Social Construction of Gender

    The images of the clothing are from inside the Gap clothing store and from outside the storefront window, while the image of the children’s toy is from the Barnes and Noble.  The clothing is showing this season’s selection of the store’s children’s spring clothing.  While the mannequins are simply showing the types of clothes available, the storefront window is showing the types of activities considered to be typical of children of both genders.

    In Judith Lorber’s “Night to His Day”, she describes gender as a social institution and an individual expression.  She describes gender display as the “presentation of self as a certain kind of person through dress, cosmetics, adornments, and permanent and reversible body markers.”  In American society this is often seen in the types of colors associated with each gender, such as bright, assertive colors like orange, or deep, earthy blues and greens for boys or bright pastels or floral pinks, purples, and yellows for girls.  Lorber also defines gendered personalities which she describes as “the combination of traits patterned by gender norms of how members of different gender statuses are supposed to feel and behave.”  The bottom image particularly shows this as the boys to the left side of the image are shown dancing or walking in a “hip” way, one boy in a picture is alone and expressionless facing the camera, while the group of three boys are not interacting.  In contrast, the females are shown laughing and smiling, grouped closely together, sharing a sentimental moment.  Passersby are shown gender as males being independent and emotionally strong and wearing mostly muted or neutral colors; if they are wearing any bright colors, the character of those colors is very bold.  Females are shown as being emotional and needing each other for support.  Their colors are a very bright, wide, range of colors, though not as bold as those bright colors worn by the boys.

The hegemonic quality of the social construction of gender is pervasive in my everyday life.  When I shop, I might look for a brightly patterned bag or a certain color of lipstick.  As I groom myself every morning, my routine includes steps to help me look younger, such as maintaining a skin care regimen or wearing makeup, to feel more feminine, such as wearing a perfume.  Even less obvious steps in my routine are extremely common amongst American women, such as wearing feminine undergarments.