighting industry. After a close examination and measurement of the upper section of women’s bodies, it was concluded that they are unable to carry other people on their shoulders. However, they were later proved wrong (Zeigler and Gunderson 76).

In conclusion, gender biasness discriminating on women is a major concern in today’s society. In the movie GI Jane, the main character, Jordan is depicted as a woman who acts as a bridge to indicate that, what the society sees as impossibility is made possible through determination. However, gender discrimination is brought out in a more elaborate manner.

The fact that her boss mistreats her in order to intimidate her is an indication of gender discrimination. The colleagues also welcome her to the seal squad with a view of a sexual object that has joined the group. Almost every man flirted with her while others were whistling to her. This is the discrimination that has been perpetuated in the society for a long period of time.

Works Cited

Brown, Jeffrey A. Dangerous Curves: Action Heroines, Gender, Fetishism, and Popular Culture. Jackson, MS: University Press of Mississippi, 2011. Print.

Cook, Bernie. Thelma & Louise Live!: The Culture Afterlife of an American Film. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press, 2007. Print.

Eberwein, Robert T. The War Film. Piscataway, NJ: Rutgers, the State University, 2005. Print.

Inness, Sherrie A. Action Chicks: New Images of Tough Women in Popular Culture. New York, NY: Sherrie A. Inness, 2004. Print.

Schubart, Rikke. Super Beaches and Action Babes: The Female Hero in Popular Cinema, 1970-2006. Jefferson, NC: Rikke Schubart, 2007. Print.

Zeigler, Sara L., and Gregory, G. Gunderson. Moving Beyond G.I. Jane: Women and the U.S. Military. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, Inc, 2005. Print.

Abstract

Feelings confined to individuals vary largely subject to the type of task presented. Psychologically, feelings provide a firm link between emotions and gender. A given environmental stimuli like anger or happiness may not be equally perceived by men and women. Overreactions to events like happiness and fear by individuals of both the sexes are a matter of investigation due to the fact that there could be bias towards one particular emotional event.

However, it is not known fully whether positive and negative emotions are equally perceived by males and females. Therefore, the main objective of the study was to determine the effects of gender and emotion reaction by evaluating the expression rate of males and females towards negative and positive emotions. A total of 17 students comprising13 females and 4 males, aged between 18 and 22 from University of California, Los Angeles were enrolled for the study under psychology research method course.

A 2×2 factorial design was used where independent variables happy and anger were selected as positive and negative emotions, respectively. Similarly, gender was selected as another independent variable. The results revealed that both positive and negative emotions were processed at a expression rate higher for positive emotions for men and low for women. Similarly, the expression rate was higher for negative emotions for women and low for men.

Overall the positive emotions have a significant impact on feelings and reactions for men compared to females. In contrast negative emotions have a significant impact on feelings and reactions for females compared to men. Semantic presentations have significant impact on the gender reactions compared to drawings and acoustics.

Therefore, it can be concluded that men have strong reaction towards positive emotions and women have strong reaction towards negative emotions.

Results

The study included a total of 17 participants of age range 18 to 22.There were 13 females and 4 males. Here, an estimate of average number of emotions recalled correctly was done when the emotions were presented in the form of words versus drawings to reflect the function of the way being processed. From the results, it was found hat positive emotions depicted in drawings were recalled significantly than that of words.

Next, the form in which the items were presented was found to have large effect on recall. This effect is more for words than for the drawings. To further determine this effect and reveal a significant main effect of type of processing, statistical test, ANOVA was applied. The average correct recall was significantly higher when the items were processed semantically(Mean- 8.3) than that presented acoustically (Mean- 7) irrespective of form in which they were presented.

The emotions type presented also reveled significant results when they were presented in drawings (Mean – 8.95) compared to that presented in words (Mean -6034).The type of interaction between type of processing and type of words is also significant at p =0.002.For comparing individual condition means, multiple parameter sample t test with a Bonferroni correction, to maintain an alpha level of 0.05 was conducted.

When presented as words ,the average correct recall for items was revealed to be significantly higher when they were processed to a semantic level (Mean = 7; S.D=1.07) when they were processed to an acoustic level (Mean =5.1;S.D.=2.08;p<0.025).When emotions were presented as words , the difference in average correct recall for items processed at semantic level.

This was more for women compared to men. Emotions have an overall effect on the processing o n the way they were being presented.

Discussion

Stereotypes are common for both males and females on emotional grounds. It is more frequently biased towards female at a one particular instance and males at another particular instance. This could be because all emotions unchangeably confined to female gender role stereotype compared to individual emotions like anger and sadness.

More probably, emotions of fear, sadness and happiness were more representative of women but anger is more representative of men (Hutson- Comeaux & Kelly, 2002).

In the present study, an investigation was carried out to determine the expression rates of males and females towards positive and negative emotions. The participants were made to read different stories and advised to react and give responses. It was found that positive emotions were expressed significantly by men compared to women. Similarly, negative emotions were expressed significantly by women compared to men.

This indicates that emotions like happiness, sadness and fear were prominently expressed by men. This kind of gender discrimination is more commonly reported. Faces that express emotions like threat enhance the resources of attention in a demanding manner. Processing of a given attention facilitates the influence of gender stereotypes. Since it was widely believed that men and women show specific emotions, there will be certain discrepancies where sadness and fear become more characteristic for women than men and vice versa.

Depending on the type of environmental condition and nature of item presented, the reaction of men and women may vary. Story telling or describing a particular incident of exciting nature may induce sudden happiness in both the sexes irrespective of gender sterotypism. It indicates that expression patterns of both Positive and negative emotions are subject to the type of environment.

It was reported that facial expressions posses characteristics that play role as sex markers that important for sex detection bias. This feature is also essential for forming the foundation for behaviors like affiliation and dominance. As such, the present findings are consistent with the previous reports that describe evolutionary link towards anger and happiness (Ursula et al., 2009).

This has supported an earlier study where facial expressions played vital role for communications between actors .According to that study, emotion and gender of actors was found to be significantly linked during interactions. Here, rate for happiness was high among both men and women.

Female actors were more flexible in making communication through faces for fear and sadness whereas males were flexible for expressions towards anger (Wallbott ,1988)

Hence these studies strongly indicate that the present study is in line with the earlier studies. More probably the selection of variables is a key factor in the present scenario.

But there sees to be certain inconsistencies due to limited studies in the relevant area.

The sample size can be considered as the limitation for the study. Selecting 17 participants may not furnish better insights o n the effect of variables. In addition with the low sample size it would be difficult to arrive to a concrete decision on statistical grounds. Thus , there is a need to increase the sample size for a more concrete result.

In order to further improve the study, a muti-environment study is essential. In the present case, the participants were picked from a mall. Emphasis should be give to colleges, universities, and film actors as described in a previous study.

The implication of such study would yield much information on gender sterotypism, a detailed understanding of emotional reactions towards positive and negative outcomes and a focus on the management of gender related stress.

References

Hutson- Comeaux Sarah L., & Kelly Janice R. (2002). Gender Stereotypes of Emotional

Reactions: How We Judge an Emotion as Valid. Sex Roles, 47 (1/2).

Ursula Hess,Reginald B. Adams JrKarl Grammer Robert E. Kleck. (2009).

Face gender and emotion expression: Are angry women more like men? Journal of Vision 9, 1–8

Wallbott Harald, G. (1988). Big Girls Don’t Frown, Big Boys Don’t Cry -Gender Differnces of Professional Actors in Communicating Emotin via Facial Expression. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior 12.