Gender Roles

 This week we talked a lot about gender differences. It was quite fascinating. I absolutely loved it. It made me think a lot about not only gender differences but how they have an effect on family. I was thinking about my family and the roles played in my family. As I was talking to a roommate about it I was baffled by the differences in our families. In her family the male was the head of the household and deserved to be treated with respect. In her family you did not dare to talk back to the father. You did not even disagree with something he has stated even if you did so in a respectful manor. Every night the family would wait for the father to come home and approve of the dinner made before they could eat. If he did not approve of the meal the mother and daughters would need to prepare something else. The girls in her family were to help cook and take care of the home while the boys did the yard work or worked. In her family the gender roles were very obvious whereas in mine that is not necessarily the case.  In my house my parent’s seemed to work together as a team neither one was the head. I could talk with my father if I did not agree with him as long as I did so in a respectful manor.  For example if I felt that I should be able to stay out later at night I could sit down and talk to my parents about it and we would come to an agreement.  In my home my dad was a better cook than my mom. While my mom did most of the cooking at times my dad would cook.  My parents also did not separate us having the girls do certain jobs and the boys do others. We all worked together and did more of what personally interest us or we were more skilled with. I find it fascinating how the varying perspective on gender roles with in family make such a big difference in the whole dynamic or make up of an family. It makes me wonder how my perspective will affect my future family and it makes me think about how I want my future family to operate.