Alexandra Colleen M.

Alegre BSN 1-4

NSTP Group 2

Gender Role Experience

I’ve noticed this since I was young. On every gathering that is held in our house or
somebody’s house, it’s always the female relative or friends that goes in to the kitchen to help
with the dishes and chores to host the party. How is it that little boys get to play around with
their cousins while little girls help their mothers in the kitchen during a gathering? How is it that
men get to drink while having fun with karaoke or watching their favorite sports while women,
makes their pulutan and serve their drinks? I notice that “family gatherings” has a more
appropriate term – “women-serving-men-event”. Because how is it called a gathering or a
party when only men gets to enjoy it while women are forced to go into the kitchen? I literally
hear these phrases in a gathering from a male saying this to their female friend or relative;
“pumunta ka sa kusina tanungin mo mama mo kung may kailangan” or “kababae mong tao ba’t
hindi ka maghugas ng pinggan sa likod?”. It’s sad that this happens to every Filipino households,
where women are treated as servants whenever there are gatherings.

Aside from the example above, one of the gender roles is seen in my course, I’ve noticed
that many males don’t see nursing as a profession for them. The stereotypical toxic masculinity
roles claim that men are not empathic. They cannot nurture. They are not compassionate.
Those roles are reserved for females. But these are not true. Being compassionate or
empathetic does not require gender. Its no doubt that nursing is a female-dominated
profession, but it doesn’t have to be that way, just like in other professions or job. An engineer
could either be male or female, just as welding is not just for men, or teaching is for female.