PHIL1004 Lecture 9: 9.2 What is a gender difference
9.2 WHAT IS A GENDER DIFFERENCE?
What is gender?
Answer 1: genetic sex – Chromosomes XX and XY
Answer 2: biological sex – includes genetic + genitalia
Answer 3: gender identity – Born male/female but feel should have been born female/male
Woa
Commonality Problem
Is there anything that (biologically-sexed) females have in common that qualifies them as
woman?
Cadidates…
- feiie appeaae e.g. hat aout oe that aet feiie?
- Social roles e.g. woman as housewives
- Psychological dispositions, abilities or behavioural traits e.g. mothers being caring
Natural dispositios or ultural epetatios?
Examples in the animal kingdom e.g. marmoset, Emperor penguins, Spotted hyena,
Booos. Gede set up ist taditioal. Tpial to species.
Is there athig tpiall oo to woe? How would you distinguish between
these expectations.
Butler: No
Normativity Challenge
- Issue about the project of coming up with an answer
- E.g. Ladlike. Descriptive: are (typically) like this, fact. Normative: should/ought to be
like this, involves evaluation, value.
- Concern about how Descriptive and Normative divide.
- A defiitio of hat a oa is ill e value-laden and will marginalise certain
females; privilege others; and reinforce current gender norms (Butler 1990)
- E.g. the representation of women in certain industries such as maths and philosophy.
o Descriptive: There is a very low representation of women in maths and
philosoph. Woe dot hoose aees i aths o philosoph. Caees i
maths or philosophy are unsuitable to women. Women are less able than men in
maths or philosophy. Women should not choose a career in maths or philosophy.
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Document Summary
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