"Lesbians and gay men have always existed in every historical period and across all cultures."Discuss, with particular reference to the relationship between category labels

"Lesbians and gay men have always existed in every historical period and across all cultures." Discuss, with particular reference to the relationship between category labels (or 'identities') and behaviours. Nowadays, when you look up in most of the dictionaries, you can find that the definition for "heterosexuality" is sexual orientation to and sexual activity with someone of the opposite sex, which means that heterosexual person are feeling sexually attracted to people of a different sex. And the meaning for "homosexuality" is sexual orientation to and sexual activity with someone of the same sex, which means that homosexual person are sexually attracted only to people of the same sex. "[A]lthough sex was the root of the matter... it was as likely to be expressed in drinking together, in flirting and gossip and in a circle of friends as in actual liaisons" (Bray, 1988: 84), do these terms simply direct to the behaviours of sexual orientation (love-making) or merely close relationships (consummate love with intimacy, commitment and passion) between couples? Or may be both? And for what we understand now, lesbians and gay men are homosexuals. But do lesbians and gay men have always existed? Probably yes by the definitions written above. However, the behaviour of love-making was not identified as neither heterosexual nor homosexual in the past. These terms was not given until

  • Word count: 1667
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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"Constructions of the Self" An exposition of Butler's work within Gender Trouble, with emphasis being placed upon her critique of Lacan & Foucault.

This is a term paper I wrote during the final year of my BA, for a course entitled "Constructions of the Self". It basically gives an exposition of Butler's work within Gender Trouble, with emphasis being placed upon her critique of Lacan & Foucault. "Girls who like boys like their girls like their boys, and boys who like girls like their girls to be boys, like their boys like their girls?-oh well it always should be someone you really love! ". ( Blur, Boys and Girls. 1994 ). To Judith Butler the word "trouble" appears to signify that which has the capacity to disrupt the accepted realities of the self ; in terms of how discourse works through concepts such as "sex", "gender" and "identity". Within her work Butler thus aims to assess/ criticise numerous key writers within Cultural Theory, in order to demonstrate how these formulations are ultimately based upon the sustained deployment of the Heterosexual Matrix. i.e. The discursive/ regulatory forces which attempt to construct identity in relation to the concept of compulsory hetero sexual desire. To Butler this "belief", rests upon the Traditional assumption, that there exist two distinct sexes; which in turn, manifest themselves as two stable gender categories, viz. "masculinity"/ "femininity". Following a genealogical analysis, Butler therefore aims to explore the implicit effects which stem from the power

  • Word count: 3358
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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The problems gone through by Professor Anderson in Trailblazing. The story presented went almost exactly how it was expected to go, it followed all theories on the subject and most of the people responded to his coming out of the closet

The ignorance of some people is amazing, truly astonishing at times; and not just of people you don't know. Your friends, your family, people you have known all your life can act in a way you never thought possible when confronted with something outside of their safety zone, something 'taboo', something that they've never actually sat down and thought about and was always silently taught was wrong; such as homosexuality. Someone you know all your life could pull a surprise turnaround when the topic of homosexuality comes up, especially when it's in relation to their children, which is exactly the problems gone through by Professor Anderson in Trailblazing. The story presented went almost exactly how it was expected to go, it followed all theories on the subject and most of the people responded to his coming out of the closet as stereotypically as possible; almost as if their responses had been scripted. It's no surprise that so many people acted they way they did when confronted with Professor Anderson coming out of the closet, he was seen as a challenge to an institution that had remained unchanged for many years. Professor Anderson's principal, who was initially very supportive, quickly turned on Anderson and seemed to be trying to get him fired at every possible opportunity. He must have been receiving daily complains from parents who could possibly tolerate the fact

  • Word count: 1648
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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Discuss the representation of women in the media. Do you think women are accurately represented in the media? How are women represented in the media and what impact does that have on how men view women and how women view themselves?

Mass media is a form of communication that addresses large and diverse audiences that are physically separated from one and another. The media itself is a powerful and pervasive mode of communication and in today's society it not only shapes people's perception of gender but also reinforces the gender sex roles of society. In this essay the term media refers to television, films, magazines, books and newspapers. In order to assess the question above one needs to understand the functions of media. Sociologist Charles Wright states that the first function of media is that it gathers and disseminates information. Media is "the watchdog of a free society" as it provides receivers with news that is instrumental for their survival. The media's second function is that it analyzes and evaluates information for the receiver. Media commentators are in a position to offer their opinions on societal problems and this can influence the receiver's perception of certain issues. The third function of media is that it educates or socializes its audience. Receivers observe the behavior of characters in the media and then internalize these behaviors as norms. The final function of media is that it entertains. It allows an avenue for people to escape the defined world of reality and enter a dream world that provides enjoyment and gratification. With these functions in mind, one can say that the

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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Changing Gender Roles in HK & USA

Introduction: The important norms of life divide the people in different categories and groups depending upon the race, religion and age. There is another category that is most of the times simply irresistible to be forgotten which is the gender division. It is the just the instant reflex that makes the males and females to observe the difference during any kind of confrontation. As these issues stand by Sociology plays an important role in describing how the gender roles are devised and how they change as the time passes by. More or less the difference lies in the beliefs of the society including interpretation of different situations and the stereotyping that leads to certain conclusion at times (Wallace & Alison, 1995). Gender Roles: Social learning theory works for the socialization. Social learning theory is described as the process in which a person from its birth learns different aspects of life including behaviors and responses to the behaviors as he sees (Giddens et al, 2007). Socialization is therefore a process in which the person learns how customs, environment and laws work in society. Gender socialization is the focused form of socialization and allows the grooming of different sexes into individuals and how they are supposed to play their roles according to their genders in the society. Defining of the gender roles is an important in how the society works.

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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How and why is there a gendered division of labour?

How and why is there a gendered division of labour? Gender is the psychological, social and cultural differences between males and females. Obvious or not, there is a gendered division of labour in society today. In this essay I aim to find a reason for this gendered division and also examples of it. Different approaches to the question in hand will be considered to remove any preconceived notions. Two main approaches to the argument will be the functionalist approach and the feminist approach. The functionalist perspective often sees society as kind of an arrangement of interlinked parts whereas the feminist perspective will dwell on what has caused this division based on events. Within these two approaches I will assess not only the gendered division of labour in the labour market but also in households. The functionalist claims gender has been socially constructed into the two different traits, masculine and feminine. Examples of masculine traits include independency, intelligence and competence, strong and brave. Some of their female traits include dependency, unintelligence and incompetence, weak and timid. The functionalist derives a system like this as they feel that the division of men and women is biologically based and men and women work efficiently in separate roles. This can be justified by saying that biological differences provide a mean of differentiating

  • Word count: 1675
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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How can gender be thought of as performative and regulatory category

How can gender be thought of as performative and regulatory category. Gender is often confused with sex. However, sex generally refers to biology and anatomy. People are said to be of the male sex or the female sex, as determined by three sets of characteristics: external sex organs, internal sex organs, and secondary sexual development at puberty. The word sex is also used to mean sexual intercourse or activity. By contrast, gender refers to a set of qualities and behaviours expected from a female or male by society. Gender roles are learned and can be affected by factors such as education or economics. They vary widely within and among cultures. While an individual's sex does not change, gender roles are socially determined and can evolve over time. Many people believe that gender is a vital criteria of identity. Butler argues that there is no sex only gender and the fact that gender is performative. In other words, gender is an act, a performance, a set of manipulated codes, costumes, rather than a core aspect of essential identity. Butler's main metaphor for this is "drag," i.e. dressing like a person of the "opposite sex." All gender is a form of "drag," according to Butler; there is no "real" core gender to refer to. (Butler 1993) Butler believes that masculinity and femininity are not traits that we inherently have, rather they are effects that we perform by the

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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DD100. TMA01. What can social sciences tell us about the formation of identities? How do race(TM) and ethnicity(TM) impact on the formation of identities?

Part A: What can social sciences tell us about the formation of identities? Social science begins to provide us with some of the answers to the question of how are identities are formed. There is no way to define exactly what an identity actually is or how an identity is formed as there are many different factors that together establish who we are and how we become who we are. This essay will look at what an identity is, how we become to form our identities and in conclusion what they are and the limitations of them. Our identity is our way of portraying ourselves to others, either by means of doing this verbally, symbolically or subconsciously. Our identity is how we see our self's and how we wish for other to see us; an image of who we believe our self to be. We also use our identity as a way to interact with the social world, to find similarities around us or to differentiate ourselves from others. The building blocks of our identity start almost from birth. Depending on our genetics we are categorised as either being male of female in this we have no choice. Throughout our childhood we start to develop our own understand of our identity and begin to categorise ourselves but many of these categories have already been constructed by society for example children can express characteristics of femininity or masculinity through their choice of toys (cars and trucks for boys,

  • Word count: 1517
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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Trends and Issues in Psychology.

Margaret Treanor. Student Number: 1012196 Continuous Assessment Course: Trends and Issues in Psychology. Psychological theory has within it many biases. Discuss one of these biases, and how it might affect how Psychology is practiced. Henry Ford once said of his automobiles "You can have one in any colour as long as it is black". Has psychology taken the same approach in its search for a "normal" or standard individual? Are psychologists narrow-minded in their study of humans, accepting the norm as being the white European male as a stereo-typical individual to be applied across all cultures, colours, sexual orientations and gender, without taking other serious fundamental differences into consideration? This essay sets out to explore the area of gender bias and sexism and how it has affected the practice of psychology in the past century. In order to discuss gender bias, it is necessary to ask what is gender? According to a draft working definition from WHO 1998, the term "gender" is used to describe "those characteristics of women and men that are socially constructed, in contrast to those that are biologically determined. People are born female or male, but learn to be girls and boys who grow into women and men. They are taught what the appropriate behaviour and attitudes, roles and activities are for them, and how they should relate to other people. These learned

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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Conceptualizations of race based on biological differences rather than social constructions are embedded in the American formation of nation throughout history.

Conceptualizations of race based on biological differences rather than social constructions are embedded in the American formation of nation throughout history. These conceptualizations, known as scientific racism, along with the medicalization of the body, have played a central role in creating a prejudicial hierarchy of oppression that is consistently reinforced. The discourses of science and the body have produced racialized, sexualized, and genderized bodies via sexology research, reproductive rights, stereotypes, and immigration practice. Biology and science are used to naturalize racial norms in sexology research. Analytically absenting race as a factor in sexological literature naturalizes the female/subject as white. Science not only normalizes whiteness, but heterosexuality as well. The "invention" of homosexuality as a pathology, and therefore biologically determined, replaces the socially constructed view that homosexuality is a crime. It was "diagnosed" that lesbian women had "too much" genitalia, causing them to possess a phallic-like appendage. The masculination of lesbianism directly reflects the strict gender boundaries reinforced through heterosexuality. The African woman's body, like that of the lesbian's, was considered to possess an abnormally large clitoris (Somerville 42). These "appendages" not only classified these women as abnormal, but sexually

  • Word count: 1106
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Social studies
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