Gender Roles in Literature

and Their Impact on Society

___

By Stella Erimia
 2

Gender roles or stereotypes play a major role in most literature. Most commonly, men

have been portrayed as superior to women. It is uncommon for an author to present both men and

women as equal. Society has a major influence on the content of the writing. As society is

continuously changing so are gender roles.

Books written prior to the 21st century tend to portray women as the shadow of men.

The men were depicted as masculine, tough, and strong. On the other hand, women were

expected to do everything their husbands asked of them. An example of gender roles in old

literature is the play Romeo and Juliet which was published in the late 1500’s. Women, like

Juliet, were treated more like objects or property rather than an individual. Literature and

Gender states, “ according to 18th and 19th century English standards of femininity, middle and

upper class women — as opposed to men — were supposed to devote themselves almost

exclusively to the domestic sphere of “hearth and home” as daughters, sisters, wives and mothers

caring for fathers, brothers, husbands and children” (Fox, 2017). This is important in illustrating

the feminine role women had to follow.

The play Macbeth breaks traditional gender norms. In Macbeth, his wife was considered

more manly than Macbeth. Macbeth was seen as cowardly and foolish because he was unable to

face his fears. Lady Macbeth had to control the relationship and cover up the situation to the Commented [1]: the sentences are very short try to
combine them and make it 1 sentence like: Macbeth
was seen as cowardly and foolish because he wasn't
public, making it seem as though nothing was wrong. She had the dominance in the marriage. able to face his fears.

She instigated the terrible events that occured, yet Macbeth was not strong in saying “no” to his Commented [2]: quote "no"

wife. Lady Macbeth’s dominance is shown in Act 1 scene 5 when she instructs Macbeth how to

act. Macbeth is one of the few novels written that portray a woman with more power than a man

in the 15th century. The three sisters were also an example of Shakespeare going against gender
 3

stereotypes. Banquo states, "You should be women, / And yet your beards forbid me to interpret

/ That you are so" (I.2.45-47). Typically, authors did not portray women with facial hair.

Shakespeare used the facial hair as a symbol of their influence in the affairs of the male-

dominated Scotland. Despite not being apart of the dominant sex, the trio had numerous powers

including having an understanding about the future. It is believed that Shakespeare had done this Commented [3]: Maybe explain or theorize why you
believe Shakespeare would choose to do that?
in order to go against societal norms and break away from traditional writing.

Biological sex has been used to construct social differences between masculinity and

femininity. For many years, society has assigned certain roles, behaviors, norms, and thoughts of

men and women. These different roles have impacted education, financial support, and

influenced ways which men and women “could participate in literature as writers, readers,

critics, and arguably even as characters.” In the 21st century, gender roles are changing and Commented [4]: good evidenced used so far.

developing. Despite many improvements, the persistence of gender roles is still prominent in

both literature and our society

Abigail Adams, former First Lady, wrote letters to John Adams urging for a new
government that made “the legal status of women equal to that of men” (National Park Service,
2015). During the 1800’s women began to put an end to the traditional roles and work towards
Commented [5]: I love all of the distinct examples and
points you have made as of now. Maybe a good thing
to do would be to keep your paragraphs the same but
just re-arrange them so then maybe you can move
from talking about gender roles in the past to gender
roles in the present.

gender equality. These changes were seen with the Temperance Movement, Abolition, Seneca

Falls Convention, and the 19th amendment. The role of women rapidly changed during the

Industrial Revolution. WWII was a catalyst for social construction.

Higher education was designed for men. In the 1800’s a small amount of women attended

schools yet most were able to go to a “Dame school” which was a form of at home education. It

taught women the basic reading and writing skills. In parts of the world such as Pakistan, the

Taliban banned girls from attending school claiming that it was “contrary to Islam.” Another
 4

example in the article which states, “Female literacy levels were lower than male ones in 18th

and 19th century England and Wales” (Fox, 2017). There has been a change and push for more

women to get an education. In fact, in 1980, the number of women who has a bachelor's degree

surpassed the number of men with a bachelor degree. Since 2005 more women have gotten a

master’s or doctoral degree (Americans With a College Degree).

Gender stereotypes or sexism have not a been a major problem in children’s literature. In

the nineteenth century the literature focused on family and childhood. Over time, books began to

reflect the traditional values of time and the society.

In the 1960s and the 1970s, researchers began to notice the prevalence of

gender stereotypes in children's literature. Gender roles continue to be prominent in many

children's literature. Literature plays a major role in developing personalities. Once a child

begins to read, consciously or not, the child will attempt to mimic the characters in the stories

and the roles they play. Children begin to shape and develop based on what they are exposed to Commented [6]: THIS IS SO TRUE!!! children all like
little sponges.
as children. Children adopt certain roles and behaviors as part of their socialization process Commented [7]: That's why adults should be cautious
on the way they act around their kids and what they
expose their children to
(Tsao, 2008). A recent study done concluded "Books with male animals were more than two-
Commented [8]: _Marked as resolved_
and-a-half times more common across the century than those with female animals, the authors Commented [9]: _Re-opened_

said” (Flood, 2011).

Children books often portray boys to be more dominant than a female. Females are seen

as weaker or more feminine. A children's book titled I’m Glad I’m a Boy! I’m Glad I’m a Girl

begins with “boys are strong, girls are graceful” and “boys are doctors, girls are nurses”. The

messages conveyed by these pieces contribute to what a child believes a boy, girl, man, or

woman should be like. An author noted the impact of gender stereotypes; "The disproportionate
 5

numbers of males in central roles may encourage children to accept the invisibility of women

and girls and to believe they are less important than men and boys, thereby reinforcing the

gender system." (Flood, 2011). This is significant to the development of young girls as it

reinforces that women are less worthy than men. It places false stereotypes to the female gender

while glorifying the male one. Not only is the absence of female characters in children's books

impactful, but the misrepresentation of them as well. In novels such as Hooray the Fish! The

child needs his or her mother, not the father. A few children's book portray the child needing the

mother rather than both parents. The mother is seen as the more emotional and understanding Commented [10]: Maybe elaborate a bit more on why
they would chose to do this.
figure rather than the father who is characterized as tough.

Many children's books have a positive influence or outlook on gender roles. There are

children’s books that redefine gender roles. In The Paper Bag Princess Elizabeth is about to get

married to Prince Roland when a dragon kidnaps him and burns down all of her clothes. Despite

not having clothing to wear, the princess wears a paper and saves the prince. He does not like her

appearance. Princess Elizabeth stayed true to herself and did not try to fit in with being the

perfect example of a princess. Another example is a book called 10,000 Dresses. In this novel,

Bailey loves dresses. Bailey’s unsupportive parents continuously tell him to not think about

wearing dresses because he is a boy. Bailey becomes friends with a girl named Lauren and they

begin to make dresses together. Bailey stayed true to who he is and did not let gender norms

impact what he loves.

Gender stereotypes influence an individual's behaviors. It impacts the way individuals

perceive themselves. These norms are adopted from childhood and continue into adulthood. The

differences between the genders is often used to justify their existence and purpose which can

have a negative impact on society. Gender Roles and its Effect on Today’s Society states, “This is
 6

why we tend to have more male robbers and kidnappers, because of the pressure society places

on men to provide” (Ikegwn, 2017). The Bureau of Justice Statistics mentions that “wales

experienced higher victimization rates than females” (n.d). This results in a higher crime rate for

men compared to women which puts people’s lives in danger. Ultimately, this impacts society as

a whole by putting people's lives in risk and causes negative relationships.

There are a variety of ways in which people can fight against gender roles. People can

challenge the ideas of those that make sexist comments, respect people regardless of their

gender, accept individuals who express themselves differently, and take risks in expressing

themselves in different ways.

To conclude, over the years men and women have been represented in various ways.

Although there have been improvements in the presence of gender roles in literature, there is still

room for further improvement. Gender equality has been more prominent in society.
 7

References:

(n.d.). Retrieved from

https://btk.ppke.hu/uploads/articles/135505/file/introduction/satellite/literature_and_gende

r.html

Abigail Adams. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.nps.gov/wori/learn/historyculture/abigail-

adams.htm

Americans with a college degree 1940-2017, by gender. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.statista.com/statistics/184272/educational-attainment-of-college-diploma-or-

higher-by-gender/

Flood, A. (2011, May 06). Study finds huge gender imbalance in children's literature.

Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/books/2011/may/06/gender-imbalance-

children-s-literature

Gender. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.bjs.gov/index.cfm?ty=tp&tid=955

Gender Identity Development in Children. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/gradeschool/Pages/Gender-Identity-

and-Gender-Confusion-In-Children.aspx

Gender Roles and its Effect on Today's Society. (2017, July 03). Retrieved from

https://sustyvibes.com/gender-roles-effect-todays-society/
 8

Gender stereotyping. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.ohchr.org/en/issues/women/wrgs/pages/genderstereotypes.aspx

Gender: Early socialization | Synthesis. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.child-

encyclopedia.com/gender-early-socialization/synthesis

Rabinovitch-Fox, E. (2017, August 14). New Women in Early 20th-Century America.

Retrieved from

http://oxfordre.com/americanhistory/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.001.0001/acr

efore-9780199329175-e-427

Shakespeare, W. (1993). Macbeth. Dover Publications.