Sunday, February 26, 2012
Blog Post 3
Words
and phrases are contagious and sometimes hurtful. One word that many people
have heard and used over the years is Tomboy. This word describes a gender role change in reference to a
female having more masculine oriented traits. Society controls what is
considered masculine and what is considered feminine, “A second element of the
cultural structure defines, regulates, and controls the acceptable modes of
reaching out for these goals” (Merton 1985).
Tomboy is a word that has
been used since about 1550 and at that time described a rude, boisterous boy.
Later the meaning of the word changed to bold or immodest girl in 1592. Tomboy
is a word described as a girl who acts like a spirited boy and with this
description I believe that it has a lot in common with the differential
association theory, “ Criminal behavior is learned in interaction with other
persons in a process of communication” (Cressey 1977). Now a tomboy isn’t
necessarily a criminal but they are females that play a different gender role
that is learned from interactions with a male figure. A tomboy is that girl who
isn’t “girly” enough or the one who dresses like a boy by wearing pants and
more masculine clothing. A female having more masculine traits is one who
commonly has an interest in sports or physical activities. Also, it is believed
that a female who has an increased interest in science and technology are
commonly called tomboys as well.
This word is followed with a
stigma of being lesbian or having the assumption of wanting to be a male. Now
many believe that being a tomboy is a phase that many young women go through. All
young girls will try to change their gender role in curiosity. “The crucial
distinctions is between shaming that is reintegrative and shaming that is
disintegrative (stigmatization)” (Braithwaite 1989). The stigma of being lesbian is placed on females who don’t
grow out of this young phase. I can personally understand this idea because I’m
a firefighter, where I work in a male dominated profession.
The underlying social
construction of Tomboy can be formed from many things. The most common
description is a girl who acts like a boy in regards to schooling atmosphere. Another perspective is a girl trying to
live up to her father’s expectations or father issues. Being a daughter from a
male dominated household or trying to hold the roles of both the daughter and
the son, which are to help those unfulfilled expectations for the father. “The
best place to see reintegrative shaming at work is in loving families…”
(Braithwaite 1989) Now gender roles are looked at and handled differently for
tomboys. “Gender scholar Judith 'Jack' Halberstam has claimed that
while the defying of gender roles is often tolerated in young girls, older girls
and adolescents who display masculine traits are often repressed and punished”
(unknown 2012).
Many theories have been
provided to answer why young females go through a tomboy phase but to sum them
up, most focus on a female who spends most of her childhood/adolescence in an
environment where a male predominates.
She doesn’t have a strong female role model to influence her to be girlier.
The film below is a trailer of Tomboy(2011). A french film that is about a girl who plays a more masculine role in society. She not only has short hair but she plays all the sports with the boys. Skins vs shirts and even cuts up her bathing suit to be more like the guys. Another thing this young girl does is tell her friends that she is a boy.
The third film is about how to be a proper tomboy. It shows the rules and advice on how to become a true tomboy. I found that it was interesting film that points out masculine traits and things that make most females uncomfortable.
Word Count: 612
The film below is a trailer of Tomboy(2011). A french film that is about a girl who plays a more masculine role in society. She not only has short hair but she plays all the sports with the boys. Skins vs shirts and even cuts up her bathing suit to be more like the guys. Another thing this young girl does is tell her friends that she is a boy.
The third film is about how to be a proper tomboy. It shows the rules and advice on how to become a true tomboy. I found that it was interesting film that points out masculine traits and things that make most females uncomfortable.
Word Count: 612
Citations:
I really enjoyed reading your blog! I liked the word that you chose to write about. You had things in your blog that I did not know, such as that the word tomboy has been around since the 1500's only with a different meaning. It's strange how words change so much from their original context. I enjoyed the video clips that you used. They really helped convey your point about being a tomboy. Good job!
ReplyDeleteDisagree,
ReplyDeleteWhile I very much enjoyed reading your post, I began to disagree at the end when discussing theories as to why young girls go through a "tomboy" phase.
Where I grew up a girl being a Tomboy wasn't perceived as a bad thing until late in junior high and certainly was perceived as deviant by high school.
However, in knowing several "Tomboy" girls growing up, I would not boil it down to the absence of a strong female role model and the presence of a dominant male in the household. With so many different households, human interactions, social environments, etc. I believe it comes about for various different reasons. However, this is not your fault as you were just citing leading theories. In the end, I just had to disagree with someone :(
Overall, very informative post and I certainly learned something.
Brett Hoyt
Agree/Awesome
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your blog post, and learning about the historical origins of the word Tomboy. I would agree that acting a bit more masculine is a way that not only girls, but also boys try to identify their own personality. At some point it becomes almost beat into a person that such actions are not acceptable and most people will want to take the path of least resistance and conform into a "proper" gender role. I also appreciated your use of differential association theory in how gender identities can be formed.
Hi!
ReplyDeleteDo Better,
I think you can do a better job of exploring any people trying to use "Tomboy" as a positive term, aka reclaim it. Are there communities that see this word as a means to oppress? Who usually uses this word men towards women, or women towards women? These are just some points I feel could have been expanded on. A film I absolutely love in which a "tomboy" is the main heroin is "Some Kind of Wonderful", this can be seen as an example of the typical "tomboy" being a positive character, and in general the grunge sub-culture of the late 80's/early 90's. Just some thoughts.
- Steve
Disagree / Do Better
ReplyDeleteI have to say that I really enjoyed reading this blog and appreciate the word you chose to use. But, as you know, we have to find something, somewhere to disagree with. The problem I found with this blog is the lack of citations and references. Maybe I am misunderstanding the directions, but I am under the assumption there needs to be a works cited spot in either MLA or APA format.
Again, don't get me wrong, I did enjoy your blog. I just think you could reference your ideas a tad better.
Good luck!