The Male Reproductive System

The Male Reproductive System Many males think they know their bodies but not many of them actually take the time to fully understand it. When I started this research topic I thought I knew everything there was to know about the male reproductive system but I was sadly mistaken. Join me in my quest to find out all there is to know about it. Males can start puberty as early as ten or as late as sixteen. Puberty, a frightening but necessary experience for boys and girls, can start unexpectedly in life. Most young males are too busy playing with friends to notice that inside their bodies, hormonal change is taking place. Puberty is the time when a boy becomes a man, or a rebellious teenager. The start of puberty is caused by the brain sending hormonal signals to the testis. During puberty growth hormone is activated and although a large growth spurt is a common occurrence for the first half of puberty it is also common to have small growth spurts in height during the second half of puberty. Males have many physical changes while entering and during puberty. The first noticeable sign of puberty is growth in testicular size. The testis will continue growing until quite a few years after the start of puberty until they have reached the normal adult size. Right after the testis has grown for about a year the shaft of the penis starts to enlarge and lengthen. Not only do the testes produce hormones but they are also the place of creation for sperm. Boys can become fertile from as early as twelve to sixteen. The first appearance of hair on a male in puberty originates on and around the testis, near and above the base of the penis and on the side of the inner thighs. The DNA Kiefiuk 2 they received from their parents could help in determining the surface area the hair covers and how long, thick or even the color of pubic hair in males. Following pubic hair boys usually find themselves growing underarm hair and leg hair. Chest hair and facial hair are not automatic in puberty as some men never get chest hair and facial hair might not appear on a man until ten years after puberty. . Some males think its a problem that they might not have entered puberty yet. For some cases, males have started puberty as late as sixteen. This is not an issue, other than the fact that bullying might occur. It is not exactly common but happens where a males body isnt ready to develop and they could be left behind while their friends are all experiencing these changes. The dreaded cracking voice can be quite an embarrassment to males in puberty. Strings in the larynx become longer and wider and the change in the vocals usually leads to instability in controlling ones voice. With due time, however, the male will no longer have a higher sounding voice but a lower, deeper voice. The penis is one of the parts of the male reproductive system that is located outside of the males body. The other is the testis. The penis is used during intercourse to enter the vagina and release seminal fluids. A males penis is usually flaccid but becomes harder and longer when aroused. Most males in their younger years will get more frequent erections than that of older males. Getting an erection involves three masses of spongy tissue resembling columns that run through it length wise. These masses are known as cavernous tissue and when the male is aroused they fill with blood. Once a male gets an erection he must either wait for Kiefiuk 3 it to go down on its own or achieve orgasm to relieve the sexual tension. The testes lie within the scrotal sac. Their purpose is to produce sperm and male sex hormones. It produces two types of male hormone: LH, Luteinizing Hormone and FSH, Follicle-Stimulating Hormone. LH is the hormone responsible for producing testosterone which in turn is responsible for what makes males different than that of females who produce estrogen instead of testosterone. The testes are fully dropped before a male enters puberty. FSH is responsible for changes in the pubic area and reproductive system. When puberty hits FSH along with LH are produced more rapidly, often causing the young male to become very hormonal. FSH causes the growth of pubic hair and growth of the testis and penis. Most human males have two testicles surrounded by the scrotum. The scrotum is a covering of skin to protect the testis from varied temperatures. When it is cold the scrotal sac rises, bringing the testis up closer to the body to warm them. When it is warm the testis relaxes and the scrotal sac lowers to give more freedom to the testis. The scrotal sac is almost saggy in look. One testicle within the scrotal sac usually hangs a little bit lower than the other. Pubic hair usually resides on the male scrotum but it is not like that for everyone, Just like how people have varied amounts of pubic hair than others. The pathway of the sperm to the oocyte involves quite the process: The testes are where sperm are manufactured in the scrotum. The epididymis is a tortuously coiled structure topping the testis, and it Kiefiuk 4 receives immature sperm from the testis and stores it several days. When ejaculation occurs, sperm is forcefully expelled from the tail of the epididymis into the deferent duct. Sperm then travels through the deferent duct through up the spermatic cord into the pelvic cavity, over the ureter to the prostate behind the bladder. Here, the vas deferens joins with the seminal vesicle to form the ejaculatory duct, which passes through the prostate and empties into the urethra. When ejaculation occurs, rhythmic muscle movements propel the sperm forward. (E) No one wants to find out that their genitals have a disease, not male or female. It does, however, happen in this world. There are so many different types of diseases that can affect the penis. The first Im going to talk about is a yeast infection. Most people believe that yeast infections can only happen in women but they are wrong. A yeast infection has the following symptoms on the males penis: -Swollen -Itchy -Blotchy -Red all over -Smells, cheesy -Flaky penis tip -White ooze from the tip of the penis That is your yeasty neighbor at home on your manhood and causing you to Kiefiuk 5 ITCH. (A) There are quite a few ways in which a person can cure or try and cure their yeast infection. Since the can be quite a few ways to obtain yeast infections such as eating moldy food, drinking alcohol or having sex with someone who has it, so naturally to cure yourself youre going to want to stop having sex, throw away the moldy food and stop drinking. After this, go see your doctor and get yourself some anti-fungi pills or cream. Another way to rid yourself of a yeast infection is by rubbing yogurt on your genitals. You could say this is the all natural approach. Also, it has been proven that vinegar and warm water mixed together and poured on the genitals can help kill the infection. Other problems with the penis which men know they can get are such things like STIs. There are so many types of venereal diseases that you can catch because you werent careful while having sex. Some diseases you might have had for a long time and never realized it, and others, you will know you have them from the physical signs on your genitals. Men, it almost seems that for a majority of men, sex is a competition: Who has the most sex, who they had it with, and for some, how long it lasted.. In high school these guys may seem so cool but chances are that because theyve given sex away so many times they picked up a few hitch hikers along the way. Chlamydia is a disease that has to be treated as soon as possible because it can cause serious health problems. 50% of males wind up with a term known as infectious urethritis which is an infection in the urethra. Side effects of Chlamydia are painful urination, fever, swollen testis and discharge from the penis. Epididymtitis can be caused Kiefiuk 6 when Chlamydia spreads to the testicles. If this happens it is possible for sperm to become sterile if you do not get treatment within six to eight weeks. Lets face it, guys we have all been there, sitting in class, perhaps sleeping when you realize, uh oh! Spontaneous erection! Your face probably grew red hoping that no one notices. Well, here is the good news. Its perfectly natural. There is nothing wrong with getting an erection. Morning erections are a perfectly normal occurrence. Some guys have complained about this as a problem and thought that there was something wrong with them but in fact its actually not normal if you dont get an erection in the morning. Why, you might ask? This is because a morning erection or morning wood as its more commonly known, is the last erection in a series of erections that happen throughout the night as men sleep. On average a male will have four to five erections during the night, averaging to last about thirty minutes a night. A male cannot have sex if their penis is flaccid and not erect.. If you try to have coitus with a flaccid penis, its not going to work. There are a few reasons for this. First, you wont be able to penetrate into the womans vagina during sex. Second, if you try and have sex with a flaccid penis it is not stimulated. If your penis isnt stimulated it is going to be a very difficult thing for a man to receive pleasure during intercourse. If a man cannot get stimulated during sex then he wont be able to reach the climax, or orgasm. A flaccid penis should become erect once sexually aroused. The reason for not being able to get an erection is most likely because that male is suffering from an erectile Kiefiuk 7 dysfunction. If this occurs you should consult your doctor. When it comes down to it, there are only two types of penises, circumcised and uncircumcised. Every man on earth is one or the other. For many men who are circumcised it usually wasnt their own choice. Circumcision usually takes place during the first year of life. A babys parents will decide whether or not to cut the foreskin from their childs penis. Studies have shown that a lot of males who are circumcised wished that they werent circumcised. Many men who arent circumcised enjoy their foreskin and say that during sex it increases pleasure. There are pros and cons to both circumcised and uncircumcised penises. Circumcised penises are cleaner and women say that they look nicer than those with foreskins. It has also been said that a circumcised penis is more pleasurable for woman during intercourse. Uncircumcised penises, however, increase pleasure for males but are harder to keep clean. If you have a foreskin you have to be sure to scrub under it to keep it clean so you dont carry around bacteria. The male orgasm is the climax during sex. During intercourse movements of the hips let a male bring his penis in and out of the vagina. This stimulates pleasure in the head and shaft of the penis. As this pleasure continues and increases, heart rate increases along with breath intake. The sperm will then travel through the male reproductive system, out of the urethra and be expelled in spurts along with seminal fluids. Safe sex is good sex. If you dont want to have a baby then youre probably going to want to use a condom. There are a variety of different sizes and types of condoms for Kiefiuk 8 males plus the numerous brands. Condom sizes dont necessarily have to do with the length of a mans penis. Most condoms base their sizes off of the girth of a penis. The main reason for a condom is to protect the female from pregnancy during intercourse and on average a condom has a 90% chance of doing this. However there is more to using a condom than just preventing pregnancy. It also helps prevent sexually transmitted infections. A condom should always be used during intercourse unless the two people who are sharing in coitus are planning on having a child. Condoms come in many different types. The mainstream type of condom used is made of latex. Latex is an excellent protector against STIs and helping to prevent pregnancy. If a person is allergic to latex there are other options such as condoms made out of a firmer plastic. They provide the same help and support as those made of latex do. Another type of condom is that made from lamb. They are proven to almost fully stop a person from getting pregnant but due to small pores throughout the condom it is very easy for STIs to be contracted. Condoms can be made in different ways to help stimulate pleasure. Some condoms may be thinner so that you feel more contact between genitals; some may have built in lube while others might even be studded. Along with this, condoms can usually be bought in different colors and even flavors. To put a condom on, you have to first open the package, never do this with scissors or your teeth for you might accidentally tear the condom. There should be a slit in the package so that you can just rip it open and pull the condom out. Once out, you take the condoms base in one hand and place it above the head of the erect penis. Once Kiefiuk 9 overtop of the penis, it is crucial that you pinch the tip of the condom to leave room for the ejaculation. Once you have gotten hold of the tip of the condom with the other hand, roll the base of the condom until the penis is fully covered. Some condoms may feel very uncomfortable so some people enjoy putting lubricant inside and sometimes outside of the condom. Using lubricant in your condoms also helps prevent the chances of it tearing during intercourse. Only water based lubricants should be used with condoms as oil-based lubes can damage the integrity of the condom. Many males get to the age when they feel that they are no longer interested in having kids. They probably by now already have children or dont feel like having any at all. There is a simple way to stop the process of impregnating a woman. A vasectomy involves a doctor making small incisions in the males scrotal sac to get to the vas deferens. The vans deferentia are then cut and cauterized or clamped shut. A great way to protect the male reproductive system from any harm is to stay abstinent all together. Abstinence is the only way to be 100% sure that youre not going to get a girl pregnant or wind up with a sexually transmitted disease. Most people that think they are staying abstinent try fooling around, such as mutual masturbation, where their genitals dont come in contact but they are still being sexually stimulated. They are wrong. You are technically keeping your v card but you are at still at risk of sexually transmitted diseases and in some cases a woman will still become pregnant even when they think they are playing it safe. It only takes one sperm to enter the oocyte and cause pregnancy. Kiefiuk 10 If a person is extremely sexually active rather than instead of having sex with every pair of legs they see they could try pleasuring themselves. This is not the best solution to sex but it is better than risking all the diseases and risk of pregnancy. Many males, especially teenagers, have tried self pleasuring at least once in their lives. Penis size is usually noted as a problem amongst males and is a big stress causer. Many guys are wondering how their penis size matches up to those of their friends. Its not gross or a sexual thing, just plain old curiosity. The fact is penis sizes vary and no penis is going to look the same. The average size of a males penis is around five to six centimeters. If you have a penis size of four to five inches its not a terrible thing. Its not the size; it is how you use it. On the other hand you might have an abnormally large penis. If a male has a large penis they probably feel superior to other males but the truth is, not only is it less pleasurable and less intimate for the male but it is also less pleasurable and can even hurt the female during intercourse. The male reproductive system is part of all guys. Every guy is born with a penis and testicles. As we develop we begin to change, its all normal and natural. As a guy you need to accept what you have and work with it, be cool, be calm, and be yourself.

America Can Save Its Schools from Violence Essay -- Argumentative Pers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The late 1990s brought some frightening headlines to the public consciousness. Deadly shootings were happening in our public schools (Columbine, Littleton). Unfortunately like all other events that appear for the first time, we went from being shocked and dismayed, to a feeling of numbness as they continued and continued. To understand why this is happening in American culture, we need to look at the last two decades of social evolution. We had a distortion of the classic family, an abundance of role conflict, and a move towards sensationalism in our media. We are constantly being bombarded by images of violence on the television and lyrics about acts or threats of violence on the radio. All members of society need to take an active part in a revolution of our priorities. The violence in our school systems will decrease when parents, teachers, peers, and role models start paying more attention to our students.    Breakdown of Traditional Family    Many correlations can be made between acts of violence and the breakdown of the traditional family. In a 1995 study conducted by the Council of Families in America, "50% of first marriages end in divorce"(A1). As result families have been forced to mutate. This often results in a household consisting of one parent (mom or dad) and the child/children. Typically the parent, who has custody, has a job to provide for the family. Oftentimes this leaves the child/children home alone or with some sort of caretaker (daycare, babysitter, nanny). This situation could lead to a wide array of problems. The child may not receive the attention they need from their parent that is proven to aid in the development of proper morals and values. Doctor John Gottman of the Marital an... ...ools can be curbed.    Works Cited Alexander, Kelly. "Is spanking Ever Okay?" Parent. May 2001 Vl. 76 #5: 94. Council of Families in America. "Low Marriage, High Divorce Rates Hits Kids Hard." Reuters. 4 Apr. 1995 <http://www.vix.com/pub/men/nofather/articles/usa-marriages.html: A1. Dominick, Joseph R. "Social Effects of Mass Communication." The Dynamics of Mass Communication. 6th Ed. 1999: child 1; B. Gottman, John. Marital and Family Research Institute. Pamphlet. Feb. 2001: A2. Kagan, Donald; Steven Ozment; Frank M. Turner. "The Age of Napoleon and the Triumph of Romanticism." The Western Heritage. 2001 Vl. C 7th Edition: 690. Kornblum, William. "Education and Communications Media" Sociology: In A Changing World. 2000 5th Edition: Hamburg 1992. Pearlman, Robert. "Cruelty of Culture." Time 27 Dec. 1999 Vl. 54 I. 25: 40.

Languages and Dialects of Spain Essay

With a population of approximately 45 million Spaniards and 3. 5 million immigrants, Spain is a country of contrasts where the richness of its culture blends it up with the variety of languages and dialects used. Being one of the largest economies worldwide, and the second largest country in Europe, Spain is a very appealing destination for tourists as well as for immigrants from around the globe. Almost all Spaniards are used to speaking at least two different languages, but protecting and preserving that right has not been easy for them; Spaniards have had to struggle with war, ignorance, criticism and the governments, in order to preserve and defend what identifies them, and deal with the consequences (some of which are good and some of which are bad) of dealing with this multilingual society they have. Spanish-Town-Guides, 2002-2011) In Spain there are 17th autonomous regions, the official language spoken in each region is Spanish or Castilian, however, there are three other recognized regional languages used throughout the country (Wikipedia contributors, 2011); Catalan (spoken in Catalonia, Valencian Community, and Balearic Islands), Basque (spoken in Basque Country and Navarre), and Galician, (spoken in Galicia) (Wikipedia contributors, 2011). Distributed throughout Spain there are a variety of smaller groups or regions with their own dialects, most of them Latin derivatives (as well as the main languages); Aragonese (spoken in Aragon, Huesca and Zaragoza), Asturian (spoken in Asturias),Calo (known as the language of the gypsies), Valencian and Mallorquin (Both dialects from Catalan and spoken in Valencia and Mallorca), Extremaduran (spoken in Extremadura), Occitan (also considered as a dialect of Catalan) and Gascon (that is considered a dialect of Occitan) (About. com, 2011). Each region? government has put all the efforts to create laws to ensure that people in all regions speak and practice their own language (Council of Europe, 2011); such is the case of Catalonia which is the region where there have been more efforts to preserve language. In Catalonia, there are no places where natives do not know Catalan or any of the dialects from it, and even foreigners living there must deal with this â€Å"handicap† since, in order to find a job, they need to learn to speak Catalan; otherwise, it will be very difficult to get hired, and social life can be limited as well since veryone around uses Catalan to communicate (Abanco, 1998). Spaniards, especially in Catalonia, Basque Country and Galicia have become very protective of their own languages and dialects, since they outright their extinction during Francoist period, which make them fight to ensure their languages remain being an important part, if not the most important part, of their life and their societies (Wikipedia contributors, 2011). Each region, with a language different than Castilian, is an avid defendant of their language; article 3 of the Spanish Constitution (About the Castilian and the other Spaniard languages) states: â€Å"1. Castilian is the official Spanish language of the State. All Spaniards have the duty to know it and the right to use it. †. â€Å"2. The other Spanish languages shall also be official in the respective Self-governing Regions in accordance with their Statutes. † and â€Å"3.  The wealth of the different linguistic modalities of Spain is a cultural heritage which shall be specially respected and protected† (Cortes Generales de Espana, 1978). This decree has helped to repair the damage caused during Francoist period (in which Spain was under the authoritarian dictatorship of Francisco Franco) from 1936 to 1975, when many of the regional languages were almost lost since they were forbidden; an ironic fact since general Franco was born in A Coruna, one of Galicia? s main cities, where Galician is more used than Castilian to communicate (Eric Solsten and Sandra W. Meditz, 1988). When the civil war ended, in 1975, and, in response to the oppression suffered for many years, some regions (especially Catalonia) began their efforts to preserve and enhance their languages. Thanks to those efforts Catalans can be proud to acknowledge that their languages and dialects are the most well-kept, normalized and preserved in the country, their continuous fight since the very end of war and their pride about using their language has giving them the courage to embrace and protect both, their language and their identity in such way that, in Catalonia, Castilian is limited to those who are foreigners and Catalan to natives. Unfortunately, a very different thing has happened in Galicia and Basque Country; since, by the end of war, the governments of both regions were more concerned about political affairs than preserving languages. In Basque Country, the reason for these lack of protectionism towards language was the persecution Basques suffer during the Civil War, they were accused of terrorism whenever they spoke in their own language; they were hunted and killed for this reason, and all of these actions made them a little afraid of protecting language even years after the end of war. Something similar happened in Galicia, where there were no efforts to maintain language after the war. It was years later that governments started to make efforts to preserve and rescue the language and to normalize it and make it mandatory in each school around the region, but the accurate and pure versions of them got lost with time and what new generations speak today is a mixture of old and new words adapted from the original language, but still it is quite far from the original, unaltered version of each language. The dialects in Spain share, in most of the cases, the same origin (most of the times Vulgar Latin), and the same language (for example Valencian is a dialect of Catalan); it can be thought, then, that communication in a language different than Spanish or Castilian is not that hard, and this is true but not entirely; even though these dialects come from the same sources, they differ greatly from each other; for example, in Catalonia, they use Catalan as well as in Val d? Aran; if an Occitan and a Catalan talk to each other, they will understand most of it but some words are very different, and it will take a bit of an effort to fully understand the language from one region to another. Each one of the circumstances explained above, the civil war, the immigration, the language protectionism and the normalization, are reasons to understand why Spaniards have become tolerant with languages and dialects; they have gone a long way in defending their ideals and their identity; all of the Spaniards and immigrants must pay tolerance in return to the rest of the population and accept everybody else? languages. However, not all Spaniards are sympathetic with this language protectionism, Castilian or Spanish speaking regions, such as Madrid are very less tolerant; they do not understand why one country must be separated more for languages than for borders, and this might be a valid premise, but each region has the right to protect what belongs to it. Languages, in one way, have caused separation among regions because, people consider themselves as Catalans, or Valencians, or Basques, or native of any other regions, more than they consider themselves Spaniards, and many regions are currently fighting for their independence (with no positive results so far) since they aim to be free to use their languages and dialects without being criticized and, also, be able to manage their own resources. There are many implications of having one, two or many anguages or dialects spoken in a same country or region, some of them are negative, such as this search for independence that has caused Spaniards to feel divided, not all of them feel part of the same country and many whish they were not part of the same country at all. Another implication is that communication is limited; even when all Spaniards speak Spanish, it is interesting to realize that they have both languages so acquired that they switch from one to the other in just seconds; this happens particularly with old people. As a woman married to a Catalan and having traveled to Catalonia a couple of times, I had the experience of facing this personally, people are so set in â€Å"Catalan-mode† that one minute they are speaking in Spanish, and the next they are speaking in Catalan without even realizing they change back and, in my particular case, I found myself reminding everyone to talk to me in Spanish; it is an awkward situation because you can also feel like an intruder and is tiring to constantly remind everyone to speak in Spanish, and when they did speak in Castilian, it was hard for me to understand them, since it is quite different from the Spanish or Castilian we speak in Costa Rica. Another negative implication is for immigrants; my cousin moved to Barcelona eleven years ago; she got a scholarship to finish her studies in laws at â€Å"Universitat de Barcelona. The first problem she had to face was the fact that all her lessons were taught in Catalan; and being a native Spanish speaker she felt very frustrated and worried, and it took many years for her to be able to understand Catalan (only understand it because she does not speak it); she is now living there and after she finished college it was very hard for her to find a job, once again the problem was the lack of Catalan; it is very challenging for a foreigner to move there since Catalans are so protective of their language that in order to find a job, people must speak Catalan. The last negative implication, from my point of view, is immigration within the country; my mother in-law was born in Galicia; she learned to speak Galician (the very limited kind of Galician that was spoken during the war) when she was little; and, at the age of nine, with almost her entire primary education finished, her family decided to move to Barcelona searching for a better life, where she had to deal with Catalan (even though during war it was forbidden to use it on the streets). The same problem happens with, for example, people with military positions, they move from one place to another during the entire military service, and they drag their families along with them; children are forced to change from one school to another and from one language to another, and this can cause confusion and frustration reflected on the students’ behavior and performance in school. Even when there are so many negative implications or consequences related to all the languages in a society, there are reasons to believe that there are also positive implications and if there are societies with this kind of structure, it is because it works somehow, no matter the problems involved. In contrast to the negative implications mentioned above, there are many other positive implications of being part of a multilingual society, to mention a few, it can be said that, in the particular case of Spain, their citizens have developed the ability to learn new languages very easily; they not only speak their official language (Castilian), they also speak they regional language (both native like) and this has helped them to develop more their listening skills and aptitude towards new languages; children are born and live in environments filled with language stimuli and learn to communicate effectively in more than one language, making things easier for them to acquire another language. Another example of a positive implication is tolerance, the cross-cultural situation Spaniards live has helped them to be more conscious about their differences and to accept everyone? s believes and culture. The continuous use of languages or dialects to interact with each other is another positive implication, since it has made them to be able to switch languages in a conversation without thinking about it; it comes natural to them since being multilingual is not an issue; it is just their reality. Spain is a multilingual society which has faced several obstacles in the way of preserving and keeping their languages and dialects, this protectionism has led to positive, but also negative consequences and implications for its citizens which, day after day deal with it and adjust to this conditions in order to be a part of the society. As challenging as it can be, Spaniards adjust to each situation in order to fit in; but of course there are also rewards involved, they are capable to appreciate and understand (at least most of them) what a long way each region has come to preserve their identity and they can embrace, and be empathetic with the reasons each region has for such protectionism.

The Sociology of Gender

The sociology of gender is one of the largest subfields within sociology  and features theory and research that critically interrogates the social construction of gender, how gender interacts with other social forces in society, and how gender relates to social structure overall. Sociologists within this subfield study a wide range of topics with a variety of research methods, including things like identity, social interaction, power and oppression, and the interaction of gender with other things like race, class, culture, religion, and sexuality, among others. The Difference Between Sex and Gender To understand the sociology of gender one must first understand how sociologists define gender and sex. Though male/female and man/woman are often conflated in the English language, they actually refer to two very different things: sex and gender. The former, sex, is understood by sociologists to be a biological categorization based on reproductive organs. Most people fall into the categories of male and female, however, some people are born with sex organs that do not clearly fit either category, and they are known as intersex. Either way, sex is a biological classification based on body parts. Gender, on the other hand, is a  social  classification based on ones identity, presentation of self, behavior, and interaction with others. Sociologists view gender as learned behavior and a culturally produced identity, and as such, it is a social category. The Social Construction of Gender That gender is a social construct becomes especially apparent when one compares how men and women behave across different cultures, and how in some cultures and societies, other genders exist too. In Western industrialized nations like the U.S., people tend to think of masculinity and femininity in dichotomous terms, viewing men and women as distinctly different and opposites. Other cultures, however, challenge this assumption and have less distinct views of masculinity and femininity. For example, historically there was a category of people in the Navajo culture called berdaches, who were anatomically normal men but who were defined as a third gender considered to fall between male and female. Berdaches married other ordinary men (not Berdaches), although neither was considered homosexual, as they would be in today’s Western culture. What this suggests is that we learn gender through the process of socialization. For many people, this process begins before they are even born, with parents selecting gendered names on the basis of the sex of a fetus, and by decorating the incoming babys room and selecting its toys and clothes in color-coded and gendered ways that reflect cultural expectations and stereotypes. Then, from infancy on, we are socialized by family, educators, religious leaders, peer groups, and the wider community, who teach us what is expected from us in terms of appearance and behavior based on whether they code us as a boy or a girl. Media and popular culture play important roles in teaching us gender too. One result of gender socialization is the formation of gender identity, which is one’s definition of oneself as a man or woman. Gender identity shapes how we think about others and ourselves and also influences our behaviors. For example, gender differences exist in the likelihood of drug and alcohol abuse, violent behavior, depression, and aggressive driving. Gender identity also has an especially strong effect on how we dress and present ourselves, and what we want our bodies to look like, as measured by normative standards. Major Sociological Theories of Gender Each major sociological framework has its own views and theories regarding gender and how it relates to other aspects of society. During the mid-twentieth century, functionalist theorists argued that men filled instrumental roles in society while women filled  expressive roles, which worked to the benefit of society. They viewed a gendered division of labor as important and necessary for the smooth functioning of a modern society. Further, this perspective suggests that our socialization into prescribed roles drives gender inequality by encouraging men and women to make different choices about family and work. For example, these theorists see wage inequalities as the result of choices women make, assuming they choose family roles that compete with their work roles, which renders them less valuable employees from the managerial standpoint. However, most sociologists now view this functionalist approach as outdated and sexist, and there is now plenty of scientific evidence to suggest that the wage gap is influenced by deeply ingrained gender biases rather than by choices men and women make about family-work balance. A popular and contemporary approach within the sociology of gender is influenced by symbolic interactionist  theory, which focuses on the micro-level everyday interactions that produce and challenge gender as we know it. Sociologists West and Zimmerman popularized this approach with their 1987 article on doing gender, which illustrated how gender is something that is produced through interaction between people, and as such is an interactional accomplishment. This approach highlights the instability and fluidity of gender and recognizes that since it is produced by people through interaction, it is fundamentally changeable. Within the sociology of gender, those inspired by conflict theory focus on how gender and assumptions and biases about gender differences lead to the empowerment of men, oppression of women, and the structural inequality of women relative to men. These sociologists see gendered power dynamics as built into the social structure, and thus manifested throughout all aspects of a patriarchal society. For example, from this viewpoint, wage inequalities that exist between men and women result from men’s historic power to devalue women’s work and benefit as a group from the services that women’s labor provides. Feminist theorists,  building on aspects of the three areas of theory described above, focus on the structural forces, values, world views, norms, and everyday behaviors that create inequality and injustice on the basis of gender. Importantly, they also focus on how these social forces can be changed to create a just and equal society in which no one is penalized for their gender. Updated by Nicki Lisa Cole, Ph.D.