ENGL 1A: Gender & CultureTo what extent is each of us defined, first and foremost, by gender? Does gender shape the way we see the world, communicate with each other, and arrive at decisions? Or is gender merely a decorative detail, like a suit of clothes, covering the quintessential person each of us is? Hypothetically, if YOU were to switch genders for a brief period, what would it be like? Would it change who you were, how you acted, thought, lived, and made choices? What do you think the future will reveal about gender? What will change and why?Please recognize the difficulty in this assignment. Most of the text I am asking you to use examines gender through a sociopolitical lens, but I am asking you to use these authors to inform a discussion on the inherent similarities and/or differences between men and women. This will require a degree of critical thinking on your part. Yes, I am ultimately asking for your opinion, but I want that opinion scaffolded on the clear comprehension of the ideas and concepts within our authors’ prose. Most of our cultural backgrounds assume we are the same, but our major world religions are all patriarchal (women are forbidden to be priests or imams generally) and modern psychology is based on the very masculine views of Sigmund Freud. What would a major religion look like if it was created by women? Would a female led moral code be as focused on property ownership and power structure/obedience (male obsessions)My intention is that this assignment mirror many of the things we have attempted in this class. Unlike the research assignment, however, I want the emphasis here to be an authentic and highly personal response to the texts/sources. This will probably result in a ‘chunky’ essay, as there will not be a unifying claim uniting everything. That’s alright; in fact, it’s what I want.I want you to treat each source separately. I do not want a summary or explanation of the content; let’s assume we both know what the source was about. I want a personal response that demonstrates articulate intelligence, focusing on at least three things in each source. Discuss these utilizing golden lines (from the articles) or specific references (from the films).What ideas/concepts/questions grabbed your attention?Please treat the sources in the order we addressed them in class. I will expect, in this order, responses to:1. “Why Women Aren’t Funny” -https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2007/01/hitchens2007012. “The End of Men” -https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2010/07/the-end-of-men/308135/3. The Mask You Live In4. “What Most People Get Wrong About Men and Women”- https://hbr.org/2018/05/what-most-people-get-wrong-about-men-and-women5. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/05/upshot/men-women-gender-bias-poll.htmlEach source should generate between a page and a page and a half in length. As stated, I want you to treat each source on its own merits, finding at three distinct and intriguing comments emanating from the source. In addition, I want you to make a connection to at least one of your other sources (the connection can be comparison or contrast). Please noteFollowing that, I want the last source, your brain, to generate an original and thought-provoking commentary. Again, do not summarize or proffer platitudes and generalities. Make sure what you add in this section is intriguing and dynamic. It is not, obviously, a conclusion (as there are no exact answers), but it can and should be a stellar final paragraph.
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