The pursuit of human rights and freedom is a priority of global discussions. It is disturbing that as the world moves towards achieving global standards for human rights, it advances a lifestyle that discriminates against women. The discussions provide a sociological perspective that constructs a dominance of masculinity in almost every sector of society. From the readings, and compared to the day-to-day interactions between peers, women are exploited. They are regarded as necessity and shunned when the purpose in satiated. The marginalization and abuse of women demonstrated in the readings have reached the apex and require a redress. Although the privilege to choose personal gender at birth is limited, , it is significant that rights are based on gender dynamics and needs in the society rather than the collective approach.
The readings illustrate that being born a woman is risks. Society uses women as gadgets of trade for various scenarios. For example, in African civil wars, women bear the highest form of brutality, such as rape and physical abuse,Being born a woman carries several risks from maternal mortality to victims of war. Societal cultures also have expectation on women and expects them to submit to their male counterparts. Accordingly, women who have improved their social statuses and gained professional training or employment remain victims of work-based abuses such as indecent treatment. I find the situations more interesting since even professional women within similar ranks as men are disadvantaged in regards to work expectations, promotions, and other responsibilities.
The patriarchal nature of the society favour male children compared to their female counterparts. The reading provides a reflection from various perspectives where the male child is hardened while the female is softened for future. Boys in some cultures are discouraged to be shy and expected to be assertive to maintain the aspects of masculinity.Notably, even toys developed for male and female children vary. Girls are expected to play with dolls that call for tenderness, while boys are socialized into cars, guns, complicated moving plants, which require skill and aggressiveness. The effect of such on the cognitive development of children is compromised to advantage the boys when exposed to real life struggles. The challenge, however, is that both children are expected to work for similar resources albeit with different upbringing. These practices disenfranchise the girls who grow up as “weak beings” due to cultural expectations placed on them. The patriarchal system builds a traditionthat influences gender roles that disadvantage women. For instance, the society defines roles at birth based on the cultural expectation of each gender, other than allowing individuals to derive their identity from a balanced platform and personal determination. However, the society should enhance practices and progressive cultures to redeem women from discriminative brackets.
The changing paradigm about education for male and female is shifting the focus of gender discussions. For example, the readings demonstrate that more women are graduating with college or university degree compared to men. However, although the fact may be so, women carry more debt due to the educational expenditures, while men drop out of college to avoid debts and jump into the work force to gain early independence. Therefore, although women may bargain for higher salaries due to better qualification, their level of indebtedness is relatively high. Finally, using gender as benchmarks for abuse or discrimination is wrong. The society should reconstruct gender perceptions and allow for sociocultural and economics inclusion of all genders.