Deck 8: D: Gender

Question 1

Compose an essay that outlines the arguments for functionalism,post-structuralism,and symbolic interactionism.Which argument do you agree with more,and why?

Answer 1

Responses will vary by students,but should include discussion of:
Functionalism.Men are responsible for being breadwinners;and women,for carrying out nurturing activities;women are held responsible for any change in gendered roles that disrupt cohesiveness.
Symbolic interactionism.Gender is learned through socialization (operant conditioning).
Post-structuralism.Gender is a performance.

Question 2

Compose an essay that consists of a popular song,television show/series,and a movie that demonstrate examples of gender imagery.Use examples that incorporate specific lyrics/scenes where gender imagery is obvious.

Answer 2

Answers will vary;however,students should draw the majority of their answer from the media section of the chapter.
Students are also free to incorporate the concepts of hegemonic masculinity,emphasized femininity,and gender bodies where applicable.

Question 3

Compose an essay discussing how the media create and reinforce gender through the manipulation of gender bodies.Provide an example of a commercial,TV show,or a movie in your answer.Explain how this has influenced normalization of plastic surgery in society.

Answer 3

Students should show how the media uses gendered bodies to create standards of beauty and appearance for each gender.
Students may take different approaches to arguing for how media has influenced normalization of plastic surgery by discussing how many famous people use plastic surgery to resemble the perfect gender body,or simply how the gender body depicted by the media is so hard to achieve that people resort to plastic surgery in order to obtain a look they otherwise could not possess.

Question 4

Develop an essay that presents one aspect of the education system that promotes gender stereotyping and gender stratification.Contrast this aspect with what you have learned about gender in this chapter.Do you believe that education may lead to significant social change regarding gender? Why or why not? Be sure to incorporate examples where applicable.

Question 5

What challenges and barriers might a woman face upon entering the workforce over the course of her career? Relate your discussion to sociological findings and theory.

Question 6

Critically analyze how society reproduces gender through families and education.Describe what techniques may have been a surprise to you,and explain why.

Question 7

What expectations of gender do you possess? Do you share similar expectations with "hegemonic masculinity" and/or "emphasized femininity?" Describe some social influences that may lead individuals to adopt these ideologies.

Question 8

Out of the five sociological theories discussed in this chapter,compose an essay that incorporates three of them,and relate their ideology to gender in society.

Question 9

Discuss how student‒teacher interactions and the chilly climate relate to the hidden curriculum and promote gender stratification.

Question 10

How does Butler's post-structuralist view of gender "performativity" differ from a symbolic interactionist or ethnomethodological analysis of "doing gender?" Which of the two opinions do you find yourself agreeing with more,and why? Provide examples of both sides of the argument.

Question 11

Compose an essay that discusses the meanings of and differences between transgender,transsexual,transvestites,and intersexed individuals.Use these terms to reflect how society's binary categorization of male and female is flawed by contrasting them with the concepts of hegemonic masculinity and emphasized femininity.