The relationships among biological sex, gender role, and sexuality are often perceived differently in societies around the globe. For example, western societies have a strong penchant for patriarchy, which has certain implications for the people who defy the status quo. As evidenced in the trailer for a movie about women in MMA, the general public has conventional presuppositions and prejudice about female fighters (National Geographic, n.d.). Many people cannot understand the idea of strong and powerful women because their environment has taught them that females have to be weak and delicate, according to their traditional gender role. Similarly, a video showing a polyamorous family with two men and one woman causes controversy among the audience, judging by the number of dislikes (ABC News, 2012). People in patriarchal societies can tolerate a polyamorous situation which involves one man and several females, yet the opposite comes into conflict with the norm concerning sexuality and choice of partners.
Nevertheless, there are numerous examples of cultures which do not abide by the western rules of conduct and highlight the fact that there can be an alternative way to define gender relations. At the beauty pageants of the Wodaabe tribe, men occupy the position of those who have to demonstrate their charm to attract the opposite sex (National Geographic, 2007). Such situation may sound counterintuitive to a person who was born and raised in the U.S., yet, for the Wodaabe tribe, it is a custom which remains unchanged. This once again stresses the idea that gender roles are inextricably linked to the particular social and cultural environment of society. Another example was presented in the National Geographic documentary about an Indonesian community that uses five different genders (National Geographic, 2008). The people in the video are considered to be a calalai, which can be translated as “a female man” and a calabai, “a male woman.” This variety can be seen as an extremely progressive concept in American society, which is another evidence that culture plays a major role in people’s perceptions of gender.
References
ABC News. (2012). Polyamory: 1 mom, 2 dads and a baby [Video]. YouTube. Web.
National Geographic. (2008). Five genders? [Video]. YouTube. Web.
National Geographic. (2007). Tribal beauty pageant – for men [Video]. YouTube. Web.
National Geographic. (n.d.). Women’s MMA fighting [Video]. National Geographic TV. Web.