family history essay

In today’s society there are many gender roles, stigmatizations and gender ideals present. The society at large expects an individual to possess certain qualities and certain behaviours that go hand in hand with their gender. Rhonda Reddock argued in her article the study of feminism gave rise to the thought and beliefs of masculinity and the stereotypical view of men. Within the Caribbean there are many beliefs of what a man should be and what he should not, the way a man should behave and the certain qualities he should possess to be a man. My paper would shed insight on the role my father played in the household while growing up until today, the significance being a man has to him, the way cultural norms and values influence him up to today and also his view on the ideal home and family based on cultural and religious rules. This paper would explore the themes that are ideal to him which are; patriarchy, gender roles and male privileging. My father Sharmeel Mohammed grew up in an extended family with both his parents, one uncle, an aunt, a cousin and three siblings. He is presently fifty-one years of age and of East Indian decent. He spent the early years of his life in San Juan and later moved to Curepe along with his extended family. My grandfather grew everyone up according to the beliefs of Islam and the various teachings. My father began working part time at the age of twelve at a nearby gas station finishing school at form five. He began working at such an early age because of financial circumstances. He had to contribute to the household and financially support himself because he was the second eldest among the children, being the eldest boy. He opened his own mechanic shop at the age of seventeen and at the age of twenty three he married my mother Kim Mohammed, which is of Dutch and Portuguese decent. After one year of marriage my mother gave birth to my brother and seven years later she gave birth to me. My father became very successful throughout the years and he built himself up throughout the years. He now has his own home in Piarco where my brother, my dad and I live. My mother no longer lives here due to a downfall within the marriage. My father strongly believes in various cultural and religious norms even up to today. My father strongly believes in the patriarchal system and gender roles but not so much with male privileging. During his younger days, his father told him what is expected of a man. Up to today he believes that a man should be the head of the household at all times. The man should be dominant and the leader of the household. The men should go to work while the mother stays at home to take care of the family and the house. He strongly believes that when women work they become caught up with the outside activities and they often stray from their families. My father raised my brother just as my grandfather raised him. While growing up I would always see my brother doing the yard work while my mother and I would stay inside. His thinking of what a man should be is very strong and it would never ever change due to the culture he was brought up in. The way a person thinks deals mostly with their culture and the way they were brought up. While growing up I would hear my father saying that I need to stay in the kitchen with my mother whereas my brother would be in the yard doing chores. I always questioned that and he would say that is what women are expected to do. Every individual is expected to perform certain duties based on their gender. My father goes on to say that women are not suppose to be on the field playing football they should be learning to cook. Michael Kauffman believed that masculinity does not exist and it all relates to culture. I would not beg to differ because with the use of education it really makes me question some of the things I do and why I do them. I would say that education gave rise to many questions about the myths and value systems from back then. Kuffman believed that it all depends on how culture operates towards masculinity. The way masculinity is emphasized is dependent on culture and it will change from time to time. My father also went on to say that because of the lack of cultural norms and the lack of practices, it gave rise to the increase of homosexuals in today’s society. My father expressed his views on homosexuality and he strongly blames the lack of cultural norms and values. In many aspects of the world we see the male being dominant in many of the work places and the business. Why is this? Is it because of culture and the norms we were forced to adhere to? A woman lack many opportunities in her life because of male privileging. Male privileging can be described as the dominance of men and the preference they have in the various aspects of the society for example the political sector, the social sector and economic sector in comparison to women. Very often men gain these positions because they are ‘men’. Many women lack this opportunity even if they are very much qualified for the position. My father strongly disagrees with male privileging. He believes that once a person has the necessary qualifications, they should be granted the position rather than being based on gender. He goes on to say that the biological makeup is the only difference between men and women. Mark Figueroa stated in his article that because of the history of male privileging, this gave rise to the males overpowering the females. In many businesses they strongly believe that the business will not be as successful if a woman is head in comparison to a man being in charge. People often believe that there would be a great decrease in production and a great loss. Many people believe that if there is statistical evidence to prove that women can excel just as good as men there would be change in many aspects of society. In today’s society with the use of social media and education it often brings about many questions that we would ask ourselves. We would often question the things we do and why we do it this way. With the various articles and concepts, it opened many doors for me and the way I think about certain things. While interviewing my father to collect the necessary information, I see a big difference in the way he thinks in comparison to the way I think. I could really tell that because of culture it affected the way he thinks and the way he brought up his family. Thanks to the culture he was raised in and the upward mobility he strived for I am who I am today. It really brings question to whether or not we should stick with the cultural norms that were present or not. There are both advantages and disadvantages to this but depending on the situation and the data collected from various researches we can judge. For me I think that in order for us to become where we want to be we should forget about all the gender stereotypes and concepts we often use in everyday life.