Gender Norms: Linked Text Set by Cara Monroe

monroecg — 2025-04-28 04:29:05 UTC

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED Talk “We Should All Be Feminists” defines feminism and argues it's essential to achieving gender equality. She talks about her experiences growing up in Nigeria with systemic sexism and emphasizes that rigid gender roles harm everyone.

monroecg — 2025-04-28 04:34:34 UTC

This famous monologue from Barbie describes the systemic misogyny, exhausting contradictions and impossible standards women are forced into everyday in patriarchal society and calls out the hypocrisy of a world that profits from women’s insecurity yet punishes them for seeking equality.

monroecg — 2025-04-28 04:46:44 UTC

“I’ll Make a Man Out of You” from Mulan critiques and reinforces rigid gender roles by defining masculinity through only physical strength, aggression, and emotional stoicism as the ultimate markers of worth. In the video, Mulan showing she can be "a man" in the same way subtly challenges these norms, though the lyrics uphold the pressure on men to be aggressively "masculine" to gain respect.

monroecg — 2025-04-28 04:51:13 UTC

“All American Bitch” critiques the suffocating expectations of idealized American femininity. The lyrics juxtapose politeness with rage at being forced to perform perfection all the time, similar to the ideals noted in the speech from Barbie.

Chapter 5

monroecg — 2025-04-28 04:55:12 UTC

This chapter explores gender roles and societal norms in multiple ways (Scout’s alienation from Jem and Dill, who weaponize “being a girl” as an insult to exclude her, Dill’s claim over Scout as "his property"). Scout finds refuge in Miss Maudie Atkinson, who defies gender norms, critiques religious gender expectations, and mentors Scout in self-assuredness outside of traditional “ladylike” behavior.

Act 1, Scene 7

monroecg — 2025-04-28 05:02:31 UTC

Lady Macbeth in this scene weaponizes patriarchal expectations of masculinity by shaming Macbeth’s hesitation to murder Duncan as "unmanly", perpetuating violence and ruthlessness as the pinnacle of “manhood.” Macbeth’s falling for this: (“I dare do all that may become a man; / Who dares do more is none”) reveals his internalized belief that morality weakens masculinity. She also subverts maternal femininity (saying she'd be okay with violently killing a baby to keep a secret). This scene exposes the gross side of both gender roles: Lady Macbeth must erase her femininity to gain power, while Macbeth’s fragile masculinity hinges on proving dominance through violence.

monroecg — 2025-04-28 05:06:53 UTC

A very moving collection of feminist photographs taken by university students in the UK with captions showcasing different examples of feminism and their reasons for why feminism is necessary.

monroecg — 2025-04-28 07:22:32 UTC

This poem critiques patriarchal conditioning that teaches women to "shrink" physically, emotionally, and intellectually to accommodate male entitlement. She illustrates the cyclic nature of internalized misogyny and female self-erasure through her lived experiences with her family.

monroecg — 2025-04-28 07:33:46 UTC

This video analyzes what traditional masculinity is "supposed to be" through cinematic examples, critiquing traits like dominance and aggression as socially constructed ideals often tied to control and violence and ultimately arguing that harmful/toxic masculinity comes from enforcing "masculine ideals" to dominate others and perpetuate insecurity and oppression.

monroecg — 2025-04-28 07:46:09 UTC

This poem reframes feminism as liberation for men just as much as women, illustrating how rigid, toxic gender norms deeply affect men and exposes how the patriarchy objectifies men as well as women, while also denying them emotional autonomy or the right to seek help.

monroecg — 2025-04-28 07:48:15 UTC

What are boys and girls taught about gender roles and how do societal expectations of masculinity and femininity impact individuals and communities?

monroecg — 2025-04-28 07:48:56 UTC

What is feminism and why is it important for both men and women?

monroecg — 2026-03-04 18:17:43 UTC

This song from Teen Beach Movie encapsulates the gender norms for both girls and boys perpetuated in the past (movie set in "1962") and the present (2015).

Tropes on Gender and Sexuality in media

monroecg — 2026-03-04 18:21:23 UTC

This website has compiled a list of common tropes seen in media regarding gender and sexuality.

Intersectionality

monroecg — 2026-03-04 18:56:47 UTC

This speech by Sojurner Truth talks about the differences between what it means to be a white woman vs a woman of color and how the norms change when race gets involved.