Gender And Its Effects On Society - 1188 Words

Since gender is very salient in our society, it often has effects on more than just the individual level. When analyzing the institutions of work and family, one can see the influence that gender has on levels of discrimination, particularly against women. In this essay, I will examine these gendered institutions and the resulting effects this can have on families. This discrimination is particularly evident in the gendered division of labor. While this division is considered â€Å"traditional,† the splitting of men into the public sphere, which includes work and business, and women into the private sphere, which includes the home and child-care, is actually a relatively recent phenomenon. Kimmel describes this separation as part of an â€Å"effort†¦show more content†¦Kimmel contends that women’s participation in the work force is taking place in every level, even in the major professions. For example, today, â€Å"women make up 12.9 percent of all architect s and engineers, 32.3 percent of doctors, and 46 percent of university professors† (Kimmel; 248). These percentages are likely to increase even more as women pursue more higher education. Since women are becoming more and more involved in the labor force, the norm for wage-earning couples is now a dual-earning system where both partners work and earn a wage to contribute to their overall standard of living. However, policies still reflect the seemingly archaic notion that men work and women stay at home. This can especially be seen in the ways women are discriminated against in the workplace. For example, despite women also contributing to a relationship’s overall income, there is still a wage gap. Kimmel explains that â€Å"today women’s wages are about 77 percent of men’s wages,† which translates to women only making .77 for every dollar that men make (Kimmel; 262). While this is a higher percentage than in the past, this phenomenon is not due to women being paid more. In our current economic state, men are being paid less, so they are approaching a rate closer to a woman’s wage. In addition to being paid less than men, women are also less likely to get promoted and are more likely to suffer from being trapped in