Coming from the social construction theory of gender, gender is socially constructed rather than biologically determined. According to the Functionalist theory, gender serves as an organizational tool to segregate people into groups and give them a certain set of tasks based on their segregated groups. This supposedly creates a stable and productive society. However, the terms "productive" and "stable" must be examined carefully; in a society where gender also serves to oppress the majority of the population, both are subjective terms and open to wide interpretation. (Even the group holding the most power is subject to standards of conformity.) And, if people analyze societies today, many are not productive or stable thanks to gender; rather, many societies are less stable and there is a varitable "gender war" taking place. so i ask, is gender oppression acceptable? If it isn't, why are we still gendering ourselves?
Director of Gender Schmender, a gender education community on MySpac
2006-08-26
14:07:20
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9 answers
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asked by
Anonymous
in
Society & Culture
➔ Cultures & Groups
➔ Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender
i enjoyed reading over some of the answers. my first response was from a person who i believe was self declairing themselves an authority on the matter of gender. this always amuses me.
“…[four] of the most important findings of cross-cultural research on gender:
(1) There is no universal definition or experience of gender, no core masculinity or femininity;
(2) the American binary gender system is not universal;
(3) gender inequality, specifically the dominance of men over women, is not the rule everywhere in the world; and
(4) gender arrangements, whatever they may be, are socially constructed and, thus, ever-evolving.
(Spade, Joan Z., and Catherine G. Valentine. The Kaleidoscope of Gender: Prisms, Patterns, and Possibilities. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 2004. P.116)
2006-08-26
18:37:49 ·
update #1
I would like to say, about gender and genitals to this person, how many sexes are there? meaning, chromosomal sex patters such as xx and xy (male female patterns) well, i will tell you that there are over 30 chromosomal sex patterns. are there genders for each of these?
(I am a fan of rhetorical questions) *grins*
2006-08-26
18:39:05 ·
update #2