Social Roles

From when I was younger I remember being told to help clean the house. I also remember asking my mom why I had to help dust, fold clothes, vacuum, etcetera. Her response to my question was that when I got older I would have a family of my own and I would have to do the same thing for them.

“Very young children learn their culture’s social definitions of gender and gender identity at the same time that they learn gender behaviors are appropriate for them.”

-Holly Devor

The roles for females for as long as the grass has been green women were supposed to stay at home taking care of the house and family. Keeping the house clean, having meals prepared for the coming of the hard working husband. The women were not expected to do certain things on their own; they were supposed to wait on the man to do that duty or activity for them. If a family member would become ill the female closes to that person would became the primary care giver.

As I grew older I began to become more independent, not really waiting for others to do things for me. I also like playing sports, more for fun and I don’t really like make-up. But I guess the feminine gender roles have been engraved in me because I still dream about the day I can take care of my husband and children. Having dinner ready for my family and cleaning around the house. I even want to stay home to take care of my children when they are young. But as the get older and begin school I do want to work.

Now that the day of starting my own family is fast approaching my fiancé and I have been discussing the roles he and I will be playing in our household. We both agreed to try to do the housework together. We even agreed to share the responsibilities of the outside/yard work. Our household is leaning towards the more traditionally social roles because that is how we both were raised but it will have a modern day twist. In a way both my fiancé and I resist the conventional roles but are somewhat still in them.