Study Questions Weeks 1 (where is gender?

) & 2 (the gender binary)

1. R.W. Connell’s “gender order” refers to power relations among the genders, where a
man’s dominance over a woman is apparent. When drawing on five different
observations, Connell shows us that men dominate in politics, tend to resort to violence,
and typically have a higher income than women. Other observations made showed how
women are portrayed as being passive, male children are being pressed to be hard and
dominant, and female children are taught to be more caring and nurturing (Connel, 2-3)
2. According to Connell, most societies are so invested in preserving the concept of gender
polarity because it preserves the inequalities between the two groups. Wearing certain
clothes, acting certain ways, and talking in certain tones can say so much about someone
because it’s widely practiced and accepted. The purpose that the gender polarity serves is
to make easy distinctions about which gender one performs in any given environment so
people know how to treat that person based on social norms. This reinforces the
stereotypes and social constructs surrounding gender while supporting inequality and
social hierarchy. 
3. They key hierarchies that exist between and among men are superior masculinity,
marginalized ethnic masculinity, and homosexual masculinity.  Ethnic groups can be
targets for racial abuse, and homosexuals or more feminine men can be subject to
discrimination (Connell, 6).
4. Wade and Ferree tell us sex is defined as the “physical differences in primary sexual
characterisitcs and secondary sexual characteristics,” whereas gender refers to the
“symbolism of masculinity and feminity that we connect to being male-bodied or female-
bodied” (Wade and Ferree, 5).
5. I assume we work so hard to make men masculine and women feminine in order to make
a distinction.  By creating this binary, it gives us a sense of belonging and recognizability,
sometimes bringing us pleasure and joy. It also allows there to be inequality and for some
people to have more power than others. (Wade and Ferree, 7).
6. Gender rules: cultural template for who we can be and what we can do in relation to our
gender, gender scripts: cultural template for how we can act and behave in relation to our
gender, gender expression: a gender we perform for others to read and distinguish, gender
as a social institution: the ways in which gender manifests outside of ourselves in society.
I would argue that the notion that gender as a social institution is the same as gender
order, as both are socially constructing fake hierarchies that are real in their
consequences.
7. O’Brien supports the claim that people vary along a continuum in terms of biological sex
as well as gender by using research, done by biologist Anne Fausto-Sterling, which
suggests there are at least five documented variations on chromosomal structure that can
determine gender (e.g. XXX, XYX) (O'Brien, 2).
8. According to O’Brien, many transgender and non-conforming people prefer biological
explanations rather than socially constructed ones because biological explanations break
the gender binary.  There are at least five documented variations on chromosomal
structure that can determine gender (e.g. XXX, XYX), so biologically speaking, male and
female aren’t the only genders (O’Brien, 2).  Furthermore, O’Brien considers the
nature/nurture debate to be a false binary because one view (nurture) implies a choice to
be any gender one chooses, while the other view (nature) provides gender non-
 conforming people support through the biological explanations that gender isn’t binary
(O’Brien, 3).
9. MTV’s “Are Drag Queens Trans?” answers this question with the help of a transgender
woman who is also a drag queen. Ru-Paul explains that being a drag queen does not
automatically make someone trans, nor does being trans automatically make someone a
drag queen. However, the two are not mutually exclusive since trans women can
participate in drag. Drag is a performance exaggerating gender expression, while being
trans is a part of one’s personal identity. Ru-Paul emphasizes that the most important
thing is to not make assumptions about drag queens/kings or trans people, and just enjoy
the performance.
10. Ideology: ideas shared by society that categorize and normalize certain identities,
behaviors, and institutions; the social construction of gender: making reality meaningful
through sharing interpretations, drawing connections between ideas, and representing
ideas in social definitions; gender identity: a sense of one’s own gender excluding other
factors, the gender binary: the assumption that there are only two mutually exclusive
genders; gender binary glasses: categorizing everything one sees as either masculine or
feminine in nature based on the enforcement of the gender binary (Wade and Ferree, 20-
26).
11. One variation of the gender binary exists in the American Indian culture where there are
males, females, male bodied two-spirits, and female bodied two-spirits. Similarly,
Polynesians classify people into five categories, one being a “nadleehe” who is allowed
to express their gender fluidly without any surprise. There are countless other groups that
have come to define gender without regards to sex at all, focusing on categories such as
expertise, age, or economic status (Wade and Ferree, 12-14).
12. Based on John Money’s theory on gender identity, doctors are encouraged to assign
gender as soon as possible and with certainty because it is believed to encourage the
development of a gender identity consistent with the gender assigned despite the
chromosomal sex. The doctors also feel pressure from parents who can be uncomfortable
with the idea of their child being “genderless”. Furthermore, if doctors make a claim and
do not stick to it, their credibility could be threatened (Kessler, 7-8).
13. Physicians have four key aspects to focus on when normalizing parents to the condition
of their intersex child. First, they teach parents about typical fetal development and show
how all fetuses are intersex at one point in time. Second, physicians focus on the overall
health of the baby and explain that the intersex condition is just like other birth defects
that are common in infants. Third, doctors emphasize the point that the infant’s gender is
not ambiguous, there is just genital ambiguity. Finally, physicians draw from Money and
Ehrhardt’s theory to suggest social conditions are much more important in gender
development than anything biological. All of these practices help normalize parents to the
intersex nature of their child and make them more confident in raising their child
(Kessler, 15-16).
14. When children with XY chromosomes are born with much smaller than average penises,
doctors might decide to raise the child as a girl to avoid embarrassment. This is based off
Money’s fundamental rule for gender assignment that defines a micropenis as one three
or more standard deviations below the mean. On the other hand, children with XX
chromosomes that have a substantially sized penis are not encouraged to undergo surgery
 since the early masculinization of their brain could predispose them to becoming a
tomboy (Kessler, 18-19).
15.  In the case of track star Caster Semenya, Olympic officials zeroed in on testosterone
levels as a key criterion for determining whether an athlete can compete as a woman in
certain events. This is because there is no definite criteria to differentiate male from
female, but men naturally have higher testosterone than women. The arguments against
using this criterion is that different testosterone levels are not a factor for male athletes
and their performance, so it shouldn’t be a factor for women. Also, there is no evidence
to prove testosterone gives an athlete an advantage larger than any other natural
biological advantage. On the other hand, if the criteria of testosterone are ignored then
there could be no point of having different categories for male and female
athletes (Huber, 1).
16. Gender expression is a person's behavior, mannerisms, interests, and appearance that are
associated with gender in a particular cultural context, specifically within the categories
of femininity or masculinity. This also includes gender roles. These categories rely on
stereotypes about gender. Gender expression played a big role in this controversy because
if Caster Semenya’s gender expression was more aligned with a stereotypical woman,
they probably wouldn’t have questioned her achievements to begin with. Also, the article
explains how people from countries with a history of colonialism have even more reason
to question gender segregation based on Western ideologies.
17. The article states “But if biology itself is not the enemy in the study of gender, biological
reductionism still is. The latest version even has a name, "neurosexism", the use of new
technology or the language of neuroscience to support old prejudices and stereotypes”.
This describes using science to demean women or push them into stereotypes. Examples
include; "women are more empathic than men”, women have more "finger dexterity"
which explained why women were better at typing and cooking; women's "raging
hormones" made them unfit for serious work or political office; and "fear of success”
explained why there weren't more women in the professions. The article states that
“Worldwide, the greatest predictor of women's advancement in science is the extent to
which they have equal access to education and careers, not which half of their brains
lights up when they are doing a maths puzzle.” (Tavris, 1)
18. Toys are more divided by gender today than in the 1970’s because we are in a post-
feminist era. An argument from the Elizabeth Sweet’s article that discourages gendered
toys states “Many who embrace the new status quo in toys claim that gender-neutrality
would be synonymous with taking away choice, in essence forcing children to become
androgynous automatons who can only play with boring tan objects.” (Sweet, 1)
19. In the modern world, pink toys signify girls’ toys and are generally more nurturing and
domestic. Meanwhile, blue toys signify boy toys, and are more engineering and
leadership focused. The video shown in class “Girls toys vs, boy toys” confirms the
gender expectations, but also shows adults forcing those gender expectations on children.
Even adults who thought they had an open mind were subconsciously forging the gender
binary on babies.
20. Sweet argues that targeting children with gendered toys are harmful to their development
and forces children to play in categories they do not want to play in. For example, when
her daughter put down the dinosaur lunch box that was titled “boys lunch box”, this could
discourage her from learning more about dinosaurs and rules out her becoming a
 paleontologist, as if half the dinosaurs aren’t female. Also, gendering toys feeds into
stereotypes such as “girls are bad at math” or “girls can’t do construction”. It’s not that
girls can’t do them, it’s just those possibilities of being a mathematician or construction
worker might not be an option for girls if they weren’t given that opportunity in the first
place. De-gendering toys doesn’t mean rejecting masculinity or femininity, but it does
encourage children to pursue what they truly have an interest in, even if that interest
pushes the gender binary (Sweet, 1).
21. 1. “They Reinforce the Incorrect Idea That Gender Is Determined by Genitalia”. The
article states “The myth that gender and biological sex are mutually exclusive is harmful
because it punishes those of us who do not fit this definition – that is, all of us intersex,
trans, and gender non-conforming folks.” (Pagonis, 1)
2. “They Reinforce the Gender Binary”. The article states that gender reveal parties
exclude many people who do not biologically fit into either category. They also increase
expectations on parents to raise their children a certain way and feel failure if their child
doesn’t meet these expectations (Pagonis, 1).
3. “They Throw Gender Roles onto Kids Before They’re Even Born” The article explains
that creating certain expectations for children before they are even born can make the
child afraid of not living up to these rigid standards (Pagonis, 1).