AnthropologyLesson 2 of 2 in the course Gender and Sexuality

Anthropological Perspectives on Gender, Masculinity, and Gender Diversity

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

This lesson explores how gender can feel natural while being shaped by culture and everyday practice. It introduces essentialism and gender performativity, and shows why ideas about gender vary across societies.

Essentialism is the belief that a trait is so deep and consequential that everyone who has it shares a common identity or nature. Gender essentialism treats traits associated with women or men as inherent and biologically fixed. Statements such as “Boys will be boys” illustrate this reasoning: a behavior is attributed to an assumed male essence, and the behavior is then used as evidence that the essence exists. This circular explanation makes cultural expectations appear to be facts of nature.

All flashcards

What is gender naturalization?
The process by which cultural ideas and expectations about gender come to seem natural.
What is an anthropology of women?
Research examining women’s roles and experiences to address their historical absence from ethnographic accounts.
What is the public/private distinction?
A division between public work and social activity and private household life, which can obscure domestic labor.
What does intersex mean?
An umbrella term for variations in sex characteristics or chromosomal patterns that do not fit typical male or female conceptions.
What is a multiple-gender system?
A gender system that recognizes one or more categories beyond male and female.

Quiz questions

  1. What was a central aim of feminist anthropologists who called for an anthropology of women?Answer: To study women’s roles and experiences, which ethnographies had often overlooked.
  2. What did Michelle Rosaldo argue about the public/private division?Answer: It could marginalize women by separating them from valued public roles.
  3. What did Barry Hewlett’s research on Aka fathers demonstrate?Answer: Men can be affectionate and closely involved in caring for young children.
  4. Why do some advocates support delaying nonessential, irreversible procedures on intersex children?Answer: To let the person participate in the decision and give informed consent.
  5. What effect did assimilationist schools have on many Native gender traditions?Answer: They denigrated Native cultures and contributed to the decline of variant-gender practices.

Based on Introduction to Anthropology by Jennifer Hasty, David G. Lewis, Marjorie M. Snipes (OpenStax), licensed CC BY 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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