igrab
in
grabi_hands
gender and subculture: an essay that could have been awesome but isn't.
Subcultures related to gender have always been a part of society. Whether it was a particular activity only practiced by one gender or the other--for example, a knitting circle or a gentleman's club--or a group formed around gender norms itself, like the many underground homosexuality movements; these subcultures are in a large part a reaction to how society views gender roles.
Every culture has gender roles. Gender is the most distinct, most basic division of human beings, and because one person can't be all things, women and men are always delegated to different tasks. Even now, with the modern push for gender equality, there is still an enduring stigma that 'feminine' means one thing and 'masculine' means another. These associations and the subsequent reactions to them create an ever-multiplying assortment of sub- and counter-cultures, as people seek to define themselves away from what society deems 'right'.
The younger you are, the harder it is to be 'different'. When a person grows up and learns to take charge of their own life, they also have a greater freedom to be who they truly are--and experience a wider world to find their niche in. A child's world may only encompass their peers at school, often only twenty or thirty children in total, and any neighbors of a similar age. In the process of learning how to function as a certain gender, they are also bound to it. Those who act different are, at best, tolerated--at worst, estranged. As Barrie Thorne writes in Sexuality and Gender in Children's Daily Worlds, "Some girls frequently play with boys, integrating their groups in a token way." These girls are usually known as tomboys, and don't fit in with either group. In On Becoming Male: Reflections of a Sociologist, James M. Henslin says "The encroachment comes from tomboys who strive to be a part of our world. We tolerate them--up to a point. But by excluding them from some activities, we let them know that there are irrevocable differences that forever separate us." These tomboys often are only a small fraction of girls who might grow up to define themselves in more traditionally manly pursuits, but even at that young age, they create a counter-culture in reaction to society's prescriptions of how a gender group 'should' act.
When these children become teenagers, they start pushing their boundaries. Every teenager pushes boundaries. Sometimes it's the boundaries of legality, but sometimes it's more along the lines of cutting off her hair and wearing ripped jeans and listening to Linkin Park to see if that's who she really is. According to On Becoming Female: Lessons Learned in School, most girls are focused on appearance, attractiveness, and getting boys to like them. This is usually true for the most spotlighted groups of girls--colloquially, the 'popular' girls--but just as predictably there are myriad subcultures that arise in opposition to them. Even the popular girls themselves often want to work against their idea of the feminine ideal, seeing very fine distinctions between cheerleading and field hockey, prom queens and party girls. With teenagers, it's hard to say what isn't a counter-culture--even though most people do want to fit in, they want to fit in with something that goes against. Because so many aspects of teenage life are based on gender identity and sexuality, there are just as many cliques that vehemently oppose these norms.
In the adult world, however, subcultures and counter-cultures move out of the public eye--unless you're working a field that could be counted as one itself. But there are many people with two faces, their public self that goes to work from nine to five, and the private self that interacts with a completely different set of people to enjoy hobbies or express themselves. At this point, however, though many gender-related subcultures are present, a person's gender identity has at least been decided on, and the subcultures they become a part of are usually based on activities rather than breaking gender norms. However, in the workplace itself, there are shades of culture that crop up as women and men congregate with themselves and each other. In the article "But What Do You Mean?" Women and Men in Conversation, Deborah Tannen describes the differences between how women and men communicate, and the difficulties that arise from attempts to cross-socialize. Those people who transcend those boundaries--and, to survive in a business world, many need to--find themselves once again outside of expected gender norms. In a workplace, though, such a definition can be nothing more than a tool, with everything falling right back into place when they go home.
In summation, gender identity creates a host of complex questions that, in answering them, gives rise to sub- and counter-cultures as like-minded people group together. They may be more obvious, like sports groups in high school, or they may hover in the background of an adult's private life. Outcasts seek out other outcasts, and gender is one of the oldest and most divisive separators of culture. One day, we may succeed in breaking down these walls entirely--but for now, our culture still wires us to believe that masculine and feminine have very different connotations, and we can go with the system, or we can buck it. Either way, we will not be alone.
Every culture has gender roles. Gender is the most distinct, most basic division of human beings, and because one person can't be all things, women and men are always delegated to different tasks. Even now, with the modern push for gender equality, there is still an enduring stigma that 'feminine' means one thing and 'masculine' means another. These associations and the subsequent reactions to them create an ever-multiplying assortment of sub- and counter-cultures, as people seek to define themselves away from what society deems 'right'.
The younger you are, the harder it is to be 'different'. When a person grows up and learns to take charge of their own life, they also have a greater freedom to be who they truly are--and experience a wider world to find their niche in. A child's world may only encompass their peers at school, often only twenty or thirty children in total, and any neighbors of a similar age. In the process of learning how to function as a certain gender, they are also bound to it. Those who act different are, at best, tolerated--at worst, estranged. As Barrie Thorne writes in Sexuality and Gender in Children's Daily Worlds, "Some girls frequently play with boys, integrating their groups in a token way." These girls are usually known as tomboys, and don't fit in with either group. In On Becoming Male: Reflections of a Sociologist, James M. Henslin says "The encroachment comes from tomboys who strive to be a part of our world. We tolerate them--up to a point. But by excluding them from some activities, we let them know that there are irrevocable differences that forever separate us." These tomboys often are only a small fraction of girls who might grow up to define themselves in more traditionally manly pursuits, but even at that young age, they create a counter-culture in reaction to society's prescriptions of how a gender group 'should' act.
When these children become teenagers, they start pushing their boundaries. Every teenager pushes boundaries. Sometimes it's the boundaries of legality, but sometimes it's more along the lines of cutting off her hair and wearing ripped jeans and listening to Linkin Park to see if that's who she really is. According to On Becoming Female: Lessons Learned in School, most girls are focused on appearance, attractiveness, and getting boys to like them. This is usually true for the most spotlighted groups of girls--colloquially, the 'popular' girls--but just as predictably there are myriad subcultures that arise in opposition to them. Even the popular girls themselves often want to work against their idea of the feminine ideal, seeing very fine distinctions between cheerleading and field hockey, prom queens and party girls. With teenagers, it's hard to say what isn't a counter-culture--even though most people do want to fit in, they want to fit in with something that goes against. Because so many aspects of teenage life are based on gender identity and sexuality, there are just as many cliques that vehemently oppose these norms.
In the adult world, however, subcultures and counter-cultures move out of the public eye--unless you're working a field that could be counted as one itself. But there are many people with two faces, their public self that goes to work from nine to five, and the private self that interacts with a completely different set of people to enjoy hobbies or express themselves. At this point, however, though many gender-related subcultures are present, a person's gender identity has at least been decided on, and the subcultures they become a part of are usually based on activities rather than breaking gender norms. However, in the workplace itself, there are shades of culture that crop up as women and men congregate with themselves and each other. In the article "But What Do You Mean?" Women and Men in Conversation, Deborah Tannen describes the differences between how women and men communicate, and the difficulties that arise from attempts to cross-socialize. Those people who transcend those boundaries--and, to survive in a business world, many need to--find themselves once again outside of expected gender norms. In a workplace, though, such a definition can be nothing more than a tool, with everything falling right back into place when they go home.
In summation, gender identity creates a host of complex questions that, in answering them, gives rise to sub- and counter-cultures as like-minded people group together. They may be more obvious, like sports groups in high school, or they may hover in the background of an adult's private life. Outcasts seek out other outcasts, and gender is one of the oldest and most divisive separators of culture. One day, we may succeed in breaking down these walls entirely--but for now, our culture still wires us to believe that masculine and feminine have very different connotations, and we can go with the system, or we can buck it. Either way, we will not be alone.