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Alejandra Valenzuela

Professor Cristina Montúfar

English Level 6th

February 7th, 2023

Family’s Influence on Gender Roles

Families and its structures are a key part of someone’s gender identity, and contribute

a lot in reaffirming gender roles. This idea is sustained in the fact that the family is the

principal source of social contact from children. Therefore, family has a great influence in

children behavior and the way they see and perceive things. Moreover, social gender roles are

intrinsically or explicitly conceived in every family, and according to these conceptions,

children are going to be raised within the nucleus of this structure. In this essay, this

phenomenon is going to be analyzed and synthesized, in order to sustain the thesis stated in

the first lines of this introduction, along with the personal criteria from myself.

1. Family and its influence on gender identity

Firs of all, we need to define what a family is. According to the Merriam-Webster

dictionary, a family is “the basic unit in society traditionally consisting of two parents and

their children”. That’s the classic way of looking at the family, as the most basic and small

form of society. As it can be seen from the definition previously cited, a family is composed

by members, which, as said, in the most basic form, are the parents and their children. Other

forms of family can be observed in different social structures such as extended families,

families in which apart than parents and children, we can find grandparents, uncles, aunts,

cousins, all of them living in the same house. Therefore, I believe that family must be one of

the most important things a person can have.

As claimed by Dr. Taterway from Patna University, the family can conduct different

functions in society. The most common functions include procreation between parents and
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aiding to the continuity of the family and to the preservation of human race. Correspondingly,

the other function of the family is to provide food, home, love to all of the members that

integrate it. Family also provides socialization to its members. And specially, family

accomplish the educational functions, and in this regard we have the cultural and religious

instruction from parents to their children.

In this regard, parents have the right to raise their children in the manner that they

consider the best. As mentioned, educational, cultural and religious instruction are one of the

main sources of material that should be taught from parents to children. But accordingly,

parents can instruct their children about their gender identity. In other words, parents have the

right to decide their children orientation, based on their -parents- own gender identity. This

instruction is related to how the parents themselves were raised. I consider that parents

always give their best effort in order to provide with the best instruction to their children.

2. Gender Roles

Then, it is precise to identify what is understood by gender roles. As mentioned by

Blackstone (2003), “gender roles are based on the different expectations that individuals,

groups, and societies have of individuals based on their sex, and based on each society’s

values and beliefs about gender” (p.335). In other words, gender roles are the result of the

relationship between people and the society they live in. Also, professor Blackstone explains

that it is important to understand that gender roles is deeply connected to the individual’s sex.

This is not completely truth, because of the reasons and concepts we will see right after.

As stated by the same professor Blackstone (2003), “sex is a biological concept,

determined on the basis of individual’s primary sex characteristics” (p.335). This means that,

compulsorily, it must be two types of sex: the person that is born with male sex

characteristics and the person that is born with female sex characteristics. Then, according to

their sex, people can either be a man or a woman.

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On the other hand gender refers to “meanings, values, and characteristics that people

ascribe to different sexes” (Blackstone, 2003, p. 335). This implies that, according to what is

happening beneath an individual’s mindset, along with their characteristics and their values,

the gender of them will be defined. Nowadays, there are several genders a person can identify

with, in response to the criteria that was previously mentioned.

3. Why family and marriage are related to gender roles

Considering all that has been mentioned up to this point, its time to explain the

relationship between family, marriage and gender roles. Gender roles are what is socially

expected from a man and what is socially expected from a woman. At the same time, society

itself judges whether a man or a woman is positive or negative, therefore, this behavior

becomes socially accepted or not.

The other point that needs to be taken into consideration is marriage. Marriage is

socially conceived as the institution that brings together a man with a woman, with the

objective of procreating, help an love each other. Therefore, a family can be the consequence

of a marriage. So, everything that was explained in the first section of this essay -regarding

the functions of the family- can be considered as a consequence of marriage, traditionally

speaking.

But when it comes to gender roles, it all depends on the marriage philosophy of life

and how they rather raise their children. This means that parents can instruct their male

children to be and act in a certain way, as for their female children; a way that would fit what

is socially considered to be positive and adequate for a man or for a woman (gender roles).

4. Conclusions

Families and marriages have a great deal of influence on gender roles and gender

identity. This is because family is the most basic form of society, and it is formed,
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traditionally by parents and children. Family accomplish certain functions within society, and

among them is to instruct children with the parents values, religion, ideas. This instruction

includes gender identity and gender roles education. On the other hand, it is understood by

gender roles, the different activities that a man or a woman should conduct. Of course, we

need to take into consideration the difference that there is between sex and gender, but

specifically taking about gender roles, they almost every time involve the role of the man and

the woman.

That’s why families and marriages could have a great power on determining the

gender identity of the people around the family, specially children. The moment parents

instruct their own beliefs and what they consider morally correct or not to their children, they

are having that influence on their children. Expressly, parents can have their own gender

determined, and that’s what they are instruct to their children, expecting from the latter to act,

think, and behave just like them.

From my personal point of view, I can say that this is completely correct. I admire my

parents and what they have achieved as a marriage, and I have decided to follow along their

path and their teachings, and also I decided to attend to their instructions regarding my role as

a female should be. And I do this because it is my right and I think that is the philosophy it

would fulfill my life. In the same way, I profoundly believe that every human being should

have this right to decide what gender they identify, and obviously, decide whether they

follow or not the socially imposed gender roles.

References

Blackstone, A. (2003). Gender Roles and Society. Society School Faculty

Scholarship. Pp 335-338.

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Definition of Family. Obtained from:

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/family
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Taterway, D. Functions of Family. Obtained from

https://magadhmahilacollege.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Functions-of-family.pdf