1. SEX, GENDER AND SOCIETY
Unlike Gender, which refers to the economic, social and cultural attributes and opportunities associated with being male or female, sex is a biological term. Common sense suggests that female sex belongs to feminine gender. However, to be a man or a woman, is as much a function of dress, gesture, occupation, social network and personality as it is of possessing a particular set of genitals.
2. THE BIOLOGY OF SEX
2.1 SEX AND BIOLOGY
Biologically the sex of a person does not depend on the outward appearance of the body only. Sex hormones play an important role, and these are not just produced by ovaries and testis but also by adrenal glands. Roger Williams in his research suggested that according to the levels of male and female hormones, men and women can be categorised into nine groups (like characteristically being more male than female). (Oakley, 2015) Any abnormality in hormone production may also lead to changes in secondary sex characteristics. This has a role to play in intersexuality. Gender identity (feeling oneself to be a male or a female) is an independent cultural variable to determine gender role. And here biology can be altered.
2.2 SEX AND PERSONALITY
There are advantages associated with Y chromosome, like greater size, weight and strength which X chromosome inhibits. Hence muscular physique is rare among girls. Height and built are also determined by socio-environmental factors, ethnicity, traditions and culture and also food intake. In Sex and Temperament in Three Primitive Societies (1935), Margaret mead describes three New Guinea tribes : the Arapesh, the Mundugumor, the Tchambuli. In first tribe there is no temperamental difference between the two sexes. In the second, both the sexes approximate to masculine pattern. The third tribe shows differentiation of personality by sex, males approximate to stereotyped femininity and vice versa.(Oakley, 2015) Social norms are altered here. Biology indicates the direction, but culture also has its impact on personality and it is then reflected in their preferences in daily life.
2.3 SEX AND HEALTH
In The Natural Superiority of Women (1968), Ashley Montagu explained the minus side of Y chromosome ‘ susceptibility to sixty-two specific disorders, half of them serious. Whereas, X chromosome provides superior capacity for survival in females.
(Worldbank, 2015)
2.4 SEX AND SOCIETY ROLE
Division of labour by sex is a universal characteristic of a society. The idea that a male does ‘heavy’ work while female occupies ‘light’ task is an absolute fiction. People in Bamenda mourn four days for a woman, while only three for a man because they feel that women are far more superior to men in the sense that they give bear children and work on field as well.
The Mbuti pygmies distinguish the sexes only in terms of parenthood. They have words for ‘mother’ and ‘father’, but not for boy, girl, man or woman. There is no anxiety about sex roles and the division of labour is equal. (Oakley, 2015)
3. GENDER INEQUALITY AND WORLD SCENARIO
About a quarter of the world’s nations’have had female Presidents or Prime Ministers. The US has had no female president. It ranks 96th out of 193 countries in women representation in national legislatures (<20%). Even Pakistan ranks better than the US at 83rd. One of the poorest nations, Rwanda ranks first with more than 60% women representatives in parliament.
4. GENDER INEQUALITY IN INDIAN SOCIETY
Gandhi played an important role in ‘feminization’ of nationalist activity. To liberate ‘motherland’ was equivalent to protecting women’s ‘purity’, as was the slogan, ‘India cannot be free until its women are free and women cannot be free until India is free’. Women participated in independence struggle and national causes which excluded issues of gender, equality and women’s rights. Men supported female literacy and basic rights, but were disinclined to renounce the patriarchal structure. Identities of father or husband determined a woman’s identity (Singh, 2010).
Religion, customs, age-old prejudices have made women subservient, vulnerable and dependent. This has led to low literacy rate, lack of economic independence and value biases against them. These have become base line traits for female gender in Indian society.
3.2 GENDER COMPOSITION OF INDIA
India’s sex ratio is 940 as per Census 2011, highest recorded since Census 1971.
Kerala has highest sex ratio (1084) while Daman & Diu has lowest (618). Mahe district of Puducherry is with highest sex ratio (1176), while Daman district has lowest (533). India’s child sex ratio (0-6 years) is 914, lowest since independence.
Further, J&K, Bihar and Gujarat has shown decline in sex Ratio compared to Census 2001. (Census, 2011)
3.4 ACCESS TO EDUCATION
There is a persistent tendency for illiteracy among females than males. India’s literacy rate has increased by 9.2% and stands at 74.04 % for age 7 and above. The gap between male literacy (82.14) and female literacy (65.46) rate has reduced to 16.68 percentage points in 2011 census. Rajasthan has the lowest female literacy at 52.66%.(Census, 2011)
In 2011, 80% of urban women were literate compared to 59% of rural women. Women Are Closing the Higher Education gap: 45.9% of all enrolled undergraduate students in India are women. 40.5% of all enrolled PhD students are women. (CATALYST, 2015)
In 2012-2013 the percentage of women enrolled in specific undergraduate degree programs included:
‘ 28.5% Engineering/Technology
‘ 40.2% IT and Computer
‘ 35.6% Management
‘ 32.0% Law
3.5 ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES
Men command the majority of jobs carrying high prestige, high skill and income whereas women’s occupation is clustered around nursing, domestic and clerical work, teaching and unskilled factory work.
Only 13.4% of Indian working women have a regular salaried job compared to 21.2% of working men (aged 15’59). More women work in rural areas than in urban cities. In 2011-2012, 24.8% of rural workers were women and 14.7% women comprised of all urban workers.(CATALYST, 2015)
Though Gender pay wage gap seems to be declining in India, women earn 56% of what their male colleagues earn. As women advance in their career the gap becomes more prominent.
The Pipeline for Women Starts Small and Continues to Shrink38
Women hold only 7.7% of board seats and just 2.7% of board chairs.39
The industries with the highest percentage of women on boards are technology, media, and telecommunications.40
Out of 323 total executive directorship positions (generally considered to be prerequisite to becoming CEO) on the Bombay Stock Exchange 100, just eight (2.5%) are held by women..41
54% of companies on the Bombay Stock Exchange 100 have no women board directors.42
(Worldbank, 2015)
(CATALYST, 2015)
3.6 POLITICAL EMPOWERMENT
In 1988, the National Perspective Plan for Women 30% quota for women at all levels of elective bodies. To encourage grass root level participation, women’s group demanded reservation restricted to panchayat level. Unanimity around this demand lead to adoption of 73rd and 74th amendments to the Indian /constitution in 1993.
Having a long history of practices that oppress women. Yet India also carried out history’s single biggest act of female empowerment. In 1993, a constitutional amendment set aside a third of all seats in local councils for women. Nearly a million women suddenly entered politics. A pending constitutional amendment’the so-called Women’s Reservation Bill’would allocate a third of all seats to women in the lower house of Parliament, and in state assemblies.
India, Ireland and Bangladesh have seen the longest durations of women in power, for a combined total of over 20 years
(Worldbank, 2015)
3.1 HEALTH
Women have a strong proclivity to invest their resources and labour and identify their interest around family business or their children, which leaves them vulnerable in case of family breakdown. Also unequal distribution of wealth, power and privileges not just reduce the voice of women, but also make it harder for them to flourish in commercial, economic and social activities.
Feminisation of poverty has influenced development of policy and practice, for eg, subsidies or micro-credit at women. It has been used to mean three distinct things (Cagatay, May 1998)’
1.) women have higher incidences of poverty than men;
2.) women’s poverty is more severe than that of men;
3.) there is a trend to greater poverty among women, particularly associated with rising rates of female headship of household.
, in the Hindu faith, women are prohibited from participating in normal life while menstruating.
3.3 GENDER STRATIFICATION AND VIOLENCE
Often considered as commodity, women face atrocities of physical, sexual and verbal nature with social, emotional, intellectual and financial among others. According to the National Crime Record Bureau’s 2014 report, 39.8% of rape victims in India are girls under the age of 18. Rape incidences – 34,651 in 2015, Rate – 5.7 (It excludes cases registered under the Protetion of children from Sexual Offence Act 2012.)
Despite an improving child sex ratio, India still ranks an abysmal 127th out of 146 in the United Nation’s Gender Inequality Index (0.563). According to UNICEF, foetal sex determination has grown into a ‘1,000 crore industry with a record of up to 8 million female foetus abortion in the last decade.
Crime head-wise cases registered under crime against women during 2011-15:
(NCRB, 2015)
4. CONCLUSION
Sex and Gender are often used interchangeably. But both the aspects for distinction of human race into two discrete groups are indefinite in the sense that they may not be always align. Biology demonstrates that there are some basic similarities in the two sexes. But in our society, biological sex determines sex roles, which form the base for a universal and obvious division, around which other distinctions can be organised. In deciding which activities fall on which side of the boundary, the important factor is culture. In early upbringing, education, adult occupation and human interactions, males and females are pressed into different moulds by the society. At the end of the process, it isn’t surprising that their distinctive occupation is regarded as a predetermined general law. This is despite the fact that the biological difference is neither large nor invariable, and that other cultures have developed sex roles different from our own, which seems just as natural as ours. It is strongly indicated that gender has no biological origin. The connections between sex and gender are not natural at all.
Most of the discussions about gender inequality are angled at proving that women are or are not different from men, than proving men are or are not different from women. If this fact needs explanation, it becomes transparent that our culture is still patriarchal and women who are claiming the rights of men need to be defended against charges of inferiority.
The women themselves distrust their capabilities and aggressiveness which are revealed to them only when they acquire a new status.
The government has launched several commendable schemes to save and educate the girl child and the national average has risen from 943 females per 1000 males.
Though in western societies, psychiatrists say ‘ staying within the boundaries of these societal roles help us feel secure and mentally stable.
Socialisation differentiated by sex has its impact on a child from birth on. In fact, the influence of mothers’ own reaction to biological maleness and femaleness of a child can’t be disregarded.