'When Ann Hopkins came up for partnership at Price Waterhouse in 1982, she looked like a shoo-in for a promotion. Of the 88 candidates -- all the others were male -- she had the best record at generating new business and securing multimillion-dollar contracts for the Big Eight accounting firm. Yet Hopkins' nomination was put on hold after she was evaluated by several male partners as being too "macho" and in need of a "charm school." One of them advised her to "walk more femininely, talk more femininely, dress more femininely, wear makeup, have her hair styled and wear jewelery." Instead she quit the firm...' (Time magazine, 15 May 1989)
Secretary, homemaker, florist, nurse, and primary school teacher. Fireman, truck driver, bulldozer operator and lawyer. Just looking at these professions and I am sure you have an image of a woman in your mind for the first sentence and a man for the second. Why does these professions paint a picture of a particular gender in your mind? Stereotypes. Most of the population is indoctrinated by the agenda of gender stereotyping. In this essay, I will give a whirlwind overview of this social construct and its evolution from the obvious to more covert in the western world.
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