Paper #3: Gender 101
For this paper,
I want you to research the hidden curriculum of “Gender 101” in your
society. How do we learn to be boys and
girls—and men and women—by watching movies, playing with toys, participating in
sports, and engaging in other social rituals/activities? Remember that these rules are rarely stated
outright, but must be learned to play the “game” correctly. Even children quickly become aware of the
rules, and learn to mimic their cultural role models. Those who don’t are often ostracized or made
to feel abnormal in some fashion.
Our essays from
the past two weeks have helped us see how gender influences behavior (smiling),
clothing (corsets), toys (Barbie) and sports (throwing like a boy/girl). Now I want you to add to this conversation
and help us see the “Gender 101” rules in some activity/aspect of your
society. Remember, these don’t have to
be negative: you can find something that challenges traditional stereotypes as
well. However, the rules are typically
of a “follow this, not that” variety.
See what you can find!
Choose ONE of
the following categories to investigate:
- Entertainment: any film, TV show,
book, or video game that showcases gender in a positive/negative way.
- Sports: any sport that seems to
define how men/women should act, or a sport that is designed to exclude a
specific sex.
- Careers: similar to sports, any
career that guides male/female behavior or excludes a specific sex.
- Toys: any toy that seems to have
certain gender ideas either built into the product itself, OR in the way
that it is marketed to children (for ex: Legos aren’t exclusively male or
female—they’re just bricks—but they are marketed very differently to boys
and girls).
RESEARCH (4
sources required for a 2nd draft paper)
- You must use at least 2 essays from
class as part of your conversation
- You should use at least 1 outside
academic article accessed through EBSCO or found elsewhere, but it must
have an author or be from an authoritative organization (National
Geographic, etc.)
- You can use at least 1 film, show,
or commercial in your paper, as long as you quote and discuss it
as a significant part of your paper.
Don’t simply say, “there’s a commercial that shows girls playing
with pink Legos.” Analyze the
commercial and bring it into your conversation—what does it say, show, and
explain to its audience?
- All sources must be quoted in some
fashion (as part of your conversation) and documented according to MLA
guidelines with a Works Cited page.
DUE Thursday,
November 13th by 5pm
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