MODULE 1 Lesson 3 Gender Stereotyping

I. INTRODUCTION
Literature can be better appreciated and understood when studied through aparticular critical lens. As the popular
saying goes, “There are several ways to kill a cat”, in the same manner, a text can be read critically in various ways, or
from
different perspectives.

There are several approaches in critical literary appreciation and one of which is the feminist approach. The
Feminist Theory shifts its assumptions, analytic lens, and topical focus away from the male viewpoint and experience
toward that of women. In doing so, feminist theory shines a light on social problems, trends, and issues that are otherwise
overlooked or misidentified by the historically dominant male perspective society.

In the feminist approach, the key areas of focus include discrimination andexclusion on the basis of sex and
gender, objectification, structural and economic inequality, power and oppression, and gender roles and stereotypes.

This module provides various activities that will enable you to:

1. define feminism as viewed from various sources;

2. identify specific challenges to women’s rights, why they exist and what can be done to effect change;
3. develop infographic materials to address gender stereotyping; and
4. write a critical essay on the suggested material/text using the feminist approach.

Activity 1. HE SAID. SHE SAID.

Read the following statements and decide whether you think each statement is most likely to have been spoken by a male
or a female person. Use your answer sheet.

LESSON PROPER

History is replete with stories of women who battled with oppression and discrimination in pursuit of equality and
independence. There was Sojourner Truth, an African-American who dedicated her life to fighting and defending gender
equality. Her speech “Ain’t I a Woman?” stirred hearts and became widely told during the Civil War era. In 1828, she
became the first black woman to win a custody court battle against a white man. Frida Kahlo, a Mexican artist, used her
work to portray taboo topics such as abortion, miscarriage, birth, and breastfeeding, among other things. Sally Ride was
the first American woman to launch into space on June 18, 1983, on the space shuttle Challenger. In 2001, she started
Sally Ride Science which helps to combat misconceptions about women in STEM and "inspire young people in Science,
Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) and to promote STEM literacy." Then there’s Malala Yousafzai, who in 2012
at the age of 17, became the youngest Nobel Prize laureate in history. In a world where 31 million children do not receive
a primary education and another 62 million miss out on a secondary education, 62 million girls around the world are
denied an education, which often dooms them to a life of poverty and dependence, Yousafzai continues to speak out on
female education and gender equality. Her global campaign #BooksNotBullets aims to do exactly what it suggests:
empower young people, especially girls, with books, instead of putting them under the sway of bullets. These activists
advanced the causes of and for women like them, but the battle continues.

Though much have been achieved in the area of women empowerment in the West, much still awaits
emancipation especially for women in most third world countries, where issues about access to education, employment
opportunities reproductive health and rights, female genital mutilation, gender-based violence, and child marriages still
abound. These issues confronting women become central to their narratives that usually land on the front pages of
broadsheets, on national television broadcasts, as well as on the pages of literature.

Literature is said to be a reflection of the society; its perceptions and attitudes best seen through the characters’
portrayal, their words and deeds. Feminist literature is fiction, nonfiction, drama or poetry which supports the feminist
goals of defining, establishing and defending equal civil, political, economic and social rights for women.

Then and now, feminist literature, which is based on the principles of feminism, bemoans the struggles of women
to be accepted by the society and the world as a human being. The 21st century novel Sister Outsider written by Audre
Lorde is a literal testament to the need for society and women to bear witness and engage in a real exchange on the
problems facing female communities. As a Black queer woman, Lorde’s work is not simply a testament, but a truth one
holds close and has become required reading to understand feminism at its core. It is not the sole tome on this topic, yet
there is a reason it is so often referenced thanks to the blunt and compassionate way Lorde presents humanity as a woman,
as a mother and as an artist.

Pride by Ibi Zoboi which is a contemporary take on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, on the other hand, tackles
romance, familial expectations, and the ongoing pursuit of happiness. Feminism, as it was, does not mean having to forgo
love in the interest of other desires, be they academic or creative or political. In Pride, the title holds sway in so many
character’s actions, particularly protagonist Zuri Benitez who never loses sight of who she is and how she sees the world
around her change as gentrification, and money take hold in Brooklyn. Zuri is outspoken, a fighter, Afro-Latin and
desirable for all those reasons. Her femininity is not forsaken due to these characteristics—it’s sought after.

Acknowledging the ways that identities connect, overlap, and influence one another has given women, girls and
advocates a way to frame their circumstances and fight for their rights, inclusion, and visibility. It is accurate to say that
literature became the most expedient sounding board of stories about women and their challenges in the ordinary schemes
of things. It provided the best avenue for showing the plight of most women personified in fictional characters in realistic
pursuits and almost always tragic endings. Feminism champions the rights of women to fully contribute at home, at work
and in public life, for the betterment of their communities and society at large.

Simply put, the following are common views about feminism:

1. Women are oppressed by patriarchy - economically, politically, socially, and psychologically; patriarchal ideology is the
primary means by which women are oppressed. Patriarchy is a social system in which men hold primary power and
predominate in roles of political leadership, moral authority, social privilege and control of property.

2. In every domain where patriarchy reigns, woman is other: she is marginalized, defined only by her difference from
male norms and values.

3. All of Western (Anglo-European) civilization is deeply rooted in patriarchal ideology, for example, in the Biblical
portrayal of Eve as the origin of sin and death in the world.

4. While biology determines our sex (male or female), culture determines our gender (scales of masculine and feminine).

5. All feminist activity, including feminist theory and literary criticism, has as its ultimate goal to change the world by
prompting gender equality.

6. Gender issues play a part in every aspect of human production and experience, including the production and experience
of literature, whether we are consciously aware of these issues or not.

The foregoing views may be considered in doing a close analysis using the feminist lens. In a work of fiction,
they may constitute the theme, or may be explored in the setting, or may provide the very conflict that the character needs
to resolve in the story. Below are some typical questions one must ask when writing a close analysis:

• How is the relationship between men and women portrayed?

• What are the power relationships between men and women (or characters assuming male/female roles)?

• How are male and female roles defined?

• What constitutes masculinity and femininity?

• How do characters embody these traits?

• Do characters take on traits from opposite genders? How does this change others’ reactions to them?
• What does the work reveal about the operations (economically, politically, socially, or psychologically) of patriarchy?

• What does the work imply about the possibilities of sisterhood as a mode of resisting patriarchy?

• What does the work say about women's creativity?

• What does the history of the work's reception by the public and by the critics tell us about the operation of patriarchy?

• What role does the work play in terms of women's literary history and literary tradition?

The Feminist approach is a powerful literary method that you can use to analyze literature. Be guided by the
following process as you write your essay or literary analysis using this approach.

1. Carefully read the work you will analyze.

2. Formulate a general question after your initial reading that identifies a problem—a tension—that addresses a key
issue relevant to feminist, queer theory, or masculinity studies.

3. Reread the work, paying particular attention to the question you posed. Take notes, which should be focused on your
central question. Write an exploratory journal entry or blog post that allows you to play with ideas.

4. Construct a working thesis that makes a claim about the work and accounts for the following:

a. What does the work mean?

b. How does the work artistically demonstrate a theme?

c. “So what” is significant about the work? That is, why is it important for you to write about this work? What
will readers “learn” from reading your interpretation?

5. Reread the text to gather textual evidence for support. What literary devices are used to achieve the theme?

6. Construct an informal outline that demonstrates how you will support your interpretation.

7. Write a first draft.

8. Receive feedback from peers and your teacher via peer review and conferencing with your teacher (if possible).

9. Revise the paper, which will include revising your original thesis statement and restructuring your paper to best
support the thesis. (Note: You probably will revise many times, so it is important to receive feedback at every draft stage if
possible.)

10.Edit and proofread for correctness, clarity, and style.

Activity 2. WORD WEB

After reading the preceding discussion, study the following statements/quotes and consider the ideas you gleaned from
them. Write the word FEMINISM at the center of the web then complete the word web with such ideas. Use your answer
sheet.
☺ “I believe the rights of women and girls is the unfinished business of the 21 st Century.”
HILLARY CLINTON, US Politician
https://www.stylist.co.uk/life/the-top-50-most-empowering-feminist-quotes-of-all-time

☺ “A feminist is a person who believes that the subordination of women is not only unfair, but immoral—and lives
according to that belief.”
BARBARA SHACK Associate Director, New York Civil Liberties Union
https://www.nytimes.com/1975/11/08/archives/a-feminist-definition-varies-with-the-woman.html

☺ “A feminist is a person who actively practices the philosophy of equality of the sexes, whether in a professional or
personal aspect.”
ARIE TAYLOR, State Representative, Colorado
https://www.nytimes.com/1975/11/08/archives/a-feminist-definition-varies-with-the-woman.html

☺ “A feminist is a person, female or male, who identifies with the needs of all women. A feminist is sensitive to the
discrimination suffered by women as a class and advocates full legal, political, social and economic equality for
everyone. A feminist relates to each person as a human being and wants for all people a free and unconditioned choice to
develop their full potential and not be stereotyped into a specific role based on sex. A feminist is one who makes a priority
commitment to the betterment of the position of women in our society.”
MARY BURKE NICHOLAS, Director, Women's Division State of New York
https://www.nytimes.com/1975/11/08/archives/a-feminist-definition-varies-with-the-woman.html

☺ “We shouldn’t be afraid of the word ‘feminist’ – men and women should be able to use the word to describe themselves
any time they want."
JUSTIN TRUDEAU, Prime Minister of Canada
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/7-quotes-on-gender-parity-from-davos-2016/

☺ “All men should be feminists. If men care about women’s rights, the world will be a better place.”
JOHN LEGEND, singer
https://www.womenly.net/5-things-about-feminism/john-legend/

☺ “Let us use this century to be the century when we said we started the mission to end the violence and oppression of
women. Let us never, ever let our children become the abusers to our women that we permitted in our lifetime.”
HARRY BELAFONTE, singer, actor
https://www.sheknows.com/entertainment/articles/1047339/best-quotes-about-feminism-

After completing the word web, study how the words and ideas connect.
Then, try to come up with your own definition of feminism. Write your own definition on your answer sheet.

Activity 3. A FEMINIST VOICE

At this point you will read the full transcript of the speech delivered by Emma Watson, the UN Women Goodwill
Ambassador, at the UN Headquarters on September 20, 2014.
 Emma Watson: Gender equality is your issue too
(Speech by UN Women Goodwill Ambassador Emma Watson at a special event for the HeForShe campaign,
United Nations Headquarters, New York, 20 September 2014)

Today we are launching a campaign called “HeForShe.”

I am reaching out to you because I need your help. We want to end gender inequality—and to do that we need everyone to
be involved.
This is the first campaign of its kind at the UN: we want to try and galvanize as many men and boys as possible to be
advocates for gender equality. And we don’t just want to talk about it, but make sure it is tangible.
I was appointed six months ago and the more I have spoken about feminism the more I have realized that fighting for
women’s rights has too often become synonymous with man-hating. If there is one thing I know for certain, it is that this
has to stop.
For the record, feminism by definition is: “The belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. It
is the theory of the political, economic and social equality of the sexes.”
I started questioning gender-based assumptions when at eight I was confused at being called “bossy,” because I wanted to
direct the plays we would put on for our parents—but the boys were not.
When at 14 I started being sexualized by certain elements of the press.
When at 15 my girlfriends started dropping out of their sports teams because they didn’t want to appear “muscly.”
When at 18 my male friends were unable to express their feelings.
I decided I was a feminist and this seemed uncomplicated to me. But my recent research has shown me that feminism has
become an unpopular word.
Apparently I am among the ranks of women whose expressions are seen as too strong, too aggressive, isolating, anti-men
and, unattractive.
Why is the word such an uncomfortable one?
I am from Britain and think it is right that as a woman I am paid the same as my male counterparts. I think it is right that I
should be able to make decisions about my own body. I think it is right that women be involved on my behalf in the
policies and decision-making of my country. I think it is right that socially I am afforded the same respect as men. But
sadly I can say that there is no one country in the world where all women can expect to receive these rights.
No country in the world can yet say they have achieved gender equality.
These rights I consider to be human rights but I am one of the lucky ones. My life is a sheer privilege because my parents
didn’t love me less because I was born a daughter. My school did not limit me because I was a girl. My mentors didn’t
assume I would go less far because I might give birth to a child one day. These influencers were the gender equality
ambassadors that made me who I am today. They may not know it, but they are the inadvertent feminists who are
changing the world today. And we need more of those.
And if you still hate the word—it is not the word that is important but the idea and the ambition behind it. Because not all
women have been afforded the same rights that I have. In fact, statistically, very few have been.
In 1995, Hilary Clinton made a famous speech in Beijing about women’s rights. Sadly many of the things she wanted to
change are still a reality today.
But what stood out for me the most was that only 30 percent of her audience were male. How can we affect change in the
world when only half of it is invited or feel welcome to participate in the conversation?
Men—I would like to take this opportunity to extend your formal invitation. Gender equality is your issue too.
Because to date, I’ve seen my father’s role as a parent being valued less by society despite my needing his presence as a
child as much as my mother’s.
I’ve seen young men suffering from mental illness unable to ask for help for fear it would make them look less
“macho”—in fact in the UK suicide is the biggest killer of men between 20-49 years of age; eclipsing road accidents,
cancer and coronary heart disease. I’ve seen men made fragile and insecure by a distorted sense of what constitutes male
success. Men don’t have the benefits of equality either.
We don’t often talk about men being imprisoned by gender stereotypes but I can see that that they are and that when they
are free, things will change for women as a natural consequence.
If men don’t have to be aggressive in order to be accepted women won’t feel compelled to be submissive. If men don’t
have to control, women won’t have to be controlled.
Both men and women should feel free to be sensitive. Both men and women should feel free to be strong... It is time that
we all perceive gender on a spectrum not as two opposing sets of ideals.
If we stop defining each other by what we are not and start defining ourselves by what we are—we can all be freer and
this is what HeForShe is about. It’s about freedom.
I want men to take up this mantle. So their daughters, sisters and mothers can be free from prejudice but also so that their
sons have permission to be vulnerable and human too—reclaim those parts of themselves they abandoned and in doing so
be a more true and complete version of themselves.
You might be thinking who is this Harry Potter girl? And what is she doing up on stage at the UN. It’s a good question and
trust me, I have been asking myself the same thing. I don’t know if I am qualified to be here. All I know is that I care
about this problem. And I want to make it better.
And having seen what I’ve seen—and given the chance—I feel it is my duty to say something. English Statesman
Edmund Burke said: “All that is needed for the forces of evil to triumph is for enough good men and women to do
nothing.”
In my nervousness for this speech and in my moments of doubt I’ve told myself firmly—if not me, who, if not now, when.
If you have similar doubts when opportunities are presented to you I hope those words might be helpful.
Because the reality is that if we do nothing it will take 75 years, or for me to be nearly a hundred before women can
expect to be paid the same as men for the same work. 15.5 million girls will be married in the next 16 years as children.
And at current rates it won’t be until 2086 before all rural African girls will be able to receive a secondary education.
If you believe in equality, you might be one of those inadvertent feminists I spoke of earlier.
And for this I applaud you.
We are struggling for a uniting word but the good news is we have a uniting movement. It is called HeForShe. I am
inviting you to step forward, to be seen to speak up, to be the "he" for "she". And to ask yourself if not me, who? If not
now, when?
Thank you.

Activity 4. COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

On your answer sheet, please answer the following questions and see how much you have understood the material you
have just read.
1. Who is Emma Watson?
2. What did she hope to achieve with her speech you just read?
3. In what way was feminism defined in the speech?
4. What made her decide to be a feminist?
5. When does one become a feminist, according to the speech?
6. According to the speech, what problems confront women in a male dominated society? Why do they exist? What
measures do governments implement to address these problems?
7. List down some male gender stereotypes mentioned in the speech. What can be done to break these stereotypes?
8. How important is male participation in establishing or achieving gender equality?
9. Why did Emma Watson say that gender equality is a man’s issue too?
10.What is gender equality? Do you think this is achievable?

Activity 5. TEST YOURSELF

Read the text again. Guided by the following questions, write a critical analysis of the speech using the Feminist
approach.
• What is the speaker trying to espouse?
• How are male and female roles defined in the speech?
• What does the speech reveal about the realities of gender equality/inequality?
• What does the speech reveal about the operations (economically, politically, socially, or psychologically) of men over
women?
• What does the speech imply about possibilities of achieving what the speaker advocates?

Rate your essay using the following rubric.

Modified rubrics from this source: http://swaskiewicz.blogs.ccps.us/files/2015/12/RubricforcriticalanalysisEssay.pdf