This document discusses gender roles and the patriarchy through a sociological lens. It begins by defining sex as biological differences between men and women, while gender refers to societal expectations. Hunter-gatherer societies had relatively egalitarian roles, but the rise of private property, marriage alliances, agriculture and organized religion contributed to the establishment of patriarchal systems where men held power over women. Functionalists view traditional gender roles as natural divisions of labor, while conflict theorists see inequality persisting due to male control of resources. Interactionists believe gender roles are socially constructed through socialization. The document examines how media perpetuates stereotypes to appeal to audiences and promote consumerism, ultimately naturalizing gender roles and hierarchies of power.

1. Gender & the Patriarchy

2. Key Questions
• What is a patriarchy?
• What is the difference between sex and
gender?
• Where does nurture begin and nature
end in the creation of gender roles?

3. Sex vs. Gender
 Sex refers to the biological
differences between men and
women.
 Includes the chromosomal,
hormonal, and anatomical
components of males and
females

4. Gender
• Gender describes
societal attitudes and
behaviors expected of
and associated with
the two sexes.
 Inherit sex, learn
gender
 Gender is social and
establishes
expectations for
behavior and self
image for males and
females

5. Egalitarian Hunter-Gatherers
• In hunter-gatherer
society, resources
largely shared to
achieve survival
• Men engaged in
hunting, while women
engaged in gathering
and processing of
foods
• Argument adopted from
Gerda Lerner’s The
Creation of Patriarchy

6. Animal Domestication
• Herders are first
humans to acquire
notion of private
ownership (their herds)
• Desire to pass their
wealth to their own
children
• Insist women do not
commit adultery, and be
virgins upon marriage
• Engels, “the historic
defeat of the female
sex.”

7. The Exchange of Women
• Negotiated marriage
alliances between
tribes or villages,
• Women’s sexuality
offered as a gesture
of good will by tribal
chiefs
• Women were taught
from an early age to
consent to these
practices.

8. Agricultural Communities
• Permanent residencies
are now possible
through agriculture
• More children are
needed to work the
ever-expanding farm
fields
• Women’s reproductive
ability is now treated as
a commodity by
society’s male rulers

9. Legal Codes
• Legal codes
differentiate women
into respectable and
non-respectable
classifications
• These male written
codes caused women
to compete rather
than cooperate.

10. Religious Reorder
• With the advent of the
city, female images of
the mother goddess
are replaced with male
creator gods
• Jewish & Christian God
(God the Father) only
communicated with
patriarchs (Abraham,
Noah, Moses, Jesus)
• Greek God Zeus gave
birth to Athena

11. Patriarchy
• Patriarchy – Greek “Rule
of the Fathers” A system
of society or government
in which men hold the
power and women are
largely excluded from it.
• Women have
collaborated in their own
subordination and
internalized values which
have subordinated
them.

12. Universal Rule?
• Native societies
matrilineal
• Cherokee women
owned houses,
daughters inherited
property
• Strict gender roles
remained

13. Areas of Global Discrimination
– Education- women lower
rates of literacy
– Politics- lack equal
access to national
decision making
– Gap in Pay- average less
pay than men
– Politics- No national
legislature has more
women than men in office
– Violence against
Women- foot binding,
witch burning, suttee,
female circumcision,
domestic violence

14. +
Rise of Feminism
• 100 years ago in U.S.
women second class
(voting, property, could not
make legal contracts
• Feminism- men and
women should be
politically, economically
and socially equal

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17. Table 7-1 Sociological
Perspectives on Gender

18. Functionalist Theory on Gender
Inequality
• Since women give birth
and nurse a child, it is
natural that they will take
care of it in other ways
• Leads to a natural
division of labor, in which
women are more involved
in domestic activities
such as preparing meals
and maintaining a home
• Men engage in
breadwinning activities
and other economically
dominant roles

19. Conflict Theory on Gender Inequality
• Focuses on why gender
inequality persists, even
though men and women are
no longer tied to traditional
roles
• Men continue to dominate
women because of their
greater control over
economic, political and social
resources
• Continued domination by
males requires a belief
system that supports
gender inequality.
– Women are inferior
outside the home.
– Women are more
valuable in the home.

20. Interactionist Perspective
• Gender and gender roles
are learned through
socialization process.
• Studies Behavior
– Men are more apt to
speak in class
– In childhood males have a
group of friends, while
females often have one
close friend

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26. + Purpose of Controlling
Strereotypes
• In the magazine for men, advertisements and
articles include many different interests.
• The magazine for women is more limited and
focused on creating an image and promoting
beauty.
• Cosmopolitan is aimed to appeal to young
upper middle-class white women. The
advertisements include expensive, name
brand fashion and beauty products

27. Stereotypes
• Stereotypes of women
exist in the media because
of the dominance of men in
the media field and the
marketing value of
idealizing a notion of
beauty.
• Women spend tremendous
amounts of money to
obtain this ideal of beauty
• Men also influenced,
believe a suitable women
should meet these
constructed criteria.
• Those who fail to submit
are labeled the other or
insignificant.

28. +
Power
• Power seduces and wins consent offer its
audience. Power produces discourse and
creates a new type of knowledge. The
media is selling the idea of female and
male sexuality to both genders in order to
naturalize their roles through symbols and
stereotypes
• By creating specific qualities to attribute to
each sex it is easier for the media to
market their products and ideas.

29. +
Two sides to the same coin
• Maxim and Cosmopolitan not only participate in stereotyping women bit they
also encourage the notion of male dominance and female subordination.
This is evident in comparing two similar articles with different advice. Maxim
writes about how to get away with cheating on a girlfriend, while
Cosmopolitan writes on whether or not to keep a cheating boyfriend by
interpreting cheating through the perspective of men. Maxim promotes lying
about affairs to their girlfriends with suggestions like, "always dial 411 after a
'naughty' call," and warns men to be cautious of women leaving things
behind "to mark their territory" (page 64). Cosmopolitan encourages women
to define cheating by rules that men follow instead of insisting that women
follow their own rules on what constitutes as having an affair (page 120). For
example the article states that some men do not consider sleeping with
another women cheating unless they had a monogamous talk, and when
men confess, it means they are sorry and you should take them back.
Women should define cheating in their own relationship by their own
standards. This article represents the mind-set Cosmopolitan frames on
women thinking in terms of the male mind.