Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Jennifer Lopez
AP Literature
Mr. Janosch
“The gender pay gap knows no borders, so whether you’re a farmer in Kenya or an
actress in Hollywood, it’s likely you’ll only be paid two-thirds as much as your male counterpart
However, an idea that is still around till today since the beginning of time, is the idea that
genders must be treated differently. That women and men cannot be equal no matter what. This
idea exists all around the world in many societies. Gender inequality has brought a significant
impact upon many societies, affecting both men and women, today some societies are acting on
Gender inequality is the idea that women and men aren't treated equally. It can be most
viewed in differences of power, prestige, and status men and women each hold. Some examples
of gender inequality are the pay gap that exists between men and women, gender roles, and
raising boys and girls differently. Being treated different on whether one was born male or
female has always existed, though now more people are becoming aware of it and speaking out
on it.
The impacts of gender inequality in societies are many. For example, in American society
we can clearly see the impact of gender inequality in how women and men are perceived.
Women are usually perceived as the weaker gender, while men are looked at as the stronger
gender. This has created what is known today as gender roles. A gender role is “a set of societal
norms dictating the types of behaviors which are generally considered acceptable, appropriate, or
desirable for people based on their actual or perceived sex or sexuality (Google definition)”.
Gender inequality has created these gender roles in our societies which tend to affect us
negatively. For example in the article “Gender Roles in American Society”, written by Pitlane
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Magazine it states, “Women in America usually still fulfill the role of “homemaker.” The woman
is still regarded as the caretaker of children, the party responsible for meals and cleanliness and
the nurturer...Conversely, American men still enjoy considerable power and affluence in society.
They hold the highest paying and most prestigious jobs and are regarded as the primary
providers and sustainers of the family.” This shows obvious inequality between men and women,
women are to be in charge of the house and children while men are in charge of the income and
occupy better and higher paying jobs than women do. Gender roles such as, women being in
charge of the house and men in charge of the economic stability of their family is a major effect
Another effect that gender inequality has had in our society shortly mentioned before is
that men hold better paying and more prestigious jobs than women do. This is further discussed
in the article titled, “America is Falling Behind Other Countries in Gender Equality”, in which it
states, “ Globally, women hold on average only 24% of the ministerial positions that men hold,
and only 27% of the parliamentary positions (Saadia Zahidi)” this shows how women make up
less than half of ministerial and parliamentary positions. Also, in the same article it states,
“women do not make it into senior, higher paid roles in the same proportion, with only 43%
making it into legislator, senior official and manager positions. (Saadia Zahidi)”. This shows that
only 43% of women make it to higher paying positions. Social inequality has created a gap
between what women and men can accomplish in the workplace, creating it more difficult for
Gender inequality is alive in many societies, one of many societies affected are Asian
societies. In these societies like in many others, women are looked at as less than men, this puts
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women at a lower level in which they are exposed to violence, arranged marriages, and public
shame. In “Violence Against Women in Asian Societies: Gender Inequality and Technologies of
Violence”, Sunera Thobani describes the unfair treatment that women are subjected to, some
mentioned are, “violence as a continuum, from teasing to rape to murder; men's coercive
assertion of authority in premarital relationships continuing into married life; and, not
surprisingly, the application of notions of chastity, honour and virtue primarily to women, not
men”. This shows how low women are viewed, and treated in this society, they are abused in
many ways, physically, sexually, and emotionally. In situations like these men are the most
common abusers, abusing women throughout premarital relationships and onto marriage. This is
an example of how active gender inequality is in Asian societies, how women are looked at and
Another example, of gender inequality in Asian societies is in the same article by
Sunera Thobani, where she speaks about the economic dependency and public shame that forces
women to stay with abusive partners. In the article it states, “The authors find that economic
dependency and family ties keep women in violent relationships; and that fear of the shame
associated with being socially cast as unchaste exposes women to increased violence.”, this
shows how women have little to no chances of being economically independent in these
societies, while men are, which gives women no choice but remaining in violent relationships.
This quote also shows how women who leave their partners are socially casted as “unchaste”,
which exposes them to even more frequent violence in these societies. Social inequality has
impacted Asian societies by creating the idea that women are weak, that they must depend on a
male partner even if it involves remaining in a violent relationship. Due to social inequality,
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women cannot leave violent relationships in these societies, for if they do they are socially casted
leading to more violent acts towards them, this shows that women have no escape of the affects
In most situations dealing with gender inequality women usually receive the short end,
however, gender inequality affects men as well. Men are taught from a very young age that their
gender requires them to be strong, not only physically but emotionally too. This obviously leads
to high expectations on them and problems in which men cannot express themselves and their
by Alice Clarfelt, She speaks about the great deal of pressure men face trying to live up to the
standards that societies have created for them in order to be considered “Real” men. For example
in the article it states, “The pressure on men to be financial providers in relationships and
families can also lead to situations of violence. Facing the realities of poverty and
unemployment, many young men experience feelings of disempowerment and frustration.” This
quote explains how men are expected to support their families, and when they can't they become
emotionally frustrated and sometimes even abusive towards others. To support this claim,
Clarfelt interviewed a male participant who stated, “You feel useless, like you cannot fulfil your
role as a man. That can turn into violence. You get frustrated, you get stressed, and then you can
be very abusive emotionally.” This shows how the expectations put on men by society due to
gender inequality becomes overwhelming to the point where they become emotionally frustrated
and feel disempowered. This shows how social inequality affects men as well causing emotional
frustration that can sometimes even lead to violent behavior. Another way in which men are
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affected by social inequality is that are restricted to expressing themselves or showing any kind
of vulnerability. For example, some topics that are considered taboos for men to talk about are,
“Men are abused by their women partners, but this is not understood to be a reality. In general it
is difficult for men to speak out about sexual and other forms of abuse because the attitude is that
men are tough and invulnerable, and that they do not express their pain or suffering (Clarfelt)”.
This shows how physical, emotional, and sexual abuse towards men is disregarded or sometimes
not even spoken of. This effect is due to social inequality, the believe that men are too strong and
tough to show vulnerability even if it involves something major like physical or sexual abuse.
The belief that men must be tough and cannot show vulnerability was created by societies
affected by gender inequality. This effect impacts men massively, as mentioned before because
of this idea that men cannot be hurt or defeated there are many abuses that go unreported. For
SEXUAL ASSAULT”, the author Kemi Badenoch discusses the many reasons why men do not
report sexual assaults they include, “ fears that their sexuality could become the focus of any
investigation. Also because of its perceived masculine nature, the very act of reporting to the
police is another barrier men have to contend with.”. This shows how society has created it a
taboo for men to talk about abuse towards them even more if it involves sexual abuse. Also, it
states “societal attitudes which question masculinity assume that victims should have been able
to fight off the individual who sexually assaulted them, especially if the perpetrator was
female.(Kemi Badenoch), this shows how societies tends to question a victim's sexuality instead
of focusing on the crime. This effect is caused by social inequality in their societies, the belief
that men cannot be hurt and that they cannot show any kind of vulnerability.
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Although gender inequality still exists today in a large part of the world, some societies
are working hard towards fighting against it .In the U.S, the new generations in its society seem
to become more and more open to female leaders. For example, U.S Congress “has a record
number of women, with 104 female House members and 21 female Senators, including the
chamber's first Latina, Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (Susan Milligan)” This shows how
newer generations in American society are becoming more open minded and finding ways to
fight gender inequality by selecting female leaders. Another way that societies are fighting
toward a gender equality world is by protesting for equal rights for all genders. For example, in
the article, “Women's Marches Go Global: Postcards From Protests Around The World”, images
of protests fighting for gender equality are shown, these protests occur all over the United States,
and all around the world. This shows how societies are making efforts towards gender equality
Those who have improved gender equality in their societies have demonstrated to the
world the positive effects that gender equality creates. For example, in the magazine article,
for the development of any country. Removing barriers that prevent women from having the
same access as men to education, economic opportunities and productive inputs have led to
board productivity gains, which are all the more important in a more competitive and globalised
world today(Infotrac Newsstand).” This proves that gender equality helps increase productivity
in many areas, this helps countries become better competitors and helps their development,
which shows that gender equality impacts societies in many positive ways. Another article that
mentions the benefits of gender equality is “America is falling behind other countries in gender
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equality” written by Saadia Zahidi in which it is mentioned that the positive impacts of gender
equality among societies includes, “ First, the “role model” effect, which is felt by both women
and men, changes biases, aspirations and it has been shown that in countries where there are
women in political leadership, economic inequality is low, both between income groups and
between gender”, this shows that when both genders are given the same opportunities, it affects
the society in positive ways, such as inspiring others to succeed and decreasing economic
inequality between gender. These two examples are a few of many ways that gender inequality
Gender inequality is the idea that genders must be treated differently. We are exposed to
these differences since birth and while growing up since, social norms dictate that girls and boys
are to be “raised differently”. Gender inequality has affected both men and women since the
beginning of time, and although many ideas have evolved gender inequality remains. Today,
many societies are still affected, the effects on women vary from abusive relationships to
possessing lower pay and less prestigious jobs than men. While men are affected because of the
expectations they are to meet while not being able to show any kind of vulnerability. While more
and more people become aware of gender inequality all around the world, many societies are
making efforts towards a gender equality world. As part of a society we must help raise
awareness about this topic and recognize we still have a long way to go towards a world full of
equality.
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Works Cited
Newsstand,
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Thobani, Sunera. "Violence Against Women in Asian Societies: Gender Inequality and
Technologies of Violence." Pacific Affairs, vol. 77, no. 2, 2004, p. 308+. General
OneFile,go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=GPS&sw=w&u=nysl_me_73_shb&v=2.1&id=GA
LE%7CA126076080&it=r&asid=a0ec42a202e478b8100a53012799899a. Accessed 26
Nov. 2017.
Saadia Zahidi, Head of Education, Gender and Work System Initiative, Member of Executive
Countries in Gender Equality. The next President Must Fix That.” World Economic
www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/10/global-gender-gap-2016-usa-saadia-zahidi/.
Development.” Restless Development - The Youth Led Development Agency, 2 Jan. 2015,
restlessdevelopment.org/news/2015/01/02/boys-don-t-cry-how-sexual-based-violence-aff
ects-young-men-in-south-africa.
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Milligan, Susan. “Stepping Through History.” U.S. News & World Report, U.S. News & World
www.usnews.com/news/the-report/articles/2017-01-20/timeline-the-womens-rights-move
ment-in-the-us.
Dwyer, Colin, et al. “Women's Marches Go Global: Postcards From Protests Around The
www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/01/21/510940708/womens-march-on-washingto
n-goes-worldwide-snapshots-from-around-the-globe.
Badenoch, Kemi. Silent Suffering Supporting the Male Survivors of Sexual Assault. 15 Nov.
2015, glaconservatives.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Silent-Suffering.pdf.
www.pitlanemagazine.com/ethnicity-and-gender/gender-roles-in-american-society.html.