Gender: Differences, similarities, and experiences

[YukiOfTheMightnightHour]

Hello and welcome, I am Kuri-chan, and I am currently pursuing an independent research project about gender differences, similarities, and the experiences that lead people to believe certain stereotypes about gender, the psychological characteristics and social categories that human culture creates, and sex, the inborn biological characteristics relating to reproduction, such as sex chromosomes and sex organs.

I wish to discuss these subjects, for my research, with anyone willing to speak their mind about these topics, or any observations as well as personal experiences. I would also welcome anyone willing to participate in my survey. You can either post your answers in the forum, PM them to me to stay anonymous, or not post anything it is your choice.

I do ask that you try and take the survey and discussion seriously. I am also open to any comments, suggestions, and feedback that are presented.

Thank you and enjoy!!


Subjects of discussion:
• Sexism
• Classism
• Racism
• Ableism (disability)
• Heterosexism
• Ageism

Similarities Perspective:
Social Constructionists argues that individuals and cultures construct or invent their own versions of reality, based on prior experiences, social interaction, and beliefs.

Difference Perspective argues that gender is a basic, unchangeable characteristic that resides within an individual.
Essentialists argue that men and women are generally different in their intellectual and social skills.

Gender Bias in Language:
•Terms used for women
•Masculine Generic (androcentric)


Gender Biases in the Media:
•Women are relatively invisible
•Women are relatively less audible
•Women are seldom shown working outside the home
•Women are shown doing housework
•Women and men are represented differently
•Women’s bodies are used differently from men’s bodies


Gender Stereotypes and Other Gender Biases:
•Stereotypes
•Gender stereotypes
•Prejudice
•Discrimination
•Gender bias

Biased Representations of Women & Men in:
•History
•Philosophy
•Religion and Mythology

I will be posting more discussion topics later, as well as the survey, which is still a work in progress at the moment.

 

[YukiOfTheMightnightHour]

Reserved mrgreen  

[YukiOfTheMightnightHour]

Reserved ninja  

[wakusei]

This looks in-depth-y...so I shall move this to IDD, mm'kay?

 

[YukiOfTheMightnightHour]

Thank you! I guess I didn't think it was going to be too in-depth of a discussion. sweatdrop  

[lizzica]

I took a class in Gender Communication and we discussed all of these topics in depth. I'll watch for the rest of your information, but I would love to help out in whatever way possible. Obviously, that includes discussion participation, but also if you'd like any other kind of help.

I have to say in your media category, while those topics are generally true, don't forget men have equal and opposite roles they 'must fill'.  

[Yvaine]

Well, put that ol' survey up there anytime sweetie, it's been a few months now.

As for my feelings on the topic...I honestly feel that the largest group denigrating women is other women. Of course men and women have different aptitudes. It is a man's job to provide resources for his family, and it is a woman's job to raise the family and coordinate distribution of the resources provided. That divide in duties has been present forever, and is even present in non-sentient species, where you can't argue "nature vs nurture". The discrimination comes in devaluing one set of aptitudes and placing a higher value on the other set. It used to be that men and women were each considered to have their own area of expertise, and it was considered both foolish and perilous to try to cross the line and meddle in the other gender's realm. Sure, you got the occasional challenger, but it was an exception, and accommodated as such.

I think the greatest disservice to the human race has been to effectively rate home care and child rearing as unworthy "scutwork", only done by people who can't compete in the "real world". "Real women", according to this craptacular movement, are only successful if they pump out a couple of babies and then pay a random assortment of strangers to raise the child while she goes off and has a career, because that's the only thing worth doing. Oh, and during her spare time she can do that other boring stuff, like cooking, cleaning, having a relationship with her spouse and children and ensuring that they all have some measure of emotional health. Don't tell me that that other stuff should be equally distributed - that's horse apples. Men have no aptitude for emotional subtlety, and are routinely mystified by the idea of a healthy dinner in a timely fashion every night. Most of them can't even remember where the spare paper towels are kept, not even the brilliant ones who organize corporate takeovers on their NASA lunch break.

What has it netted thus far? A couple of generations of increasingly feral children with no concept of unconditional love, weak family bonds, and increasing neurosis as broken homes become the norm and children are no longer encouraged to grieve the loss of a "normal" home life. Men who feel completely extraneous (and are often called so) because their major talent has been declared fair game and they really don't understand what the term "housework" means, and are hence derided for their less-than-stellar contributions to same. Women who feel pressured from all sides (economic not the least) to cram three days' worth of work into a single 24-hour period and therefore get increasing bitchy and neurotic until their husband finally gives up and goes away, adding dating to the list of Things To Do Today. And of course there's the skyrocketing number of road rage incidents perpetrated by women.

Oh, but we all have more disposable income per family. Sort of. Most of it gets spent on daycare and fast food (no time to cook), but there's a little bit left over...

Is it any real surprise that neurosis, psychosis, and stress-aggravated disorders are skyrocketing across the board?

Remember, just because your gender is given a burden to bear doesn't mean that the other gender is getting a better deal. That's just a case of the grass being greener on the other side. Try to get your fill of both sides, and you end up getting nailed in the crotch by a fence post.  

[Milk and Holy Water]

God is sexist. The very fact that weakness is biologically hated in men but sought in woman is proof of this.

It's very upsetting.

Edit: I'm not entirely happy with this response, so I'm going to elaborate.

The nature of all forms of discrimination are steeped both in empirical evidence collected by an individual, and biologically instinctual reactions. I do not think that either of these things are good or even acceptable, but it's not like any of us have a choice.

It's a shitty lot.

The fact that more instances of spousal abuse are perpetrated by men than by women (whether against women or other men, in the case of homosexual couplings) makes me want to scream, as it is the primate alpha male bullshit that keeps it going and makes it almost unstoppable.

Combining this with self-perpetuation (caused infinitely by our tendency towards mimicry, particularly in terms of determining consciously or unconsciously our survival strategies) makes all forms of discrimination, gender-based or otherwise, a permanent fixture in our species.

Regardless, if we are aware of these things, we do have the ability to at least suppress such judgments.

In our modern world (and doubtlessly throughout all of history) woman have been just as guilty of misandry as men have been of misogyny. The pressures that men experience because of their gender are just as difficult as those women experience, especially if a man is not what the consensus would dictate a man should be.

For example, most people would think it perfectly reasonably if a man were to be the primary provider for a family while his female spouse does not work. A man who does not work onthe other hand, would be seen as a deadbeat. very rarely does someone consider a stay-at-home wife a deadbeat.

another prime example of misandry can be seen the way statutory rape cases are handled. It would be unimaginable for a man who impregnates an underage girl to be given custody of the children that resulted from this. Unfortunately the reverse has precedent. There are examples of woman who have been convicted of having sex with underage boys, gaining full custody of the children resulting, AND said boy being forced to pay child support for those children.

Also, this perfectly illustrative statement form MensReality.com is a great example of the double standards and misandry inherent in our society.

"Sandra Geisel, a suburban Albany teacher who was accused of having sex with a 16-year-old student in the press box at the school’s football stadium, pleaded guilty to third-degree rape of a 16-year-old, but she served only six months in jail.

Van Valkinburgh, the Town of Tonawanda resident and former Sacred Heart teacher, also pleaded guilty to a third-degree rape charge in a case also involving a 16-year-old victim. But he was given three to nine years in prison, one of the longest local sentences for statutory rape, DA Clark said."

Second edit:

Another thing that bothers me about our society is that a woman does not need the father's consent to abort a pregnancy, but a similar option does not exist for men.  

[Yvaine]

Great post, Milk! I enjoy thoughtful posts - thanks for the edits.

However, saying that stay-at-home moms aren't considered deadbeats...clearly you haven't run afoul of the more vocal feminists. Tell them you're a stay-at-home mom, and you get the sneer followed by condescension and a lot of assumptions about your views on things. Some of the most misogynistic statements I've ever heard come from the mouths of self-described feminists (try asking one about Sarah Palin sometime, then step back and grab some popcorn - it'll be a long while before they run out of steam, and most of it will be personal smear attacks). Most of the misanthropic statements also seem to come from them. Maybe their stock in trade is simply anger at everyone for everything.

As for the abortion issue - it's a clusterf*ck of competing special interest groups. Fairness doesn't even enter into it. It goes without saying, I think, that no one is entitled to insist that someone else undergo any kind of medical procedure, although court opinion does vary on that. However, in the case of child termination, I personally feel that both parents have the right to a say, superceded only by a qualified medical opinion that the life of the mother would be in danger should the child be carried to term. (And boy could a lawyer make even that stipulation jump through hoops!) On the other hand, given the sexual practices of people nowadays, how would one go about seeking the approval of a father whose real name and location may not in fact be known? Perhaps a legal waiver showing a good faith effort to locate the man? Unfortunately, it gets to be a hairy issue.

Looking at the sentencing issue you raised, I'm inclined to be upset both over the misanthropy inherent in the discrepancy and the misogyny - either he's seen as more of a predator, or she's seen as a neurotic idiot, or both. Unfortunately, that's a knee-jerk reaction. The fairness of the sentencing would be determined not by the specific charges, but by the details of each case. I can think of a few fair reasons right off the cuff for one sentence to be harsher than the other.

The domestic abuse issue is more simple. Men are less likely to report incidents of spousal abuse by a partner for many reasons, among them an unwillingness to appear weak or a justification that, comparatively, "she didn't hurt me all that much". Also, yes, the alpha male stuff does make men more likely to respond with physical abuse when stressed out; women simply settle for emotional abuse, which is a lot more difficult to document. That simply shows that each is playing to their innate strengths (men: muscles, women: feelings). Either way, I'd prefer for none of it to happen.  

[Odd Boy Out]

Gender is a social construction. No one is bound by it. The sexes have very little genetic difference between them.

Gods definitely are sexist, because gods were written of and interpreted by men. Gender roles are not self-perpetuating though, they have changed over the decades and can be eliminated by throwing away the gods of men and through the conscious raising of children.

Misogyny and misandry are both products of gender roles being forced onto people. However I would contend that the examples given by Milk and Holy Water really represent another form of misogyny, which is giving attractive women leniency for doing something illegal that turns straight men on.

Domestic Violence stems from many things. Often a spouse has a sense of entitlement to something and the other is not fulfilling it. So they turn to fear to control the spouse to get it. Some of that entitlement may come from gender roles, but not always.

As for abortion, I think women should have full control over it and they can decide whether the view of the father matters or not. I think high teen pregnancy rates, overpopulation and abortions are a huge problem and everyone should use contraceptives until they make a conscious decision to have a child. Parents need to have more open dialogue with their children about sex and everyone needs to have easy access to contraceptives.