Research Paper about Gender

In their discussion of gender, American philosopher and gender theorist Judith Butler stated that “Gender is not something that one is, it is something that one does….a doing rather than a being.” This statement alone effectively encapsulates what gender is when observed at its most basic level. It also sums a few of the major core arguments in scholarly articles created by fellow gender theorists Gayle Rubin (The Traffic in Women), Judith Lorber (Night to His Day), and Suzanne Kessler (The Medical Construction of Gender). Each of these pieces discusses gender as a construct, how gender is influenced by major institutions, the qualities and mannerisms are that people must take on to properly perform gender and the idea of gender performance as a whole. These works each take on the topics with a unique approach along with distinct supporting evidence to elaborate on the points being made. Their arguments each boil down to a simple notion. The concept of gender is a series of roles and performances that are constructed and enforced by a variety of institutions in every society. Therefore, people are not simply identifying as a gender, but are performing gender in the ways that they have been trained to do their entire lives. 

Judith Lorber is a Jewish sociologist and professor of women’s studies at Brooklyn College who has written several notable pieces on gender and feminist theories while also being the founding editor of Gender and Society, which is the official publication of the organization Sociologists for Women in Society. In her piece Night to His Day, she discusses how gender and gender performance present themselves in society as well as how they are extremely prevalent in our everyday lives to the point that they are inescapable. Lorber describes gender as a “human production” that exists as a culture where everyone is “doing gender” (Lorber).

Someone’s gender, whether that be male or female, consists of series of expectations that are they are required to meet to properly perform that gender. The way to feel properly fit into society is by abiding by each gender’s proper design. There is a high level of collective reliance on the gender system that currently exists in society. This goes to the point that when someone does not properly perform their gender, everyone else is instantly aware of it and becomes distinctly uncomfortable with it until this person is properly gendered. We are collectively discomforted with anything that exists outside of this system. This is one of the many ways that the concept of gender as we know it becomes naturalized. People are surrounded by it to the point that they become accustomed to and reliant on it. This allows us to believe that we know gender is correct without questioning this concept until we are compelled to do so. People are trained from birth to perform their gender seamlessly, starting with their parents. From infancy, parents slowly assimilate their children into their assigned gender. Adults are expected to dress their girls in traditional pink clothing with jewelry and florals along with what is deemed as feminine. Young boys will often wear blue while being surrounded by sports and racecars along with other interests and activities that are associated with what is established as traditionally masculine. This provides people with the opportunity to grow accustomed to the construct of gender from an early age while being trained in the proper performance. 

In Kessler’s The Medical Construction of Gender, they take into consideration the existence of people identified as intersex, those who possess a mixed male and female anatomy, and how they disrupt the gendering system which is often based on sex qualities. Within the common perception of gender, a person’s anatomy and genitals determine their gender and assign them the roles and appearances that they must take on. Those with a feminine body, a vagina, female sex organs, and the ability to produce estrogen are assigned females at birth. While those born with a masculine appearance, along with a penis and testicles and the ability to actively produce testosterone, are identified as men. Ultimately, the assignment of gender is dominantly based on genitalia, where vaginas belong only to women and penises to men. What begins as a “sex category” becomes a gender identity. However, intersex people complicate this system by disrupting this logic. In the intersex community, there are people with female anatomy who possess their own set of testicles and can produce testosterone. Other individuals exist in vice versa as well. This throws several obstacles in the gendering system that everyone is accustomed to, forcing medical professionals to go through an intense process of studying these individuals for the purpose of prescribing them their place in gender. 

In discussing topics regarding identity and gender equality, it is imperative that intersectionality is brought into the conversation by discussing its definition as well as its importance. Audrey Lorde is a black feminist and poet who fought for the liberation of oppressed people within race, class, religion, sexuality, and gender. In her work Age, Race, Class, and Sex: Women Redefining Difference, Lorde discusses the struggle of having intersecting identities from communities that constantly seem to be conflicting with each other. Additionally, she addresses the oppression and responsibilities that a person with intersecting identities is forced to juggle to be able to navigate their communities properly. As a black woman and a lesbian, she addresses the experience of having an identity that is interconnected between being a woman, queer, and a person of color. There is a responsibility that she is forced to take on in different environments to educate people outside of certain aspects of her identity. This includes being a black person having to educate white people about the minority experience, having to educate men about womanhood as a woman, and being a lesbian who is expected to educate the “heterosexual world”. All of this is required to actively combat the oppression each of these communities faces. 

However, this oppression is significantly worse and more complex when these identities intersect. Identifying as a black queer woman like Lorde results in experiencing a wide variety of racism, homophobia, and misogyny that must be navigated simultaneously even in communities that she would be a part of. Lorde talks about the homophobia or “fear of lesbians” that black women often possess as well as the racism that white women tend to exercise. Therefore, people within these interconnected categorizations are forced to combat oppression in communities that identify with. The black community can become a difficult space to exist in when you factor in the rampant homophobia that is also present, thus making it unsafe for queer black people. Additionally, the “sisterhood” that is offered by female white feminists is corrupted by the racism that plagues white people, thus making a true sisterhood nonexistent. Ultimately, these identities present struggles that must be navigated separately but this becomes significantly more challenging to handle when an individual is managing several of them at once. Lorde expresses that when discussing the fight against oppression that it’s important to look at the whole of person’s experience based on the identities that they may have. 

Intersectionality is distinctly important because allows for unique experiences to be heard and taken into consideration when discussing areas such as racism, feminism, gender, and inequality. Acknowledging the intersection of identities allows the opportunity to dismantle uninformed thinking in such areas, where this kind of thinking is most dangerous. This also pushes feminist, queer, and racial communities to become more open and safer for those who often go unrepresented due to their interconnected identities. The black community can become more open to its queer members while feminist and queer communities can become safer and more considerate of people of color. These are just a few examples of how different communities can improve when acknowledging the reality of intersectionality. In the feminist movement, it’s important that women collectively work towards greater solidarity and understanding between the experiences of white women and women of color. White feminists must grow to acknowledge that experiences that they face are not universal but often come from a place of privilege, where they are not forced to experience struggles of women of color. Black women specifically experience a significantly more challenging form of misogyny in society, one that is coupled with racism by those outside of and within the feminist community. There is an experience that is completely unique to black women that must heard, but constantly goes overlooked due to the presence of racism in almost every area of American society. Discussing the lifestyle of black women will allow there to be greater support in battling their systemic oppression.