Concept Definition
Gender is a societal construct that is constantly changing. According to Unger (2020), gender is defined by society’s expectations, views, and representations regarding male and female roles. These have an impact on behaviors, job decisions, and personal opinions. The concept of gender has changed over time from a strictly binary one to a more fluid one. The media, families, and religion are just a few factors that have influenced these transformations (Unger, 2020).
In many communities, men were traditionally expected to be the breadwinners, while women were expected to raise children and safeguard the family’s wealth. Over time, education, intercultural interactions, and globalization have shifted people’s mindsets from a traditional view of gender to a more modern approach that fosters inclusiveness. However, society still defines what men and women consider their rightful position in the community and how that status influences their careers, families, and participation in local and international business operations.
Key Life Experiences
Regardless of technological developments and access to resources, women have mainly remained objectified, while men are viewed from a position of power and dominance. This aspect of gender’s social construction was revealed in a conversation with a friend from high school who traveled to Japan for her further studies. In high school, Stella was an outspoken girl who could not care less about makeup. When I met her last summer, she was the opposite of what she used to be, prompting me to inquire about her lifestyle change. It turns out that back home, Stella grew up in a family that believed everyone could be anything and that men were not superior to women. She had become accustomed to that as a teenager, and the concept of female objectification never crossed her mind.
When Stella traveled to Japan as a young adult, she was confronted by a different cultural perspective that changed her view of herself and her place in society. She realized that almost all girls wore makeup in class and were dressed in short dresses or tight trousers that clearly showed their curves. Her natural appearance and baggy jeans made it almost impossible to make friends at school. The situation persisted in the neighborhood; people often stared at her in the market and shopping malls.
After barely two weeks in college, Stella realized she had to change her lifestyle to fit within society. When I saw her last, she had makeup and long hair and looked so much different from what I had known her to be back in high school. This made me realize that although she was the same girl, societal expectations and pressures forced her to change how she dressed, talked, walked, and appeared, proving that gender is a social construct.
Gender is constructed from birth, throughout a child’s elementary stages of life, and transferred into adulthood. When we were young, my parents bought dolls for my sisters and toy cars for the boys. Although we never realized that then, they were, in essence, showing us that women grow to carry children while men drive cars and perform such jobs. Growing up, I noticed that it was very unlikely to find any of my brothers feeding or carrying a young baby, but it was almost automatic for the girls. Looking at it, these thoughts were instilled into our minds while growing up, and they stuck with us till adulthood.
Linking Social Construction of Gender to Life Experiences
Stella’s experiences at home and in Japan provide an accurate portrayal of how different cultural perspectives on gender influence people’s interactions. At home, she viewed men and women as equal and saw no need to wear makeup to impress or fit in within the community. However, Japanese perspectives made her realize that she would have difficulty fitting in with the college generation unless she changed her lifestyle.
In addition to these representations of social construction, Stella’s experiences contribute to the topic by illustrating that cultural variations can sometimes erode one’s self-perception. Individuals may be forced to take an identity that does not reflect their true nature. In some cases, this may result in moral degradation and other social evils, all in an attempt to fit within a given socially constructed view of gender.
My experiences with my siblings while growing up show that the activities men and women can do are not defined by their abilities or personal desires but are engraved in their minds from childhood. Since our parents taught us that girls are expected to feed children and carry them, as they were trained through dolls, finding a man doing the same may be considered awkward behavior. These add to the topic by further revealing that breaking from such beliefs and expectations requires personal and communal effort. Since these ideas are passed on from one generation to the next from an early age, it is essential to understand how to instill inclusiveness in children so that, as they grow, society will have developed a more inclusive perspective of gender in them.
Reference
Unger, R. (2020). Representations: Social constructions of gender. Routledge.