Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Week #2- Eureka MomentBecoming Gendered from Birth

This week my Eureka Moment came to me in the 7th chapter of our reading. I could not believe how gendered we really are from babies on up. I always new we wore pink of we were a girl and blue for boy BUT I never though about only being able to play with "girl" toys or not being able to do certain things like get dirty because I am a girl. When I was little my father did so much with me. i went fishing and baited my own line, went bowling, also my dad is a mechanic so I always wanted to pretend I was fixing cars. So maybe I was one of the few children who was allowed to do "boy" things. Really, what was my Eureka Moment was the fact that parents went so over board to make sure their girls were girly and their boys were boyish. Is it really that big of a deal if your son likes dolls at the age of 2 or 3. My brother is going on 5 and when he was about 2 he use to take my purse and walk around with it. i thought my dad and boyfriend were going to pass out!! It was ok when I was little to want to fish and play with cars BUT my brother canNOT touch my purse!! I am interested in if any parents read this what they think since I am not a parent?!?!

3 comments:

ShainaG said...

We really are gendered from the start, and I have always wondered why males take it so much more seriously! Boys can never wear make up or carry a purse unless they want to cause concern in their parents minds and society automatically labels them as feminine and often "gay", but a girl can go fishing and get dirty without the same connotations. This labeling definitely begins way before the boys and girls are even born! This is why people are starting to opt out of finding out the sex of their baby- however, does that really make enough of an impact?

Maria's Blog for Gender and Communication said...

I like how you were not brought up in the typical feminine way. As a result you had a lot of great experiences that have created in you a greater understanding of yourself, and gender in its entirety. One reason in which society likes to make certain lists of feminine and masculine things, is to create a greater sense of bond. For example, a mother may want her daughter to wear dresses as to emulate her, and therefore feel closer to her creating a false sense of intimacy between them. Since the mother cannot truly relate to her daughter, she may force her into "feminine" things as to better understand her or identify with her.

Mario D said...

I am a parent and I wish it was that easy to give you a simple answer. But let me at least give you my experience. When your children are 2 or 3, they don’t know anything and you are just imparting your values on them to keep them safe and protected. So at least early in your children’s life you try to make sure you teach them their role in society, based on your experience. This is the one area where I actually feel that inequality is towards the males and not the females. A girl in 1st grade who is great at kickball may not necessarily get picked in a boy’s pick-up game, but she would not be ridiculed for wanting to play. Now take a little boy who comes to school with Barbie dolls, a purse and makeup, and wants to play house during recess. In today’s society, he would get abused unmercifully, probably by both genders. So what is my obligation as parent? At least in the early years is to make sure they fit-in. The trick is to accept who they become, especially if they were to start rebelling against standard gender roles.