Gender identity
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Gender Identity
For centuries, gender identity has been a sensitive matter of what contributes to the definition of womanhood and manhood. With changing times, the perceived roles that constrained a woman into only doing household chores have changed. Therefore, the authors outline that unlike the traditional general perception of masculinity based on what a man can or cannot do, “manhood” is subject to social and historical changes to adapt to varying times in the development of the world and adapt to changing role of women. Historically, manhood was derived from ownership of land and the man’s placement in the daily economic activities such as the acquisition of tangible goods in the marketplace. On the other hand, during the pre-capitalistic period, fathers were the family heads expected to provide essential commodities and commanded their wives and children to represent the man’s position in society. More specifically, women within racial, ethnic groups were involved in creative work of cooking, rearing children, and cleaning (Amott, n.d. p. 194). Socially, with women stepping up in working in other technical jobs, the role of men and women have relatively adjusted. By involving more than twenty families to determine these adjustments, Coltrane (1989) outlines a father’s role in shared parenting that sees fathers get involved in helping raise children.
Moreover, despite improvements in gender roles, high inequality persists in the workplace, and homes. Kimmel (n.d.) argues that the need to seem more masculine is a homosocial enactment fraught with competition, ratings, and estimates of oneself.’’ Manhood requires proof’ [sic]. For instance, in the workplace and homes, men are in constant competition with women on who earns what and which kind of helping chores seem manlier to focus their energy on. In a society that expects specific masculine behavior and rewards, inequality persists. According to Coltrane (1989), in 9 of the 20 families sampled where women worked as many hours as the men, only four earned what the husbands earned. The wage disparities are particularly prevalent in racial, ethnic groups where women are more likely to work in underpaying jobs such as domestic work.
The authors contend that masculinity is a definition of the social setup, which sets the standard for other men to want to get to that level. Kimmel (n.d.) argues that manhood equates to power, which leads to standards used against women in their inclusion in public life. The dominant people/cultures determine what makes a man, and that forms the basis for the world to follow. Indeed, it is that power and labor shortage in production for white-dominated farms that led to slavery as workers were imported from Africa, Europe, and Asia to cater to the white man’s new-found wealth. In families, men are centrally involved in influencing wives on decisions of having children, but they become less involved in their children’s lives as time goes by. Historically, women’s value was defined by their association with a man who assumed responsibility for provision. It was expected that women would not work while married and only resumed working for their families once they divorced their husbands. Those who remained in the workforce and were unmarried were unattractive and less feminine (Amott, n.d. p. 304).
Male dominance is relative to the ideology of women’s importance, which leads to inequality. For instance, women are valued based on what they can offer, such as raising a child, working in a feminine environment, or working in low paying jobs. Historically, masculinity is freight from women in the quest to develop a secure manly identity (Kimmel, n.d. p. 123). When sons grow up, they affiliate their mother with emotions, which signify weaknesses that are not manly. Boys identify more with their father in fear that they might not be perceived as real men or, in other instances, appear gay. Unlike men, women do not always feel the pressure to prove their womanhood, and that is why sexism arises as men want to value themselves more than women. In families, men are driven by the ideology that women cannot do it all while placing importance on the value of children’s well-being (Coltrane, 1989, p.207). Still, during the first phase of the capitalistic period, racial groups gave more economic power to men than women, where men could survive financially than women who depend on them for increased participation in the labor force, leading to women’s struggle for better wages. (Amott, n.d. p. 303).
Gender affects vocational development through the segregation of women in the workplace in terms of underpayment and underrepresentation in top organization jobs. Most mothers are more likely to hold professional or technical roles, but most end up working in female-dominated organizations with limited promotions and average pay (Coltrane, 1989, p. 204). Not only do women have to settle for moderate payment, but they also have to cut some of their hours to create more room for raising their children. Inequality in the workplace persists despite years of changes in the workplace that seek to demand equal pay for all persons. Such creates hindrances in an instant that a woman qualifies for the same position. Are they paid the same amount as men? Do they deserve to move up the ranks? Efforts to have a manly front determines our mannerism where men are three times capable of committing suicide due to failure in business (Kimmel n.d. p. 130). Failure signifies powerlessness in manhood, which goes deep even in the jobs they seek to look manlier. Nonetheless, women’s involvement in careers has seen changes in working conditions, movements against discrimination, and sexual harassment. Also, women are more likely to stay in the workforce for a more extended period than men with a 48% presence in labor unions (Amott n.d. p. 307).
I believe that the author’s ideas are informed based on our social, historical background, and perceptions of what is manly. Identity influences choices since we want to affiliate ourselves with that which is expected of us. As Kimmel (n.d.) outlines, we have constructed the rules of manhood, leaving many men feeling powerless when they do not meet the threshold. Our social setup is an example of how we expect men and women to behave. At a tender age, boys have to act a certain way, and dress up, in fear that failure to that, they would seem more masculine or become gay in the future. Even in homes, helping fathers are seen as less rare, fantastic, desirable yet, deciding to help is taking up the responsibility of raising their children (Coltrane, 1989, p. 210).
Their ideas positively impact the perception of identity to go beyond what society and ourselves have been made to believe. The fear that as women, we have to perfect household managerial positions to seem more motherly would be different if we did not perceive that the roles are made for us. Consequently, to be part of the “American manhood” is a struggle that creates more wounds for men that are not beneficial in our idea to remain manly. Like the fathers who help raise their children and share chores, it is upon an individual to determine what they want to get out of the process of raising their children. Our social behavior is subject to change. Therefore, our identity should also be broad to cater for the changing times ahead.
Through their ideas, implicit bias against men based on manhood is challenged because I previously failed to acknowledge the role of history and society in creating these identities. Men are not powerless from being less masculine, yet society deems this to be the case for g Body muscles and mental capability do not change regardless of the chores performed, career choices, or what we wear. Indeed, 80% of fathers, compared to 90% of the mother’s acknowledge that women are disadvantaged in society (Coltrane, 1989, p. 209). Hence, men are aware of inequalities within society more than I perceived them. The focus should shift to making men understand that social roles are not gender-based and that women need equality to get ahead in careers such that they are not stuck in a lifetime of holding on to jobs with no advancements.
References
Amott (n.d.). Growth of wage work. 291-317
Coltrane, S. (1989). Household Labor and the Routine Production of Gender. Social Problems, 36(5), 201–220. doi: 10.2307/3096813
Kimmel, M. S. (n.d.). Masculinity as Homophobia: Fear, Shame, and Silence in the Construction of Gender Identity. Theorizing Masculinities, 119–136. doi: 10.4135/9781452243627.n7