KINE 1000 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Harpoon, Menstruation, Spermatogenesis

58 views2 pages
The Egg and the Sperm: how science
has constructed a romance based on
stereotypical Male-Female roles.
Intro:
Reproductive biology relies on stereotypes of our cultural definitions of male and female.
Female biological processes are LESS worthy than male’s.
PURPOSE OF THE ARTICLE: to show how scientific language portrays gender stereotypes.
Egg and Sperm: a scientific fairy tale.
Female Male
Menstruation is viewed as a FAILURE.
(Female)
Menstruation as a chaotic
disintegration (losing
cohesion/strength) of form.
Ova have been produced since birth
and MERELY sit on the shelf
degenerating and aging.
Unproductive.
The egg behaves “femininely”
Passive language “is sweft, is drift”,
sitting and waiting for the sperm to
penetrate.
The use of “the most amazing”, “may
produce several hundreds of millions
of sperm per day” for
spermatogenesis.
The enthusiasm is shown for
MALE processes, not for any
Female processes
Always produces new sperm cells.
Productive.
The sperm behaves “manly”
Active language, “strong, velocity,
deliver, penetrate” having an
adventure.
To avoid negative connotations (meaning), scientists can describe male and female processes as
HOMOLOGOUS.
Textbooks describe many negative meaning during female processes without any positivity. Vice
versa with male’s.
Why don’t they see “producing 100 million sperm per day as wasteful”?
The differences between egg and sperm characteristics are EMPHASIZED, and they parallel with
cultural stereotypes of male and female behaviour.
New Research, old Imagery
New research, far from escaping the stereotypical representations of egg and sperm.
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Unlock document

This preview shows half of the first page of the document.
Unlock all 2 pages and 3 million more documents.

Already have an account? Log in

Document Summary

The egg and the sperm: how science has constructed a romance based on stereotypical male-female roles. Reproductive biology relies on stereotypes of our cultural definitions of male and female. Female biological processes are less worthy than male"s. Purpose of the article: to show how scientific language portrays gender stereotypes. Menstruation is viewed as a failure. (female) Menstruation as a chaotic disintegration (losing cohesion/strength) of form. Ova have been produced since birth and merely sit on the shelf degenerating and aging. Passive language is sweft, is drift , sitting and waiting for the sperm to penetrate. The use of the most amazing , may produce several hundreds of millions of sperm per day for spermatogenesis. Active language, strong, velocity, deliver, penetrate having an adventure. To avoid negative connotations (meaning), scientists can describe male and female processes as. Textbooks describe many negative meaning during female processes without any positivity.

Get access

Grade+20% off
$8 USD/m$10 USD/m
Billed $96 USD annually
Grade+
Homework Help
Study Guides
Textbook Solutions
Class Notes
Textbook Notes
Booster Class
40 Verified Answers
Class+
$8 USD/m
Billed $96 USD annually
Class+
Homework Help
Study Guides
Textbook Solutions
Class Notes
Textbook Notes
Booster Class
30 Verified Answers

Related Documents