The Opposite Sex by Steven Doloff Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

The Opposite Sex by Steven Doloff - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that the article â€Å"The Opposite Sex†, written by Steven Doloff, appeared in the Washington Post on January 13, 1983. The theme of the article was how society associated sexist stereotypes to the males and females genders, so much so that the two genders could not place themselves in the shoes of the other gender. Truly speaking, the sexist self-images of both the genders have limited their thoughts regarding the other gender. They can imagine the other gender’s roles but are not ready to adopt them. Women are slightly flexible in that they are open about men’s roles in society, and are ready to accept them. Why this perception arose, goes back to the history of feminism, which has motivated women to come out of their stereotypic personalities, and stands at an equal status as men. The reverse is not possible, nor will men let it happen. They are obnoxious toward reverse gender roles. Gender roles are society driven, and not God-has gave, and this is the main difference between sex and gender. This paper intends to interpret Steven Doloff’s article in terms of gender roles and stereotypes associated with each gender. The main focus of the paper will be on Doloff’s line, which he writes at the end of his essay, that today’s youth is â€Å"burdened with sexist stereotypes and sexist self-images†.... writing right-away, with whatever came in their minds; while, the boys went into imagination, and had a hard time sequencing their thoughts and putting them in black and white. It was not that girls were smarter than boys, nor was it a matter of intellect or energy. It was the way both the genders perceived each other. Girls seemed to be keen about the topic at hand; while, boys seemed to be unenthusiastic as if somebody had put them off by asking them to imagine themselves in the shoes of the other gender. Girls wrote more, and the boys wrote less. Doloff’s female s tudents wrote enthusiastically out of â€Å"envy of men's physical and social privileges and curiosity regarding man’s true feelings concerning women†; while â€Å"the male students tended to wait a while (in several cases half the period), in something of a daze, before starting†. It seemed like girls had been thinking about the topic all their lives, and they finally got a chance to express their thoughts out in front of the world. On the other hand, boys seemed to be dull, not being able to concentrate on how they might spend a day like a female. When we throw a look upon some instances of the writings of both the genders, we come to know how they perceived the other gender, and how our thesis statement, that we gave in the beginning of the paper, formed. Sexism, chauvinism, bigotry, gender stereotypes- we can give many names to the essence of Doloff’s students’ writings. Doloff found out that most of the girls wrote about enjoying being a male, staying out of the house until late night, looking for dates, having fun with sports, and enjoying sexual experiences.