Verified Document

Women Stereotyped Term Paper

Women Were Still Stereotyped in 1998 According to its dictionary definition, a stereotype can be an innocent thing, a mere stencil, or a preexisting form or stencil that can be used to make a template for an image. However, when a stereotype is a cultural and a psychological rather than a physical or artistic device, and is wielded against an entire gender, and filled with the copier's notions of correct behavior to the extent that it limits the ability of another person to be a fully functional and fully fledged human being, the stereotype must be questioned and subsequently broken down.

In 1998, although feminism was officially en vogue, the popularity of "chick lit" was at its height, and speculations about it being easier for a woman to be killed by lightening than to be married over the age of thirty or so had become less vociferously promoted by the media, there was still a notable cultural prejudice against women. Stereotypes that limited, calcified and smothered rather than sustained a fuller conception of what it mean to be female were still expressed and held within the American cultural dialogue and framework.

In seeking hard evidence for this fact, one must first ask what are the most detrimental stereotypes about women. According to the stereoyped, female gender role, women are considered to have more social qualities. Women are traditionally perceived to be more emotional, sensitive, supporting, gentle, kind, and affectionate than men. In contrast, again, according to stereotype, men are assumed to possess more "agentic" qualities, in terms of having the extroverted qualites of independence, assertiveness, competitiveness, daring, and courage under fire --...

thus "typical" males are said to emphasize goal attainment and leadership, whereas their female counterparts emphasize social relationships and making others feel good about themselves. (Rodler, Ashmore, DelBoca, & Wohlers, 1986, cited by Kirchler, Holzl,2000, p.1)
Of course, one could say that placing a strong emphasis on social qualities and nurturance is not necessarily a negative stereotype, or one contrary to leadership. But when such a rubric of the male vs. female dichotomy of relationality is present within the American societal cognifive cultural structure, that values individualism, and although such stereotypes are not necessarily bad in and of themselves, when applied to individuals within leadership positions and seeking leadership positions, they can be deliterious.

To demonstrate this fact a study by Kirchler, Holzl, and Rodler resorted to an unusual but perspacious source of cultural data, namely those of obituaries. These obitiuaries were written by the organization in which a deceased leader had been employed and published in various newspapers of record in the years 1974, 1980, 1986, 1992, and 1998. 894 obituaries reported explicitly on persons who had been working in leadership positions. 39 of the obituaries pertained to deceased females and 757 to deceased males. The greater number of the latter was due to the fact that more males could be identified as organizational leaders and thus more male obituaries of leaders could be found in the pages of the columns.

In…

Sources used in this document:
Works Cited

'EEOC SCORES MAJOR VICTORY IN MITSUBISHI LAWSUIT." EEOC Webpage. Last modified January 21, 1998. http://www.eeoc.gov/press/1-21-98.html 14 November 2004.

Kirchler, Erich, and Erik Holzl and Crista Rodler. "Gender Stereotypes of leaders: an analysis of the contents of obituaries from 1974-1998 -- Statistical Data Included. Sex Roles: a Journal of Research. December 2001. Retrived 14 November 2004 using Find Articles.com at http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2294/is_2001_Dec/ai_89238997
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Women Participation in Marine Industry the Relation
Words: 2063 Length: 6 Document Type: Essay

Women Participation in Marine Industry The Relation Ship between the Participation of Woman in Maritime Sectors and Various Policy Organizations Women represent a considerable portion of the world's labor force. However they face the hurdles of wage discrimination, harassment, and occupational segregation which ultimately limit their economic advancement. Historically, marine industry does not tend to be a successful career path for women. However, with the passage of time women have penetrated quite

Women in Nineteenth Century Europe Were Systematically
Words: 1377 Length: 4 Document Type: Essay

Women in nineteenth century Europe were systematically excluded from positions of power in the public spheres including but not limited to political and economic domains. Thus invisible and disenfranchised, women were relegated to being priestesses in the cult of domesticity: the private sphere that was at once necessary for the maintenance of life but also restricting in its roles and functions. The cult of domesticity was open primarily to members

Women and Nonwhites Facing Prejudices
Words: 1529 Length: 5 Document Type: Essay

Women and Nonwhites Facing Prejudices Back when the frontier existed, women had very limited options for independence. So, if they wanted to travel, they had to be accompanied by a man and they had to be going to their destination. Because of this, women offered their labor so that they could get what they needed. They earned the money they needed by doing laundry or cooking, sometimes they even resorted to

Women in the Workforce Training Plan: Breaking
Words: 1937 Length: 6 Document Type: Essay

Women in the Workforce Training Plan: Breaking the Glass Ceiling at Intuit Intuit revolutionized the accounting industry with innovative applications that assist with financial analysis and tax preparation. Since 1983 Intuit has been a proud leader providing our most famous products: Quicken and TurboTax to a wide variety of customers from individuals to small businesses and corporations. We have prided ourselves on providing an excellent workplace that sparks creativity and builds long-term

Women's Roles in New England During Colonial America 1700-1780
Words: 1932 Length: 6 Document Type: Research Paper

Women's Roles In New England During Colonial America Today, women still have not seen an acceptable level of equality compared to their male counterparts. Yet, the struggle for women's rights have improved conditions for modern women tremendously when compared to the roles that the sex was limited to play during the colonial period. In Colonial America, women were often limited to purely caretakers, dealing only with domestic and child raising matters.

Woman's Role
Words: 1085 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Women have, for a long time, been expected to fulfill certain roles. These roles varied through the ages but have remained rooted in their main objective, to have women raise children and assist and serve their husbands (Vishwanathan, 1994, p. 34). Women are seen as the ones who stay home, tend the hearth, and raise the young while men are the ones that earn the money, own the property, and

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now