Gender in Language: A Global Evolution
Rachel Walker
Kaplan University
SS 260-01 Gender and Society
April 10, 2014
What is the difference between masculinity and femininity? There is a psychological way of saying that masculinity is a trait of the male species that emphasizes strength, logic, and dominance. Femininity is considered to be a trait of the female species that emphasizes weakness, emotions, and being submissive. This may be how a good number of individuals believe it truly is. However, in today’s world and through my discoveries, it is a lot different and I will explain why.
I went to a few different places to gather information on proving that both males and females carry a lot of the same traits now days. I went to a gym, a beauty salon, and a coffee shop and the results was no surprise to me. What made me decide on these specific places? A gym is characterized as a place to “get buff,” which represents a good portion of the male trait of strength. A beauty salon is characterized as a place to get “primped,” which represents part of the female traits. The coffee shop really does not represent either trait. Both males and females come here and it was the one place out of the three where the species were blended rather than separated. I will describe my finding for each place.
When walking into a gym, some may believe they will find more males than females inside. I had a hard time deciding just which one to choose. I went into a place called Planet Fitness in Davenport Iowa and my findings showed there were more men in the fitness center than women and I wondered why. Today a lot of women are about staying in shape and getting fit, or in other terms “buff.” While walking around and checking out the different areas, I came across why I did not see many women when I first walked in the door. They were in a separate room taking a yoga class. Was it women only you might be wondering? No, there were a few men in there as well. I waited for...