Lauren Gaertner

Ms. Thomson
AP English Language & Composition
21 January 2018
How have changing masculine and feminine characteristics impacted the viewpoint that there are

more than two genders?

In recent times, the belief that there is only two genders has been challenged. For

example, some believe there are up to sixty-three genders (63 Genders ―A New Perspective on

Sex and Gender). The previously unchallenged idea of gender has become an interesting and

heated debate. This is due to the evolution of once black and white qualities found in solely men

or women into a blend of characteristics that is found uniquely in everyone. As times have

changed, so have views on traditionally masculine and feminine characteristics as well as men’s

and women’s roles in society, and these changes have strongly contributed to a recent movement

that suggests there are more than two genders.

In the 1800s, the world viewed men and women in very different lights. Most, if not all,

women lived in the domestic sphere of life. According to Dorothy W. Hartman, this “Cult of

Domesticity” stated that women’s God given role was as wife and mother, keeper of the

household, and guardian of the moral purity of all who lived therein. A women’s role was seen in

the home, where she cooked, cleaned, sewed, and performed other tasks around the house.

Women did not attend school, and were seen as inferior to men. In contrast to the domestic life

of women, men were tasked with providing for their families. Men worked and were the sole

source of income for his family. Men were the “head of the family in those days. It was his [a

man’s] job to give his family a home, food and clothes. His wife and children belonged to him.

His wife’s money and all her things belonged to him too” (“Women in the 1800s”). Men and
 Gaertner 2

women’s roles in the nineteenth century caused certain characteristics to be associated with each

gender. Professor of Women in Literature at Illinois Valley College Kimberly M. Radek-Hall

asserts that in the nineteenth century men were viewed as: powerful, active, brave, worldly,

rational, independent, able to resist temptation, and ambitious. On the other hand, women were

seen as: weak, timid, domestic, illogical, emotional, susceptible to madness and hysteria,

dependent, and unable to resist temptation. The view of masculine and feminine characteristics

in the nineteenth century has shifted in the present time.

In today’s age, most traditionally masculine and feminine characteristics do not hold true.

Men and women have more equal opportunities which is in stark contrast to the 1800s. Men are

still more prevalent in the workplace, but “in 2010, women comprised 47 percent of the total

U.S. labor force” (“Women in the Labor Force in 2010”). In some families, men are no longer

the primary source of income. According to the Wendy Wang of the Pew Research Center, “a

record 40% of all households with children under the age of eighteen include mothers who are

either the sole or primary source of income for the family.” With past viewpoints of masculinity

and femininity changing, new ways of measuring these characteristics have been created. The

Hofstede Index, created in 2001 by Professor Geert Hofstede, compares masculine and feminine

ideals. The masculinity side of this dimension represents a preference in society for success

measured by achievement, heroism, assertiveness, and material rewards for success. Society at

large is more competitive. Its opposite, femininity, stands for a preference for cooperation,

modesty, caring for the weak, and quality of life (“National Culture”). Geert J. Hofstede and

Michael M. Inkov state that “masculine and feminine traits are expressed in the domains:

politics, economics, religion, work, family, and school.” With masculine and feminine

characteristics and roles transforming over time, there has been a recently publicized movement
 Gaertner 3

that claims there are more than two genders. However, different sources vary on just how many

there are.

Continuing the traditional concept of gender, which aligns with the point of view in the

1800s, is that there are just two: male and female. Initially, however, the definition of gender

must be addressed. According to the World Health Organization “Gender refers to the socially

constructed characteristics of women and men – such as norms, roles and relationships of and

between groups of women and men.” This definition only refers to two groups: women and men.

However, the definition states that gender is socially constructed, which as a result does not

preclude that many different genders could exist. The traditional two gender point of view has

not been heavily challenged until recently. In 2012, Joseph Liu of the Pew Research Center

found that 31.7% of the world population was Christian and Jewish, which means that they

follow the Old Testament in the Bible. In the New Jerusalem Bible, Genesis 1:27 states, “so God

created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created

them.” Muslims, who made up 23.2% of the world’s population in 2012, follow the Quran.

Quran chapter 4:124 states, “and whoever does righteous deeds, whether male or female, while

being a believer - those will enter Paradise and will not be wronged, [even as much as] the speck

on a date seed.” All three of these religions address people as either male or female, no other

gender is mentioned. Looking at the issue from a religious standpoint, there are only two

genders. Because gender is referred to as a “social construct” the scientific community cannot

reach a conclusive answer. Many people get sex and gender confused, which can lead to

misunderstanding. Sex and gender are different, as the World Health Organization states: “Sex

refers to the biological and physiological characteristics that define men and women." The

traditional viewpoint aligns with the starkly different outlook on masculinity and femininity
 Gaertner 4

presented in the nineteenth century. This argument has existed without conflict for hundreds of

years. Due to the longevity of this argument, the change in traditional masculine and feminine

characteristics would seem to have no effect on the recent gender movement. With the outlook

on conventional characteristics evolving, so has the idea that there are more than two genders.

In the late-twentieth and early twenty-first century, society evolved drastically; with the

public’s view on gender changing as well. The number of genders is still disputed and is

constantly changing. One organization claims that there are sixty-three genders based on

physical traits, preference, and personality traits (“63 Genders—A New Perspective on Sex and

Gender”). The social media network Facebook.com gives seventy-one different gender options

when creating an online profile (Facebook). How are these different genders created? The

Gender Spectrum says “A person’s gender is the complex interrelationship between three

dimensions: body, identity, and expression.” Gender expression correlates to perceived

masculine and feminine traits. Due to recent equal opportunities for males and females, the

borders that said what one sex could or could not do have been blurred–if not obliterated. These

new ideals have impacted the traditional two-gender model. With women and men pursuing

similar careers, education, political achievements, familial models, and economic status, neither

masculinity nor femininity is limited to one walk of life. As men and women enter the same

domain, one sex does not have a specific role, which is a contrast to life in the nineteenth

century. Along with new medical advances which allow for sexual reassignment surgery, the

once ever-present wall separating the two sexes has been torn down. As traits between the two

groups become less different, some identify with both sides of the spectrum, creating unique

groups of people. The changing masculine and feminine characteristics have greatly impacted

the traditional two-gender viewpoint.

 Gaertner 5

Overall, societal views on masculinity and femininity have changed and developed over

time. This is especially evident in women, who have gone from solely living in the domestic

sphere to running for President and becoming doctors, professors, lawyers, and successful

professionals. In modern society, status between men and women is closer to equal than ever.

Masculine and feminine characteristics are not as starkly different as they were in the nineteenth

century. The evolution of these characteristics have contributed to the recently popular belief that

there are more than two genders. People have increased ability to express themselves in different

manners during today’s age and the male and female sexes are starting to be considered equal.

As a result, less shame is associated with having traits associated with the opposite sex. With

men and women residing in the same sphere of life, characteristics that were once seen as

opposite have been combined uniquely in each individual and this has resulted in the movement

that there are more than two genders.

 Gaertner 6

Works Cited

“63 Genders ―A New Perspective on Sex and Gender.” APath.org, 9 May 2017, apath.org/63-

genders/.

“95 Bible Verses about Gender Identity.” Edited by Stephen Smith, What Does the Bible Say

About Gender Identity?, Crossway Bibles, 2001,

www.openbible.info/topics/gender_identity.

Facebook, www.facebook.com/.

“Gender.” World Health Organization, World Health Organization, 2018, www.who.int/gender-

equity-rights/understanding/gender-definition/en/.

Gohari, M. J. “4:124.” The Quran, Quran Institute, 2007.

Hartman, Dorothy W. “Lives of Women.” Lives of Women in the 1800s, Conner Prairie

Institute, www.connerprairie.org/education-research/indiana-history-1860-1900/lives-of-

women.

Hofstede, Geert J, and Michael M Inkov. “Cultural Dimensions- ‘Cultural Organization:

Software of the Mind.’” Masculinity-Femininity, The University of Texas,

www.laits.utexas.edu/orkelm/kelmpub/masculinity.pdf.

Liu, Joseph. “The Global Religious Landscape.” Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life

Project, Pew Research Center, 17 Dec. 2012, www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-

religious-landscape-exec/.

“National Culture.” The 6 Dimensions of National Culture, Hofstede Insights, www.hofstede-

 Gaertner 7

insights.com/models/national-culture/.

Radek-Hall, Kimberly M. “Women in the Nineteenth Century.” Women in the Nineteenth

Century, Illinois Valley College, 11 Jan. 2017,

www2.ivcc.edu/gen2002/women_in_the_nineteenth_century.htm.

“Understanding Gender.” Gender Spectrum, Gender Spectrum, 2017,

www.genderspectrum.org/quick-links/understanding-gender/.

Wang, Wendy. “Breadwinner Moms.” Pew Research Center's Social & Demographic Trends

Project, Pew Research Center, 28 May 2013,

www.pewsocialtrends.org/2013/05/29/breadwinner-moms/.

“Women in the 1800s.” Little Women Fact File, Scholastic Magazine,

www.scholastic.ca/education/magazines/elt_pdfs/little-women-factfile-616443.pdf.

“Women in the Labor Force in 2010.” Women's Bureau (WB) - Quick Facts on Women in the

Labor Force in 2010, The United States Department of Labor, Jan. 2011,

www.dol.gov/wb/factsheets/Qf-laborforce-10.htm.