Gender And Sexual Identities Flashcards
What is sex?
Refers to the biological differences between males and females
What is gender?
Cultural classification of people as masculine and feminine. Societies create expectations for people to think, feel and act appropriate to their sex
What is sexuality?
Sexual orientation and preferences
What is femininity?
Characteristics associated with being a woman which has an effect on behaviour , fluid concept
What is masculinity?
Characteristics associated with being a man which has an effect on behaviour, fluid concept
What is hegemonic femininity?
Traditional style of femininity (passive, quiet, subordinate)
What is hegemonic masculinity?
Traditional style of masculinity (toughness, aggression, breadwinner)
What is passive femininity?
Women allowing other people to treat them anyway
What is social constructionism?
Something is defined by society - built by social processes rather than being natural/inherent/biological
What is biological determinism?
All human behaviour is innate, determined by genes, brain size or other biological attributes
What is the instrumental role?
Makes have this role as breadwinner and protector based on natural strength
What is the expressive role?
Females have this role and it’s natural and based on their childbearing attributes such as producing breastmilk
What is third gender?
Born into the wrong body (transgender)
What is patriarchy?
A hierarchy where there is usually male dominance in society
What is a lad?
A guy who cares about sex, drinking, smoking and wants to reinforce their hegemonic masculinity
What is a ladette?
A female version of a lad. More assertive and loud
What is a new man?
A man who cares about his appearance and will take on traditional female roles such as cooking and cleaning
What is the crisis of masculinity?
Deindustrialisation means that hegemonic men no longer feel that they can provide for their families economically or feel masculine
What is marginalised masculinity?
A masculine identity held by those who had traditional masculine jobs and now feel that they are under threat
What is complicit masculinity?
Men who believe that men and women should have equal roles
What is subordinate masculinity?
Masculine identity that is less powerful and carries a lower status
What is hyper masculinity?
Exaggerated forms of hegemonic masculinity usually from a maternal background
What is genderquake?
Shifting of power from men to women
What is horizontal segregation?
The labour market is segregated so that men and women occupy specific areas of jobs
What is vertical segregation?
The labour market is divided so that men occupy the top positions in the workplace
Masculine traits
Aggressive, ambitious, assertive, athletic, competitive, dominant, forceful, leader, independent
Feminine traits
Affectionate, compassionate, soft spoken, gentle, understanding, sensitive, shy, loyal
What is anthropology and why is it useful for knowing gender roles?
Comparative study of human societies and cultures and their developments. It helps see whether gender roles are biological or social by researching different societies/tribes and seeing their roles
Different gender roles in other tribes researched by Mead
Arapesh: Men were gentle and shared responsibility in childcare (both had feminine traits)
Mundugamor: Men obtained wives by kidnapping them, women showed little maternal affection (both had masculine traits)
Tchambuli: Women were assertive, conducted trade and initiated sex. Men concerned in appearance, engaged in gossip
Why is Meads research in gender roles criticised?
She had different studies to Freeman and so might not have been reliable as she could’ve just wanted to fit her own hypothesis
What is manipulation?
Encouraging or discouraging gender appropriate behaviour (clothing, hairstyles, colour scheme)
What is canalisation?
Parents directing children’s interest into certain toys and play
What is verbal appellation?
Parents using stereotypical feminine and masculine descriptions (lady-like, man-up, big and strong, ladies first, be a gentlemen, honey)
How do parents reinforce domestic activities?
Daughters have cultural expectations of future responsibilities (cleaning, cooking)
Control theory- females expected to have more control and more restrictions whereas boys have more freedom
What is the cult of femininity?
Friendship and a shared culture with other girls (go out in pairs to attract a male, make-up/fashion) a best friend is a stepping stone for marriage
What do Nixon and Mort say about masculinity in the media?
Nixon: it’s ‘cool’ for men to care about appearance, become a concept of seduction
Mort: sexualisation of the male body
What were reasons for homophobia in the 1980’s?
Rise of conservative politics and backlash from AIDS crisis
What was Section 28?
It banned the promotion of homosexuality, it was repealed in 2003
What are the ‘three F’s’ according to Mac an Ghaill with heterosexual boys?
Football, fighting and fucking
Why was ideal body image created?
Men creased ideal body image for women to keep them under control
What is male gaze?
TV producers employ females of a certain age and body size to display cleavage and wear short skirts
Masculine subjects
PE (contact) Construction (manual labour) Maths (mechanically minded) Business (money/competition) Politics (leadership)
Feminine subjects
English (communicate) Textiles (creative) Dance (expressive) Sociology (sensitive) Biology (nurses/carers)
Girls toys
Kitchen set (housewife) Dolls (carer) Dress up (beauty) Shopping (domestic consumer) My little pony (friendship) Unpaid workers in the home
Boys toys
Builders set (manual labour)
Army soldiers (aggressive)
Football (physical sport, competitive)
Paid workers outside the home
Different types of third gender
Hijra (female souls in male body)
Two spirit Native Americans (occupy one body with both genders)
Fa’afafines (accepted as traditional Samoan culture)
Kathoeys (lady boys in Thailand)
What is the labelling theory?
Attaching names or labels to certain groups or individuals
What is the self-fulfilling prophecy?
Beginning to live up to the label given to someone to act out
What is the national curriculum?
Core subjects that all students in state controlled schools must follow
What is the hidden curriculum?
Things that are taught in school that aren’t subject based (punctuality, stereotypes, uniform, obedience)
Gender identities (6 marker)
Cultural classification of people as masculine and feminine. Societies create expectations for people to think, feel and act appropriate to their sex. Masculinity is characteristics associated with being a man and has an effect on behaviour but is a fluid concept. Femininity is characteristics with being a woman, effects behaviour and fluid concept
Sexuality (6 marker)
A persons sexual orientation and preferences. Heterosexuality is being attracted to the opposite sex. Homosexuality is being attracted to the same sex and bisexuality is both.
Feminine identities (6 marker)
Type of gender identity not only associated with sex (biological) but the roles associated with being a woman, socially constructed, taught through socialisation and is a fluid concept. Hegemonic femininity is socialised through canalisation and verbal appellations and is the traditional style of females (carer, housewife) Ladette as explained by Jackson is women portraying masculine characteristics
Masculine identities (6 marker)
Type of gender identity not only associated with sex (biological) but the roles associated with being a man. Socially constructed, taught through socialisation and is a fluid concept. Hegemonic masculinity explained by Oakley is taught through canalisation and verbal appellations and is the traditional style of men (tough, breadwinner) New man explained by Mort is a man who takes care and pride in his appearance
