-
Essay / The Gender Division in Annawai Society
The gender division has been a global struggle for centuries, from rights to the general treatment of women. Women struggle to achieve equality because they face discrimination, are constantly concerned about their future and safety because they are women, and experience brutal cultural oppression from their peers. communities. The book Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo demonstrates a society in which the quality of life of women and girls is much worse than that of men and boys. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay In Annawadi, rigid cultural constraints have formed, limiting societal expectations and gender constructs that make life worse for women than for men. Gender constructs influenced by societal expectations made women's lives a constant battle of considering the risks of their actions that men would not need to consider. Unlike Annawadi men, women are regularly aware of how the results of their actions could be detrimental to their societal standing. Image plays a crucial role in making a decision that could be destructive to their placement in a community where survival relies in part on hierarchy. “A young woman from the slum had to weigh the value of each potential interaction with a man against the rumors it would inspire” (60). Throughout the novel, there are fewer indications that the men in the slums exhibit similar behaviors of worry and conscience or feel the same societal pressures. The constant fear of rumors that threaten women's daily interactions indicates that the gender constructs created by the slum community are not supportive of women and girls. Women in general seem to have less power and fewer opportunities than men. It is a state of mind that is passed down from generation to generation. In Annawadi, men and women seek security; however, for women, the effort proves much more difficult. Women are pushed into a constant state of anxiety for their future and that of their daughter. Physical violence is not the only thing women fear. A culture in which women are seen as sexual objects poses new threats. Boo writes: "Her mother, fearing what might happen to a beautiful young woman at the police station, had begged Officer Thokale to keep her out of custody as long as possible" (113), and "Asha was worried at the time. idea of sending his only daughter. in Africa, where she had heard that pretty girls were sold into slavery” (144). Being a woman in India's slums is another element of difficulty and fear for mothers of girls. By describing women's emotions as "fear" and "unease", the language demonstrates the harms of being a woman on the conscience. If a woman or girl is considered "pretty" or "beautiful", horrible consequences like rape and slavery are insinuated unlike the men of Annawadi. These characteristics concern women who are victims of threats that men do not experience. Male expectations prevent Annawadi women from gaining power in society and lock them into a weaker, more targetable and one-dimensional stereotype. Mothers struggle to protect their daughters more than their sons because of the discrimination they themselves have experienced due to their status as women..