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Yolanda Brown
Instructor: Elizabeth McKinley
Class: English 111
Submission date: April 17, 2016

Outline
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Introduction
History of Gender Roles in America
Family Structure
Gender Roles Today
Conclusion

Name: Yolanda Brown

Instructor: Elizabeth McKinley

Class: English 111
Submission Date: April 17, 2016

Gender Roles
Are women supposed to stay at home, cook, and clean the house while men go to work
and pay all the bills? Can women be construction workers, engineers, or politicians? Can men be
bakers, childcare workers, or even stay at home dads? These questions make us rethink gender
roles in society; they make us wonder if they still exist in the American culture? According to the
Oxford dictionary a gender role is defined as The role or behavior learned by a person as
appropriate to their gender, determined by the prevailing cultural norms (Oxford Dictionaries).
This means the role is based upon what people deem as appropriate or inappropriate.
In the past gender roles were well defined. In the eighteenth century the male or husband
controlled the household. Whatever he said was the final say. The husband was in control of
every aspect of the home. From the servants to the finances. The men were expected to be the
major providers for their family. The women were expected to be obedient to their husbands.
They knew that he was in charge and they respected him with his decisions. This was custom and
the law. It was not until 1920 that women were considered to have equal citizenship. They were
granted the right to vote and could legally drink alcohol. During this time many women were
starting to open up and have their voice in society. In the 1930s women were employed but
many of their jobs were in factorys and very low paying. Women had to get a full education as
opposed to a mans elementary education equivalency. Even after a long and hard day of work

the woman was still expected to handle all of the house hold duties which included cooking,
cleaning, and chores. As society changes and expands so does gender roles. They seem to evolve
as the family structure morphs.
Family structure has a lot to do with the role that one plays when it comes to supporting
ones household. There are many types of family structures such as the traditional two parent and
children home known as a nuclear family. Another family structure is the single parent family.
where one parent is absent from the home; leaving the other parent to raise the children on their
own. Two or more adults who are related and living in the same home is referred to as an
extended family. There is also a childless family structure where couples reside together but have
no children. Individuals who choose to remarry gain a stepfamily, which also makes for a
blended family. And then there are grandparent families where grandparents are raising their
grandchildren for various reasons.
All of these different family structures make the traditional gender roles of past history
hard to maintain in todays society; thus having an impact on the gender roles of today. Some are
forced to take on the role of leader of the home. They are left the only one to make all the
decisions of the household. Others are forced to find employment while some have to become
stay-at-home mom and dads. Gender roles are greatly affected by the family structure.
Since gender roles are deeply affected by the family structure it is hard to say what the
norm is in todays society. Back in 1995 seventy-six percent of women between the ages of
twenty-five and fifty-four worked outside the home (Karin Wulf). Nowadays you have women
and men working the same job positions. You also have women who are the sole source of
income in the home, leaving the men to be stay-at-home dads and vice versa. There are also

households where there are two women or two men leaving a raised eyebrow as to which role
each person plays in the home.
In conclusion, gender roles are based on norms or standards created by society. So in a
world where one can do or be whatever they would like the gender role has no expectations or
limitations. Take Hilary Clinton for example, she is running for president of the United States of
America. This idea would never have been perceived back in the eighteenth century where
women were not even allowed to vote for the person they wanted in charge of their country. Now
they have equal say along with many other equal opportunities. Also with the different family
structures, the norms and standards for todays society are broad leaving the gender roles of the
past clearly undefined.

Works Cited
Oxford Dictionaries. Oxford University Press, 20016. Web. 01 April 2016.
Wulf, Karin. Gender and Gender Roles in the 18th Century. Facts on File History Database
Search. American Centuries, Vol. 3. Web. 02 April 2016. http://www.fofweb.com/history.