James Balcazar

Mr. Carrington
Honors English II
15 November 2015

Gender roles play a significant role in the way we think about others in society, it is
because of this that gender roles create restrictions and mischievous stereotypes on men and
women. Gender roles are introduced at a young age starting with the colors and toys kids are
given. Blue for a boy and pink for a girl. The color pink is seen as a soft and feminine color
while as blue color is seen as being masculine. Boy's are given action figures things such as cars,
tanks, trucks and while girls are given dolls and princesses. It doesnt stop there, it is seen as
something horrific and disgusting for a mother to leave or abandon rather than for the father to
do so. Its rare for a man to seem to be clumsier than women and even scarcer to see him taking
care and being with their child 24/7. These instabilities are somehow seen as norms and are
accepted by society as a whole.
Women are often oppressed and judged by what they wear. Often even oppressed by their
peers and other women. They should be fighting so that women have a choice. Not looked down
upon as someone imperfect. So that women can choose to dress comfortably instead of insisting
that they have to change or fit a certain fashion. Women should be able to dress in whatever
fashion they wish. By doing this, they are pushing women back into the days when women were

arrested for showing an ankle. Women also even less than what the average male gets for the
same job. Earning an average of 77 cents for every dollar that a man makes according to the See
Jane Earn by Maggie Wirtanen in 2012. Those who objectify this see this old source or are an
unreliable source since there are also jobs where men and women earn the same amount such as
being a teacher.
On the other hand, the men are allowed to walk around at the beach wearing just a pair of
Speedos or swim shorts and nobody calls them a slut or hussy. Nobody looks at them as if they
are letting the gender down.
A woman is forced to stay within a certain fence within her role. She has to be feminine
but not too much and must have a career but not if it means she is a bad mother by not caretaking
her child. Gender roles exist, they are currently immoral and the people trying to make them
better are repressing women backwards instead of giving them the same choices that men have.