This possibility stems from the finding that the main reason that white women now work closer to home than men is their greater responsibility for child care and domestic work (Hooks 65). The freedom to work farther from home is likely to change the work women carry out and may contribute further to eroding the gender divisions of labor. Clearly, we need to know more about who telecommutes within the household and how that affects the distribution and location of paid and unpaid work.
Question
Will male presence at home and women’s reduced involvement in housework lead to women working farther away from home?
In sum, clearly, we see geography at the heart of the reasons why Information Technology might be a stimulus for change in the gender divisions of labor. The shifts of paid work away from fixed work locations into the home, along with the advent of the Internet, potentially have implications also for the role of networks in shaping work and communities (Hooks102).
Information Technology, Networks, and Community
In our study of gender and work in Worcester, Massachusetts, Gerry Pratt and I have documented how the place-based and rendered personal contacts and social networks of employers, employees, and potential employees shape highly localized, distinctive, and gendered labor markets. They have also shown how these local labor market practices are interwoven into the fabric of the community (Hooks 86).
Social Capital
At the same time that many people are gleefully announcing the advent of a location-free existence in cyberspace, others are busy demonstrating the importance of social capital, which is, or at least has been, deeply place dependent. Robert Putnam sees social capital as referring to “features of social organization such as networks, norms, and trust that facilitate coordination and cooperation for mutual benefit” (Aronson and Kimmel, 215). In her definition, Patricia emphasizes the importance of the group by noting that social capital “resides in the relations between members, not in individuals who compose it” (Aronson and Kimmel 216).
Conclusion
Social capital emerges from repeated social exchanges that are usually—and necessarily—face to face, exchanges infused with the expectation of ongoing interaction. Social capital requires, then, a certain level of residential rootedness in real places in order to develop; the nature of a person’s social capital depends to a large extent on geographic and social location.
Works Cited
Aronson, Amy and Michael, Kimmel. The Gendered Society Reader. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2010. Print.
Hooks, Bell. Feminism is for Everybody: Passionate Politics. Brooklyn, New York: South End Press, 2000. Print.
The socially constructed types of class, race, and gender not only locate groups and individuals within, national, local, and global social structures but specifically establish social identities that ultimately shape cultures and experiences of people. The prevalence of poor and underprivileged people, people of immigrants, and gender along with increasing concern about class and race, situate the overall work of the field in an interlocking system of oppression and power (Lorber, 2005).
Social inequality is experienced and described along with lines of class, race, and gender supports to determine who requires literacy instruction, who acquires it, how these learners ultimately experience it, and how does it affects their lives. Both policymakers and individuals in the society of the United States anticipate literacy as a remedy that overall impacts and eventually reduces economic and social inequality. In this paper, we shall discuss the role of educators and how education contributes to the enhancement of people’s cognitive growth. The paper argues and probes the phenomenon; can education play its due role to eliminate class, race, and gender inequality.
It is pertinent to mention that educators may be authorized to teach in different ways that, in fact, reinforcing instead of transforming inequality and differences of class, race, and gender orientation that impact the life chances of different learners. This social background along with the social locations and identities of learners and teachers, the political economy of finances for its programs, and typical differential reward its learners gain from educational accomplishment- increases concerns especially for adult educators in the areas of curriculum policy, and pedagogy.
The Dynamics of Class, Race, and Gender
The dynamics of class, racism, and gender inequality affect the lives of people in the United States. Educational research on inequality read as if class and racism impact only those in different minority groups. The racism experienced by individuals of color in the school of the United States could not exist in the absence of simultaneous privileging of whites by the same educational institutions.
Class, race, and gender impact the power of people to negotiate educational institutions for reaping benefits and rewards. This is specifically reflected in the poverty and predominance of individuals of color among those with a low level of education. Socioeconomic conditions are the robust predictors of educational accomplishments across gender and race, and educational accomplishment is a strong indicator of employment success.
In the last five decades, a series of educational policies and reforms, initiated particularly at the national level, have been implemented into domestic school systems. All such reforms focused to move education much closer to the theme of equality of educational opportunity. Given the significance of racism, class, and gender in the history of the United States, most of the federal education reforms and policies during this period endeavored to equalize the often egregious types of inequality based on class as well as race (Canford, pp. 409-438).
Desegregation
Since 1954, significant progress has been made towards the desegregation of the country’s public schools has been limited and uneven. Blacks experienced insignificant progress in desegregation up to the mid-1960s when a series of executive actions, judicial decisions, and a series of federal laws, in response to the movement of civil rights, resulted in huge gains, particularly in the South. Such development and progress continued until the year 1988 when the impacts of a series of decisions by a federal court and different national and local political developments particularly precipitated trends in the market towards the segregation of Black students.
Latinos historically were less segregated than most of the African Americans. From the mid-1960s to the 1990s, however, there was a continuous increase in the ratio of Latino students who, in fact, attended segregated schools. Resultantly, education for them is now more segregated as compared with Blacks. Given the history of legalized and legitimate segregation in the south, it is sarcastic that the school systems in the South are now most segregated in the country, whereas those in the northeast are by ability grouping. There exists a robust relationship between social class and race. Moreover, racial isolation is mostly considered the development of residential segregation along with socioeconomic background.
Evidence from current research suggests that children often benefit socially and academically from well-managed programs. Most of the black students enjoy ordinary academic gains, whereas the academic accomplishments of white children are often not hurt, rather helped in some cases, by desegregation. Moreover, in the school systems which has experienced desegregation attempts, the racial group and class in educational results have normally been reduced, although not eliminated (Acker, pp. 441-464).
The most significant short-run academic accomplishments are the long-run consequences or costs for black students. In contrast to those who attended schools regarded as racially isolated, black adults experiencing exclusively desegregated education particularly as children can more possibly attend multiracial colleges, work in high-status jobs, evaluate their capabilities more realistically while making a choice of an occupation, live in an integrated community or neighborhood, and to report interracial associations.
Despite these modest outcomes in the final decade of the twentieth century, American children, mostly, attend schools that are segregated by class, race, and ethnicity. Consequently, for the last fifty years, federal interventions focused on accomplishing equality of educational chances by school desegregation and have just taken insignificant steps towards accomplishing that aim; children from different classes and racial backgrounds should constantly receive segregated and unequal educations.
Gender Discrimination
Gender discrimination also exists in many areas of education taking different types. For instance, curricular materials, in K-12 education, feature a specific preponderance of men’s character. Typical traditional gender roles are exhibited by male and female characters. Vocational education not only at the high school but also at the college level remains segregated by gender up to some level (Kramer, 2004).
Administrators in schools, at every level, are male even though most teachers in secondary and elementary schools are female. The situation in high school is more complicated. In academia, faculty women are often found in the lower ranks and there are few chances for them to get a promotion. They continue to earn less as compared with their male counterparts.
Similar to the policies, procedures, and laws focusing on eliminating inequalities of race in school outcomes and processes, those designed to reduce or eliminate race inequality in education opportunities have just narrowed them. Moreover, access to education in the U.S is also not equal for people of a different race, ethnic, gender, and socioeconomic background.
Although many programs focusing on eliminating inequality of education have not succeeded over the last fifty years or so, there exist only signs of considerable progress; measured specifically in median years, the gap existing in educational accomplishment between whites and blacks, and females and males have almost disappeared. However, the primary aim of educational reform is not just to provide entire groups the chance to receive the same quantity as well as the quality of education.
As per the dominant theme or ideology, the eventual aim of such reforms is to support, provide, and ensure equality in education for facilitating equal access to housing, jobs, and different features of the American dream. As such it becomes vital for examining the phenomenon of whether the practical elimination of the gap in attaining education has specifically been accompanied by a comparable reduction in different other measures and actions of inequality.
Income Factor
Income, of the different ways in which inequality may be measured, is regarded as most useful. Most of the social standing by individuals and overall access to the decent aspects of life depends to a large extent on income. The dramatic progress, unfortunately, in reducing the gap in educational acquisition has not been particularly matched by a similar reduction of the gap existing in income inequality.
Median personal earnings by gender and race signify that white men earn more as compared with any other group while black men trail them. Moreover, all women earn considerably less as compared with white men. Studies highlight that it is only white and black women with an alike educational record in the same job earning almost the same. The difference between the almost elimination of the gap found in acquiring median education and the continuing gaps in the middle-income group is another evidence that eliminating the inequality of education is inappropriate for addressing wider sources throughout the community (Wilson).
This discrepancy can be narrated by the nature of the political economy of the United States. The major reason for income inequality is the operation and structure of capitalism in the United States, a set of institutions that rarely have been impacted by different educational reforms. Opportunities for equality in education have not led to a matching reduction in income inequality as educational reforms have not created extra well-paid jobs, impact gender-segregation and also occupational structures racially segmented, or restrict the mobility of capital between different areas of the country or between other countries and the United States. For instance, no matter how well education is received by minority youth or the white working class, it does not change the phenomenon that there are thousands of well-paid manufacturing jobs which does not include inner cities of the north, the sunbelt, or even foreign nations (Mcquillan, pp. 477-496).
A segment of scholars argue that many service jobs either remain or manufacturing positions have been made available in the context of capital flight. Yet they pay less as compared with the previous manufacturing jobs, are mostly temporary or part-time, and most do not provide any type of benefit. Even youth in the middle class have apprehensions about the nature of jobs they anticipate after completing formal education.
Impact of Education Reforms
Without changes in the operation or structure of the capitalistic economy, many scholars believe that educational reforms are not successful in improving the economic and social conditions of disadvantaged groups. This is the major cause that educational reforms have an insignificant impact on the social inequalities that motivates them in the first place.
Educational reforms in the country have not accomplished overall equality for many reasons. While gender, class, and racial gaps found in attaining education have narrowed to a huge extent, educational accomplishment remains differentiated by gender, class, and race. Most of the aspects of auricular content and school processes are associated with class, race, and gender inequality. Yet gross measures related to educational outcomes like median years at the level of the school, cover these symbols of inequality.
It is pertinent to mention that educational experiences are not considered the same, for example, four years completed at the high school in an area like Beverly Hills are altogether different from the same period spent in a school located in an inner-city; race, gender, class, and family background significantly impacts whether an individual attends college and which higher education institution is attended by him/her. For example, female trail men slightly in depiction in institutions of high status as it is less likely for the females to attend doctorial or engineering programs and mostly possible to become part-time students (Malkin).
Gender segregation in the areas of study remains highly linked, with females less likely as compared with men to study in mathematical and scientific fields. Moreover, there is considerable ethnic, class, and racial segregation between higher education institutions. Latinos and Asian-Americans are considered as more segregated from whites as compared with African-Americans. Asian-Americans and whites are most likely to join universities of higher status than Latinos and African-Americans.
These patterns of class, race, gender, and race inequality in higher education have implications for race, class, and gender gaps in income and occupational attainment. Recipients of science and math degrees are most likely to acquire lucrative jobs. A degree obtained from a state college is not considered as competitive compared with an elite university in the private sector. Part of the benefits of attending prestigious schools is derived from the current social networks to which an individual can join and has access (Zinn).
Credential inflation is another example of continuous inequality for opportunities in the education field. Although minorities, women, and different members of the working class nowadays acquire higher levels of education than they previously did, members of privileged or advantaged social groups attain even much higher education levels.
The educational requirements necessary for well-paid jobs- with the highest salaries, comfortable working conditions, extra benefits, autonomy, etc- are increasing. People with more education attained from the best institutions are mostly among the top candidates for the highly-paid and high-status jobs. As people from privileged backgrounds are almost at all times in a much better position to obtain enviable credentials, whereas working class, minorities, and women are at a competitive disadvantage.
Over the years, the place of the woman in the society has remained in the home. In most cases, the society regards the woman as subordinate to man.
That is perhaps the reason why, for a very long time, women have remained in the background. However, the role of women, especially as members of the working class, has evolved in the recent past. In the American context, women have become an important part of the working class.
To this end, activities by such bodies as the civil rights movement groups and the agitation for fair treatment in the society have gone a long way in helping the women emerge as significant members of the society (“Working Class Perspectives: Stereotyping the Working Class” para. 3). In addition, the media has played a huge role in establishing a place for women among the working class.
The current paper is written against this background. To this end, the author of this paper examines how women are treated in the media, especially in prime time shows. The author of this paper holds the opinion that social class, together with gender, influences how media houses report their news.
On its part, media coverage influences the determination of gender roles and formation of social classes in the society. As such, the two phenomena (media and gender and social class) influence each other.
In this analysis, the author of this paper relies on the depictions of the main character in the popular American sitcom, Roseanne. The main focus will be on the sitcom’s season 5, episode 5. The main character in this case is Roseanne. In the current paper, the author relies on the elements of the working class to argue out the research statement.
“Roseanne” will also be used in discussing the importance of media when it comes to the depiction of social class and gender issues. The importance of media will be measured against the effects that such kinds of presentations have on the viewers. The analysis highlighted above will be carried out in the context of Kathleen Rowe’s article on gender and social roles.
The Role of Gender and Social Class in Media Presentation
A Critical Analysis of Roseanne’s Character
After watching “Roseanne”, one can describe the main character as a responsible and hardworking housewife. She is also a mother who is capable of handling all the affairs in her family. The same is especially evident in the fifth episode of season five.
Here, the scene opens with Roseanne’s sister seeking her help in a family business. In the same scene, her husband walks in and goes straight to the dining table and demands for food (“Roseanne Season 5 Episode 5”). Despite her sarcastic and vulgar language, Roseanne appears to be a resourceful person.
Based on the manner in which she engages others in conversation, one can argue that she is unruly. A case in point is when she is engaged in a conversation with her sister about her daughter. She says, “you mean the best thing was not carrying, pushing a giant head through my vagina after nine months?” (“Roseanne Season 5 Episode 5”).
Despite the fact that she means well for her daughter, such vulgar language is not necessary. The disgusting aspect of her language is made evident when her husband puts down the sandwich he was eating when he hears her speak.
Rowe (414) argues that Roseanne is a sloppy woman. The implication is that she has a carefree attitude towards most of the things she does. One such instance is seen when her neighbor’s son lends her a camera (“Roseanne Season 5 Episode 5”).
Roseanne is having problems uploading the film and goes ahead to smash the camera on the table. Her reaction comes in the wake of the neighbor’s son telling her that she ought to handle the machine with care.
In spite of her carefree behavior, Roseanne is a considerate woman. The same is portrayed in the manner she handles her daughter’s ‘sweet sixteen’ birthday party (“Roseanne Season 5 Episode 5”). Roseanne is aware of the fact that her daughter does not like attention.
However, that does not stop her from planning a party for her. Interestingly, the party is just a gimmick because she has other intentions. She asks her husband to repair the car in the garage as a gift for her daughter. In addition, Roseanne allows her daughter to go out and treat her friends.
Another character of Rosanne that is depicted in the television show is her courageousness. In a game of truth or dare, she agrees to a double dare where she is dared to strip off her blouse and bra and run outside while screaming (“Roseanne Season 5 Episode 5”).
Given that she is a mother and a wife, she should not even entertain such a dare. Surprisingly, she accepts the challenge, although she is eventually embarrassed when she runs into her husband and the new neighbor.
Roseanne’s character is very important in understanding the nature of people considered as working class in the society. The manner in which she is portrayed through media introduces the public to the various elements of the working class.
In this case, the depiction centers on the working class woman since she is considering setting up a business with her sister (“Roseanne Season 5 Episode 5”). The significance of such depictions is made apparent given that “Roseanne” is a prime time show.
Elements that Comprise the Working Class according to “Roseanne”
For a person to be eligible for employment, they must be hardworking (Zweig 34). Roseanne is an example of a hardworking individual. The element of hard work is depicted in the manner in which she is able to manage her household, especially given that theirs is not a wealthy family.
Portraying her as a hard worker is seen as a strategy to incite the women folk who labor in their households to venture out of their homes. Such women are shown that they can also do well as members of the workforce. The sentiments are seen in the last scene when Roseanne seeks her husband’s opinion on whether to use the money her mother left her for business or not.
Working class requires one to be a visionary (Zweig 37). An individual must have certain goals that they are expected to achieve in their daily undertakings. The show introduces this aspect of vision in the last scene when Roseanne is concerned with the future of her children’s education.
She is considering using the money left to her by her mother for her children’s education (“Roseanne Season 5 Episode 5”). After a discussion with her husband, she is convinced that it is better to use the money for investment. The education of her children will be guaranteed if she invests the money. To this end, Roseanne appears to have a vision for her family.
What if Roseanne is from a Different Race?
The show elicits debate on how the media depicts social class and gender (Rowe 412). However, one should consider how the public would view Roseanne if she is from a different race, such as African American. In this regard, Rowe (413) compares “Roseanne” with “Cosby Show”, where the family is African American.
Rowe (413) argues that the public acknowledges the fact that the role played by Roseanne is significant in encouraging the women folk to join the working class. The public does not look at her as a white person. Instead, she is regarded as more of a woman than a representative of the white race.
If her character was played by an African American, the public would form opinions about the show based on prevailing perceptions about the race.
Conclusion
In this paper, the author affirmed the fact that the media relies on social class and gender to communicate with the audience. Roseanne is a white female and her depiction in the media helps to encourage women to join the working class. In addition, she is depicted as a member of the lower middle class. Her determination to get out of this social class is vividly illustrated by the way she is determined to start a business.
Works Cited
“Roseanne Season 5 Episode 5.” Pretty in Black., ABC, Atlanta, 16 Dec. 1995. Television.
Race and gender have been considered socially constructed in our society, and despite the efforts that have been put by several human rights groups it, this perception is yet to change.
According to Haslanger (2012: 43), “The term socially constructed, means that the society and culture has created specific roles, and that these roles are what is generally considered ideal or appropriate behavior for a person of that specific race or gender.” This means that the society expects men to behave in a way that is different from the way women do.
There are some activities that women are not supposed to do simply because they are women. Similarly, construction of race is exhibited when one race is expected to behave in a way that is different from other races. For instance, before many of the African nations gained independence, the Blacks were considered as slaves, and the Whites were seen as of superior race.
There might not be a scientific proof that Whites could be superior in any way to the Blacks. However, because the society had developed a perception that Blacks are inferior to the Whites, following a long period of slavery, this perception still remain. Social constriction of gender and race has been seen as the main reason why social segregation based on these two demographical factors are common in our society.
The Problem of Social Construction of Race and Gender
The society has been fighting social construction of gender and race because of the call made by several human rights group for equality in the society. Social construction of race and gender has been seen as an impediment to development, and a reason why some social injustice are still common in our society. It is a scientific fact that men have greater physical strength than women.
However, this should not make women a weaker sex in the social spectrum. Women should not be denied positions of leadership in the society just because they are women. As Ferber (1999) says, the society has discriminated against women for a very long time.
Although women are currently getting liberated, the social construction that existed in the minds of people still linger, and many societies still believe that women are inferior to men, and are treated as such.
Social constructionism theory holds that some demographic groups of people are expected to behave in a given manner within the society (Karambayya 1997). For instance, women would not be expected to assume roles that have largely been associated with men.
Careers in engineering, medicine, law, architect or any other well-paying technical jobs are expected to be a preserve for men. Women should get to such profession as nursing, teaching, and any other less technical unattractive jobs in the society. This is a social injustice.
If women have the capacity to do what men are doing, then gender should not be the reason why she should be denied the opportunity to do that job. Women have proven that they have the capacity to assume roles that were considered as meant for men. In leadership, women have proven that they can excel. Margret Thatcher remains one of the most celebrated prime minister of the United Kingdom.
Other notable women leaders around the world include Indira Gandhi of India, Hilary Clinton and Condoleezza Rice of the United States, and the current German Chancellor, Angela Merkel. These are women who have gone beyond social construction that women are considered a weaker race before men.
Social constriction of race has caused a lot of injustice in this society. As Obach (1999) notes, the United States has witnessed a long period of racial discrimination. When the country gained independence in 1776, the statesmen and women of this country promised that slavery and slave trade will be abolished.
When the country became independent, the Blacks, Whites, Indians, and all other races that were residing in the United States during that time were granted citizenship of this country. However, the perception that the Whites were superior to all other races still remained. The Blacks were considered an inferior race, and there were restricted to some social services.
Ferber (1999) by nineteenth century, there were still some posts written, ‘Whites Only.’ This is a clear indication that the Whites segregated other races, and there were some services that they could not share with the Whites.
The recent election of a Black president of this nation was seen as a positive move by this society towards racial justice. The society has come to realize that it is important to avoid any prejudice against a section of the society because of their race.
The main problem with social construction of race and gender is that the society has been trying to justify why a given group of people is considered superior to others. This justification has even made the discriminated group believe that they are inferior group. As Obach (1999) puts it, the discriminated group have come to accept their unfortunate condition.
They have come to believe that they below to the inferior race or gender. This makes the fight against all forms of social construction a little more challenging. However, the recent moves by human rights groups have helped change this perception. People have come to accept that human being, regardless of race, gender, or any other demographic differences, are equal, and should therefore, be treated as such.
Racism
Browne (2003: 37) defines racism as, “Actions, beliefs or practices, which consider the human beings to be divided into races with shared qualities, traits, or abilities, such as intellect, personality, and morality, and the belief that races can be ranked as inherently superior or inferior to others.”
As described in this definition, racism is a stereotype that holds that some members of the society are superior to others and deserve being treated as such. A good example of racism was witnessed in the United States, where Whites regarded Blacks and other races as being inferior to them.
They treated them as second class citizens who were not expected to use the same facilities as those used by Whites. The Whites had their own schools, hospitals, and other social amenities. The Blacks also had their own social facilities. South Africa also experienced Apartheid rule that was fought and brought to an end by the late Nelson Mandela.
Sexism
Sexism refers to discrimination prejudice that is based on an individual’s gender (Karambayya 1997). It is the perception that men are superior to women, and should be treated as such. In the current society, sexism still persists in many ways. As Obach (1999) notes, the American society has generally failed to appreciate that it can be led by a woman.
This was not only shown by the failure of Hillary Clinton to win the primaries against Obama in the 2008 race to Whitehouse, but also by the limited number of women who vie for these seats. As was mentioned before, social construction of gender becomes even worse when those who are discriminated against come to accept that they are a weaker group.
The American women have believed that they are inferior to men, and therefore, have avoided vying from the country’s top post. In 2008, Sarah Palin was nominated by the Republican Party to vie alongside the Arizona Senator John McCain as the Vice President of this country.
McCain thought that the society would accept her as a female vice president. However, this was not the case. She failed to appeal to the society due to a number of reasons, top of which was that she was a woman.
Conclusion
Social construction of race and gender has been very common in our society for a very long time. Women have been considered inferior to men, and the Whites, the most superior race.
As demonstrated in the above discussion, social construction in itself is an injustice. Every human being should be treated equally. Gender or race should not be the reason why some members of the society are denied opportunities within the society.
It is wrong to treat others as second class citizens because of their race or gender. Human rights groups have been fighting this vice for a long time now. Although their efforts have transformed the society positively, social construction of race and gender is still common in this society.
References
Haslanger, Sally. 2012. Resisting Reality: Social Construction and Social Critique. New York: Oxford University Press.
Ferber, Abby. 1999. “The Construction of Race, Gender, and Class in White Supremacist Discourse.” Interdisciplinary Issues On Race, Gender & Class 6(3): 67-89.
Karambayya, Rekha. 1997. “In Shouts and Whispers: Paradoxes Facing Women of Color in Organizations.” Journal of Business Ethics 16(9): 891-897.
Browne, Irene. 2003. “The Intersection of Gender and Race in the Labor Market.” Annual Review of Sociology 29(3): 487-513.
Obach, Brian. 1999. “Demonstrating the Social Construction of Race.” Teaching Sociology 27(3): 252-257.
The role played by gender can be described as socially constructed. The behavior and personality of an individual is defined by the society he or she comes from. Television perpetuates most of the gender stereotypes in the societies. Cultural expectations portrayed male as highly achievers and dominant while female are supposed to be obedient and accommodating
A conventional gender stereotype is encouraged mostly by Television since it focuses on dominants social values. Gender inequality is commonly practiced by most of the television programs which are dominated by men the same way it happens in our societies. This influence gender sensitivity and instead instinctively reproduced a consistent masculine perception in the programs being shown (Craig, S. (ed.), 1992).
Main body
It is believed that most of the programs aired are explicitly built and interpreted from a muscular angle. Observers frequently identify with the male characters rather than females in the narrative. This kind of inclined viewing of television is imperceptible and primarily indisputably biased.
Most of the television programs portrayed men’s world and females tend to shift from their own view. Actors and directors have argued that female presenter or characters in the programs are not likely to be given attention by the observers. However, it is important to note that female have got more physical personality as compared to men. According to Durkin, K., (1985) female especially between the age group 8 and 12 give more attention to the male characters than the female one, while boys are not ideally influenced by the sex of the character in the programs.
Sigourney Weaver in Aliens is one of such programs aired that have low number of women playing a key role. However, men dominate the scene and are shown to be more authoritative and aggressive as compared to female. They more often drive, drink, smoke, participate in most of the games and implement policies. They dominate world of things rather than affiliation.
There are few female shown on this program compared to male. The ratio of male characters to female is 4:1. Male also are seen to be positioned in most demanding role. This is in contrast to the fact that in the real sense female out numbered male in the current world. Therefore, demographic realities are not clearly shown by the television programs as expected.
Most female in this programs are restricted to few roles. Male play extensive and stimulating roles, while domestic roles are done by female. Majority of the males are shown as employed, have higher status and are less often found at home. Even at the work places few females are seen to holding high positions in the organization. They lead unhappy and hopeless personal lives. This distribution and status of women as shown in the programs reflect the actual thing in the real world. Curran, J. & Michael G., (ed.) (1991) observed that feminine is known to lag behind in almost everything with only a few exceptions.
Conclusion
The portrayal of male and female on television can be greatly regarded as conventional and stereotypical in nature. This encouraged gender roles polarization with female seen as being emotional, cautious and supportive and observance. Male on the other hand are associated with rationality, competence, personal, merciless and efficient character. In this case this program largely reflects customary patriarchal concept of gender. Conventional masculinity for example, is viewed as natural, usual, and worldwide, where as in the real sense, this is just particular construction. In this regard attention should be taken to regulate and abolish programs being aired on television and gender stereotype quality be put into practice.
Works Cited
Craig, S. (ed.) Men masculinity and the media: Newbury Park, CA: Sage, 1991.
Curran, J. & Michael G. (ed.) Mass media and society: London: Edward Arnold, 1991.
Durkin, K. Television, sex roles and children: Milton Keynes, 1981.
During a long period of time, researchers intend to find the answer to the question of how much women and men talk in comparison to each other. Furthermore, it is also important to answer the question about the criteria according to which the conclusions should be made (Tannen and Alatis 12).
From this point, the article “Who Does the Talking Here?” which is written by Deborah Tannen and published in the Washington Post in 2007 can be discussed as one more attempt to respond to the developed debates.
In her article, Tannen proposes to discuss the relation between the concepts of gender and talkativeness from the large perspective because these relations are rather complex.
Tannen claims that it is irrelevant to count words spoken by women and men without references to the concrete situations and speakers’ purposes, and although many popular researches are based on the principle of counting spoken words, Tannen’s position seems to be rather persuasive because the author not only provides a range of arguments to support her vision but also discusses the weaknesses of counterarguments in detail.
Tannen starts her article with drawing the audience’s attention to the controversial idea which contradicts with the public’s traditional visions. The author states that a group of researchers found the evidences to support the view that “women and men talk equally” (Tannen par. 1).
Tannen focuses on this research’s conclusion as the basic argument to state the necessity of re-thinking the visions of men and women’s talkativeness. Thus, the author continues presenting her idea while discussing the opinion about the females’ talkativeness which prevailed in the society during a long period of time.
The popular opinion is based on counting the words, as it is in Louann Brizendine’s study, according to which women speak 20,000 words a day, and men speak only 7,000 words a day (Tannen par. 2).
To oppose this idea, Tannen refers to the other researchers’ numbers which are 16,215 words spoken by women during a day and 15,669 words spoken by men (Tannen par. 2).
Paying attention to numbers which cannot appropriately reflect the real situation in the society, Tannen chooses to focus on the other approaches and criteria as more important in comparison with the method of counting the words.
Having stated the impossibility of the other researchers’ approach to discuss the situation with men and women’s talking in detail, Tannen presents clearly her own vision of the problem while asking the questions about the correlation between gender and language.
According to Tannen, “to understand who talks more, you have to ask: What’s the situation? What are the speakers using words for?” (Tannen par. 4). To support the importance of these questions, Tannen provides the vivid example to illustrate the role of the situation for men and women’s talking.
The example of a man who speaks more at the meetings than at home is effective to support the author’s vision of types of talking. Tannen states that women talk more when they want to focus on the people’s personal experience and feelings. This type of talking is the ‘rapport-talk’.
On the contrary, men prefer to provide people with some information, and it is the ‘report-talk’ (Tannen par. 7). The author’s discussion of these types of talking seems to be rather rational because the purposes of females and males’ speaking are explained clearly.
While developing the connection between the situation, purpose, and length of speeches, Tannen provides different real-life examples to support her conclusions.
Thus, it is necessary to pay attention to the purposes of speaking because women are inclined to be more talkative than men at home, when men are inclined to demonstrate their knowledge at work (Speer 23-25).
In her article, Tannen tries to focus on all the aspects of the issue and to discuss all the associated stereotypes. From this point, referring to the research by Campbell and Ayres, Tannen states that “women’s rapport-talk probably explains why many people think women talk more” (Tannen par. 11).
Moreover, people prefer to focus on others’ talking when they speak little (Tannen par. 12). As a result, Tannen leads the reader to understand the fact that in reality, women and men talk equally, but there are more situations when men can concentrate on women’s talkativeness.
In her article, Deborah Tannen builds a strong argument to support her vision of the problem of women and men’s talkativeness. While discussing the importance of gender differences to influence the males and females’ talks, Tannen chooses to focus on the causes for revealing numbers traditionally presented in the scholarly literature.
The author claims that the concentration on counting words cannot provide researchers with the appropriate results. It is important to know when and why women and men speak more.
This information is necessary to conclude about the connection between the concepts of gender and language. As a result, Tannen’s position can be discussed as correlated in a way with the idea stated in the article’s first paragraph according to which women and men talk equally.
In chapter 5 and 6 of the book Gender and development by Catherine Virginia Scott, the author tries to explain how the modernization and development theories can be modified further to substantiate the role of gender balance in the growth of societies. Scott explains that the growth of institutions and in particular nations can be explained in terms of the regard of gender equality. This basically implies that nations which welcomed the idea of gender balance from an early time are the ones that have seen the greatest development.
The dependency theory has already established that nations around the world are linked together in ties that help them benefit from each other. Developing nations generally wait for developed nations to give them the expertise needed for growth while the developed nations need the developing nations for the natural resources. From Scott’s perspective, the developing nations tend to borrow societal development ideas from the developed nations.
For instance, it is after third world countries realize the contribution that women play in the growth of the G8 that they now can tolerate calls for gender balance. The developed nations also appreciate the harmonious living that individuals in developing countries have by respecting gender roles. They, therefore, try to entrench this specificity of roles into their societies, consequently establishing relationships that have a beneficial role on society.
Scott comes to the conclusion that society only grows as long as there is a balance between the roles assigned to individuals from the two genders. She also notes that, it helps for nations to look at the best practice of other nations and adopt ideas that will help them develop.
In the opening chapters of the book Patriarchy and Accumulation on a World Scale by Maria Mies, the author introduces the concept of feminism as a fight against capitalist patriarchy. She, however, notes that most of the members of the feminist movement tend to forget their mission and end up portraying the image of individuals that are fighting the male race. Mies describes feminists as the persons who speak against the unbalanced relationship between men and women.
By citing the activities of various groups around the world, Mies comes to the conclusion that it is the conscious involvement of various interest groups that the awareness of the oppression that women have been going through over the years has been brought to the fore. Later, in the second chapter, Mies tries to underscore the concept of female productivity in underdeveloped societies as a function of male productivity. She explains that in developed societies, women have an equal chance to contribute to economic development, as jobs have not been given gender assignments. As such, instead of having women while their time away at home doing nothing they actively adopt responsibilities contribute to national growth.
Mies, through various examples, illustrates how women appropriate their own bodies as well as how men contribute to the appropriation of the bodies of their female counterparts. The author explains that former element is mainly evident in developed societies where women are given the freedom to choose what to do with their bodies. The latter aspect, according to Mies, is mainly present in societies where gender equality is still a myth. In this regard, men are regarded as supreme overseers and have control of what women can and cannot do with their bodies.
In the anthology Restoried Selves: Autobiographies Of Queer Asian–Pacific AmericanActivists, Kevin Kumashiro collected the stories of Asian–Pacific Americans who are the representatives of gay and lesbian movements. This book can be discussed as the attempt to present the stories of gay and lesbian activists who are connected by the definite cultural and ethnic identity as free from any social stereotypes and prejudice. From this point, the problem of sexual orientation is discussed with references to the issues of ethnicity and personal and cultural identity. In spite of the fact this general idea can be examined with the help of discussing the autobiographies, it is necessary to pay attention to the details of each concrete personal story. The issue of correlation between the Christian tradition and active position in relation to the lesbian movement can be analyzed by referring to Jeanette Mei Gim Lee’s story as the statement of personal choice.
The Christian tradition prohibits homosexual relations and discusses them as a sin. Nevertheless, Jeanette Lee considers herself to be a Christian and a lesbian at the same time. It is a rather controversial point, but Jeanette found the resolution and allowed herself to be a Christian and a lesbian because of her soul’s inclinations. Moreover, Jeanette studied at Seminary and followed her visions in spite of their dissonance in relation to the tradition. Thus, the readers receive the opportunity to discuss the nature of gay and lesbian activism not only by focusing on ethnicity but also with references to the ethical interpretation of the issue of people’s spirituality.
A particular concern in the subject of gender and sexuality studies is how socially constructed biasness coupled with prejudices, especially on issues of sexuality, sex and gender, influence the process of scientific research, and theory alongside the way science-oriented social constructions are made. Gender and sexuality specialty cut across many topics including “The science and politics of sex hormone research, theories of the etiology of sexual orientation, the use of animal models to “explain” human behavior, and the sexual politics behind the medicalization of intersexuality” (Bronski Para.1). Fausto-Sterling stands out as a leading scholar in specialties of gender and sexuality. She eloquently addresses the topic on gender and sexuality not only from biological contexts but also from social dimensions.
Sex categorization is a central theme in the perspectives of sexuality and cultural concerns in gender studies. It intrigues the reader to come into acquaintance with how sex categorization is conducted. Legal systems perhaps have a certain interest in holding the opinion that there are only two sexes (Fausto-Sterling 54). Surprisingly, the categorization of people as women and men is widely questionable. For instance, considering the world’s renowned female athletes, one can argue that the women possess some traits of men. Perhaps the theory of categorization of people based on androgens and estrogen would propose that they are more of men in relation to women.
Perhaps this takes one to the dilemma of true sexual identities of intersexual persons. Arguably, biological entity like sex is inexistence. Sexual differentiation in terms of male or female is a socially constructed personal expression of perceptions about the differences amongst various sexes. Science is dependent on facts. However, facts embracing branding sex as male or female suffer enormous challenges since it fails to incorporate intermediaries.
From my experience, the issue of gender division into ‘male’ and ‘female’ is rather widely observable in almost every industry. The traditional physical characterization of sex is perhaps a big concern in the modern gender and sexuality discourses. For inductance in the factory settings, there are jobs reserved for men, with others predominantly meant for women. Men are masculine based on people’s perceptions. Therefore, the jobs allocated to them require heavy inputs of energy such as loading and offloading. On the other hand, women get feminine tasks that are less energy intensive such as packaging of less bulky goods.
Unfortunately, these divisions of labor based on sexual characteristics appear to be a socially constructed prejudice. There are women who are able to handle hard tasks even better compared to men. As a way of example, traditionally, decision-making tasks stand out as a reserve for men. The main argument behind this is that men are better logical thinkers in relation to women. What will one say about women leaders who have recorded incredible success of organizations in terms of their making of subtle policies?
Basing on this traditional way of classifying people as male or female, are they arguably men or women. If they possess more androgens than normal women, are they the same as ordinary women or more of men? Perhaps most likely, they are intermediate of these two broadways of classifying sexes (Krieger 652). Therefore, based on this case, does the socially constructed way of looking at people as male or female have any substance?
Based on the expositions made by Fausto-Sterling, it suffices to declare the conception that there exist two sexes a critical issue. In fact, this conception extends into the formulation of gender in perspectives of ‘two-ness’. Therefore, the notion that one can describe sex fully by attributing or tagging people as being male or female to the traditionally perceived characteristics of sexes that primarily depend on hormonally dictated traits is widely more of social misconceptions.
Works Cited
Bronski, Michael. The Destiny of Biology: An Interview with Fausto-Sterling, 2000. Web.
Fausto-Sterling, Anne. Sexing the Body. New York: Basic Books, 2000. Print.
Krieger, Nancy. Genders, Sexes, and Health. International Journal of Epidemiology 32.2 (2003): 652. Web.
Sexual confidence is part of the issues that many men have to face in their lives, especially if they consider the size of their penis as a source of self-affirmation. It is apparent that men worry about the size of their penis more than their female counterparts. It is a psychological issue that relates to how men think women compare penis sizes. Different studies have revealed that men are fond of comparing the sizes of their penises. This comparison builds anxiety in some men who think that women prefer bigger sized penises. Most men believe that the bigger the size, the more pleasant they are to their female counterparts. Size is a major source of confidence for men, but women do not compare sizes. Sexuality is a complex aspect of human life, and the issue of penis size is a conceptual idea that men harbor.
Men worry more about their penis sizes that women do because men associate big-sized penises with sexual prowess. Women, on the other hand, look for more than the endowment in men. Men have their minds fixed on impressing their partners with their sizes, but women look for more than size. Women look for men with good personalities, and penis size is among the least of their worries about a man. This difference between female and male perspectives on the size of the penis makes men worry more than women. Well-endowed men are proud of their size, but average-sized men tend to think that their size is too small, and they suffer the small penis syndrome, which is all in mind. Size is a source of pride for men, but it does not matter to most women.
Breast Augmentation
Saline and silicone implants are surgically placed in the breasts for cosmetic beauty reasons for women, but it is apparent that there is a psychological factor that influences women to get implants. Most women get breast implants to enhance their beauty because they associate having bigger breasts with being more sexually confident. There are women who believe the sexual identity of a female is emphasized by the presence of breasts, and the bigger they are, the more feminine they are. Many times, women who get breast implants suffer from an inferiority complex, and they use the breasts for self-affirmation. Just like some men apply penis size increase procedures to boost their confidence, the majority of women with breast implants look for confidence in their sexuality. The procedure gives them different sizes of breasts, depending on personal preferences.
The procedure is very painful, and it may result in some serious health complications, but women do not hesitate to have it done on their breasts. Just like any other cosmetic surgery, there are high chances of the procedure failing to give the required results, but women still endure it. The procedure involves enhancing the size of the breasts, and it is an indication that some women have very low self-esteem with their natural bodies. Breast enlargement is a procedure that boosts self-esteem for most women. Many women with breast implants claim that the motivation for the procedure is the resulting cosmetic beauty factor, but from a psychological perspective, it is inspired by the desire to be sexually appealing. It increases the amount of attention that women get from their male counterparts in society, and this gives the women their desired confidence.