How Social Expectations of Masculinity and Femininity Make Us Sick
Yes, literally — and they can impact both our mental and physical health
Essentialist views on gender are still quite popular today.
Even high school textbooks and popular science texts frequently tout the idea that ‘men are from Mars, and women are from Venus’, suggesting that this blue-and-pink division is simply hardwired into our very biology down to the cellular level and, hence, unavoidable.
But for something so supposedly ‘innate,’ society certainly has been going to great lengths to enforce acceptable behaviours for each category. In my research on gender norms, I’ve encountered countless sermons, homilies, lectures, letters, pamphlets, books, etc., outlining the strict duties of each gender, often accompanied by the claim that this is the natural ‘order of things.’
A bird doesn’t need lessons to sing — it just does. A human, though? It seems we need constant guidance to ‘human’ correctly.
Another persistent idea in texts on gender essentialism — both through the ages and today — is that following these norms of ‘traditional’ femininity and masculinity is ultimately ‘for our own good’ and beneficial to our well-being. (As a bonus, some religious teachings promise it may even…
