SOC 1010 Lecture Notes - Lecture 16: Masculinity, Social Forces, Genderqueer

• School: University of Iowa
• Department: Sociology
• Course: SOC 1010
• Professor: Jennifer Haylett

Document Summary

Idea that gender is something we do rather than something we are. Doing gender - the ways in which we actively obey and break gender rules. Gender rules - instructions for how to appear and behave as a man or a woman. Some are rigid and some are more flexible. Key points of doing gender: gender as an accomplishment. Different contexts and situations call for different displays of masculinity and feminity. What it means to be masculine in a courtroom is not the same as what it means to be masculine in a sports bar. Doing gender consists of managing occasions so that, whatever the particulars, the outcome is seen asgender-appropriate : moving away from individual to interactional analysis. Gender is a product of social forces. We as individuals are doing it, but our actions, behaviors, and performances are assessed by others. In our interactions, when we do gender, we are creating gender.