What it means for me to be female in today's society
It means a lot for me to be female in today's society. It means I'm inconsistent with my male counterparts. It means I have to sit with my knees tightly pressed together or my legs crossed in public (oh, it doesn't matter if I'm not wearing a skirt.) It means I'm expected to do all the housework while my brother watches soccer. And it means a whole load of other things. So what are we talking about here really? We're looking at gender and how it shapes our lives. While sex classifies people based on physical and biological differences, gender on the other hand differentiates us on the basis of physiological, psychological and socio-cultural characteristics. I think I'm female, therefore I am. There are many limitations to being female, like the ones I stated above. Here, I shall discuss how gender has both shaped and influenced my perception of self and the norms I abide by. I just have to observe myself on a normal day to know how much gender has shaped the norms (customary behaviors) I abide by. As a female, I know what is expected of me by watching other females behave. Together, we know what our male counterparts expect of us. I just realized some of the typical norms I abide by, never noticing so before. I put in eve
Nonetheless, while I believe there will always be inequality of gender, I also believe in something called freedom of choice. Life presents to us so many choices whether we're male or female. Well that is perhaps how much gender has shaped and influenced my perception of self. No one knows exactly why generic terms came about in the first place, or why men are by nature more dominating than women. I am female, not male and that is reason enough for me not to even entertain such thoughts. I do not want to make a fool of myself. No one is stopping her but if she does so, guys will look at her differently - as unladylike, loud, "bitchy", etc. Sitting and observing the people in the MRT on my way to school one day, set me thinking. Nonetheless, we can choose whether or not we want to be pitied, whether or not we want to work hard, climb the corporate ladder and match our male counterparts. I cannot help it but this is how I perceive myself. At some point along the way though, I realized something eerily disturbing about myself.
Common topics in this essay:
,
perception self,
norms abide,
gender shaped,
male counterparts,
shaped influenced perception,
influenced perception self,
gender shaped influenced,
knowing exactly,
influenced perception,
i'm female,
shaped influenced,
means i'm,
|
Acceptance Essays
