Expectations

 

 

In today’s culture, there exists a clear distinction between the sexes. Individuals are expected to take on specific roles and dress and act in accordance to their sex. Women are expected to stay in the home, clean and raise children. Men, on the other hand, are expected to be the bread winners and take on masculine responsibilities. These expectations, however, place limits on individuals and make it difficult for one to pursue dreams that lie outside of social expectations.

In Rosin’s essay “A Boy’s Life”, she tells the story of a boy named Brandon who enjoyed dressing up and doing activities that are typically associated with girls. Society look upon Brandon as damaged, simply because he liked doing things that were outside of what society has deemed as a boys activity. Society limited Brandon’s opportunity to pursue because of the limits it placed on the male sex. Similar stories exist for girls who want to play football, women who want a career in a male dominated field, or husbands who want to stay at home and take care of the children. Society has placed boundaries on genders which hinder ones ability to pursue dreams outside of the expected norms.

It is important to note that roles that society deems as masculine usually require strength that typically women do not posses. And roles that society deems as feminine typically require nurture. However society needs to step past this, and accept that women can take on male responsibilities, just as men can take on responsibilities of the opposite sex.