Evolution of Gender Roles

Keegan Moser
 Introduction

 In every society, there are sex-specific expectations regarding attitudes,

behaviors and opinions. Males and females are expected to behave and
think in certain ways, from the moment of birth. These expectations are
that society’s gender roles.

 Gender roles differ greatly between societies, but there are often
commonalities. For example, various cultures place women in subordinate
roles, while men fulfill the dominant role. However, many opinions and
practices which contribute to a particular gender role are unique, and are
not seen outside of one specific society.
 Changes in Gender Roles

 In most societies, gender roles have remained constant for the past
several centuries, with little deviation from their respective norms.

 However, the twentieth and twenty-first centuries have seen

remarkable changes in and departures from these predetermined
roles, These changes are evident in many separate and diverse
societies, and have been increasing in frequency over the past several
decades. The following are some examples of how male and female
roles have evolved in various cultures.
Traditional Female Roles in Africa

Male and female roles are

difficult to pinpoint in Africa,
as there are many countries, In Africa, women have traditionally never
each with its own specific held any political power, or positions in
culture. This creates a wide governments.
variety of roles. However,
some things remain semi-
constant.
One particularly controversial piece of
African culture is female genital mutilation.
Women also usually raised Proponents of the procedure claim that is
their children, and culturally and religiously required, but it is a
performed domestic tasks dangerous procedure, leading to
such as collecting water, permanent disfigurement, risk of infection,
creating meals, making and a host of other maladies.
clothes, and cleaning.
 Modern Female Roles in Africa

Some African countries

have retained the
traditional values, and However, many African countries are seeing
continue to perform an abrupt about-face occur. Women are
household chores while rapidly becoming active members of
men are working or government, and leaving the home to work.
hunting. Female genital Many cultures no longer practice genital
mutilation is also still widely mutilation, females are being granted more
practiced amongst some rights, and gender discrimination is being
ethnic groups. reduced.
 Traditional Male Roles in Africa

Men are traditionally either hunters or

farmers, depending on the group in
Once again, traditional question. They leave the home during
roles in Africa are the day in order to work or acquire
varied, but there are a food, providing for the rest of the
few which apply to family.
the majority of
cultures in the
continent. Men were traditionally the only
members of governments, whether
national, regional or tribal.
 Modern Male Roles in Africa

More and more mean are

I modern African societies which also taking up occupations
have moved from their which once would have
traditional roles and values, men seemed to fall under the
are frequently sharing the women’s traditional tasks.
responsibility of providing for These things include
and caring for their family with cooking, weaving, sewing
their wives, or alone. and teaching children.
 Traditional Female Roles in China

In the past, China had very little gender equality.

Women were not Females were granted fewer rights because they
permitted to attend were deemed less valuable than males.
academic institutions.
Instead, they remained at
home to learn various Traditionally, Chinese women were expected to bind
domestic tasks such as their feet, in order to keep them fairly small (a
sewing, cooking, cleaning quality considered attractive in Chinese society). The
and caring for children. practice of foot-binding caused a good deal of pain,
and over time, irreversible podiatric damage
occurred.
 Modern Female Roles in China

Women are often still expected to remain at home,

China is still in a sort of and see to household chores and tasks. They are still
transition period, when often considered less valuable than males as well,
it comes to women’s especially since China emplaced a one-child policy.
roles in society. Many families would prefer their one child to be a
girl.

Women's rights have seen some improvement over time. Women are no longer
expected to bind their feet; in fact, this process became illegal in the early twentieth
century. Women have the right to vote, and are increasingly entering the political
field. Young women now attend school. Since the industrial revolution, women
have become a much larger portion of China’s workforce. Many women have even
become very high-placed individuals in major Chinese corporations.
 Traditional Male Roles in China

Males were valued

In traditional Chinese much more than
society, a man had females, as it was the
Young males from
authority over his wife male who was
very poor families
and children. expected to carry on
traditionally did not
the family
attend school at all.
They were
Young males from rich families, or families who wielded expected to find
considerable influence, were well-educated. They were work and help to
strongly encouraged to excel in their studies, as the support the family.
only way to achieve political power was to pass a set of
examinations.
 Modern Male Roles in China

Chinese attitudes towards

men have also remained
somewhat unchanged. Males
are still considered to have a
Most male children now attend school,
higher value than females.
no matter the financial status of their
family. and even if they leave after
several years to seek employment, they
Men are usually expected to
have at least received some education.
contribute to their parents
well-being, once the parents
become elderly. Because of
this, most families hope for
male children.
 Traditional Female Roles in India

Like China,
traditional Women were objectified in Women were
Indian gender traditional Indian society, more so expected to
roles see women than in any other. By offering a remain in the
as the lesser dowry, a family sought to ensure home to care for
gender. Women the security of a daughter during the home and
were often arranged marriages. This had a children, but
treated as downside though, as women were were also
property, rather often only considered as expected to
than as people. prospective wives based on the assist with
value of her accompanying dowry. farming and
other manual
labour.
 Modern Female Roles in India

There are two clear classes in In this group, women often hold high-
modern India. One still paying, skilled employment. Men share
retains the values and roles of in household duties and child-rearing,
traditional Indian society, and marriages are usually by choice.
while the other holds more Dowries are not taken into
contemporary Western consideration by many families, and
values. This contemporary women are expected to attend school.
group treats women with a
great deal more equality.
 Traditional Male Roles in India

Males traditionally
In traditional Indian made all final decisions
society, males control regarding their home,
most aspects of life, even if they shared it
filling a very dominant with a spouse and
role. children.

Although men may have owned

land, it was often their wives who
Men held all positions of power performed the actual work that
within the country, and were needed to be done by hand.
expected to be intelligent. However, males would claim all of
the profits from such labour.
 Modern Male Roles in India

As I mentioned previously, there

is a clear division regarding There are many Indian men who
gender roles in India; some now raise children, while their
families retain traditional wives are the ones working
opinions and values, while others outside of the home. These men
have changed to a more no longer select wives based on
egalitarian viewpoint. dowries alone, and share their
responsibilities with them.

Men often are learning skills which

would once have been considered to
be for women alone, such as cooking,
cleaning etc…
 Traditional Female Roles in Canada

In the past, as is true in many societies,

women played a subjugated role in
society, without many rights that are now Women were most often
considered inalienable. responsible for tending to
household tasks, such as
looking after children,
cleaning, and cooking for the
family. Since they were
Women were once forbidden to vote, expected to remain at home,
hold political office, own firearms, or go they did not have any paid
on to higher education. employment.
 Modern Female Roles in Canada

During the first and second world wars,,

women's roles in Canada (and all of Because of the dire need for a
North America) began to change. large workforce, women
began to seek jobs outside of
the home. During times of
war, women for the first time
were often the sole provider
for their families. Now,
Due to the tireless efforts of many women are just as important
revolutionary women, all women now in Canada’s labour force as
have the right to vote men.
 Traditional Male Roles in Canada

In the past, men were thought of as the

Men filled all of the positions that
superior gender. Men were granted
required a higher education.
many more rights than females.
Doctors, lawyers, professors and
other

Men were once the only members

Men were traditionally the of the Canadian government. In
breadwinners of a family. They were fact, only men were permitted to
the members who worked outside of vote. It was the role of men to
the home, in order to provide for the make large executive decisions for
rest of the family. the country, provinces and
counties.
 Modern Male Roles in Canada

Over time, traditional male

Men are often the main
and female roles in Canada
providers for a family, but
have all mostly disappeared.
in many families, a
There are still some remnants
husband and wife share
of them, but both males and
equally in earning money,
females are now fulfilling
while in other families men
roles which would once have
remain in the home to care
been restricted to one
for children.
gender or the other.
 Conclusion

We see in the previous slides that while all societies have different gender roles,
they seem to have many things in common. This is seen most strongly in the
lower status of women, and a woman’s role including caring for the family and
caring for the home, while men were expected to be the provider. We also see
that in most of these societies, a trend is emerging where gender roles are
atrophying, men and women are being treated as equals, sharing various duties,
rights and responsibilities. Assuming this continues, we will soon hopefully see
total gender equality, with no unreasonable expectations or enforced roles.
 Sources

 http://www.localhistories.org/chineselife.html
 http://www.helium.com/items/1190059-womens-
rights-in-ancient-china
 http://www.helium.com/items/1005430-indias-views-
on-gender-roles
 http://goafrica.about.com/od/peopleandculture/Africa
n_Culture_and_People.htm
 http://library.stanford.edu/depts/ssrg/africa/culture.ht
ml