GENDER SHAPES AND GETS SHAPED

                               GENDER SHAPES AND GETS SHAPED

BY PARI PANDEY

In how many ways, people do obvious things in their lives just because they are socially constructed and not on their own? In an evolving society, the differences between biological sex and identity have invoked significant discussions on notions of identity, equality, and freedom of choice.While sex provides for biological characteristics, gender governs roles, expectations, and behaviors that a particular culture and society assign to individuals. Such culturally prescribed roles that stem from stereotypes, prejudices, and customary norms often repress our yearning for selfhood. 

 Gender Norms: Culture-Shaped Expectations :-

• Gender norms reflect the social expectations for individuals in relation to their behavior, speech, and manner of dress based on how they appear to fit into a certain gender category. From a very young age, boys and girls are taught different values and expectations; girls are often encouraged to be caring and obedient, whereas boys are mainly given the idea to be assertive and independent. Such roles have an enormous, pervasive influence on life choices, career paths, and personal ambitions.

• In Indian society, for example, women are seldom encouraged to take up professions such as teaching or nursing-procedurally defined "feminine" professions. On the other hand, men are pushed toward areas like engineering, technology, and finance, influenced by cultural belief that men should act as providers. Whereas there still remains a long-standing way to go, the evolution and the emergence of women in all spheres streamline the thought of culture and habit in restricting both men and women from pursuing interests outside the scope of the prescribed gender expectations.

Stereotypes and Prejudices : Reinforcing Gender Boundaries :-

• Stereotypes are oversimplified beliefs that mark a group, and gender stereotypes impose certain characteristics on men and women due to generalized biases. On the other hand, prejudices are unfavorable judgments that stem from these stereotypes and typically lead to unjust treatment. Gender stereotypes place unmanageable expectations on women and men, thus making people predictable, and promoting discrimination.

Here are some real life illustrations :- 

• BOLLYWOOD, has a perpetual narrative of self-sacrificing and family-oriented, as exemplified by the majority of female roles in movies being limited to these two characteristics. Some of the films depicting such scenarios are Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gam and Hum Saath-Saath Hain. Bollywood slightly broke the ice with some movies like Pink and Thappad  addressing issues of consent and domestic violence, nevertheless, the stereotypes remain seamlessly ingrained.

• HOLLYWOOD has also had its contribution to the stereotype creations. However, women's films from the early 2000s were often a reflection of the time where they were stuck in romantic relationships, such as Legally Blonde and The Notebook. Recently, Hollywood has been making an effort to portray women as superheroes, with films such as Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel. Nevertheless, we still find elements of stereotypes in many of its movies.

Gender Roles in Family Laws: Legal Reinforcement of Stereotypes :-

Family laws in India that govern marriages, inheritances, and custody matters, in fact, are the testimony to old gender inequalities. India has introduced many such laws despite them, we observe restrictions on women's liberties due to multiple patriarchy-centered narratives today. For example, The Hindu Succession Act that was amended in 2005 to offer girls similar home ownership rights as sons but still, many families are scaring their girls into disinvesting their shares in favor of the male heirs. This is evident in the case of an inclination towards male babies, which is often associated with the idea that only sons can continue the family name and take care of the parents in their old age.In the same way, Indian divorce and custody laws favor women as the attentiveness about their children over their husbands. While intended to protect women and children from neglect, this can be stultifying and foster an assumption that women should be the primary care providers, hence discouraging men from taking up nurturing roles even where it might be appropriate or necessary to them. In contrast, in Sweden and other gender-neutral family law countries, there is a growing tendency toward encouraging shared parental responsibilities and authority and equal parenting, undercutting traditional roles and providing the necessary ground for applying equality under law.

Media’s Role in Shaping Gender Norms : Films and Cartoons :-

• The media, particularly Bollywood and Hollywood, play a particularly powerful role in shaping public perceptions regarding gender roles. In Bollywood, women are usually portrayed as dutiful wives or loving mothers attached to male characters. Their male counterparts are depicted as strong, heroic persons in their own right, as can be seen in movies like Sholay or Kabir Singh. Though newer productions like Queen and Raazi delve deeper into more complex portrayals of women, even so, Bollywood tends to thoughtfully portray men and women in a very selective manner nowadays.

• Indian cartoons also play their part in the consolidation of these norms. Shows like Chhota Bheem seem to exalt heroic male characters, while the female characters, such as Chutki, have fewer impactful moments and serve the main character instead of doing something themselves. This subtly reinforces the view that men should lead and women should follow, thus embedding the basis of gender roles deep into the psyche of the young audiences. Although the newer cartoons are beginning to portray female characters in other empowerment roles, there is still a tendency to view male characters as dominant and action-oriented.

• Both Bollywood and Hollywood have been slow to shed traditional gender norms embedded in films. HOWEVER, in the 21st century, films like Hidden Figures, about three Black women scientists at NASA, or the global hit The Hunger Games, featuring a strong female protagonist, have inspired a resurgence of feminist values. That said, our films still mostly perpetuate rather than overcome ingrained cultural biases about gender, and have a large influence on setting cultural norms about gender.

 The Implications of Gender Norms on Equality and Opportunity :-

Not only do gender norms and stereotypes limit equality and opportunity, they can also be a significant hindrance for opportunities for men and non-binary individuals. For Instance, women working on Wall Street often hit a "glass ceiling” due to stereotypes that they are not as competent as men in math and finance. In some Indian households and communities, men who choose nursing or teaching as occupations receive judgment due to the belief that these occupations are not masculine, limiting one's choices based on their sex. The situation is similar for members of the LGBT community, as many do not conform to expectations of sexual and gender identity established by culture and religion. According to UNESCO, women in India make up only 14% of the STEM workforce, as only boys are encouraged to excel in science, technology, and mathematics. Conversely, forces of the patriarchy affect men and women in often unintended ways. It's a fact that Toxic Masculinity in popular culture legitimizes demeaning the femininity of men and boys not fitting the Cisgender Heteronormative Narrative ((  It’s the assumption that being cisgender (identifying with the gender assigned at birth) and heterosexual (attracted to the opposite gender) is the "normal" or default way of being.)) Women face biases at work, especially in fields dominated by men, and often hit a glass ceiling at companies like Goldman Sachs. In India, women face this in nearly all industries, from computer programming to Bollywood. 

Gender Beyond The Binary : Recognising Non Binary and Transgender Identities :-

The world over is coming to terms with non-binary identities that defy the traditional binary male-female outlook regarding gender. There have been legal reforms in Canada, Germany, and Australia, where non-binary identification in legal documents and institutional records is being acknowledged. Forces of the patriarchy also affect trans and non-binary people, and Hijras of India are not immune from effects of the toxic mix of patriarchy, cisnormativity, and caste practices.Such transformations signal a progressive shift towards greater inclusivity surrounding gender identity.

Breaking-free: Towards An Inclusive Future :- 

Confined gender expectations limit the potential of individuals, thus perpetuating inequality. Dismantling these roles thus requires both legislative changes as well as cultural shifts in societal perceptions of gender roles. It is crucial to reshape this perception through movements for gender equality, representation by the media, and emblematic workplace inclusiveness to enable people to identify and define themselves without restriction.The one thing we ought to change is an image of breaking stereotypes so as to provide choice for everybody, irrespective of gender. “Mujhe states ke naam na sunai dete hain, na dikhai dete hain... sirf ek mulk ka naam sunai deta hai—I-N-D-I-A.” As in the above quote, so to gender, we must not see a limitation of gender; only the potential of the individual.

REFERENCES

1.  "Bollywood's Gendered Stereotypes," Economic and Political Weekly, 2019.

2. "Gender and Family Law in India," Journal of Indian Law and Society, 2018.

3. "Media Representation of Gender," International Journal of Media and Cultural Politics, 2020

4. Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, India, 2019.

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