Al-maskari 1 Yahya Al-maskari LIT 2000 James Macadams March 28, 2019 Sexism in Literature and its Effects on Society. Sexism refers to discrimination based upon gender, sex or the notion that women are inferior to men and hence discrimination is thus confirmed. Such a belief could be conscious or unconscious. This issue of sexism towards females has to be dealt with, but then again what of sexism towards men? Women should be treated the same way as men since they all have got the same capability and equal rights. The sexism of women against men occurs when the balance of political, cultural, economic and social power is equally in women’s favor (O’Neil et al., 193). Additionally, men are not complete in a community of imposed male hierarchy so they are not supposed to brag with the belief that they are more superior to females?. For example, in the male society men take pride amongst themselves in a hierarchical relationship with one another, where the males at the top of the power pyramid have more advantage than those below. In literature sexism also appears but there should be a cast balanced in gender. The female characters can do better than men; a cast should be created to even overwhelm the women. Whether the gender of a character influences or does not influence the plot, the common-male cast is considered first which should not be the case; place a sister instead of a brother, can the main character in the literature work have a sister in place of a brother? Furthermore, in a drama or any written literature work, the female character should be assigned Al-maskari 2 objectives for themselves, not those objectives that revolve around a male character. A great example of this is in the book series A Song of Ice & Fire by George R. R. Martin where Daenerys Targaryen, one of the main characters, is shown to be a great leader and warrior who doesn’t serve or have her life revolve around a man✓✓ (Herrero et 84). Along the same theme of sexism in literature, objectification of women is shown in the novel A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick. Whenever female characters are introduced in the novel, there is a clear objectification of said characters. For example, all female characters the author just describes the fact that they are not wearing any under garments. This goes to show the sexist mentality of some authors and some forms of literature on the whole. As such, men should believe that women have got powers like them. This is a big challenge to men and they should not fear losing power to women since women can absolutely do the same job that the men do.Throughout history women have achieved great things, such as ruling countries and empires, for example, Queen Elizabeth the first and Catherine the Great. Women have also made inventions in science like Marie Curie who won the Nobel prize in chemistry and physics; additionally, they have also shown unforgettable bravery in wars as well as achieving artistic accomplishments, for instance, Jane Austen who was well known in writing novels (Jost et al., 25). In fact, men should be made to understand that they could be fighting a losing battle. Why would men demean the female seeking the office and it is seen that women are not giving up from seeking these elected offices or any effort they want to achieve? They need to fill these seats so that sexism is stopped in our society and prevented from re-occurring in the near future (Herrero et al 132). According to Newton’s third law which states “in every action, there is an Al-maskari 3 equal and opposite reaction force” women have to push back in every attempt when men try to push them. The superiority belief and any form of harassment have to end with women in power which is evident from the records. In 2018, it was reported that a majority of the elected seats were occupied by women.✓ In today’s life, the female child is more empowered and much attention is paid on them and they are considered for what they give compared to the earlier years. It is plainly obvious that the girl child is smart just as men and can and will achieve as much as men??.it is not effective to oppose women’s assertion of their rights to politics. Women are answerable to significant accomplishments that the society and men benefit as a whole (Jost et al 64). In case one attempt to criticize or discourage women from securing an office you will only be hurting yourself.it is clear that women are not inferior to men and none or nothing will hinder them from accomplishing their dreams. Women face a lot in schools and in the society at large due to these beliefs reinforced on them whereby women are hindered from economic, cultural and social participation, including the possibility of an unbalanced and abusive professional and personal relationship with men and boys; such as violence, sexual harassment, and sexual assault. These events result in physical and mental well-being and health among women. In school, women who are goals of sexist violence and sexism may mislay their self-esteem and get embarrassed and unsure about themselves (Brandt et al., 256). They may feel that they have no power, angry and fearful, internalizing the anger having learned that emotions are manly. These confusing and painful emotions may result in a variety of signs that women are suffering. Anger experienced from inside can cause depression and other problems related to Al-maskari 4 mental health; and some behaviors that destroy oneself such as poor eating habits, self- harm, and alcohol and drug abuse. In a mixed gender situation especially in school, girls are seen to be quiet; they can’t express themselves, or even share their views, and are hesitant in speaking out in class. They are unwilling to indulge in co-curriculum activities. Premature experience of sexist violence and sexism may result in a cycle of fighting as women come to underestimate themselves and their value (Roy et al 103). However, this kind of suffering has to come to a stop, women are supposed to be heard in schools and society, they need to be involved in the co-curriculum activities, their self- esteem has to arise and need to know their worth in the society so that this kind of feelings and depression is swept away from their lives. Through this, cooperative and collaborative healthy social groups will develop, without female characters the world will be incomplete; they have to exist and play a role in today’s lives. In conclusion, women have made it to the big time. Women are diverse and can accomplish several duties. They have brought the transformation that we enjoy in this current generation; they are producing a dent in this globe and generating an impact that is much greater than men. It is even clearly noticed that they hold more riches critical claim and values than in the early times; they are in the spotlight. With great power comes great responsibility. Nowadays, women aim for the 70/30 type dominant role mostly in marriages, workplaces and other social scenarios (O’Neil et al, 100). Women have become independent through their positive qualities and the role of men will surely reduce in the sight of independent women and that belief of women not being referred to inferior will be inherited by the future generation of women in the society. Al-maskari 5 Dear Yayha, nice effort here, but I think it could use some revision. Your main argument seems to be that sexism against women is wrong, and should be stopped. Which I agree with. But aside from the parts where you discuss actual women and examples, your writing is super abstract and redundant, and it’s literally hard to read it’s so confusing. Feel free to revise if you’d like. Paper Grade: BClass Grade: A-. You’re doing great, keep it up! Works Cited Brandt, Mark J. "Sexism and gender inequality across 57 societies." Psychological science 22.11 (2011): 1413-1418. Print. Herrero, Juan, Francisco J. Rodríguez, and Andrea Torres. "Acceptability of partner violence in 51 societies: The role of sexism and attitudes toward violence in social relationships." Violence Against Women 23.3 (2017): 351-367. Print. Jost, John T., and Aaron C. Kay. "Exposure to benevolent sexism and complementary gender stereotypes: consequences for specific and diffuse forms of system justification." Journal of personality and social psychology 88.3 (2005): 498.print. Al-maskari 6 O'Neil, James M. "Patterns of gender role conflict and strain: Sexism and fear of femininity in men's lives." The personnel and guidance journal 60.4 (1981): 203-210. Print. Roy, Robin E., Kristin S. Weibust, and Carol T. Miller. "Effects of stereotypes about feminists on feminist self-identification." Psychology of women quarterly 31.2 (2007): 146-156. Print.
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