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The PMS Excuse It has been said that left untreated or ignored, PMS can have devastating consequences according to Dr Patricia Eastern of the Australian National University. She addressed this issue in her book Less Than Equal. She maintains that PMS is ignored in the Australian court system except as a mitigating factor. However, in UK, it is used to downgrade murder charges to manslaughter. However, there had been records of women criminals linked to their menstrual cycle. A barmaid even claimed that she killed a co-worker because PMS "turned her into a raging animal each month.
In another instance, the lawyers for another woman claimed that hypoglycemia caused by PMS led her to kill her lover. Author Esteal does not believe the suggestion that PMS is an excuse for the violence that women do against the men. She thinks that these are real physical situations that are experienced by women with the hormonal imbalances characterized by it (Skatssoon). Womens rights and freedom have won wide agreement for equal privileges. Much progress has been made in that direction and more seems certain. Sentiment seems to be shifting slightly in favor of more radical proposals to abolish all of society's sex distinctions.
Nevertheless, the vast majority of women in America continue to live lives that are distinctly different from those of the opposite sex. By some this is deplored, while others consider it essential to long-term survival. But still, this remains an unsettled issue. Even if the times are changing, women are relegated to the background in most significant issues and affairs. The women then who fought for womens rights also dared to challenge the status quo. This challenge is especially true for middle class values.
Women during the time of the story were delegated only to household chores or duties such as child rearing. Even for wealthy middle class women, they were expected to be in the shadow of their husbands. The typical husband was the patriarch, the provider, the head of the household. This setup in the family where the husband is the head was also transposed in the larger society where males spearheaded the countrys affairs. (Bagby, Wesley. 1981). These issues touch a nerve in a country dominated by males. Women clearly were challenging not only middle class values but the whole structural scheme of America where women stood aside, while the men ran the country.
Psychologists have long believed that gender differences are a result of socialization, a product of influence coming from the family and the people in an individuals surroundings. Gender is defined as the concept of maleness or femaleness and refers to physical characteristics, social behaviors, characteristic self-image, psychological tendencies, behavioral tendencies, and other abilities that allow us to differentiate between men and women (Gender Roles). From childhood, humans learn how to act as men or women, depending on the gender roles that their parents and the people around them establish for them. Susan Witt states that these characteristics and tendencies are brought about by myriad activities, opportunities, encouragements, discouragements, overt behaviors, covert suggestions, and various forms of guidance, children experience the process of gender role socialization. The differentiation starts within the family system.
For example, parents provide their daughters and sons with gender-specific clothing and toys, e. g. , girls are dressed in pink and ribbons, and are given dolls for toys, while boys are clothed in blue and are usually given action figure toys or trucks for playing. Parents also expect differentiated behaviors from their daughters and sons as they train them to behave according to their gender (Witt). These behaviors were established by society, depending on the cultural setting, and were adopted by the parents as well. Cultures value gender in varying degrees. In most cultures, for example, the men are trained and are expected to rule and gain social power, while women are regarded as weak, not able to perform physically-demanding tasks, and are expected to align themselves with a strong man to help them gain social, political, and economic status (Gender Roles).
Gender differences were also observed between male and female in the pursuits of their respective careers. Throughout time, it has been obvious in society that some fields such as science and engineering are dominated by men and that very few women penetrate such areas of study. In a study by Harriet R. Tenenbaum and Campbell Leaper, it was discovered that a childs interest in science or engineering was a result of the parents gender bias towards those interests (45). They think that the way parents communicate to their children is a huge factor in children developing interest in certain fields of study or career. It is difficult for a child to grow to adulthood without experiencing some form of gender bias or stereotyping, whether it is the expectation that boys are better than girls at math or the idea that only females can nurture children (Gender Roles).
Family and environmental influences are also seen as the basis for development of homosexual orientation of some individuals. A study by Michael J. Bailey and Kenneth J. Zucker supports the concept of sex-typed behavior in gender development of individuals. Their study indicates that homosexual individuals recall substantially more childhood cross-sex-typed behavior than do heterosexuals of the same sex (31: 43 - 55). Steven Pinker, author of the The Blank Slate, adds insight into the overall development of individuals.
In an interview with Berkeley Groks, Pinker notes that the way people behave is not solely due to parenting and cultural conditioning, but also because of innate characteristics that have developed over the course of evolution and passed on to the person. Pinker does not totally devalue the importance of parenting and socialization in molding the individual, but he only intends to clarify that people are not born without any innate characteristics. This insight is important since it blends well with the learning concept and provides a broader view of the overall human development. The biological aspects may have been the very basis of the gender biases that people have developed over time. However, there are major and minor differences in gender behavior in different cultures across the globe, that suggest that socialization has a lot to do with the development of gender roles in individuals.
It can be observed throughout different cultures that men and women behave differently or are valued differently. In Arab countries, where religion is a dominating factor, women tend to be more subjective and are deprived of many privileges that women in western societies enjoy. Parents are basically responsible in imprinting gender bias and expectations on children. Parents usually send out subtle reactions and suggestions to their children based on their expectations of what is appropriate for a given gender (Witt). Parents adhere to the dictates of society when it comes to gender roles so that their children will know how to behave in the larger society when time comes for them to socialize outside the family system. This system goes in circle, with behaviors and expectations being passed on to succeeding generations.
Sociologists believe that establishing gender roles is important as it is partially the basis for the self-identity and self esteem of the individual and will be important in achieving happiness and life contentment (Gender Roles). This allows an individual to obtain social acceptance and security, although there are some disadvantages to adhering to strict rules as well. One such disadvantage is that it may debilitate an individuals full potential because of the many restrictions. Gender biases potentially disregard inherent talents and encourage unfairness in society (Witt). Most particularly affected in gender biases are women who are often regarded by society as the weaker gender. Feminists are very vocal about the gender biases that women are subjected to from the time they are born into the world.
They believe that the socialization practices are very much responsible for the unfair treatment that women are getting in the workplace and in society in general. In sum, womens moods are also the same as that of men. Mens mood cycles can also follow their partners, although living with a premenstrual partner can already be frustrating and confusing. The PMS can be made an excuse but it can be truly said that women do experience inconveniences when they are undergoing the premenstrual cycle and in most instances, this can be cited as excuses but more often than not, these are real conditions that keep stereotype women as irrational. WORKS CITED Bagby, Wesley.
Contemporary American Social Problems. Nelson Hall Chicago. 1981. Bailey, Michael J. , and Kenneth J. Zucker. Childhood Sex-Typed Behavior and Sexual Orientation: A Conceptual Analysis and Quantitative Review. Developmental Psychology.
American Psychological Association, Inc. Washington, DC: January 1995. Gender Roles Retrieved Aug. 26, 2008 at: < web > McElroy, W. (1991). The Roots of Individualist Feminism in 19 th-Century America. Freedom, Feminism, and the State. The Independent Institute, 2 nd ed. , Feb. 1, 1991.
From zetetics. com website. Retrieved Aug. 26, 2008 at: < web >. Skatssoon, Judy. So men cause PMS? Women behaving really badly.
Retrieved Aug. 26, 2008 web Steven Pinker. Interview. Berkeley Groks KALX 90. 7 FM. 30 Oct. 2002. Retrieved Aug. 26, 2008 at: < web >. Tenenbaum, Harriet R. , and Campbell Leaper. Parent-Child Conversations About Science: The Socialization of Gender Inequalities?
Developmental Psychology. American Psychological Association, Inc. Washington DC: 2003. Witt, Susan D.
Parental Influence on Childrens Socialization to Gender Roles. Socialization to Gender Roles. Adolescence. Summer 1997. Retrieved Aug. 26, 2008 at: < web >.
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