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LEARNING MODULE
BLENDED FLEXIBLE LEARNING
Gender and Society (ELEC 212)

AN OVERVIEW

INTRODUCTION

Think about a stereotypical family in a traditional Filipino setting. Whom can you
picture that discipline and provides financially in the family? For many people, this
task is given to either the father or the grandfather in a family. Now, assume for a
minute that you're heterosexual and plan to get married. Do you plan to change your
last name after the wedding? If you have children, will they get the last name of the
father or the mother? Most families across the world assume that the wife will take
the husband's name and that the children will do the same. Both of these examples
are examples of two concepts: patriarchy and sexism. This lesson will first define
patriarchies versus matriarchies, and then we'll discuss five different forms of
sexism.

LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this module, you should be able to:

LEARNING RESOURCES
Ebia, E. & Cornejo N. (2016). Society & Culture. Mindshapers Co., Inc.

LEARNING INPUTS

LESSON 9 PATRIARCHY VS. MATRIARCHY

What is Patriarchy?

The word translates as 'rule of fathers,' and it means a society in which male
members have more social and political power than female members. Most societies
all over the world have been set up in a patriarchal system since humans began
forming groups. Many religions teach that in a family, the father should be the one
who makes important decisions. Most societies expect the father of the household
to be the one who provides economic resources, and everyone in the family usually
takes on the father's last name. Most countries throughout history have had men

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ruling their countries or running their governments. Many religions teach that the
father should be the one to make important decisions in a family.

What is Matriarchy?

The contrast to patriarchy would be a society based on the system of

matriarchy, which translates as 'rule of mothers.' A matriarchy would be the
opposite of patriarchy; a matriarchy is a society in which female members have more
social and political power than male members.
Filipinos grow up in matriarchal networks, where women make decisions about
most things including money. In the traditional Filipino Catholic wedding ceremony,
the groom gives the bride 13 coins known as arras, which symbolize his promise to
provide for her and their family. In reality, it is better interpreted as ceding control. It
is not unusual for husbands to happily 'surrender' their ATM cards or cash wage to
their wives. Neither is it unusual for husbands to share in cooking or childcare and
things like housework.
Some countries have female leaders, such as the Queen in England. However,
even in these countries, the general population is still a patriarchal system; at home,
men are still considered to have more power than women, and the government still
has more male politicians than female politicians. Social scientists have only
identified a few cultures in the entire history of the world that ran with a matriarchal
system. One example is the Museo, a very small community of people in rural China,
where women control property, choose their husbands, and make most of the
decisions in the community.

(Don’t forget to answer the Self – Check Question 3.1 and Activity3.1!)

LESSON 10 SEXISM; MEANING AND TYPES

What is Sexism?
Sexism, prejudice or discrimination based on sex or gender, especially against
women and girls. It can be a belief that one sex is superior to or more valuable than
another sex. It imposes limits on what men and boys can and should do and what
women and girls can and should do.

In a society, it is most commonly applied against women and girls. It functions to

maintain patriarchy, or male domination, through ideological and material practices
of individuals, collectives, and institutions that oppress women and girls on the basis
of sex or gender.

What are the different types of Sexism?

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• Benevolent sexism
This form of sexism is chivalrous attitude that men have towards a woman (vice
versa) that feels favorable but is actually sexist. This form of sexism casts women as
weak creatures in need of a man’s protection. Benevolent sexists compliment
women based on stereotypes. If a woman says “Men are assholes” then women are
concluding that men are the opposite of compassionate. The following are types of
sexism.
1. This might make women feel as though they are only “soft” or can’t show
dominance and take control in certain situations.
2.. If you find yourself saying this note that it could come across as you think women
are more pleasing to look at, are objectified, and defined by their beauty.
3.This could lead to a man leaving the cleaning tasks up to the woman just because
he believes that a woman can clean better than him.

• Hostile sexism
This form of sexism is an antagonistic attitude towards women, who are often
viewed as trying to control men through sexual seduction or feminist ideology. This
form of sexism is the most common between the who because it is the more physical
and aggressive approach.

Hostile sexism is the type that results in men believing that women are inferior.
Women are far more likely to be opposed to hostile sexism than men are. There is a
correlation between hostile sexism and benevolent sexism in men, meaning that
men who have hostile sexist attitudes, such as thinking a woman’s place is in the
kitchen, also tend to have benevolent sexist attitudes, such a believing woman
should be protected by men.

LESSON 11 MISOGYNY and GENDER FAIR LANGUAGE

What is Misogyny?

The extreme form of sexist ideology is misogyny, the hatred of women. A

society in which misogyny is prevalent has high rates of brutality against women—for
example, in the forms of domestic violence, rape, and the commodification of women
and their bodies. Women are often mistreated at the individual as well as the
institutional level. For example, a woman who is a victim of rape (the individual or
personal level) might be told by a judge and jury (the institutional level) that she was
culpable because of the way she was dressed.

What is Gender Fair Language?

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Sexist is a person suggesting that the members of one sex are less able, or

intelligent, than the members of the other sex. It is referring to that
sex's bodies, behavior, or feelings in a negative way

Sexist language is language that excludes either men or women when

discussing a topic that is applicable to both sexes. This includes using the word man
to refer to humanity and using titles like Congressman and fireman. Another common
error that shows gender bias is assuming that the subject of all sentences is male. For
instance, the statement "Each student chose his own topic for his term paper," leads
the reader to assume that all the students in the class were male, despite the
probability that half of them were female.
Underlying sexist language is gender bias, which can occur consciously or
unconsciously. When unconscious, the gender bias in language can be the product of
society: other people use sexist language, and repetition normalizes it until the
speaker unconsciously produces his or her own sexist language where men are the
norm and women the "other."
Violations of Gender Fair Language
 Invisibilization of women – it is rooted in the assumption that men are
dominant and are the norm of the fullness of humanity, and women does not
exist. Some examples are:

1. The generic use of masculine pronouns or the use of a masculine in

general. The use of “mankind” assumes that men are representative of
all people on this planet, and the women’s presence or roles are
acknowledged. Similarly, saying “guys” when referring to a mixed –
gender group assumes that girls are invisible, and calls attention to the
male gender, giving them a stronger presence.
2. The assumption that certain functions or jobs are performed by a
man instead of both genders. Examples are “Farmers and their wives
tilled the land” or “The politicians and their wives lobbied for change.”
The examples assume that men can have jobs as farmers and
politicians, and women do the same work are still made to be known as
wives, with their identities forever linked to being married to their
husbands.
3. The use of male job titles or terms ending in man to refer to
functions that may be given to both genders. For instance, the title
“businessman” and “chairman” assume that all businessmen or
chairmen are men and that certain jobs may not be for women, which
is not true.

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 Trivialization of Women
1. Bringing attention to the gender of a person, if that person is a
woman. The use of “lady”, “girl” or “woman” along with the noun
brings attention to the gender of the person rather than the job or
function. Examples are “girl athlete”, “woman doctor”, “lady guard”
and “working wives”. This notion also works for men who enter
traditionally female jobs such as “male nurses”, or “male secretaries”.
2. The perception of women as immature. Women may be labeled as
“darling” or “baby” by those who do not know them, making them
appear childlike or juvenile.
3. The objectification, or likening to objects, of women. By being
called “honey”, “sweets”, or “chick”, women become devalued,
especially if they are in an environment that merits formality such as
the workplace.
Reasons to Avoid Sexist Language
Sexist language encourages discrimination and can discourage people from
pursuing their dreams. If engineers are always spoken of as male, a girl who aspires to
be an engineer may feel that she has no hope, since "all" engineers are men.
Sexist language also offends people when they find themselves excluded. This
is not an issue that violates your right to free speech; you are free to use offensive
language, and also free to decide that you do not agree with the definition of what
constitutes sexist language. However, if you are using language that is offensive to
half of your audience, you will not get your message across. People will not be
receptive to your arguments if they are aggrieved by your use of exclusively
masculine pronouns.
How to Avoid Sexist Language
Remember that the goal is not to avoid referring to individual people as male
or female; the goal is to be inclusionary when speaking in hypothetical statements or
of mixed-gender groups.
 Use humanity or the human race instead of man or mankind when you are
referring to all people.
 If you are speaking of a single hypothetical individual, use person instead of
man.
 Use genderless titles whenever possible, such as flight attendant instead of
stewardess, firefighter instead of fireman, and homemaker instead of
housewife. Avoid adding gender markers to genderless titles, such as male
nurse; use the genderless title alone (i.e., nurse).
 Rework sentences in the plural to avoid gendered pronouns and possessive
adjectives. This will create smoother and more grammatically correct prose
than using a plural pronoun with a singular subject. (Sexist: Each student
makes up his own schedule. Grammatically incorrect: Each student makes up
their own schedule. Gender-neutral and grammatically correct: Students make
up their own schedules.)
 When it is not possible to recast sentences in the plural, use he or she or his or
her to be inclusive. (The winning contestant must claim his or her prize by

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Tuesday.) However, using this formulation too often can break up the flow of
your writing, so use it sparingly.

LESSON
Filipino 11
Gender-Neutral FILIPINO
Language GENDER-NEUTRAL LANGUAGE AND ORIGIN
and Origin

The pre-colonial Philippines was more accepting of same-sex relationships.

Our country used to be egalitarian, meaning all people were given equal opportunities
and treatments. One example is the babaylan, a mystical healer who can have multiple
roles (warrior, priestess, sage), is often revered in tribes, and were mostly women or
feminized men. The male babaylans could have romantic relations with the same sex
without judgment.

The concept of heterosexual marriage and gender roles only came about when
the Spanish colonized us for 333 years. It’s because of them that Filipino women were
reduced to homemakers, and men were considered as leaders of a household or a
society. Since the Spanish brought Christianity to our country, our pre-colonial
wedding traditions changed according to religion. Which brings us to the weddings
we know now.

In Filipino, mostly Tagalog, we only use “siya” or “them” to refer to a person.

We also call our husband or wife “asawa” (spouse) or “kabiyak” (other half)—there
are no gender indicators. So, men and women aren’t the only ones who can marry and
call themselves “mag-asawa.” There’s no “him/her” or “he/she” either. However, we
have words like “ate/kuya” (big sister/brother) and “tita/tito” (aunt/uncle).

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ACTIVITIES AND SELF - CHECK QUESTIONS
Gender and Society (ELEC 212)

NAME: COURSE & YEAR:

CLASS SCHEDULE: DATE SUBMITTED:

Look for an old magazine, newspaper, book, or an article online that has sexist
images and statements that objectifies men and women. Take a photo or cutout the
sexist line or image, then highlight it and paste in a long size bond paper. Include the
source and explain why it is considered as sexism. Give 5 examples.

Follow the format below.

 Source: Internet – https://absolutelymaybe.plos.org/2015/06/22/just-joking-

sexist-talk-in-science/
 Name of the article: “Just” Joking? Sexist Talk in Science
 Sexist Image:

 Discussion: The man in the picture above is considered as sexist because

________________.

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