tutorial
Gendered Bodies: Sports
In a sex/gender binary system, expectations of difference are played out in terms of gendered bodies. In a male dominated society, women’s bodies become ‘contested terrain’. It is important to utilize a macro level, social construction approach and conduct a GBA to consider the social, gendered construction of sports (as well as health & sexualities).
1. Is sport gendered? Is sport associated more with men/masculinity?
a. Importance of historical, cultural, class specificity when examining sports; awareness of women’s past participation in sports at certain times & places
Class affected women’s participation as well as geographic location. Example farm women were more athletic.
General rational for limiting women’s participation in sports is related to cult of true womanhood. Real women not supposed to be involved in aggressive play instead should look after family and be gental.
40s and 50s known as dark ages for women in sports maybe due to world war and post-world war when women pressured to have babies so not enough time for sports
TO DO:
Involvement in sport is another area, like waged work, where there are often assumptions that women only recently have started to participate and contribute. Find past examples of women who were athletes or involved in sports.
Check out Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity, and any other organizations that you can find that provide historical information about women’s athletic accomplishments.
What do you think is likely to be important in determining whether women were active in sport in the past?
b. Constructing sports as male/masculine: gender stereotypes and dominant ideology at the socio-cultural level9 Sports are institutions ware boys are encouraged to display their masculinity and a place where gender is policed by coaches and parents
In a sex/gender binary system, expectations of difference are played out in terms of gendered bodies. In a male dominated society, women’s bodies become ‘contested terrain’. It is important to utilize a macro level, social construction approach and conduct a GBA to consider the social, gendered construction of sports (as well as health & sexualities).
1. Is sport gendered? Is sport associated more with men/masculinity?
a. Importance of historical, cultural, class specificity when examining sports; awareness of women’s past participation in sports at certain times & places
Class affected women’s participation as well as geographic location. Example farm women were more athletic.
General rational for limiting women’s participation in sports is related to cult of true womanhood. Real women not supposed to be involved in aggressive play instead should look after family and be gental.
40s and 50s known as dark ages for women in sports maybe due to world war and post-world war when women pressured to have babies so not enough time for sports
TO DO:
Involvement in sport is another area, like waged work, where there are often assumptions that women only recently have started to participate and contribute. Find past examples of women who were athletes or involved in sports.
Check out Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity, and any other organizations that you can find that provide historical information about women’s athletic accomplishments.
What do you think is likely to be important in determining whether women were active in sport in the past?
b. Constructing sports as male/masculine: gender stereotypes and dominant ideology at the socio-cultural level9 Sports are institutions ware boys are encouraged to display their masculinity and a place where gender is policed by coaches and parents