Lecture 14: Gender

Question 1

gender norms

Answer 1

differ radically in time and space

physical characteristics that define a person as male/female

Question 2

gender roles

Answer 2

how boys and girls learn to express their masculinity or femininity varies across and within cultures

Question 3

sex

Answer 3

biological distinctions b/w m/f

male/female

Question 4

gender

Answer 4

cultural constructions of male and female characteristics

man/woman

-costume we all must wear
-set of roles, assumptions, practices, and stereotypes we use to give shape to m&f characteristics, both social and biological
WHY can someone guess gender identity? gendered clothing, bodies, and hairstyles vary predictably and consistently

Question 5

gender stereotypes

Answer 5

inform our expectations of (normal) appropriate behavior, dress, and temperament for US men and women

toys growing up: barbie/hot wheels

Question 6

Women in the Mine

Answer 6

Jessica Rolston
women working in mines in Wyoming take on different identities to succeed
3 gendered identities: tomboys, ladies, bitches(overly masculine)
some of these had more long term value(tomboys)

Question 7

Margaret Mead

Answer 7

“Sex and Temperament”
showed how masculinity and femininity varied across cultures
1) Arapesh: men and women behaved as Americans expect women to act– mild, nurturing
2) Mundugumor: men and women both act as Americans expect men to act–fierce, aggressive
3) Tchambuli: men act as we stereotype women as acting–“catty”, overly concerned with appearance,
women act as we stereotype men to act

Question 8

Rosie the Riveter

Answer 8

WW2
demonstrated that women can do traditionally men’s work
gender roles/norms can change according to societal needs

Question 9

Third Sexes/Genders

Answer 9

two-sex/gender system may be the norm, it is neither a cultural nor biological…

Question 10

Intersex

Answer 10

Klinefelter Syndrome, Triple X Syndrome, Turner Syndrome(one X/Y instead of 2)

Question 11

Transgender

Answer 11

person’s identity differs with what they were assigned at birth
does not have its roots in biology

Question 12

cultural exceptions to the 2 gender system

Answer 12

people wear gendered wardrobes that run counter to their anatomical sex
Two-Spirit: common among great plains American groups; believed to have the spirit of a female
Hijras: Indian males who become neither m/f through castration/right of passage

Question 13

gender equality

Answer 13

• public domestic dichotomy
• -when domestic and public spheres are clearly separated, public activities tend to have greater prestige compared to domestic ones

Question 14

gender stratification

Answer 14

unequal distribution of rewards b/w women and men

• among the !Kung: little distinction b/w public and domestic figures
• among Auburnites: clear distinction, constantly becoming more fluid

Question 15

patriarchy

Answer 15

male dominance and greater male prestige are associated with the masculinization of the public sphere and fem

Question 16

foragers

Answer 16

-little gender stratification
simple division of labor(hunt/gather)
less of a public-domestic dichotomy

Question 17

horticulturalists

Answer 17

more complex division of labor and more gender distinction

status of men is higher when women contribute

Question 18

agriculturalists

Answer 18

-more gender stratification
-more complex division of labor and political control
women are considered an economic drain/risk, hence -they are controlled and access to resources is limited

Question 19

industrialists

Answer 19

• gender stratification persists
• division of labor is complex but not inherently dependent on gender differences–flexible
• status of men/women is higher when they contribute more to the household and general economies

Question 20

kinks/consequences of the model

Answer 20

• If a person is to succeed in the public sphere, today, must he/she be more like a “man,” or must men be less like “traditional” men in engaging with women who enter the public sphere?
• And what about the domestic sphere?
• How is it affected by the changes in the public sphere?
• Who performs the roles once associated with males and females in this sphere?
• Is the feminization of poverty (the increasing representation of women and their children among America’s poorest people) related to the “collapse” of the domestic sphere?
• How do wealthy, successful, publicly-engaged people (male and female) handle domestic life and its demands?

Question 21

recent shifts in gender norms/roles

Answer 21

1. Changing attitudes toward homosexuality and “gender transgression”
2. Changing attitudes toward male sexuality/violence
3. Changing attitudes toward female sexuality/ passivity
4. Use of new gender models as forms of postcolonial social control and ethnocentric cultural critique of non-Western populations