Research Assignment Paper About Gender Issues (Essay Sample)

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Gender Issues
Gender refers to a person’s identity which makes him or her be viewed as a male or female. Gender-based debates have been regarded as sensitive and controversial. Many people find it difficult to address gender issues due to the fear of being viewed as insensitive. However, the topic has attracted the attention of several activists, feminists, and leaders from different parts of the world. In the recent years, activists have fought for the rights of transgender individuals. Even though many people assume that the term gender includes only males and females, the society should start giving transgender persons the recognition and the respect that they deserve as human beings.
In the Ted talk, Yvan Coyote speaks about the need to consider the transgender when designing public facilities like bathrooms. Coyote speaks from the perspective of a victim of gender discrimination. Even though he was born as a girl, he chose to change his gender when he was still young (Coyote). He talks about the difficulties that he had to undergo in school as a transgender. He thinks that He would not have faced the problems if the school had designed washrooms for the transgender. Based on her experiences, I think an individual can choose whether to become a boy or girl. In other words, gender is flexible. In her article, Butler writes that definitions should not restrict gender to an individual’s body. An individual may choose to change his or her gender regardless of what the society thinks. Therefore, the author complements Coyote’s view that gender is flexible. Moreover, Butler thinks that the society and socialization processes may affect an individual’s gender (303).
Gilligan observed that psychologists undertook their studies using only male-based data. She fought the idea of overlooking females in research. According to her findings, it was important to treat both females and males equally. However, she acknowledges that some scholars were assuming that using only male-based data was a way of showing that females and males were similar; hence, equal. Gilligan posits that boys detach themselves from their mothers so that they get close to their fathers for the purpose of development (798). Therefore, socialization with their fathers helps them acquire some of the masculine characteristics. On the other hand, girls tend to become more intimate with their mothers as they learn how to grow up as girls. In my view, the argument can be used to explain why Marlo Mack’s son decided to change his gender. According to the story, she gave birth to a boy who decided to become a girl when he was only three years old. It is evident that the baby was so close to the mother that he shared everything with her. Marlo asks her child about the difference between her and other girls. According to her, the only difference is their sexual organs (Mack). Therefore, it is reasonable to say that sex does not always determine gender.
According to Horney, being a man or a woman does not mean a great deal (1). According to the autho, focusing on the differences will only lead to biased views. She asserts that the love and sexual relations can be affected by hostility between women and men. I strongly agree with t...