Gomez ! Pamela Gomez Professor Corri Ditch English 115 29 October 2013 Why Cant We Be Treated Equally?

Men and women throughout time have been expected to act in a specific way according to their gender. Its hard for gender equality to exist in present day. Upon knowing what the sex of a child will be, parents take initiative as they to begin prepare for their son or daughter. As a child, they are to wear gender appropriate clothing as well as toys to suit their gender. The roles men and women are supposed to play carry over into adulthood and both are criticized differently if they go against how society expects them to be. A lot has changed for men and women in the past couple of decades in regards to what is and isnt acceptable. Women have worked hard to be seen as equal to men but this is still a patriarchal society. Men still dominate todays society thus making it hard for gender equality to exist. The way gender is portrayed in the media influences individuals to handle each gender differently from the moment of birth. Gender socialization occurs before a child is born. The sex of a baby is what influences parents to begin preparing for its arrival. Upon knowing if the child will be a boy or a girl, parents then take initiative in regards to what clothes to buy or how they plan on decorating their room. The color pink is a social construct often used to represent a girl and a masculine blue is used to depict a boy. From this point forward, people begin to have certain expectations on how the child is supposed to grow up. As the child begins to grow and get older, girls are generally handled more delicately whereas boys are

Gomez " taught that its okay for them to rough-house. Same thing applies with the kind of toys that each gender is supposed to play with. For example, girls are encouraged to play with dolls, dollhouses, tea sets, etc. Boys on the other hand are to play with toy cars, balls, or action figures. Action figures and dolls are essentially the same thing, except that action figures have a masculine trait about them that makes it socially acceptable for boys to play with. Furthermore, as early as 15 to 36 months in age, boys face more of a pressure to play the masculine role. This can be seen in the things they choose to play with and how they act around other children. Gender typing, the values and behaviors viewed as appropriate for each gender, is something that children pick up from the people around them. Most commonly from their parents, siblings, and peers. Often times, children receive a negative reaction from the people around them when they choose to go against gender-typical behaviors. Gender roles are portrayed in a strong way amongst young adults but as an adult thing begin to get a little more complicated. Upon reaching adulthood, things dont change much as people are constantly fighting traditional gender roles. In a marriage, there are gender roles that fall upon a man and a woman. Traditionally, a womans job included staying home with the children and taking care of all the domestic duties while her husband was out earning a living. In present day America however, if a woman wants to go out and earn a living for herself she has all the power to do so. However, a woman with children is sometimes criticized for having to balance her career and her life at home. It is a double standard however when a man does the same thing. As stated by Margaret Sallee, author of Gender Norms and Institutional Culture, men and women who violate their assigned gender roles are often eyed with suspicion. A woman can often times be discriminated against in the

Gomez # workplace if she has a family waiting for her back at home. To herself and her family she is a provider but to other individuals she is seen as irresponsible for choosing work over her family. A male working and providing for his family is seen as the norm in todays society. In some circumstances, when a male is the one staying at home however instead of his wife taking care of the kids he is ridiculed or seen less of a man. James M. ONeil states in Gender Role Conflict Research 30 Years Later, Gender role restrictions imply that GRC confines self or others to stereotypical and restrictive norms of masculinity ideology. Due to the gender roles set upon society, it is utterly importantly for people to know that they are allowed to do all these things. Gender roles are just societies on how they are expected to act. By all means, one shouldnt allow these gender roles to control important aspects of their lives. Men and women alike are trying to break out of these social norms but it becomes impossible to do so when they are criticized for certain choices that they make. Its challenging to have gender equality exist amongst present day because men and women cant be one hundred percent equal. Though gender is a social construct, it is true that to be one hundred percent equal everyone must have the same genitalia, mentality, and same emotions. It has been scientifically proven that the brains of men and women develop differently. In How Male and Female Brains Differ, it states that the brains of men and women are genetically inclined to interpret information differently. Different parts of a males brain develop faster that of a female. Both have different emotional appeals from one another and it makes it that much harder for both sexes to be seen as equals. Women are still seen as inferior to a man and it can be seen all throughout our culture. A woman is often discriminated against, particularly in the workplace. They

Gomez $ are generally paid less than a man for working the same job. Statistics show that on average women get paid an average eight percent less according to the Bureau of Statistics. However, just because we cant be physically equal, it doesnt mean we cant be equal under law. Under law, it is possible to be entirely equal. But this could become problematic if laws that protect women are revoked to meet the levels of equality for both men and women. Those laws are set in place for a reason and if revoked major problems could occur. Though gender equality is a struggle, there have been occurrences throughout history that have made it seem possible. Women have had to fight their entire lives to be seen as an equal to a man. There is a rise of small business owners in todays society, therefore more opportunities for them to rise in the social hierarchy. Today women arent seen so much as property as they were decades ago. Women in todays society know how to be independent and take care of themselves without anyone making any type of excuse for them. Men and women are able to work together in a variety of different work fields. It is possible for genders to be treated equally amongst society if one is able to look beyond a specific gender. If one was able to focus solely on what a person has to bring to the table in regards to the work field, then yes gender equality could be reached. However, gender is often an important factor in many work related situations. Gender equality is hard to exist in todays society due to all the generalizations and stereotypes that we set upon each sex from the moment of birth. There are always going to be double standards projected amongst both men and women. These double standards are part of the reason that its that much harder for gender equality to exist. Men and women can are able to coexist with one another but in its entirety, it is

Gomez % challenging for both to be seen as equals to one another because they are so different.

Gomez & Works Cited "Gender Roles and Gender Differences." Gender Roles and Gender Differences. Mcgraw-Hill, n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2013. O'Neil, James M. "Gender Role Conflict Research 30 Years Later: An Evidence-Based Diagnostic Schema To Assess Boys And Men In Counseling." Journal Of Counseling & Development 91.4 (2013): 490-498. Academic Search Premier. Web. 28 Oct. 2013. Sallee, Margaret W. "Gender Norms And Institutional Culture: The Family-Friendly Versus The Father-Friendly University." Journal Of Higher Education 84.3 (2013): 363-396. Academic Search Premier. Web. 28 Oct. 2013. Stevenson, Andrew. "Statistics Confirm It's Still a Man's World." The Sydney Morning Herald. N.p., 28 July 2012. Web. 08 Dec. 2013. Unknown. "How Male and Female Brains Differ." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 29 Oct. 2013. Zosuls, Kristina M. "Gender Development Research in Sex Roles: Historical Trends and Future Directions." NCBI. U.S. National Library of Medicine, June 2011. Web. 28 Oct. 2013.