1. Chapter 10
Sex and Gender

2. Let’s Talk about sex! House Bill 1523 or Religious Freedom Bill
Photo Credit- Associated Press
House Bill 1523 or Religious Freedom Bill
The Mississippi legislation protects only three beliefs or convictions:
marriage is between a man and a woman
that sex is "properly reserved to such a marriage," and
words like "male" and "female" are "objectively determined by anatomy and genetics at birth."
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3. (Sex)uality is all around us
People “do it” Scientists “study it” Governments may try to regulate it Public school boards battle over sex education curriculum Commercials may use it to sell products Porn is the top internet destination Politicians may battle over same sex marriage The military may struggle with growing sexual abuse incidents
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4. Questions to address
What is “natural” about human sexuality? How do people in different cultures approach sex and sexuality? Why do they approach it differently or similarly?
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5. Sanders and Reinisch, 2006
Would you say that you “had sex” with someone if the most intimate behavior you engaged in was…? Kissing Petting Oral sex Anal Penetration Vaginal Intercourse
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6. Kinsey, Masters & Johnson
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7. Define Sexuality
In groups of 2-3, define sexuality. The definition must be as complete as possible. Sexuality is the complete range of desires, beliefs, and behaviors that are related to erotic physical contact and the cultural arena within which people debate about what kinds of physical desires and behaviors are right, appropriate, and natural.
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8. Fieldwork- switching sexes
Women/Men, if you woke up tomorrow and you were a man/woman, how would your life be different? Start from the minute you wake up. What would your morning routine be like? What would you do in the bathroom? What would you wear? What would you eat? What might you experience at school or at work? What would happen after school or work? Would being of the opposite sex change what you do or say and where you go? Would people respond to you differently?
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9. Sex and gender
Sex refers to the biological differences between male and female
Primary and secondary sexual characteristics
Gender refers to the social classification of masculine and feminine.
Thoughts and behavior associated with each
Gender is a continuum
What is masculine and what is feminine?
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10. Genders How many genders exist in the world?
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11. The Hijras of India
The hijras are an ambiguous gender role in India. Though born male, they are considered neither man nor woman. Hijras undergo an operation in which their genitals are surgically removed. Their presence is required at weddings and at the birth of a child.

12. Ardha-naare-eshwara

13. Other societies include: Mahu of Polynesia Xanith of Oman on the
Beyond Male and Female
Other societies include:
Mahu of Polynesia
Xanith of Oman on the
Saudi Arabian peninsula
Some Native American
tribes
Kathoey of Thailand

14. How many sexes are there?
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15. Margaret Mead
Developed the central anthropological principle that gender is a cultural construction
Key findings in three New Guinean societies
Arapesh: Both sexes acted in ways Americans consider “feminine.”
Mundugamor: Both sexes acted in ways Americans consider “masculine.”
Tchambuli: Men acted in ways Americans consider “feminine” and women acted in ways Americans consider “masculine.”

16. Cultural Construction of Gender
The idea that gender characteristics are not inborn but constructed within each culture
Gender ideology-
A society’s totality of ideas about sex
gender and the natures of men and women,
including their sexuality,
and the relations between the genders.

17. Bullfighting in Spain
Bullfighting is an aesthetic ritual expressing male gender value. The ritualized violence is carried out with grace, skill, and courage. The male matador is the central element; he should be able to kill the bull quickly with elegance and poise and distinguish himself as a “man of honor.”

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19. Rugby In Tonga
Rugby was introduced into Tonga in the early 20th century. Rugby is essential in male socialization. It provides skills and the ability to learn resourcefulness. It contains the Tongan male “ideals:” virility, fortitude, and controlled aggression.

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21. Theories for Gender Role Formation
Compatibility with childcare theory – women’s tasks tend to be compatible with childcare Economy of effort theory- advantageous for each gender to take on tasks that are related in some way Expendability theory- The loss of men is less disadvantageous than the loss of women
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22. Cultural Sexual Behaviors
Cultures vary in what is considered erotic.
Before the Tahitians learned to kiss from the Europeans, they began sexual intimacy by sniffing.
The Trobriand Islanders inspected each other for lice if they felt fond of each other.

23. Homosexuality and Culture
Adolescent boys in Sambia have homosexual relations as part of initiation but enter heterosexual marriages as adults. In the United States, consistent heterosexuality is considered essential to masculine identity.

24. Sexuality and Culture Sexual norms affect sexual behavior.
Cultures differ in:
Age that sexuality begins and ends
Ways people make themselves attractive
Importance of sexual activity .

25. Ireland: Inis Beag Society
Described as “one of the most sexually naïve of the world’s societies.” Women are expected to endure sex. Refusing intercourse is a mortal sin. .

26. Ireland: Inis Beag Society
Culturally patterned sexual repression
Absence of sexual foreplay
Belief that sexual activity weakens men
Absence of premarital sex
High percentage of celibate males
Extraordinarily late age of marriage .

27. Polynesia: Mangaia
Adolescent boys are given sexual instruction and an experience with a woman in the village. Practically every girl and boy has had intercourse before marriage. Female frigidity, male celibacy, and homosexuality are practically unknown.

28. Male Initiation Rites
Culturally validate male dominance Legitimate a change of status from child to adult Involve an extended period of separation, during which the initiates learn the beliefs, skills, and knowledge necessary to participate as a functioning adult in society.

29. Male Initiation rites of passage
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30. Manhood Puzzle
Anthropologist David Gilmore calls the widespread male need to publicly test and prove one’s manhood the manhood puzzle. Gilmore suggests that cultural patterns of “proving manhood” help ensure men will fulfill roles as procreators, providers, and protectors.

31. Female Initiation Rites
Generally performed at menarche (first menstruation) Occur in more societies than male initiation rites .

32. Female Initiation Rites
Research indicates much cross-cultural variability.
Sometimes the initiate is isolated from society; sometimes she is the center of attention.
Some rituals are elaborate and take years to perform; others are performed with little ceremony.

33. Lack of rituals (?)
"This lack of a clear puberty ritual often creates confusion about the roles we are expected to play" Richley Crapo, Anthropologist
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34. Gender Stratification
The ways gendered activities and attributes are related to the distribution of resources, prestige, and power in a society. .

35. Feminization of poverty
The “feminization of poverty” was a term first coined in a 1978 article that examined changes in women’s economic status between 1950 and 1976 (Pearce, 1978). More women tend to be poor than men More female headed households tend to be poorer than male headed households Cultural reasons for this poverty?
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36. Private/Public Dichotomy
Women’s status is lowered by their cultural identification with the home and children (private).
Men are identified with prestigious economic and political roles (public).

37. Gender Relations in Foraging Societies
Gender relations were egalitarian. Women and men could achieve prestige through their own efforts. Sexual division of labor was not rigid. Women often acted as negotiators and handled the money for long-distance trade. .

38. Gender Relations in Horticultural Societies
High degree of segregation between the sexes Myths “explain” why women are socially inferior to men and why men and women have different roles.

39. Gender Relations in Pastoral and Agricultural Societies
Pastoral and agricultural societies tend to be male dominated, though there is some variation. In pastoral societies women’s status depends on the degree to which the society combines herding with cultivation, its specific historical situation, and the diffusion of cultural ideas.

40. Gender Relations in the Global Economy
In the United States, the view that women should be excluded from all but domestic and child rearing roles has been culturally dominant, and remains so among many Americans. More women than men may go to medical school, but they tend to take on less prestigious specializations after graduation. Domestic violence and sexual harassment are significant problems based on a cultural pattern that values control over women.

41. Bringing It Back Home: Violence against Women and the Cultural Defense
Violence against women is an international problem and domestic violence is considered acceptable in many patriarchal societies, such as Kazakhstan, even though it is illegal. In countries where the customs are patriarchal, they sometimes use the “cultural defense” as a way of explaining their behavior.

42. Bringing It Back Home: Violence against Women and the Cultural Defense
I In the United States a “cultural defense” does not usually work as explanation for violence against women, although at times it has been attempted and anthropologists have been involved. There is some questions about the ethics of anthropological participation in cases such as this.

43. Bringing It Back Home: Violence against Women and the Cultural Defense
You decide:
Given the dominant anthropological view that culture is diverse, dynamic, multifaceted, and shapes (but does not determine) behavior, what role, if any, do you think the cultural defense should be permitted to play in criminal cases involving domestic violence?

44. Bringing It Back Home: Violence against Women and the Cultural Defense
You decide:
What in your view would be the most effective local and/or national responses to domestic violence in the United States?
What might be the most effective way of using anthropological expertise to decrease the rate of domestic violence in our own society or other cultures?

45. Quick Quiz
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46. Examination of evolutionary and historical changes in gender relations
Which of the following does NOT describe anthropologists’ involvement in studies of gender?
Examination of evolutionary and historical changes in gender relations
An exclusive focus on women, children, and issues specific to women's lives
Examination of how gender relations interrelate with other aspects of a society and culture
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47. Answer: b
The following does not describe anthropologists’ involvement in studies of gender:
An exclusive focus on women, children, and issues specific to women's lives
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48. the public/private dichotomy.
Anthropologists refer to the observation that in nearly all world cultures men test and prove their manhood as:
the androgyny complex.
the "manhood puzzle.”
androcentrism.
initiation.
the public/private dichotomy.
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49. Answer: b
Anthropologists refer to the observation that in nearly all world cultures men test and prove their manhood as the "manhood puzzle.”
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50. Women’s role in the economy of a society:
may be improved by the introduction of new technology.
often changes, so they have more leisure time to spend with their children.
is often underestimated, so their status declines if machine technology is added.
improves with technology and with being paid in cash for their hard work.
diminishes as men take wage-labor jobs.
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51. Answer : c
Women’s role in the economy of a society is often underestimated, so that their status declines if machine technology is added.
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52. To say gender is “constructed” means:
most cultures have few expectations about behavior as it relates to gender.
masculine and feminine have different meanings (and associated behaviors) in different cultures.
gender differences are actually superficial, given other concerns of people’s lifestyles.
societies have developed ideas of two or more genders in planning their way of life.
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53. Answer: b
To say that gender is "constructed" is to say that masculine and feminine have different meanings (and associated behaviors) in different cultures.
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