Gender Stereotypes Essay

Gender Stereotypes

A stereotype is an image or an idea that is widely appreciated in a fixed manner. It might be an idea about a person, a thing or a group of individuals. Gender, on the other hand, is a group of characteristic that classify one as either feminine or masculine (Merriam-Webster dictionary. nd). Gender stereotypes are then general ideas about the differences, the attributes and the roles of a given gender. For example in many cultures, the female stereotypic role is to have children and take care of the home after marriage while that of men is to be the provider and he’s expected to work hard to ensure the family doesn’t lack. One of the major factors that influence the gender stereotypes is culture. We are all raised up in a culture which mostly dictates the roles of male and female individual and has specific specifications on how they do almost everything (Basow, S. 1992).
Fashion and design are highly affected by the gender stereotypes made by the society. Children grow up knowing certain colors are for men while others colors are for women. The same happens with clothing; some given clothes are widely accepted for a particular gender while some are not acceptable. This aspect is seen so clearly in our societies in that when a man wears female clothes he will be ridiculed and considered feminine, and a woman who tries out male clothes as considered masculine. Hence, persons of each gender strive to keep to their accepted clothing to avoid the ridicule (Li, S. 2011). Through fashionable clothes, a person makes a statement on his or her social identity and class. The principal message conveyed through fashion is the way in which both women and men perceive their roles as a gender or how they are expected to understand them (Crane, D. 2000)
One of the examples of fashion or design that is attached to a particular gender is the high heels. The high heels are a fashion that to this date has not been masculinized. This means that no male who acknowledges his roles in the society can get to wear high heels on any occasion. That makes the high heels a stereotype fashion for the female persons. Another one is the skirts which are in many societies known to be for ladies except for some primitive societies where men still do wear skirts. The last one is the corset which is considered feminine. Corsets are of many shapes and many females do wear corsets because it can manipulate the physical appearance and make them more attractive. All the above pieces of fashion are known to be for women and men who do wear them can easily be ridiculed and considered feminine (Li, S. 2011).
In conclusion, gender stereotypes are part and parcel of the community. The stereotypes can be used in a negative way and end up having profound effects on the society in terms of gender bias. Gender stereotypes also affect significantly how most of the people behave, and fashion is one of the factors that is affected by these stereotypes. On the other hand, if utilized in the right manner, fashion can be used to manipulate gender stereotype and change the general views on the roles of gender. In the current society, many fashion industries study many cultures and through fashion try to change several stereotypes.

References

Crane, D., 2000. Fashion and Its Social Agendas: Class, Gender, and Identity in Clothing.. Chicago: Chicago University Press.
Baslow, S. A., 1992. Gender: Stereotypes and roles (3rd ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole Publishing Company
Li, S., 2011. Fashionable People, Fashionable Society: Fashion, Gender, and Print Culture in England. Michigan: UMI Dissertation Publisher.
Merriam-Webster dictionary (online). Available at:
http://www.merriam- webster.com/dictionary/gender and http://www.merriam- webster.com/dictionary/stereotype