“Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack of White Privilege” In Peggy McIntosh’s essay, she addressed several issues that are considered to be very important ones. She speaks of how whites are given hidden privileges, yet they don’t even realize it. I believe that the purpose for her writing this, was to bring out in the open the issues of oppression with regards to the dominant race and their “unearned privileges” that they are so oblivious to. McIntosh compared this situation to how men are more privileged and advantaged, and women are at a more disadvantaged state. In comparison, she also stated that men do indeed admit to a woman’s disadvantage, yet a man will not agree to being more advantaged, because they too are oblivious to this fact.
However, not everyone agrees with the heavy stereotypes laid down by the social order such as male dominance and proper courting. Marie de France is one of these people. She depicts her views of gender expectations through literature. Within the poem Guigemar, Guigemar and his lady fulfill and contradict what would be considered as gender norms within society: female inferiority, traditional courtship, and male dominance. Marie de France does this to criticize and combat the societal expectations and inherent inequalities in Norman England.
How is the theme of masculinity explored in the Death of a Salesman? The theme of masculinity is explored broadly throughout Death of a Salesman. The most obvious reason is that the setting took place male dominant family within a male dominant society. Through the character, Linda, the reader will see the subordinate role of women at that time, while men are considered to be superior, in this case, Willy. Willy and Happy’s view of women as sexual objects also displays masculinity.
Male Dominance in Dracula Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula persists in trying to maintain the male figures control over women. The setting of the novel is around the time when western society was beginning to modernize and also a period in which many were questioning the church and religious beliefs. In Victorian England, the actions of women were dictated by society. Women were either virgins who maintained their innocence and purity or representatives of motherhood. Anything outside of those 2 realms was considered to be sinful and not good representations of Victorian women.
Consider the effect conventional society has on the protagonists within both Wuthering Heights and Tess of the d’Urbervilles. In both “Wuthering Heights” and “Tess of the d’Urbervilles” the female characters are seen as subservient to their male counterparts and characters such as Heathcliff and Tess are treated as inferior as a result of their lower status. Both novels were considered to be unconventional because the authors explore taboo subjects such as ghosts, child abuse, rape and murder. The Protagonists are affected by societies expectations of the Victorian era that are forced upon them, which affects their actions; preventing their happiness and true love from flourishing. Victorian society held strong, conservative religious views.
Throughout the passage, Ibsen utilizes various languages to reinforce the theme of stereotype toward woman. Plus, through the use of diction and literary devices, he also successfully characterizes Nora and Helmer as Helmer’s characteristic of arrogance is emphasized while Nora’s sudden change in character is highlighted. Throughout the passage, Helmer’s gender-biased view and self-centered nature is stressed. As Nora tells Helmer that she expected Helmer to take the responsibility of Nora’s action by “take all the blame,” Helmer replies that “no man would sacrifice his honour for the one he loves.” Here, Helmer refuses to take any blame for Nora’s actions, eventhough her actions were motivated by his sickness. He believes that no man should ever sacrifice his integrity for love.
Media represent gender in three different themes. To start with, women are underrepresented which implies that men are more superior and women less important or invincible according cultural standard. Secondly, women and men are stereotypically portrayed in a manner that mirror and uphold socially endorsed views of race and gender. The third theme is the depictions of the relationship between women and men accentuate traditional roles and normalize violence against women. The major way in which media disfigures reality is through underrepresentation of women in the media.
Sex-role stereotypes are magnified in male-dominant firms and are harmful to women psychologically as stereotypes generate violence and gender inequality that is a form of exclusion (Forret & Dougherty, 2004). Stereotypes place women in a subordinate position to men in a patriarchal and sexist model in which their function is to serve the other and not to lead (Llopis, 2006). Men can handily adjust to male-dominated structures because they can read masculine culture better than women and because their peers are just as them. Increasing internal visibility is greatly related to the number of promotions and total compensation for men but not for women. There can be several explanations but one explanation might be that the work assignments
He created the foil characters between Ismene and Antigone to show his view of women. During his time period of Greek mythologies influences women did not have the rights, power, and voice equal to men even though it contradict their beliefs in which there goddesses were warriors, hunters and so on doing the skills in which men where only aloud and possess. Sophocles shows Antigone just as power as the men in the passage rebelling against society’s views. Antigone was Sophocles view of women showing a different side of women in which connects to modern times in which women are allowed to possess the skills and jobs of men
Anthony Ornelas Ornelas 1 Sociology 440 6/10/2013 Professor Inoue Gender Inequality The tendency of society to favor males and their masculinity has been a recurring theme throughout history and culture. As a result of these ideas, to be masculine is synonymous with dominance, while femininity directly correlates to weakness. These attitudes are responsible for the belief that women should stay at home and out of the way while men rule the world and control the money and society. That males enjoy social privilege is apparent even in American culture, though males do not often realize their own biases against women or the male privilege that they regularly enjoy and manipulate. Since claiming their role in society as capable human beings, women have been treated unfairly in the society when they haven’t been directly excluded from various fields that are socially less “suitable” for a woman.