West And Zimmerman Essay

Throughout the article, West and Zimmerman discuss various different aspects of gender by addressing stereotypes and questions that are commonly discussed. For instance, West and Zimmerman address the topics of a “situated doing” and gender being more than a set role. Not only, but the article takes the case study of Agnes and further discusses it. In the beginning of article, West and Zimmerman further discuss the topic of “situated doing”. Both Zimmerman and West believe that the way gender is viewed as has developed over time. Instead of viewing gender with one’s innate qualities, it has become common for society to view gender through the human interaction. For instance, society has started to create connection between a gender and an action. Zimmerman and West label this action of society has “situated doing” because society is looking at the social interactions of people and placing them under a category of gender. Along with discussing “situated doing”, Zimmerman and West also discuss different terms that are used to describe gender. The terms that are discussed in the article are sex, sex category and gender. Sex is used to gender through one’s biological
There are various stereotypical roles that are connected to a gender. For instance, a female is connected to the role of being a nurse, whereas the male is connected to the role of being a doctor. However, Zimmerman and West deny this idea of gender having a “set role”. Roles are typically situated identities, meaning the function of one in a situation. By limiting one to a “set role” is setting them back from prospering further. Genders do not have set roles because by having one, it is indicating that a gender has fixed traits and personality, which it does not. Therefore, gender is more than a “set role” because it is based on one’s situational interactions in society, not a group of fixed traits or