Our society has created a culture where we inherently place gender labels on children from birth. Doctors swaddle boys in blue cloth and girls similarly in pink adornments. Families often influence types of gendered play in order to match these categories accordingly. In this sense, these children are being raised to find their place in the world based on what they wear, how they act, and who they interact with to progress their position. In other words, our society participates in a sort of “gender-bending” to adhere to this process. When there is opposition to this system, consequences present themselves. Both males and females face difficulty in defying gender expectations because of the aforementioned values in our “dimorphic” species.
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However, an unprecedented difference in this struggle is emphasized for men. Males are forced to face extra humilities in comparison to women on the basis of stratification of power. Gender is stratified and manifested in a hierarchy. Lorber suggests in, “Western society, “man” is A, “wo-man” is Not-A” (114). This means that a man is considered to have a higher status than a woman (i.e., patriarchal society). A more negative perception will be placed on a biological man because of this position. Rebelling against being a part of the male gender would be seen as a “downgrade” in status. On the other hand, if a female were to bend to the perceived male label, she would be “upgrading” to a power role in …show more content…
Manhood holds a valuable place in culture. We live in a hegemonic world rested upon the ideal of power. Michael S. Kimmel presents society’s common four rules to the make-up of a man. The first rule being that, “One may never do anything that even remotely suggest femininity. Masculinity is the relentless repudiation of the feminine” (136). In this sense, it is unacceptable to relate to, and let alone be a part of, the female gender. This concept creates a dividing line between the two categories. Although the eye of society depicts the idea of gender bending as a negative thought, it does hold importance. Gender bending offers an exploration of identity and advantage in a traditional, yet diverse world. These actions create a spectrum for gender itself, giving the concepts of masculinity and femininity some lee-way. Despite the disagreements present, it serves as a tool to better understanding that gender is not sex. We are biological defined as a male or female, yet may have further feelings in towards the opposite
However, an unprecedented difference in this struggle is emphasized for men. Males are forced to face extra humilities in comparison to women on the basis of stratification of power. Gender is stratified and manifested in a hierarchy. Lorber suggests in, “Western society, “man” is A, “wo-man” is Not-A” (114). This means that a man is considered to have a higher status than a woman (i.e., patriarchal society). A more negative perception will be placed on a biological man because of this position. Rebelling against being a part of the male gender would be seen as a “downgrade” in status. On the other hand, if a female were to bend to the perceived male label, she would be “upgrading” to a power role in …show more content…
Manhood holds a valuable place in culture. We live in a hegemonic world rested upon the ideal of power. Michael S. Kimmel presents society’s common four rules to the make-up of a man. The first rule being that, “One may never do anything that even remotely suggest femininity. Masculinity is the relentless repudiation of the feminine” (136). In this sense, it is unacceptable to relate to, and let alone be a part of, the female gender. This concept creates a dividing line between the two categories. Although the eye of society depicts the idea of gender bending as a negative thought, it does hold importance. Gender bending offers an exploration of identity and advantage in a traditional, yet diverse world. These actions create a spectrum for gender itself, giving the concepts of masculinity and femininity some lee-way. Despite the disagreements present, it serves as a tool to better understanding that gender is not sex. We are biological defined as a male or female, yet may have further feelings in towards the opposite