Southern Women Research Paper

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Gender roles are defined as a socially determined set of expected behaviors, attitudes, and characteristics based on the idea of how males and females should act. Even though these are socially constructed rules, they are ingrained into our society. Many examples of gender roles are prominent in today’s society, and many go unnoticed. One example, according to Laura Payne, “Traditionally masculine occupations include those in engineering and medicine, as well as jobs requiring high levels of technical skill or physical strength. Traditionally feminine occupations include teaching and secretarial work, as well as caregiving professions like nannying and nursing.” Males are traditionally seen to be able to do physically and mentally demanding …show more content…
This stereotype is called the “southern lady” or “southern belle”. In their book The Companion to Southern Literature, Joseph Flora and Lucinda MacKethan describe the expectations of the southern lady: “Ideally a patrician, privileged white woman, she served her husband, bending to him in all matters; she was maternal, bearing children regularly and caring for them lovingly; she possessed great skill in the domestic sphere, running kitchen and nursery, overseeing the household in all areas, dispensing medicine, always hospitable...An expert with the needle, she could also play a musical instrument and sing melodies for She was essential to the patriarchy, assuring well-brought-up children, a well-run home, and complete comfort for her husband.” This description objectifies women in the South and holds them up to a standard where they must be skilled at nearly everything, which is impossible and unrealistic. Furthermore, this quotation promotes the idea that the woman’s job is to serve the man, contributing to the established patriarchy in the US, as well as all around the …show more content…
Unfortunately, there are many examples of sexism in our society today that affect women, both through systemic sexism and microaggressions. In her article, “Sexism”, by Gina Masequesmay, "A society in which misogyny is prevalent has high rates of brutality against women, in the forms of domestic violence, rape, and the commodification of women and their bodies. Where they are seen as property or as second-class citizens, women are often mistreated at the individual as well as the institutional level. For example, a woman who is a victim of rape (the individual or personal level) might be told by a judge and jury (the institutional level) that she was culpable because of the way she was dressed." Women are often blamed for things that they cannot control, as shown in this article. This shows how individual behaviors, like rape, intersect with systemic responses, at the institutional level, thus encouraging misogynistic behaviors. These injustices in our society are prevalent and deeply ingrained, so it will take years to decode our minds from the societal norms that have always been in place. Sexism is impactful on a global level, but it is also impactful on an individual level. Everyday sexism deeply impacts women and can lead to worse physical and mental health, even though it may go unnoticed by bystanders. Beatrice Alba, a researcher at the Australian Research Centre
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