For example, recently I moved into new place, because I usually had a roommate I never decorated much, being as I no longer have a roommate I decorated the way I felt showed my personality, however whenever family and friends come over they say things such as "I expected it to be more girly" or "it doesn't seem like a girl lives here" and my favorite is "why does it seem like this is a man's house". Because of their own idea of gender they expected to see pink and purple everywhere and doilies laid on the tables, which is not even close to what my house looks like, but the complete opposite, which in their eyes is socially unacceptable because it doesn't depict a women's house in their eyes.
Yet there are many examples we can look at. The other day I and a group of friends were watching a television show on the addiction to body building. When they showed a man who loved to body build my friends stated that there was not anything wrong with a man loving the activity, however when they showed a women who also loved to body build that is when we hit a difference opinion. They said it didn't look right for women to be so masculine, this shows that the ideas of gender will never be fully agreed on; Women being strong and muscular are socially unacceptable because it is men who are seen as strong and muscular. This can be seen in daily life, For example at work when I am told by a manager to load and unload trucks there is always a male who offers to do it instead because they believe men are the ones who are strong, and women should not be doing heavy lifting, However many may have a different view.
It is baffling how OFFENDED people become when one doesn't adhere to sex-precise gender roles. How DARE you not like pink! It goes to show how deeply ingrained is this mindset even today. Most people would agree that gender equality is a good thing but most people lack the education to catch all the sexist nonsense they spout. Even reactions to your home reek of minds submerged into socially constructed gender waters. I'd like to think of myself as a person that behaves neutral to what is socially accepted, but it is absolutely infuriating when I am belittled when performing tasks that are usually reserved for men. You do your own thing and lead by example.
ReplyDelete-Cynthia Quintanilla