Social Science and Sexuality (Essay Sample)

Social Science and Sexuality
Student’s name
Institution
Social science and sexuality
Sexuality is one of the major topics that feature in social science disciplines. It is linked to the biology of humankind in the society. People’s lives have been pervaded by sexuality in various levels of the society. Over the years it has laid controversial issues in many societies across the world. This is because it encompasses practices such as motherhood, womanhood, homosexuality, sexual orientation, and gender inequalities. These practises have created immense disagreements concerning sexual preferences and other aspects of sexuality in humans. In this case, studies have been conducted to determine whether the diverse expressions of sexuality have been caused social or biology construction.
Discussions concerning sexuality mainly reflect attitudes and beliefs of people in the society at the time in which the practices take place. It can also be viewed as a result of culture and society that plays a great role of shaping individuals. In most cases, sexuality is influenced by convections and norms in the society in which individuals live and gender convection bestowed to them by their ancestors. Over the years, prime gender conventions have reflected uneven balance of power between men and women. This has been immersed in the mind of all individuals in the society. This research examines the interplay between culture and sexuality in the society. It revolves around social systems where all social roles have been appropriated by men this keeping women in inferior and minor positions.
Society has viewed sexuality through various expressions. Motherhood is one of the distinctive views of sexuality in the society. This is depicted from Adrienne Rich’s writing, which revolves around the potential relationship of women and their power of reproduction and children rearing. The main aim of her writing is to show that women play a great role of bringing into existence all human life on earth. According to Rich, women not only give birth and suckle their children, but are also assigned to their full responsibility (Rich, 1995). Children born out of rape and irresponsible fathers are reared by their mothers alone. This shows that women have remained under the control of men. They know little about the effects of culture in which they live because they are not makers of patriarchal culture. Terms such as child-bearer and barren are used to identify their status in the society. The terms depict their ability or inability of bearing children. However, the word non-father does not exist in the society indicating that men are not condemned for their inability to bear children.
In her book, Rich indicate that the power of women in the society is viewed in their capacity to nourish and bear children. She does this by portraying the identity of women in various critical preoccupations. In her writing, she focuses on the diversity of gender and cultural differences in the society. Her writing also resists ways through which dominant men marginalize the multiple realities of women. In addition, she also links the problems of post-colonial identity, relationships between women and femininity in the societies. Throughout her writing, she explores feminine differences as a term that challenges representation of women in their cultural identities. She, therefore, uses images of oppressed women in the society to present gender complexity. According to her, women have been objects of oppression and mistreatment in their patriarchal societies throughout history (Rich, 1995). She indicates that men have been highly privileged than women in various societies across the world. However, women have been trying to resist oppression for many years with no avail. In this case, they experience subordination while trying to relate with men in the society. This is because they are not regarded as autonomous beings in the society.
The perception of gender role differentiation has identified women as objects that are directed what to do by men in the society. Their major role in the society is to bear children and take care of their husbands, and carry out household chores. However, in 1960’s and 70’s some women went into feminist waves and suffrages that gave them an opportunity to change their stereotype in the society (Amado, 2009). Nevertheless, patriarchal societies are still existing imposing restriction to women who try to balance their ambitions with men.
The idea of motherhood is reinforced by Sharon Hays’s writing on ‘why can’t mothers be more like businessmen’. She indicates that children care in women should be more important than their jobs or any other work assignment (Hays, 1996). In this case, they should not sideline duties and responsibilities of taking care of their children because of other activities such as job. Her discussion shows that women’s activities revolve around their home where they are required to take care of children and obey their husbands. Throughout history, societies have always subjected women to oppression and mistreatment from men.
Women in various societies are forced to take full responsibilities of child rearing in order to liberate themselves from patriarchal societal manipulations. According to Hays, men cannot be relied to provide care to their children because women are the central care givers in the society (Hays, 1996). This is due to the underlying assumption that children required consistence nurture from a single caretaker. The assumption indicates that women are the best people to perform this task. She also indicates that in case the mother is unavailable other women should substitute her in taking care of the children. Society therefore puts men in a position where they have null responsibility on their children. On the other hand, mother have been put in a position of providing the required desires and needs to their children despite their professional and career statuses in the society. Every stage of intellectual development in children needs great care from their mothers.
Another distinctive view of sexuality in the society is gender equality. Inequalities between men and women have been part of the society throughout history. Women have been alienated and sidelined in the society despite their profession. In 1800s, women in Canada, United States, and United Kingdom did not have the right to vote. In addition, they did not secure jobs and were not given equal opportunities with men despite their potential and talents (Peplau & Garnets, 2000). Jobs in various institutions were only preserved for men. Women were supposed to remain at home and take care of their children and perform other household activities. This is because they were considered to be morally superior to men thus educated to be good mothers and wives. In the modern society, women have also been sidelined in various fields, which are mainly dominated by men. Job opportunities in industries and manufacturing sectors are not offered to women because they are considered as weak. Women are highly populated in fields such as office secretary and nursing. This shows that gender equality have not been observed in the society due to differences perceived between sexes (Reingardë, 2010).
Muszynski’s book has analysed gender inequality in Canada. It depicts the structural and operational inequality between men and women in the social setting of Canada (Muszynski, 1996). This is despite principles specified in the Canadian chapter of human right and freedom, which states that every individual is equal under the law. It indicates that individuals should not be discriminated as a result of their sex. Despite all these rules, women were still segregated and considered non-true citizens. They did not have rights to make earnings, own properties, and have custody of their children in case of divorce. They were also considered as inferior thus not taking any position in the society.
Additionally, in the early 19th century, women in Canada, America, and United Kingdom did not have full citizenship and thus education system did not apply to them. Given such conditions, it was not inevitable that one day schools will welcome femininity and grace presence of aspiring womanhood. Although it took time to achieve women’s rights to education, it was finally acquired after rigid and firm struggle by suffrages. This was achieved when women were given equal rights with men. During this period, some women teachers such as Susan B Anthony agitated against gender discriminatory practices in professional fields. They did this by improving trainings for women in order to make them superior. After women rights to education were enacted in Canada and other parts of the world, many of them joined schools to pursue their career.
In 1848, women joined and formed a small group of visionaries in order to secure their equality with men in the society. The group started in United States, Canada, and United Kingdom and it took them more than seventy years to win their right of voting. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott decided to call the “First women’s Right conversion” immediately after male organizers excluded all women from a conference for the anti-slavery. The meeting was held on July 1948 at Seneca Falls in New York. Over 300 women and 40 men attended the conference. Among them was Charlotte Woodward a farm girl aged 19 years old whose dream of becoming a printer was shattered down by the notion at that time that this job was only reserved for men. At the end of the meeting, the delegates approved a model to declare their independence. They believed like any other adults they should have a vote and granted equal rights of voting with men. Their great effort was successful because they were able to relieve themselves fro...