GENDER STUDIES For CSS Aman Ullah Gondal TABLE OF COTENTS 1. Introduction to Gender Studies 05 2. Difference between Gender and Women Studies 07 3. Evolution of Gender Studies as a Discipline 10 4. Multidisciplinary Nature of Gender Studies 17 5. Status of Gender Studies in Pakistan 23 6. Nature vs. Nurture: A Gender Debate on Gender Differences 40 7. Social Construction of Gender 43 8. Problematizing the category of “Sex”: Queer 51 Theory 9. Feminism 54 10. First Wave Feminism 58 11. Second Wave Feminism 61 12. Third Wave Feminism 66 13. Feminist Theories and Practice 71 What is Feminist Theory? 14. Liberal Feminism 72 15. Radical Feminism 75 16. Marxist/Socialist Feminism 80 17. Psychoanalytical Feminism 83 18. Postmodern Feminism 87 19. Feminist Movements in Pakistan 90 20. United Nation Conferences on Women 94 21. Gender Approaches to Development 104 22. Women in Development (WID), Women and Development (WAD), 109 23. Gender Critique of Structural Adjustment Policies (SAPs) 118 24. Globalization and Gender 132 25. Status of Women in Pakistan 173 26. 1. Status of Women in Education 148 2. Status of Women’s health in Pakistan 151 27. Gender and Governance 155 28. Gender Issues in Politics 164 Factors hindering women’s political participation 167 2 | P a g e 29. The Problems Faced By Women As Voters, Candidates And 178 Political Representatives 30. Suffragist Movement 182 31. Gender Based Violence 191 Defining Gender Based Violence 32. The ories of Violence against Women 192 33. Structural and Direct Forms of Violence 194 34. Strategies to Eliminate Violence against Women 201 35. Addressing VAW in Pakistan 206 36. Case Study of Mukhtaran Mai 213 37. Case Study of Mallala Yousaf Zai 220 38. Case Study of Shermin Ubaid Chinoy 225 39. GLOSSARY 229 3 | P a g e PREFACE To me the discipline of Gender studies and gender related concepts became a source of interest when I started my M.Phil. research on Gender based violence, it not only gave me an opportunity of studying gender at length but also enabled me to write this book for CSS aspirants which is equally useful for the students of gender studies as well. It was not a task to write this manuscript for the CSS aspirants because of sheer difference in the requirements of CSS candidates and students of Gender Studies, so efforts have been made to address the felt needs of the both. Here I am indebted to all the teachers and friends who were source of guidance and encouragement during the course of writing this book I am thankful to Dr. Farzana Bari for her concern in designing such a comprehensive outline and recommending books and material with the help of which it became feasible to compile this book for CSS aspirants. Moreover the contribution of Dr. SHAHID Saroya Chief Librarian IT University who made special cooperation in terms of access to books and contacts related to Gender studies I’m thankful to Mr Atif Ali, CEO NOA Publishers Islamabad for his kind consideration and consistent motivation towards writing this book. Aman Ullah Gondal (M.Phil.)Social Sciences Foreign Service of Pakistan 4 | P a g e What is Gender? Originally 'gender' is a grammatical term borrowed from linguistics; it is the collective term for the categories of masculine or feminine or neuter into which nouns of many languages are allocated. Anthropology borrowed the term to discuss the social roles occupied by males and females in society. The gendered roles in society were assumed to be the ‘natural’ result of one’s sex, but cross-cultural studies demonstrate that while sex is a universal condition of humans, gender roles vary across culture. “Gender is seen as the process by which individuals who are born into biological categories of male or female become the social categories of men and women through the acquisition of locally-defined attributes of masculinity and femininity” Gender refers to the attitudes, feelings, and behaviors that a given culture associates with a person’s biological sex. Behavior that is compatible with cultural expectations is referred to as gender-normative; behaviors that are viewed as incompatible with these expectations constitute gender non-conformity. Difference between Sex and Gender Sex refers to a person’s biological status and is typically categorized as male, female, or intersex (i.e. typical combinations. There are a number of indicators of biological sex, including sex chromosomes, gonads, internal reproductive organs, and external genitalia. Sometimes it is hard to understand exactly what is meant by the term ‘gender’ and how it differs from the closely related term ‘sex’. Understanding of the social construction of gender starts with explaining the two concepts, i.e., gender and sex. Often these two terms are used interchangeably: however, they bear different meanings as concepts. “Sex” refers to the biological and physiological characteristics that define men and women. It is defined as the anatomical and physiological characteristics that signify the biological maleness and femaleness of an individual. “Gender” refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviours, activities, and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for men and women. Gender emphasizes that masculinity and femininity are products of social, cultural and psychological factors and are acquired by an individual in the process of becoming a man or woman. ‘Gender’ is the term widely used to refer to those ways in which a culture reformulates what begins as a fact of nature. The biological sexes are redefined, represented, valued, and channeled into different roles in various culturally dependent ways. 5 | P a g e Sex as defined earlier is the concept that emerges from anatomical and physiological characteristics that differentiates males and females biologically whereas gender can be seen as a social construct manifested by masculine and feminine roles prevalent in a culture or a society. Thus gender can be seen as an artifact of social, cultural and psychological factors which are attained during the process of socialization of an individual. What is the significance of the concept ‘gender’? In talking about the social and cultural construction of masculinity and femininity, gender allows us to see these dimensions of human roles and personalities as based not on nature but on social factors. It then allows us to address issues like subordination and discrimination as issues where change is possible. Therefore the meaning of sex and gender, femininity and masculinity fluctuates within societies and cultures across the globe. The key differences between these two terms are: SEX GENDER It is natural It is a social construct. It is biological. It denotes to visible It is a socio-cultural construct and it refers differences in genitalia and related to masculine and feminine qualities, differences in procreative function behavior patterns, related roles and responsibility, etc It is a universal term. It is variable it changes under the influence of time, geographical and socio-cultural settings. 6 | P a g e Defining Gender Studies 1. Gender Studies investigates the actual (physical and biological) gender differences between women and men, but thinks especially critical about what these differences mean in a socio-cultural context. Gender is a classifying principle in society and culture. It is a remarkable discriminating tool in the distribution of labour, care, possession, income, education, organizational qualities or diseases. Opinions about what is male and what is female colour material and immaterial human products, from clothes and computer design to the image of god and mythology. Social and cultural gender patterns are internalized to an extent where our self-image is partially determined by the fact that we are male or female. Academic scholars who do research on people or their products cannot neglect gender. 2. Women’s and Gender Studies is an interdisciplinary field that examines gender as a social and cultural construction. Drawing upon academic areas such as history, psychology, popular culture, literary criticism, and anthropology, the major crosses and blends the boundaries of traditional disciplines. 3. The academic discipline which analyses constructions of gender in society, often with reference to class, race, sexuality and other sociological characteristics. Understanding Gender Studies Gender studies looks at the manner in which the norms and patterns of behavior associated with masculinity and femininity come into being. It studies the features of these norms and patterns – which traits are considered masculine, which feminine, and why? How do stereotypical models of men and women develop? How do they change over time, and what factors contribute to changes? Also, and very importantly, what impact do such stereotypes have upon actually existing men and women? Gender studies also has a focus upon actually existing men and women – is significant because within gender studies, there is a recognition that men and women do not exist in isolation from their other social roles and positions. A women is not only a woman – within our society, she also has a certain class position, caste position, religious identity, sexual identity, and many more. All of these factors impact her life – therefore while studying her life, all these factors need to be taken into consideration. Another feature of gender studies is that it examines how the world is gendered. Some examples can explain this concept in more clear terms. 7 | P a g e Women Studies Women's studies is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to topics concerning women, feminism, gender, and politics. It often includes feminist theory, women's history (e.g. a history of women's suffrage) and social history, women's fiction, women's health, feminist psychoanalysis and the feminist and gender studies-influenced practice of most of the humanities and social sciences. History Women's studies is a term used to refer to the theory and practice of feminist research and teaching in the academy.