The concept of gender and how it is constructed.

Essay by sftball16University, Bachelor'sA+, May 2006

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This paper is a wholistic approach to the concept of gender and how it is constructed. It follows the concepts that we have talked about throughout the entire course of the semester. Throughout this paper I will be discussing gender in a few various situations. I will talk about the biological aspects first, then be moving on to a couple social institutions involving gender. There are many different ways that gender can be debated. It is a very hot topic in today's society. There is a lot to be said about gender and its social constructs. In this paper I hope to discuss the topic of gender in a complete way. I hope to follow the structure of the assignment and incorporate the ideas and concepts that have been discussed throughout this entire semester of this class.

I would like to begin explaining the concept of gender by using terms such as biological sex, anatomy, chromosomes, and hormones.

These terms are often used when trying to define gender in a more scientific way. First, there is the definition of gender. The most concrete definition for gender that I could find was, the condition of being male or female. It is a concrete definition but I think that in the same respect it is a very vague definition as well. There is a lot of evidence pointing toward there being more than just male or female when in regards to gender. When discussing biological genitals, there is somewhat of a gray area. In society today there are more and more reported cases of babies being born with both sexual characteristics. This of course poses a dilemma to doctors. In the past, babies who were born this way were often thought of to have a "birth defect". In fact, many times...