A good while ago I
wrote a rather angst ridden post for International Women's Day
particularly focused, in the wake of the failed women bishops
measure, on women's lot in the Church. I signed off saying I was off
to do a little exploration on this subject and a couple of months
later I started a dissertation on the ideas about gender underlying
arguments against women's ordination. It has been an enlightening
time!
I recently submitted my
first draft to my supervisors so now, though I am far from an expert
in the subject and my views are still, of course, developing, it
seems like a good time to talk about some of the things I have
discovered. In particular the reading I have done about gender has
prompted new thoughts on that question of what, if anything, does it
mean to be a woman today?
Gender is fluid
The first, and probably
most startling, discovery I made was how fluid a thing gender really
is. Without even going into the 4% of live births in the UK which
cannot be categorized as male or female on the level of anatomy and
genetics, sociologists widely agree that our concept of what it means
to be male or female is largely shaped by our culture.
This was first shown by
anthropological research studying different cultures around the
world. What it means to be a man, or what is considered to be
masculine, in one culture is vastly different in other cultures. This
can be seen in typical behaviours, work patterns and child rearing
practices. In some cultures child rearing is a male dominated
occupation. In some manual labour is women's work. These expressions
of manhood and womanhood are often deeply held but also extremely varied.
There are many
'kinds' of masculinity and femininity
It has been argued that there is a dominant expression of femininity and masculinity
in Western cultures and if you live in this culture the
characteristics of these will be immediately obvious to you. Yep, in a
nutshell, the macho, assertive man and the pretty, co-operative
woman.
These types are favoured, and society exerts pressure
on various levels for people to conform to these stereotypes, but
within society there are actually multiple expressions of masculinity
and femininity. One size really does not fit all and no
one masculinity or femininity can be seen as natural or more ideal
than another.
Men and Women are as
alike as they are different
Within
this idea of multiple masculinities and femininities it has also been
found that in many qualities and abilities there is more variation
within the genders than between them. Of course, as gender is largely
created our culture, we can also create differences
between genders by how we are socialized but this does not make men
or women biologically better at one thing or another. Such
differences are remarkably rare and the similarities between the
sexes emerges much more starkly in research of this kind.
All
this has made me reflect on my original question, way back then, what
does it mean to be a woman today? My explorations have in some ways
pulled the rug out from under me as many of the differences I
consider there to be between men and women can be shown to be
variable across cultures and not fixed at all. In many ways I think
this is a positive thing. Rather than seeing individuals as something
you can stick a label on saying 'Man' or 'Woman' and then expect a
certain set of behaviours through this research the diversity and variety of humanity can
be recognized and, one day I hope, treasured.
Women
don't have to be more sensitive or less assertive. Men don't have to
love power tools or be some great rescuer for the women in their
lives. The door is opened to greater responsibility on the part of
both genders, for themselves and for each other. I have so much more
to say on this subject and so much more reflection to do,
particularly on the place of femininity in faith and how this has
both advanced and hindered women, but my thoughts from the last year
have arrived in a place of stressing our mutual calling as men and
women to good human, rather than gender specific, values.
In the Bible these are described in
one passage as the 'fruit of the spirit'. Galatians 5 reads, 'the
fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control'. These values
are gender neutral. Rather than seeking what it means to be a good
woman or a good man I feel confident in saying that if you seek these
human values, you won't go far wrong. By bringing kindness and
generosity into our encounters with each others difference perhaps we will indeed
find more joy and peace. By bring gentleness and patience into our
relationships, regardless our gender, better things will surely come.
So
that is where I am right now and your thoughts are always appreciated. I
will continue to think and debate and be back on this again, I am
sure!
