Why are feminists against gender roles?

Question

This post from another used makes so much sense.. read:

"These "gender roles" of men's and women's unique contributions fell in to place naturally through evolution.

Why is it that every organism on the planet that contains both the female & male dichotomy have "gender roles", yet feminists think human beings should be exempt from this natural rule?

Source(s):

Charles Darwin: Survival of the Fittest; Natural Selection "

Answer 1

Because I didn't choose to be female. Why should I have to live my life a certain way because of something I have no control over?

Besides, lower animals live their lives that way because they aren't capable of thinking in the same way we do. Human beings are capable of living happy lives without gender roles, so why have them if it's going to make half the population unhappy?

Answer 2

They're not against gender roles if those are the result of the individual's personal choice. What they don't like are how people get pushed into certain stereotyped roles based purely on their sex, not their abilities or interests. Not all women like to cook nor do they somehow have a natural ability to do it because of their sex. If a woman loves doing it, then that's fine. However, if she doesn't, then she shouldn't be made to feel like she is somehow a freak. Also, not all women are cut out to be wives and mothers. There's nothing wrong with that either. Not all men want to be husbands or fathers. The only thing feminism has to do with those is allowing those who want to opt out to do so. There have always been men and women who don't want to marry or have children. At least they now have a choice in the matter instead of being pushed into roles they neither have the desire nor inclination to take on.

Answer 3

Feminists aren't against gender roles that favor women. Feminists tell women that they are entitled to having it both ways - "equality" and traditional privileges. Basically, feminists believe that men have to fulfill their traditional roles and do things for women (sacrificing their lives to protect women), but women shouldn't have to fulfill theirs and do anything for men in return. Their hypocrisy and entitlement mentality have no bound.

Answer 4

Yes, but just because something is natural, though, does not make it good. I am quite cognizant of human evolutionary history and the muddled way many feminists appreciate it, but human sex roles are not rigid. They are distributed normally.
I see many of the ladies here are confusing sex which is a empirically supported biological concept, with " gender ", which is some incoherent social science construct.
The ethnographic data is rather clear in this area. Women and men have evolved differences, but have great species similarity.
When feminists can get past the bias they think they perceive when such variance is discussed, then they will have done something. Science describes and tries not to prescribe how human relationship will be and has been.

Answer 5

We should be 'exempt' because we have a choice. Gender roles are socially defined. I don't see anything wrong with women working - if they want to. I dislike seeing women who choose to raise families be looked down on because they don't have a JOB. It's also degrading to be thought of as just the one who takes care of kids and the house. Men can also do those things, as much or even more. As long as the labor and fun is divided based on what each partner prefers as well as what they are good at, it doesn't matter, everything gets covered 100%. What isn't fair is if one person is forced into a role they did not want, such as a mom who wanted to stay home and has to work, or a mom who wanted to work and is forced to stay home. The same can be said for men who want to raise their kids.

I really get disappointed with double standards. I don't think that everything needs to be equal to come out the same, but you cannot say that one gender can or is expected to do one thing and the other one is not. That's where the problem lies.

Answer 6

the traditional gender roles are outdated. other animals do not have the same thought processes that we have so you cannot use them as an example. gender roles are no longer relevant because most women have careers, men can be a stay-at-home dad, and both sexes should feel relieved by this. we ladies should feel happy that we are making progress and men should be happy to have independent ladies. if i was a man, i would love the fact that gender roles are being swiched around because that means less stress on them. for example, men are no longer expected to be the sole bread-winner of the house. however, i'm sure that some people will blame feminism, yet AGAIN, for this"problem".

Answer 7

What they're not realizing is that we're all playing a role in life. Even if the roles changed, you're still playing a role(gender roles will always exist, even if changes). I subscribe to the philosophy of Marcus Aurelius, in that we're all playing a role(I know, this answer is full of the word 'role'). Whether it be lower class, higher class, working class, leisure class, and so on... because there will always be these classes even if the people in them change.

Should we start changing our gender roles as often as we re-arrange furniture in the house, we repaint our walls a different color, we get new shoes, and we get divorced?
Like I've told my ex-girlfriends many times in the past, "Just make a decision so we can relax".

Gender roles have changed recently because of technology. Now men don't have to be submissive to a woman by being forced to work a job that kills his body and makes him disabled at a younger age so that she can stay home like a Bourgeoisie .

Answer 8

Good question, false premise. We're the only species that has gender roles--gender is a social construct. What you're talking about is sex and biology. Other creatures operate on biological principals. Supposedly, we're beyond that. So, yes, feminists (and presumably masculinists) are against socially constructed roles/rules. There's nothing "natural" about them.
Edit: "female and male dichotomy"? We're really polar opposites? I don't think so. When it comes to biology, we're remarkably similar. When it comes to social conditioning, we are very different.
"This natural rule." What does that mean, exactly? Gender roles exist because we believe they exist, because we created them. Darwin does not make inferences about gender roles based on biological principles. There's biology, then there's gender. Sex/gender. Two different things.

Answer 9

I don't give a crap about what we are 'meant' to do. IMO it's degrading to be told that you're meant to stay in the kitchen, take care of the children, and clean all day. That life is NOT for me.

However, if a couple wants to do the gender role thing.. Then so be it. I would hate to do it myself-I hate the idea of it, but if they want to.. Hey, I don't mean to stop them.

Answer 10

They fear stereotyping because they think it will limit their options. This is really about wanting to be free or more correctly, escape the consequences of their actions.

They don't want the gender role of wife and mother because they would rather have the freedom do as they please with whomever they please whenever they please.

The female eschewing a gender role is the exact counterpart of the male rake.

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