The Dilemma Of Masculinity Versus Career Paths - 1702 Words

Since the 20th century, there has been the dilemma of masculinity versus career paths. Women were expected to be teachers, nurses, etc., just because that s the role they had in society for decades before that. Men, and still are, expected to go into a career field that pays a lot of money so they can provide for their families. Those career fields are still usually STEM related. Engineers, scientists, mathematicians, doctors, lawyers, etc. It s not just because the individual wants to go into that field. There are outside factors pushing him/her to subconsciously go into that field. Whether it be peer pressure, gender bias, gender stereotypes, even career stereotypes, it can drive a person away from the field they want to†¦show more content†¦Women are surrounded by biases and stereotypes from a young age, whether it be in the media or family influences. In pop culture, woman are usually powerful lawyers or nurses, with a bit of a struggle most of the time; and men, when acting as a programmer, are portrayed as geeky shut-ins. This decreases a young girl s likelihood to become interested in math and science. It also reduces the amount of young female adults that choose to go into a STEM-based career. Since young women don t often go into the field, there are very few female role models for young girls to look up to. If there were more motivation and less forced stereotypes, there would be more women in the STEM field. Argument Gender Stereotypes Anyone, let alone a woman, can go into a field confident of his or herself when everyone is constantly judging your abilities based on your gender. In fact, we are surrounded by gender stereotypes from the time we are born. For example: boys get blue blankets and bedrooms filled with toy cars and tools. Girls get pink blankets and bedrooms filled with dolls and little dollhouses. Sure, the kids grow out of it and exchange their toys for other things. For example, journals, musical instruments, or skateboards. But it s a common knowledge rule of thumb that newborn baby boys get swaddled in light blue