Its a universally accepted fact that gender roles exist, and have been passed on from one generation to another. It has been exhibited in various aspects be it particular representation of choice of color or to the competence extent of gender, everything has been set by the society.
But now its a whole new era, we are the people of 21st century where things are changing steadily, as it is very well said change the only constant let`s see how things are revamping and if we are making progress or not. But before that let`s commence from scratch and see the evolution. (Kantola, J. and Outshoorn, J., 2007)
Gender roles are the predefined norms that are been set by society. It can also be considered as different attributes that are set according to a particular sex. A female is considered to be fragile, innocent, and feminine whereas, a man is considered to be brawny, aloof, or a breadwinner. There are certain roles that are been set, from how a woman is supposed to demeanor, work, or take care of things and how a man is supposed to grind.
That is not it, there are set colors that portray the masculine and the feminine outlook. That is, pink or subtle soft colors are for females or blue or harsh colors are for men.
For a very long time, it is quoted that women belong to the kitchen or a man is the head of the family these are roles are been employed in accordance with the particular gender. For e.g. A female or a woman is taught cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the family and a man is supposed to earn, take up the arduous jobs that involve fixing things or anything that is strenuous.
These roles are inculcated, forced down, or passed down for several decades so, in order to know more let`s see different variants through with people are biased. (Eisend, M., 2019)
Gender stereotype refers to generalizing certain rules that are meant for a particular gender. It is very well quoted by Lillie Devereux Black, people share common nature but are trained in gender roles Everyone has been said to do things a certain way because one belongs to a particular sex. From clothes to food, there isnt a single aspect wherein gender norms have not been enforced onto us. There can be several ways through which these stereotypes are solicited onto us. Let us see a few gender stereotypical beliefs.
This is one of the most common stereotypes. when it comes to a man showing his emotions, they are often shunned down by stating real men dont cry or you are not a man if you cry , and are pushed to act macho. Due to this, men usually tend to lose the sense of emotion that takes a toll on their mental state.
There are certain circumstances or several such industries wherein women are paid less as compared to men or are not given certain opportunities as they belong to a particular gender. Be it the education or a certain post. This leads to women not being able to portray their capabilities or potential. On the other hand, men are lent great responsibilities and are pressured to do things a certain way. (Francois, P., 1998)
As previously said women, in general, are considered as the dishwashers and are given all the responsibilities that are restricted to household chores. Where on the other hand, men are supposed to be the earners of the family. These stereotypes thus lead to discriminating depression in women and men to certain gender roles. (Poloma, M.M. and Garland, T.N., 1971)
However, in today`s generation things are changing. Along with upgraded lifestyles people`s perspective of the gender roles is also developing, here is how-
As this decade is moving forward, there are sundry changes that are taking place in society. There are several laws and terminologies present that favor gender equality.
Any kind of harassment will be punishable regardless of gender from sexual harassment to stalking.
Several other moments favor equality grounds.
There is a huge misconception when it comes to feminism; there are several people who have a negative interpretation about it and have a mindset that it only favors women, however, feminism is a vast concept that brace equality based on gender. Where in, all the people are considered equal, promotes equivalence on all the bases, and hence, promotes gender equality.
Other than that, there are people standing up for themselves and trying to make a change or rather be the change. There are certain such powerful people who stood up in order to make awareness about gender equality they are namely:
Thereafter there are several presidents, prime ministers who are bringing change in their countries favoring equality.
These activists have been an uprising in today`s generation revolting against the wrong. However, we are still very far away from what we need to achieve on the basis of gender equality, there are several changes that are yet to be brought and implemented that might bring us a step closer to abolishing the gender norms. (Ward, T., Gannon, T.A. and Birgden, A., 2007)
