Introduction to Gender Studies

Think of the activities that take place in an average household during the course of a day. Food is cooked; cleaning is done - sweeping, mopping, dusting, Buying things, working at a shop, iron, garbage pickers, drivers, labour, Cleaning, babysitting, sweeping, mopping, cooking etc.

Activity: Think Pair Share

1. Now share with each other how can you categorize these tasks?

2. Now write down in front of each activity which takes most of the time and energy? Does that involve any economic transactions?

3. Tell who does the most of the task? Men or women?

Gender studies is a field of study that looks at the world from the perspective of gender. Gender studies exist as an important means of correcting imbalances. It is the study of the phenomena of gender.

Gender studies looks at the manner in which the norms and patterns of behaviour associated with masculinity and femininity come into being. It studies the features of these norms and patterns. It is the study of-

1. Which traits are considered masculine, which feminine, and why so?

2. How do stereotypical models of men and women develop?

3. How do they change over time, and what factors contribute to changes?

4. What impact do such stereotypes have upon actually existing men and women?

5. How the world is gendered?

Gender studies refers to the multidisciplinary study of how assumptions and expectations about gender and biological sex influence cultural, social, and political ideas about women and men.

Let's have a look at the concept map of gender studies. Concept map will help you understand the definition of gender studies and what all the aspects of gender is covered under gender studies. It will help you visualize the topic better.

Sex refers to the fact of being either male or female.

Gender refers to the cultural and social ideas of masculinity and femininity that are assigned to different sexes. Gender refers to those traits and characteristics that a person is expected to possess by virtue of being male or female as well as the different roles that the person is expected to perform.

Let's understand this with mindmap- Click the button below!

We just discussed about the gender, sex and their basic differences. Let's discuss about the features!

Features are the important and noticeable part of something or someone.
Let's do an activity here!

Activity: Determiners for the genders

Click on the button next to this collapsible!

So Features of genders: Social role and position, Difference in clothing for boys and girls

Gender studies has developed certain terms and concepts which are used while studying the phenomenon of gender. An understanding of their meaning and implications allows us to see and connect various aspects of it.

Part 1.

• Start with the activity- Click on the button below!

Part 2.

Let's understand what gender stereotype is-

Gender stereotypes emerge from how individuals and groups and groups generalize roles played by individual as well as groups and perceived differences existing among them.

Example- "Woman is more compassionate than man and has a greater propensity to tears… But the male… is more disposed to give assistance in danger, and is more courageous than the female". (Aristotle, cited in Miles, 1935).

Part 3.
Now you have understood what gender stereotype, now think and reflect- What are the consequences of gender stereotype?

-Let's write them together using Brainstorming technique!

• Click the button below to do the brainstorming activity

Gender stereotypes significantly attribute to the status quo in terms of women and men's roles. Furthermore, they are one of the most persistent causes of inequality between women and men in all spheres and at all stages of life, influencing their choices in education, professional and private life.

Part 4.

Can you think of some ways to break this stereotypes?

-Let's write them together using Brainstorming technique again!

• Click the button below to do the brainstorming activity

Gender Roles: the social roles that a person is expected to fulfill based upon his or her gender. They vary among different societies and cultures, classes, ages, region, religion, culture, climate, historical beliefs, ideologies and experiences, across the globe.

These are conditioned by household structure, access to resources, specific impacts of the global economy, and other locally relevant factors such as ecological conditions.

Example: Family- Men= Provider, decision maker and breadwinner, making financially, legally and socially influential decisions, has more power,

Women= Child care, home care, cleaning, cooking.

Gender relations are the ways in which a culture or society defines rights, responsibilities, and the identities of men and women in relation to one another (Bravo - Baumann,2000). Men and women respond to different situations and conditions differently, this is not because of their biological traits but because of their socially and culturally endorsed roles; therefore they ascribe to acquire distinct and diverse sets of knowledge and needs.

Patriarchy literally means the 'rule of the father'. Within gender studies, the term refers to a social system wherein men dominate over women. Male dominance can be expressed in various ways- for example, within the institution of the family, in the greater rights given to men, through the ownership and control by men of resources like land and other assets.

A patriarchal society is a society controlled, and run by men. A man's world is the phrase is used to talk about this.

Men have the absolute decision making power. The underlying ideology of a patriarchal society is all about the men possessing superior qualities or typical attitudes and traits like -virility, strong will power, authority, dominance, bullying, shrewdness, maintaining confidentiality, social associations and network, action oriented, having a free will, a sense of superiority over others (outlook, race, gender), brute force, belligerence, carrier of family legacy so on and so forth.

Private Patriarchy describes the subordination and exploitation of women around family and household.

Public Patriarchy explains the exclusion of women from public life and reflects various forms of discrimination faced by women in public space.

The term ‘feminism’ refers to a set of ideas that recognise the fact that women are faced with certain disadvantages because they are women and the belief that this should not be so. It refers to the political practice that emerges from these, a practice which is aimed at changing the situations of women who face systemic disadvantages.

For example, Through theatre, art and story-telling sessions, the girls demanded that schools be located closer to home; that they be safe and clean with functioning toilets; that there be qualified, female teachers, and that education be relevant and meaningful, going beyond the scope of prescribed textbooks.

International Women's Day is celebrated annually on the 8 March. The German socialist and feminist, Clara Zetkin, was the first to propose that women from every country celebrate a day as Women's Day.

Savitribai Phule was the first woman teacher in India.

Case 1: Abdul has been looking at the images in his history textbook. There are many pictures of ancient and medieval kings, Indian and foreign, wearing colourful clothes, jewellery, and even high heels. Abdul thinks of the clothes his father wears to office - shirts and trousers in plain colours like white and grey and black. He wonders, what would happen if his father went to work wearing colourful silks and pearl necklaces?

Case 2: John and Meena have met in university and want to get married. However John is apprehensive about discussing their plans with Meena's parents until he gets a good job. He wants to be able to reassure them that he will be able to support Meena.