Cultural Gender Roles
1. Sex is the biological aspect of being female, male, or other. Usually sex is assigned at birth based on external genitalia. For example, when a baby is born as a male, then it is a male. Gender is the sociocultural construct of masculine and feminine roles and the qualities assigned to these roles. For example, gender role is the tasks and behaviors assigned by a culture to each sex. 2. Sexual dimorphism refers to the biological differences between males and females. Some examples of this include difference in morphology, size, and behavior. 3. Sexual attractiveness varies across cultures. Kissing for example, it is a behavior popular in the Western societies, where televisions and media show that it is ideal for erotic sex play.
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One example of factors that affect gender roles across culture is kinship. Kinship rules of descent and their associated residence patterns affect gender as it is perceived and constructed by a society. For instance, in a Chinese society, males enjoy higher status than females, who only serve to produce sons. When a Chinese girl marries, she leaves her parents’ household and she become strong only in relationship to how many sons she bears. Another example of factors that affect gender roles across culture is economic resources. For instance, “female husbands” among the Nandi of Africa can illustrate how African societies have integrated gender roles to accommodate special circumstances within the culture. Nandi practice patrilineal descent; and wealth, primarily in the form of cattle and land, is inherited through the male line. The marriages of woman to woman, where one of the women takes role of a husband, allow a woman without male heirs of transmit …show more content…
In a tribe society, their form of leadership is gained through the persuasive power. Tribes often have more than one leader, headmen and big men; they do not have a single leader with authority. To become a leader, individuals persuade others to follow them, very similar to how we elect our president today. In a chiefdom society, it is based on a hereditary office of chief, most commonly hereditary, social ranking, and a redistributive economy. This means that the head of the office is the one who has the authority. Often, it is believed that the person at top has direct connection to the supernatural and therefore it is
One example of factors that affect gender roles across culture is kinship. Kinship rules of descent and their associated residence patterns affect gender as it is perceived and constructed by a society. For instance, in a Chinese society, males enjoy higher status than females, who only serve to produce sons. When a Chinese girl marries, she leaves her parents’ household and she become strong only in relationship to how many sons she bears. Another example of factors that affect gender roles across culture is economic resources. For instance, “female husbands” among the Nandi of Africa can illustrate how African societies have integrated gender roles to accommodate special circumstances within the culture. Nandi practice patrilineal descent; and wealth, primarily in the form of cattle and land, is inherited through the male line. The marriages of woman to woman, where one of the women takes role of a husband, allow a woman without male heirs of transmit …show more content…
In a tribe society, their form of leadership is gained through the persuasive power. Tribes often have more than one leader, headmen and big men; they do not have a single leader with authority. To become a leader, individuals persuade others to follow them, very similar to how we elect our president today. In a chiefdom society, it is based on a hereditary office of chief, most commonly hereditary, social ranking, and a redistributive economy. This means that the head of the office is the one who has the authority. Often, it is believed that the person at top has direct connection to the supernatural and therefore it is