When looking at the slides and discussions we had in class, in some
sports it was interesting to learn that males and females who compete in the
same sport are expected to act masculine or feminine. In gymnastics males are suppose to show off a
tough exterior when performing routines. Women however are expected to be
graceful and ladylike in which they are expected to smile. Is this fair to both genders that they are
expected to act in a different manner when performing the same sport?
From past
experience I feel like women have to be feminine in hockey and growing up
around many female hockey players, I always thought it wasn’t fair. In women’s hockey there is no contact. If girls are playing against other girls, I
believe they should be able to install contact in hockey. This would bring out the best competition
when watching women’s hockey and I also believe it would bring more popularity
to the sport. There are risk factors in
which injury can occur, but I believe if women are facing each other there is
risk that would happen anyway. No matter
what gender, athletes want to be competitive and perform to the best of their
abilities and not be judged on how the manner their expected to show.
I feel that this
shows female inferiority and that men are supposed to be powerful and show
dominance. It doesn’t give women a
chance to show power and authority and I believe that women should be able to
have the same rules as men when playing against the same sex. As we saw in class, women are stronger than
we think they are. When watching the
sport science episode of Lucia Rijker, I was surprised of how strong and
powerful she was and she showed that she could compete against the guys. She didn't look masculine, she looked like an athlete trying to compete and thats what athletes should be judged on.
In society I
believe we expect each gender to act a certain way and when that behavior is
not shown, people are discouraged by it.
In a sports atmosphere I believe we should worry about the results and
the competition rather than focusing on the way an athlete is suppose to be
perceived.
Ryan, you mentioned a good point in the opening paragraph of your blog. I noticed while watching the Olympics this past summer how men have to physically look like “men”. They have to compete like men and show emotion like men. Like you mentioned in gymnastics how the females while competing have to look as feminine is possible, they are judged based off of how feminine they present themselves in some events. Males gymnast on the other hand, how have to constantly show there strength in every event they compete in. All around female athletes in the Olympics have to look as feminine as possible. For example, this was the first year female boxers were entered into the Olympics to compete. But the female boxers had to wear skirts.They were allowed to compete in a "mans sport" but have to define themselves by looking like ladies. We saw endless amounts of emotion from female athletes in the Olympics. I cannot even tell you how many female athletes I saw crying. I saw tears of joy and tears of disappointment from female athletes all over the world but I cannot say I saw any tears from male athletes (at least not shown on TV). I feel like this observation justifies how men and women have to act while competing. Society should focus on the actual competition and its competitors instead there is too much emphasizes on appearance or of being of a certain gender. We should be looking at the results and who is succeeding in there sport just like you said Ryan. For example, the Sport Science video we watched in class proved this because we think before seeing the results of the impact of the punch; we assume the male boxer will have a stronger punch while the real results show the female boxer can throw a faster, stronger punch. In the next four years, I am anxious to see how female/male athletes characteristics and society’s mindset will change from this years Olympics.
ReplyDelete-Chelsea VanAssche
Ryan and Chelsea,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your observations in response to the discussion questions and also the Sport Science video clip we saw in class. Interestingly, in the other class, someone made the statement that if the two boxers actually fought against each other, the man would easily win. That really surprised me because I couldn't understand how what we saw would necessarily translate into that conclusion. As for hockey, I have always gotten the impression that "fighting" (i.e., contact) is part of the game, so if you take that away from women, then they do not get to play the "real game." And that does lead to a sense that women's performances are inferior.
Good analyses and examples.
Dr. Spencer
Your main points are very spot on. If women don't act ladylike then they are usually questioned about their gender or they are ostracized. Women sports are mostly non contact and feel like if they made checking legal in women's hockey, then less people would want to play. Adding contact elements into women's sports would turn women away because more masculine women would thrive and a lot of women don't want to be viewed as masculine. They like playing sports because they can have fun and compete but also be ladylike. Right or not, this is a way society makes people think and it's not going to change anytime soon.
ReplyDelete