Soc 447 - Exam 3 University of Michigan

Intersex

individuals who exhibit sexual organs and functions somewhere between male and female elements, often including elements of both

A term of description and identity for people with anatomical or physiological characteristics that do not conform to the sex binary. Possible because multiple characteristics determine each binary sex, allowing for a variety of non-binary sexes

Essentialism: what is it? How is it relevant to sex and gender?

Gender essentialism refers to the belief that gender is a discrete and dichotomous social category - binary - with biological origins

How do essentialists understand the relationship between sex and gender?

- Gender is somehow linked to biology
- Sex = gender
- Biology is dichotomous

Constructionism: how is a constructionist approach to gender different from essentialism? What kind of things can constructionists point to as evidence?

Social constructionism is the polar opposite of essentialism. Social Constructionism argues that nothing has an inherent, immutable quality to it, but rather the qualities of things are created through social interaction. We can point to cross-cultural evidence

Sex: basic def

Biological difference based on reproductive anatomy

sex category how is sex category (initially) acquired?

Initially assigned at birth based on genitals

Gender: basic def

A place one claims within the gender order

How is G related to sex?

Sex impacts gender because gender is widely conflated with sex by dominant society, therefore, when one's gender does not 'match' their sex, it can be seen as 'scandelous'

Sexuality: basic def

The realm of the erotic'

Intersectionality: what is it? why does it matter?

Gender is inextricably linked to race/class/sexuality. Intersectionality is a framework that allows us to see how these different organizing entities, in combination, affect relations.It matters because it highlights the unique experiences and challenges faced by individuals at the intersections of multiple identities, emphasizing the need for inclusive approaches to social justice.

3 “levels” of G beyond the individual: what are they

Interactional --> everything done in process with other people regarding gender eg. doing gender, gender attribution, gendered social control

Cultural --> the GNA

Structural --> How the GNA is built into our society

Individual Level of Gender

Everything a person does themselves regarding their gender identity; how one presents themselves; how one see's themselves; etc. eg. sex category/assignment, gender identity

How does Pascoe Illustrate Gender as an Institution?

Institutional = Structural + cultural....cultural is symbolic meanings and structural is built upon culture

Gender attribution process: what is it?

he gender attribution process is the ways in which we assign gender to other people
Kessler and McKenna place importance on gender attribution because it reveals the socially constructed and unequal nature of gender. Additionally, it is a refusal to participate in the 'taken-for-granted' approach to gender.

Gender identity: what is it?

How one defines their own gender. You can only know it by asking an individual (if they respond with the truth)

"...the self-attribution of gender." (k&m, 8)

Typically, gender is assumed based on physical appearance. Gender identity = gender attribution in many eyes

Doing gender

the performance of tasks based upon the gender assigned to us by society and, in turn, ourselves

SOCIAL CONTROL: what is it? How does it relate to doing G?

Keeping gender and social relations the way they are. Doing gender creates the difference that gender is claimed to be

Gendered Role

A social role assigned based on one's gender, influencing behavior and expectations in society.

Gender Order

The overall relations of gender at the level of society. Relations between masculinities and femininities; relations among masculinities and femininities.

Characteristics of the G order: relational, dynamism, multiplicity

Gender Regime: how different from yet related to the G. Order?

Smaller state of play in gender relations. It is different from gender order because it only applies to relations in a specific institution of locale (ex. the gender regime of the University of Michigan is one gender regime)

Which social relations comprise the G order?

Power: Subordiationation of females to males

Production: Division of labor in public and private settings

Emotional: Positive and negative attachments to gender (may obscure the reality of inequality)

Symbolic relations: Gender embedded in symbols and culture

Crisis tendencies: what are they? where do they come from?

Crisis tendencies refer to the patterns of instability and conflict that arise within gender relations. They emerge from contradictions and tensions between different gendered experiences and societal expectations (females fighting male subordination). The gender order is crisis prone.

Sexuality as an organizing principle of social life: what does this mean?

Sexuality shapes how society is ordered and what apporipiate interactions between genders are.

Where and how is sexuality present in interaction, social organization, and culture?
(hetero)gender

Taking certain implications from interactions (ie. male-female friendship becoming romantic as adults), organization society because of perceived sexuality (bathrooms), certain cultural practices (marriage).

Sexuality as a form of power

Heterosexuality gives men power over women and also men who are better at heterosexuality gain power over other men.

Gender style: def, 3 main components of

“Version” of gender, an abstract or idealized type of masculinity/femininity. 3 components:

• Gendered Personality

• Gendered Sexuality

• Gender Display

Why masculinities and femininities?

There is more than one type of masculinity and feminity, hence the plural

G styles as relational: what does this mean?

Gender only exists through interactions. Gender style are created through relations with others

Hegemonic masculinity & emphasized femininity: what are they? how connected?

Hegemonic masculinity refers to the dominant form of masculinity that subordinates other masculinities and femininities. Emphasized femininity is the culturally dominant femininity that has power and status via its association with compliance to hegemonic masculinity.

Hegemonic femininity?

Originally there was no hegemonic femininity in scholarship, only emphasized femininity.

Pariah Femininity

Femininity that does not fit into traditional emphasized femininity (ex. masculine women).

What are the dominant G styles for females & males? What makes them dominant?`

Female: middle class white housewife. Males: rich white working man. Subordinations of other femininities and masculinities to these dominant styles in our society upholds these styles.

Masculinity as (singular) role vs masculinities as multiple forms of practice: compare & contrast

Masculinity is seen as a singular role – there is one way to be masculine – when in practice they are many different masculinities. The way black men and white men can be masculine, for example, are different and the same actions can be perceived differently.

Why does Pascoe argue the masculinity is NOT a property of male-ness?

Being male does not inherently make one masculine and people that are not male can also embody masculinity.

Masculinities as group-based process

Masculinity is formed through group interaction, such as through sex talk among men. It is an interactional accomplishment.

Masculinity as discourse and configurations of practice: what does this mean? Examples?

Discourse is type of communication and practice is also repeated actions that people take. In masculinity, discourse like fag discourse is used to establish fags as unmasculine and affirm that those who make fun of the “fag” are not fags and are masculine.

Hegemonic, Complicit, Marginalized, Subordinated: what are they? how connected?

• Hegemonic: The most dominant form of masculinity

• Complicit: Not hegemonically masculine but do benefit from hegemonic masculinity

• Marginalized: Those that are marginalized such as black men

• Subordinated: The most oppressed masculinity (usually gay men)

Why does hegemonic masculinity require other forms of masculinity?

The would be no hegemonic masculinity without subordination of other masculinities

Patriarchal dividend: what is it? how is it connected to relations among masculinities?

A “pay out” from the patriarchy (ie. power). Although not all masculinities are hegemonic, most still benefit from it existing, so they go along with the system.

Hegemonic masculinity

In America, class-based privileged, white, masculinity as normal and natural

Masculinity benchmarks: what is a “benchmark”?

Things that mark men as masculine and not feminine.

• Different from/not like women

• Control (over emotions & at least 1 woman)

• Property & power

• Not like boys (e.g. muscularity, body hair)

• Heterosexual

• Whiteness

Real men are not boys! How so? “boy” as racialized insult: how so? How do benchmarks affect African-American men?

African-American men are seen as “boys” since they don’t meet all the masculinity benchmarks. They are not white and don’t have property and power due to oppression.

Murderball: what is it? who can participate?

Murderball is wheelchair rubgy. All disabled people who use a wheelchair can participate.

How does Murderball illustrate: (hetero)gender, benchmarks of masculinity, mascs. as
relational, masculinity as discourse & configurations of practice?

Murderball shows how disabled men reconstruct their masculinity through their participation in a very aggressively masculine sport. They construct their masculinity through their interactions with each other and practice in discourse such as sex talk.

What book did Pascoe write?

“Dude, You’re a Fag” which studies gender in a high school.

How does Hill Collins illustrate the relational & dynamic nature of gender styles through Murderball?

Hill and Collins show how gender changes through different settings: for example, men show off an aggressive masculinity while playing murderball, but as less aggressive when around family.

The F*g: who or what is it?

The fag is an “indictment” of femininity, the opposite of masculinity. It is the worst thing a man can be.

F*g vs gay: compare and contrast

Fag is not necessarily about being gay; one can be labeled a fag regardless of sexuality. Many males who used the term said they wouldn’t use it on a gay man. It is more about being feminine.

Fear of the f*g: what is it (primarily) about?

Fear of being labeled a fag is primarily the fear of being labeled as unmasculine and being socially ostrachized.

Signs or indicators of the f*g: what are they? how are they racialized?

Dancing and grooming as signs of being a fag. This is racialized because these are indictactors for being a fag for white boys but not black boys. Fag is mostly a white insult.

F*g as the abject: what does this mean?

Fag is the worst thing a man can be. Masculinity becomes the daily work of pushing away the fag

F*g discourse: what is it? how does it work? How does it connect homophobia & masculinity?

Fag discourse is talk about the fag, labeling others as fags, and proving that you are not a fag. It connects to homophobia (although many claim it is not necessarily about being gay) by reinforcing the idea that being gay is the worst thing a man could be and that being feminine cannot co-exist with masculinity.

Fluidity of f*g discourse: what does this mean? What makes it fluid?

The label of fag can be passed around quickly and easily. This fluidity enhances the power of being labeled a fag.

F*g discourse as a disciplinary mechanism: what does this mean?

Fag discourse disciplines which masculinities are “right” and what is unmasculinity.

F*g as a “hot potato”

The label is passed around like a hot potato

How do most males escape f*g identity?

By labeling somebody else as a fag and proving their masculinity through accepted practices like sex talk

Ricky: who is he? What happened to him?

Ricky was a feminine openly gay man at River High (Pascoe’s book). He was bullied intensely for his gender presentation and eventually had to the leave the school