GENDER STUDIES FINAL EXAM
QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT ANSWERS
Gender identity, transgender, transexual - Answer-"Gender identity" refers to an inner
sense or conviction of being male or female (or some combination of the two).
Transgender" is an umbrella term for anyone who is gender nonconforming
"Transsexual" is a psychiatric term that refers specifically to the subset of trans people
who want or need medical intervention to bring their biological sex into greater
agreement with their inner gender identity
Sexual orientation and gender expression - Answer-"Sexual orientation" refers to the
romantic attraction between members of the same or other sexes.
Gender expression" refers to how each of us communicates our gender identity
LGBTQ - Answer-Began as gay, then incorporated lesbians by palcing the L first since
females had previouslzed been excluded in every other aspect of them, and so on.
Whatever the name, although estimates place the number of LGBTQ Americans
between 4 percent and 10 percent, the community receives only about one-tenth of one
percent (.01 percent) of US philanthropic dollars
Nonbinary and genderqueer - Answer-In 2017, a young, gender nonconforming
character appearing for the first time on Showtime's hit series Billions introduced
themselves to the head of their hedge fund by explaining, "Hello sir, my name is Taylor.
My pronouns are 'they, theirs, and them.'
I'm not even sure about the word "genderqueer." I coined the term in the 1990s to refer
to those of us who are not only gay or trans, but who don't pass as cisgender, who are
"visibly queer."
Gender equity and Gender Mainstreaming - Answer-Equity refers to the equal treatment
so that all members of a community have equal access to power, rights, and
opportunity, particularly women. Equality goes a step further and refers to actually
achieving parity between people.
Gender mainstreaming refers to pulling an awareness of gender and gendered power
relations throughout all the activities that an organization does, inducing its programs,
data collection, recruitment, and strategizing
Gender Stereotypes - Answer-Gender stereotypes refer to generalizations about the
sexes: for example that women are not good with computers or engineering, men can't
cook and won't ask for directions, women are emotional but cheer up when they buy
new clothes, and men are unemotional but cheer up when they buy new tools (or guns).
About Femininity - Answer-Traditional femininity is understood as a combination of the
"the three D's": being Deferential, Desirable, and Dependent
,In many cultures, women are considered to lose their femininity as they age. Although
men with power and status are admired, studies consistently find that women with
power and authority are disliked by both men and women (though less so by women),
and are perceived as cold, distant, and . . . unfeminine
Human femininity is deeply intertwined with youthfulness, fertility, and what is called
"neoteny": childish physical traits carried into adulthood
Intersectionality - Answer-Understanding the interplay of factors like age, race, sex,
gender, and class is known as "intersectionality."
means that people's bodies and lived experience tend to be more complex than the
simple categories or frames we use to understand them.
Reading: How the Practice of Sex-Testing Targets Female Olympic Athletes: Allen -
Answer-In the 1900s an olympic athlete was killed, although she was a female and
competed in female games it was discovered that she had a small and non functioning
penis
Walsh's cells were found to be mismatched, therefore she carried some chromosomes
with XY and others with X caused by embryonic cell division errors.
In 2009, Caster Semenya, the South African 800 meter runner won two championships
in the games. Someone said "just look at her"
Reading: Contesting Intersex: Davis - Answer-Intersex is a term that describes the state
of being born with a combination of characteristics (eg: genitals) that are typically
exclusively male or female.
Highlights the story of a conference with intersex individuals coming together.
Doctors told her she had underdeveloped ovaries that could become cancerous. This
wasn't the case however the ovaries were actually undescended testes. They had lied.
Why was being intersex so shameful?
Eg; the New Jersey senate approved a bill that allows intersex and trans people to
change their gender on their birth certificate without surgery.
German laws came into play that allowed parents to change the gender of their child or
put them in the X category. This sparked much criticism
Action 1: Stop the surgeries
Action 2; Work with - not for - doctors
Action 3; Expand and diversify peer support
Action 4; replace fear with power
Action 5; embrace feminist ideas
Action 6; recognize social constructions
Action 7; listen to children
Reading: Demarginalizing the Intersection of race and sex (Crenshaw) - Answer-She
argues that sometimes black women are excluded from feminism.
Intersectionality: The acknowledgement that everyone has their own unique
experiences of discrimination and oppression
Specifically for black woman in the court system
,Black women are protected to the extent that their experiences coincide with those of
either of the two groups.
Compares it to an accident at an intersection; could be hit from any direction which
represent race or sex discrimination.
Black women are the prime candidates of double discrimination.
Reading: The system isn't broken, its working as designed (Sherman) - Answer-Doctors
in Canada work under the "free for service" medicine model; they are praised for seeing
less patients in less time despite the rush.
Medical Industrial Complex;MIC ; an interconnected system encompassing a range of
institutions, professions, sites, and sectors.
Ideal "healthy" body; wealthy, cisgender, male, heterosexual, nondisabled.
Comes to the conclusion that the system isn't broken, its functioning as it was designed
to do so with "normal" people. LGBTQ+ people were not in mind during the formation of
this system.
Tutorial discussion: White-supremisct-patriarchial capitalist society - Answer-Said by
bell hooks
She said she coined this term to "have some language that would actually remind us
continually of the interlocking systems of domination that define our reality."
Gender isn't the sole issue, neither is race so she created a universal term to cover
every base.
Reading: Mohanty, Chandra Talpade. "Under Western Eyes: Feminist Scholarship and
Colonial Discourses." - Answer-An analysis of 'sexual difference' in the form of a cross-
culturally singular notion of patriarchy or male dominance leads to the construction of a
similarly reductive and homogenous notion of what the author calls 'Third World
Difference.' And it is in the production of this 'Third World Difference' that Western
feminisms appropriate and 'colonize' the fundamental complexities and conflicts which
characterize the lives of women of different classes, religions, cultures, races and
castes in these countries.
It is in this process of homogenization and systematization of the oppression of women
in the third world that power is exercised in much of recent Western feminist discourse,
and this power needs to be defined and named.
It is both to the explanatory potential of particular analytic strategies employed by such
writing, and to their political effect in the context of the hegemony of Western
scholarship that triggers her to write about the topic.
First principle: concerns the strategic location or situation of the category 'women' vis-à-
vis the context of analysis.
Second principle: consists in the uncritical use of particular methodologies in providing
'proof' of universality and cross-cultural validity
Third principle: a more specifically political principle underlying the methodologies and
the analytic strategies, i.e. the model of power and struggle they imply and suggest. I
argue that as a result of the two modes —or, rather, frames —of analysis described
above, a homogeneous notion of the oppression of women as a group is assumed,
which, in turn, produces the image of an 'average third world woman.
, "WOMAN AS A CATEGORY OF ANALYSIS" - Answer-By women as a category of
analysis, I am referring to the critical assumption that all of us of the same gender,
across classes and cultures, are somehow socially constituted as a homogeneous
group identified prior to the process of analysis
in any given piece of feminist analysis, women are characterized as a singular group on
the basis of a shared oppression
"Sisterhood cannot be assumed on the basis of gender; it must be formed in concrete,
historical and political practice and analysis."
Reading: Wilson, Kalpana (2011). "From missionaries to microcredit? 'Race', gender
and agency in neoliberal development" - Answer-Partly in response to critiques by Third
World feminists, Gender and Development theorists have increasingly highlighted
women's 'agency'. Women in the global South are no longer invariably seen as passive
victims; there is an increased focus on women's ability to make decisions and choices
under given circumstances
The concept of agency is regularly mobilized in inherently racialized constructions of
'women in the global South' as enterprising subjects with limitless capacity to 'cope';
women's potential for exercising agency is fulfilled, we are told, in the context of the
state's withdrawal from social provision and, most frequently, in the context of the
remarkable rise of microfinance initiatives.
Reading: Jarbou, R. (2018). Know your enemy: the Saudi women's driving campaign
from flyers and faxes to Youtube and hashtags. - Answer-On September 26 2017, a
Saudi Arabian royal decree announced the ban on women driving in the Saudi kingdom
will be lifted in June of 2018
"The ladies of November,"as they are known today—mostly teachers, academics,
doctors, professionals, social workers, and housewives—demonstrated for their right to
drive one Tuesday afternoon.
47 women were defamed and their names were published.
Their names and personal information was released and they were brutally harassed by
the public.
Though these women were accused of being tied to western influence, they resisted
western feminist frameworks and advocated for their rights in their own lived context
Saudi women have been appropriated as political symbols in the consolidation of
religious nationalist Wahhabism and of the state's modernization project
Most notable was the Women2Drive movement, which was reignited when Manal Al
Sharif drove publicly in June of 2011
22 years after the "know your enemy" flyers were produced, they have now been
reframed as an honour list.
Messerschmidt, James W. (2019). The Salience of "Hegemonic Masculinity". Men and
Masculinities:
Amplification of the concept - Answer-In particular, the newest research confirms the
omnipresent nature of hegemonic masculinities—locally, regionally, and globally—yet
QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT ANSWERS
Gender identity, transgender, transexual - Answer-"Gender identity" refers to an inner
sense or conviction of being male or female (or some combination of the two).
Transgender" is an umbrella term for anyone who is gender nonconforming
"Transsexual" is a psychiatric term that refers specifically to the subset of trans people
who want or need medical intervention to bring their biological sex into greater
agreement with their inner gender identity
Sexual orientation and gender expression - Answer-"Sexual orientation" refers to the
romantic attraction between members of the same or other sexes.
Gender expression" refers to how each of us communicates our gender identity
LGBTQ - Answer-Began as gay, then incorporated lesbians by palcing the L first since
females had previouslzed been excluded in every other aspect of them, and so on.
Whatever the name, although estimates place the number of LGBTQ Americans
between 4 percent and 10 percent, the community receives only about one-tenth of one
percent (.01 percent) of US philanthropic dollars
Nonbinary and genderqueer - Answer-In 2017, a young, gender nonconforming
character appearing for the first time on Showtime's hit series Billions introduced
themselves to the head of their hedge fund by explaining, "Hello sir, my name is Taylor.
My pronouns are 'they, theirs, and them.'
I'm not even sure about the word "genderqueer." I coined the term in the 1990s to refer
to those of us who are not only gay or trans, but who don't pass as cisgender, who are
"visibly queer."
Gender equity and Gender Mainstreaming - Answer-Equity refers to the equal treatment
so that all members of a community have equal access to power, rights, and
opportunity, particularly women. Equality goes a step further and refers to actually
achieving parity between people.
Gender mainstreaming refers to pulling an awareness of gender and gendered power
relations throughout all the activities that an organization does, inducing its programs,
data collection, recruitment, and strategizing
Gender Stereotypes - Answer-Gender stereotypes refer to generalizations about the
sexes: for example that women are not good with computers or engineering, men can't
cook and won't ask for directions, women are emotional but cheer up when they buy
new clothes, and men are unemotional but cheer up when they buy new tools (or guns).
About Femininity - Answer-Traditional femininity is understood as a combination of the
"the three D's": being Deferential, Desirable, and Dependent
,In many cultures, women are considered to lose their femininity as they age. Although
men with power and status are admired, studies consistently find that women with
power and authority are disliked by both men and women (though less so by women),
and are perceived as cold, distant, and . . . unfeminine
Human femininity is deeply intertwined with youthfulness, fertility, and what is called
"neoteny": childish physical traits carried into adulthood
Intersectionality - Answer-Understanding the interplay of factors like age, race, sex,
gender, and class is known as "intersectionality."
means that people's bodies and lived experience tend to be more complex than the
simple categories or frames we use to understand them.
Reading: How the Practice of Sex-Testing Targets Female Olympic Athletes: Allen -
Answer-In the 1900s an olympic athlete was killed, although she was a female and
competed in female games it was discovered that she had a small and non functioning
penis
Walsh's cells were found to be mismatched, therefore she carried some chromosomes
with XY and others with X caused by embryonic cell division errors.
In 2009, Caster Semenya, the South African 800 meter runner won two championships
in the games. Someone said "just look at her"
Reading: Contesting Intersex: Davis - Answer-Intersex is a term that describes the state
of being born with a combination of characteristics (eg: genitals) that are typically
exclusively male or female.
Highlights the story of a conference with intersex individuals coming together.
Doctors told her she had underdeveloped ovaries that could become cancerous. This
wasn't the case however the ovaries were actually undescended testes. They had lied.
Why was being intersex so shameful?
Eg; the New Jersey senate approved a bill that allows intersex and trans people to
change their gender on their birth certificate without surgery.
German laws came into play that allowed parents to change the gender of their child or
put them in the X category. This sparked much criticism
Action 1: Stop the surgeries
Action 2; Work with - not for - doctors
Action 3; Expand and diversify peer support
Action 4; replace fear with power
Action 5; embrace feminist ideas
Action 6; recognize social constructions
Action 7; listen to children
Reading: Demarginalizing the Intersection of race and sex (Crenshaw) - Answer-She
argues that sometimes black women are excluded from feminism.
Intersectionality: The acknowledgement that everyone has their own unique
experiences of discrimination and oppression
Specifically for black woman in the court system
,Black women are protected to the extent that their experiences coincide with those of
either of the two groups.
Compares it to an accident at an intersection; could be hit from any direction which
represent race or sex discrimination.
Black women are the prime candidates of double discrimination.
Reading: The system isn't broken, its working as designed (Sherman) - Answer-Doctors
in Canada work under the "free for service" medicine model; they are praised for seeing
less patients in less time despite the rush.
Medical Industrial Complex;MIC ; an interconnected system encompassing a range of
institutions, professions, sites, and sectors.
Ideal "healthy" body; wealthy, cisgender, male, heterosexual, nondisabled.
Comes to the conclusion that the system isn't broken, its functioning as it was designed
to do so with "normal" people. LGBTQ+ people were not in mind during the formation of
this system.
Tutorial discussion: White-supremisct-patriarchial capitalist society - Answer-Said by
bell hooks
She said she coined this term to "have some language that would actually remind us
continually of the interlocking systems of domination that define our reality."
Gender isn't the sole issue, neither is race so she created a universal term to cover
every base.
Reading: Mohanty, Chandra Talpade. "Under Western Eyes: Feminist Scholarship and
Colonial Discourses." - Answer-An analysis of 'sexual difference' in the form of a cross-
culturally singular notion of patriarchy or male dominance leads to the construction of a
similarly reductive and homogenous notion of what the author calls 'Third World
Difference.' And it is in the production of this 'Third World Difference' that Western
feminisms appropriate and 'colonize' the fundamental complexities and conflicts which
characterize the lives of women of different classes, religions, cultures, races and
castes in these countries.
It is in this process of homogenization and systematization of the oppression of women
in the third world that power is exercised in much of recent Western feminist discourse,
and this power needs to be defined and named.
It is both to the explanatory potential of particular analytic strategies employed by such
writing, and to their political effect in the context of the hegemony of Western
scholarship that triggers her to write about the topic.
First principle: concerns the strategic location or situation of the category 'women' vis-à-
vis the context of analysis.
Second principle: consists in the uncritical use of particular methodologies in providing
'proof' of universality and cross-cultural validity
Third principle: a more specifically political principle underlying the methodologies and
the analytic strategies, i.e. the model of power and struggle they imply and suggest. I
argue that as a result of the two modes —or, rather, frames —of analysis described
above, a homogeneous notion of the oppression of women as a group is assumed,
which, in turn, produces the image of an 'average third world woman.
, "WOMAN AS A CATEGORY OF ANALYSIS" - Answer-By women as a category of
analysis, I am referring to the critical assumption that all of us of the same gender,
across classes and cultures, are somehow socially constituted as a homogeneous
group identified prior to the process of analysis
in any given piece of feminist analysis, women are characterized as a singular group on
the basis of a shared oppression
"Sisterhood cannot be assumed on the basis of gender; it must be formed in concrete,
historical and political practice and analysis."
Reading: Wilson, Kalpana (2011). "From missionaries to microcredit? 'Race', gender
and agency in neoliberal development" - Answer-Partly in response to critiques by Third
World feminists, Gender and Development theorists have increasingly highlighted
women's 'agency'. Women in the global South are no longer invariably seen as passive
victims; there is an increased focus on women's ability to make decisions and choices
under given circumstances
The concept of agency is regularly mobilized in inherently racialized constructions of
'women in the global South' as enterprising subjects with limitless capacity to 'cope';
women's potential for exercising agency is fulfilled, we are told, in the context of the
state's withdrawal from social provision and, most frequently, in the context of the
remarkable rise of microfinance initiatives.
Reading: Jarbou, R. (2018). Know your enemy: the Saudi women's driving campaign
from flyers and faxes to Youtube and hashtags. - Answer-On September 26 2017, a
Saudi Arabian royal decree announced the ban on women driving in the Saudi kingdom
will be lifted in June of 2018
"The ladies of November,"as they are known today—mostly teachers, academics,
doctors, professionals, social workers, and housewives—demonstrated for their right to
drive one Tuesday afternoon.
47 women were defamed and their names were published.
Their names and personal information was released and they were brutally harassed by
the public.
Though these women were accused of being tied to western influence, they resisted
western feminist frameworks and advocated for their rights in their own lived context
Saudi women have been appropriated as political symbols in the consolidation of
religious nationalist Wahhabism and of the state's modernization project
Most notable was the Women2Drive movement, which was reignited when Manal Al
Sharif drove publicly in June of 2011
22 years after the "know your enemy" flyers were produced, they have now been
reframed as an honour list.
Messerschmidt, James W. (2019). The Salience of "Hegemonic Masculinity". Men and
Masculinities:
Amplification of the concept - Answer-In particular, the newest research confirms the
omnipresent nature of hegemonic masculinities—locally, regionally, and globally—yet
