It causes females to compromise their health by taking up very restrictive diets to be model thin (which could lead to other psychological health issues, such as anorexia or bulimia). Being overweight (which in many cases is one of the only measures applied to determine healthiness) is thought by many women to be a case of "eating too much food and/or not doing enough exercise" (p. 711).
Males face similar problems to females, but in a different way. If a man is not active and physically fit, he is not "healthy." hile he does not have to have the restrictive diet of a female, he is still judged on his moral character by his level of health. Non-conforming signals that he is lazy and does not care about himself as much as someone who does conform. Being healthy is part of a conforming male's identity because it is synonymous with…...

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Works Cited

Adams, N., Schmitke, a., & Franklin, a. (2005). Tomboys, dykes, and girly girls: Interrogating the subjectivities of adolecent female athletes. Women's Studies Quarterly, 33(1&2), 19-35.

Azzarito, L. & Solmon, M. (2008). An investigation of students' embodied discourses in physical education: A gender project. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 28, 173-191.

Frost, L. (2003). Doing bodies differently? Gender, youth, appearance and damage. Journal of Youth Studies, 6(1), 53-70.

Gard, M. (2008). When a boy's gotta dance: New masculinities, old pleasures. Sport, Education and Society, 13(2), 181-193.

These stereotypes are communicated to a higher number of people, and because it is the perceived correct manifestation of womanhood and manhood, people will just start embodying these characteristics in their lives. Thus, women who believe they are expected by society to act submissive and domesticated would behave the same way to be socially accepted. However, a woman who does not believe in these stereotypes might not be empowered to uphold her true feminine characteristics because her actions, behavior, and beliefs are negated by the highly influential popular/mass media.
Another concept relevant to the discussion of sexuality is heteronormativity, which characterizes heterosexuality as the "natural" gender identity (Weiss, 2001:132). Heteronormativity divides the gender identity spectrum into the 'normal' and 'not normal' sexual orientations: individuals who sexually prefer the opposite sex are considered normative, otherwise the individual does not have the normal sexual preference (not normal in terms of sexual orientation).…...

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References

Brannon, L. (2005). Gender: Psychological Perspectives. NY: Pearson.

Weiss, J. (2001). "The gender caste system: identity, privacy, and heteronormativity." Law & Sexuality, Vol. 10.

Men's Fashion
In his book Culture and Everyday Life, Andy Bennett provides a definition of fashion that highlights the fact that fashion has a particular utilitarian function wholly apart from that of clothing, and though a simple observation, this fact forces one to reconsider how men's fashion has been regarded for at least the last eighty years. In his book, Bennett writes that "fashion provides one of the most ready means through which individuals can make expressive visual statements about their identities," a claim most people would readily agree with (Bennett 2000, p. 96). However, this claim has not been taken to its logical conclusion in the many major academic texts regarding fashion, and particularly men's fashion, due to the erroneous belief that at some point in the nineteenth century, men "renounced" fashion, deeming it feminine and thus outside the sphere of male activity. In reality, the so-called "Great Masculine enunciation"…...

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References

Barker, C. (2008), Cultural Studies: Theory and Practice, SAGE, New York.

Bennett, A. (2005), Culture and Everyday Life, SAGE, New York.

Bourdieu, P. (1984), Distinction, Routledge, New York.

Bourke, J. (1996), "The Great Male Renunciation: Men's Dress Reform in Inter-War Britain,"

Constructions of 'the nice girl' -- teenage female sexual definition and identity in Seventeenth Summer and Forever
"Sybil Davidson," begins Judy Blume's classic novel of teen sexuality, specifically teen feminine sexuality, entitled Forever, "has a genius I.Q. And has been laid by at least six different guys." (Blume, 9) The implications are obvious -- Sybil is equally brilliant and beautiful. Sybil is sexually precocious and yet mature in mind as well in body -- and bodily experience, at least according to the teenage rumor mill. Regardless, this assertion shows how in Blume's world, the antiquated associations of brains and chastity, of sexual openness and being a loose, bad girl, are being challenged in a confronting fashion by the narrator Catherine's less experienced, yet still-authoritative voice. The narrator seems to want to assure the reader that although she may not have been "laid by at least six different guys," like the fabled…...

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Work Cited

Blume, Judy. Forever. New York; Pocket, 1989.

Daly Maureen. Seventeenth Summer. New York: Archway Paperback, 1942.

Perkins gives us the reason one must never go back: sanity. These characters have issues in their lives but they certainly cannot sit still and wait for things to happen around them. The power of femininity did not advance because women remained timid; it gained momentum because women realized they were separate individuals capable of living full lives without the domineering presence of men. At the same time, they understood the importance of relationships and what they bring to life. They know both can exist without one overpowering the other. hile this does not sound like much of a revelation in today's world, it was a remarkable revelation around one hundred years ago when women were expected to be happy being mothers and wives.
orks Cited

Allen, Brooke. "The accomplishment of Edith harton." New Criterion, Sept 2001. Gale

Resource Database. Site Accessed April 13, 2011.

Chopin, Kate. "Regreat." American Literature Online. Site…...

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Works Cited

Allen, Brooke. "The accomplishment of Edith Wharton." New Criterion, Sept 2001. Gale

Resource Database. Site Accessed April 13, 2011.

Chopin, Kate. "Regreat." American Literature Online. Site Accessed April 13, 2011.

 http://www.americanliterature.com/SS/SS11.htmL

Portrayal of Gothic Femininities in "The Monk"
Written by Matthew Gregory Lewis in 1796, "The Monk" is a classic novel that is from Gothic literature. Female figures are used as symbols in many parts of the story, and the idea "gothic femininity" can be seen several times throughout the story. The setting fits with the Gothic theme as the story's beginning takes place in a mysterious church in Madrid, and the two main characters are both women. Leonella and her niece Antonia have come to the church to hear a great priest named Ambrosio speak, and what follows becomes both a romance and a tragedy. While waiting for Ambrosio to speak the two women tell their stories to a pair of men, Don Lorenzo and Don Christoval, and this conversation starts a chain of reactions that changes many lives. Lorenzo falls in love with Antonia, but she desires the priest Ambrosia,…...

Communication -- Gender and Communication
The parameters of gender have undergone a dramatic expansion through the efforts of Science and enlightened feminists such as Nancy Mairs. Their contributions allow a multitude of genders and new definitions that account for the richness of human sexuality. As a result, femininity can be defined in the broadest and richest terms as a set of psychological traits unconstrained by classically masculine and feminine boundaries.

"Femininity" is best defined as sensitivity and awareness, a firm set of psychological traits that is not reflected in behavior. Actions are not masculine or feminine, but approaches to them are masculine or feminine. The classically oppressive confinement of "normal" gender to male and female is no longer viable, for humanity exists in a far greater array of sexual characteristics than genitals can distinguish or dictate. Anne Fausto-Sterling offers many examples of Science's growing acceptance of broad gender range, reaching back to…...

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Works Cited

Fausto-Sterling, A. (2000). The five sexes: Why male and female are not enough. Retrieved on February 19, 2013 from www.uta.edu Web site:  http://www.uta.edu/english/timothyr/Fausto-Sterling.pdf 

Mairs, N. (1986). Plaintext essays by Nancy Mairs. Tucson, AZ: University of Airzona Press.

Gender
Masculinity & Femininity

Femininities and masculinities dictate more behavioral expectations for us in society. After reading through/watching the material for this week, comment on what you view as the state of masculinity/femininity discourses. How are these discourses useful? Can masculinity/femininity be a positive thing? Or should they always be critiqued for their reinforcement of strict gendered expectations? Explain.

It is always helpful to critique any social norms, especially those as pervasive and rigid as gender norms. Critiquing gender norms helps to increase media literacy, pierce through stereotypes, and hopefully also overcome structural inequities. As Allan points out in "Hazing and Gender," "gender norms are typically cast in ways that privilege masculinity over femininity." Masculinity is normalized, made the hidden and assumed default condition of humanity. The same conditions that cause white privilege to be a potent social and psychological reality are those that cause male privilege to be a genuine explanation for…...

" Otherwise, Nora's interest in who is employed at the bank -- Krogstad or Mrs. Lind -- would wholly ruin Torvald's carefully constructed social reality. This, essentially, is the only way in which a woman playing the feminine role is able to bend the rules; Nora can exert her influence, but only by emphasizing her helplessness.
Throughout A Doll's House there is an interesting relationship between parents and their children. Recurrently, we are told that both Nora and Torvald believe that a vast number of traits can be passed down to children through their parents. Foremost among these traits are those dealing with money. Torvald suggests that Nora's capacity as a spendthrift comes from her father: "Still, one must take you as you are. It is in the blood; for indeed it is true that you can inherit these things, Nora." (Ibsen, 4). Yet overall, the characteristics that Nora and Torvald…...

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Works Cited

1. Ibsen, Henrik. A Doll's House. New York: Dover Publications, 1992.

Gender
When Unraveling Is the Best Approach

Everything is connected. Pull one thread as gently as possible in any attempt to explain the fundamentals of any society and this is abundantly clear, for in trying to unravel any of the important concepts or practices upon which society and culture are built and one finds that everything else begins to unravel as well. While "unraveling" might initially seem to be something that one would not want to do, in fact in terms of sociological analysis it is highly advisable. Especially when one is attempting to understand one's own culture, where familiarity with structures and norms can sometimes make it difficult to see clearly, one has often to take things apart in order to understand the dynamics of how the social world works.

Not only is everything connected to everything else, but analyzing one part of a system tends to cause changes in the rest…...

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References

Consalvo, M. (2003). "The monsters next door: Media constructions of boys and masculinity." Feminist media studies 3(1): 153-168.

Connell, R.W. & Messerschmidt, J.W. (2005, December). "Hegemonic masculinity: Rethinking the concept." Gender and society 19(6): 829-859.

Dyer, R. (1992) Only entertainment. London: Routledge.

Easthope, A. (1990) What a man's gotta do: The masculine myth in popular culture. Boston: Unwin Hyman.

omen, Men and Environment
hile we might like to believe that we are each the masters of our own fate, in fact the environment plays an important role in shaping who we become. Guthrie makes this point in The Big Sky, for Boone, Summers and Teal Eye are all more the product of their environment than they are the creators of the world around them. Guthrie suggests that this being-shaped-by rather than shaping-of the environment is especially strong in the est, but he also at least suggests that the environment is a potent force in shaping the lives of people everywhere.

It has become fashionable in recent years to scoff at the myth of the est and to replace this myth with history. This is in large measure what Guthrie has set out to do. He is intent on telling a real story about a real place, and in particular in telling…...

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Works Cited

Guthrie, A.B. The Big Sky. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2002.  http://www.literature.org/authors/bronte-charlotte/jane-eyre 

Schlissel, Lillian. Women's Diaries of the Westward Journey. New York: Schocken, 1992.

Even during the golden years of the beauty contest between the wars there were unresolved problems with the nature and purpose of such competitions:
There remained elements of discomfort and tension, only superficially palliated by the scientific discourse, patriotic rhetoric and philanthropic gestures of the contest's organisers. These tensions would be released again in the 1970s when a new generation of feminists added discrimination on the grounds of race and disability, together with a more unequivocal rejection of standardised and homogenised ideals of the body and beauty, to the critique of their forebears.

Yet this phenomenon can be seen as consistent with the change in the status of the beauty contest, from a celebration of values that were of universal appeal (even reflecting ideals of national identity) to a tawdry matter of selling sex. y the 1980s and 1990s such contests were experiencing a decline in entrants, with young women no…...

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Bibliography

Sarah Banet-Weiser, the Most Beautiful Girl in the World: Beauty Pageants and National Identity, Berkeley, University of California Press, 1999

Colleen Ballerino Cohen, Richard Wilk and Beverly Stoeltje (eds), Beauty Queens on the Global Stage: Gender, Contests and Power, New York and London, Routledge, 1997. Useful collection of essays with a global perspective.

Lois W. Banner, American Beauty (New York: Knopf, 1983). A detailed study of the history of the Miss America contest.

Liz Conor, 'Beauty contestant in the photographic scene', Journal of Australian Studies, no 71, (2001). Interesting points on the importance of modern communication/reproduction technologies in 1920s beauty contests.

" The rest of the poem deals with the seeming artificiality of life in light of the spiritual death that led man out of the Garden and into the world of Nature to begin with.
4) How does "To His Coy Mistress" compare to Herrick's "Upon Julia's Clothes"? What theme(s) and images do the two poems share? How is the treatment of women similar? Both of these poems use contrast to show the true beauty of the subject -- or at least to convince the subject that the speaker sees such beauty. They both share images of men (in both instances the speaker) being fascinated to the point of distraction by women (the subject of Herrick's and addressee of Marvell's). The hyperbole employed by both poets serves to hyper-objectify women.

5) What is the lesson of "The Garden"? How is this lesson a matter of ethics or morality? The lesson of "The…...

Based on those responses, the BSRI assigns a characterization of either "sex- typed" or "androgynous" depending on how much subjects identify only with adjectives considered desirable of their gender or with desirable traits of both genders, respectively.

The PAQ uses similar methodology to generate results that link identification with adjectives considered desirable in both genders with high self-esteem in subjects of either gender.

Generally, both instruments have been criticized because it is virtually impossible to ignore the influence of social learning on the degree to which individuals identify with gender-specific attributes. In effect, a diagnostic questionnaire may answer little else besides the identification of particular attributes associated positively with masculinity or femininity in the social culture in which subjects were socialized. More specifically, the PAQ has been criticized for equating identification with desirable male attributes with high self-esteem in "androgynous" females without considering the greater degree to which society reinforces self-esteem in…...

If not inherently in the acts of sexuality themselves, often in the exhibited sense of entitlement and dominance, male sexuality is prone toward the undermining of femininity in favor of the satisfaction of male desire. In a great many of its incarnations, Jensen argues, pornography facilitates this orientation. Jensen asserts that as a consequence of the "patriarchal system in which we live, a key site of men's oppression of women -- a key method of control and domination -- is sexuality." (Jensen, p. 48) in other words, because our society is so notably tilted to favor the empowerment of men and the sublimation of female desires, sexual intercourse will frequently function as an extension of this imbalance of power. And as Jensen ultimately argues, the act of using pornography to arouse one's self is tantamount to reducing femininity and women to mere objects for the satisfaction of male sexual…...

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Works Cited:

Jensen, R. (2007). Getting Off: Pornography and the End of Masculinity. South End Press.

Renzetti, C.M.; Curran, D.J. & Maier, S.L. (2012). Women, Men & Society. Allyn & Bacon.

1. The role of power dynamics in sexual violence: How do issues of power and control contribute to acts of sexual violence?

2. The intersectionality of sexual violence: How do factors such as race, gender, sexuality, and socioeconomic status intersect to shape experiences of sexual violence?

3. The impact of rape culture on attitudes towards sexual violence: How does the normalization of sexual violence in society contribute to victim blaming and perpetuate rape culture?

4. Addressing the stigma and shame surrounding sexual violence: How can we work to destigmatize survivors' experiences and create a supportive and understanding environment for them to come forward?

5.....

Essay Topic 1: The Intersectional Challenges of Womanhood

Introduction:
Explore the complex intersectionality of womanhood, examining how race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and other factors shape the experiences and challenges faced by women.

Body Paragraph 1:
Discuss the historical and systemic barriers women have encountered in education, employment, and political representation. Analyze how these barriers have disproportionately impacted women of color, LGBTQ+ women, and women from marginalized communities.

Body Paragraph 2:
Examine the unique challenges women face in the workplace, including wage disparities, occupational segregation, and workplace discrimination. Discuss the gender stereotypes and biases that perpetuate these inequalities.

Body Paragraph 3:
Explore the intersectionality of gender and race, highlighting....

Historical Perspectives:

The Evolution of Gender Roles Throughout History: Examining the Shifting Expectations and Norms
Gender Roles in Ancient Civilizations: A Comparative Analysis of Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Greece
The Impact of Industrialization on Gender Roles: The Rise of the Patriarchal Family and the Marginalization of Women

Theoretical Approaches:

Feminist Perspectives on Gender Roles: Analyzing Power Dynamics, Oppression, and the Construction of Masculinity and Femininity
Gender Performativity and Judith Butler: The Subversive and Fluid Nature of Gender Categories
The Social Construction of Gender: How Society Shapes and Reinforces Gender Norms

Social and Psychological Implications:

The Psychological Effects of Gender Stereotypes: Examining the Impact....

Here are a few brainstorming ideas for a unique Romeo and Juliet thesis statement:

1. The tragic love story of Romeo and Juliet serves as a cautionary tale about the destructive power of feuding families and the consequences of uncompromising pride.

2. Through the characters of Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare explores the complexities of youthful love, highlighting the impulsive and reckless nature of passion.

3. The juxtaposition of light and dark imagery in Romeo and Juliet symbolizes the contrasting forces of love and hate, showing how love can ultimately triumph over hate.

4. Shakespeare uses the theme of fate in Romeo and Juliet to....