CHAPTER 5
BUILDING IDENTITY: SOCIALIZATION

Macro-Micro Connections

Gender in Structural Context

Gender is a social role. Like other social roles, it implies a set of rights, expectations, obligations, and privileges commonly associated with that gender. In our society the gender dichotomy of female versus male is a major way to organize everyday life and larger social institutions.

Religious doctrines, for instance, frequently reinforce status and power differences between men and women. The traditional Judeo-Christian ideology incorporates beliefs that have historically given men special rights and privileges over women:

Unto the woman [God] said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children, and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee. (Gen. 3:16)

For a man . . . is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man. For the man is not of the woman, but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman, but the woman for the man. (1 Cor. 11:7-9)

Blessed art Thou, oh Lord our God, King of the Universe, that I was not born a woman. (Orthodox Jewish morning prayer)

Other social institutions, too, afford different rights and privileges to men and women. The American political system long excluded women from the highest levels of decision making. Economic discrimination and exploitation, in terms of both access to certain careers and low wages, continues and is well documented. Family life has always been clearly delineated along gender lines, with men and women holding distinct and differently valued familial obligations.

Many of these institutions are in the process of changing, however. The last decade has seen more women participating in the clergy, the paid labor force, and national politics. Marital and parental roles are slowly becoming more balanced.

Yet even though our society is creeping toward gender equality, we have a lot of entrenched expectations to overcome.

Self

The self is a key element in individual identity. But what is the self? Many have theorized an answer, but one explanation useful to sociology was set out by George Herbert Mead.
The philosopher William James labeled the active source of behavior the "I" and the passive object of behavior the "me": "I perceive me," or "I talk to me."¹ Mead went one step further and described the "I" and the "me" as alternating phases of every action that involves the self.²

Mead felt that the "I" is the part of the self that responds directly to outside events. It is impulsive and not subject to control at first. The "I" can be seen in situations where we react spontaneously without assessing possible consequences of our actions. You may have told yourself, for example, "It's such a beautiful day . . . the heck with studying for this stupid sociology exam. I'm going to the beach!"

The "me," on the other hand, represents society within the individual. It is the self-reflective, conventional aspect of the self that incorporates society's values, norms, ideals, and expectations. The "me" represents the internalization of the attitudes and group standards of others. If you reconsider your beach trip in light of its possible outcome, you are invoking the "me": "No, I'd better not go to the beach. I may fail the exam and the course."

According to Mead, the "I" and the "me" are alternating elements of a constant process of thought and action. One moment we are responding directly to environmental stimuli. The next moment we direct our conscious attention inward and become aware of our conduct: "Wow, I can't believe how angry I am at

Tom." This process allows us to alter our behavior to bring it in line with social conventions ("I shouldn't be so angry at him . . . I'll apologize and act like everything's OK"). Then this behavior becomes the object of our own scrutiny ("I wonder if he thinks I'm still angry").

The ability to carry on this internal dialogue lets us incorporate the perceptions and expectations of other people. Sociologically, the crucial aspect of the self is that it allows us to transform, modify, and control our behavior when we interact with people in various circumstances. As we become aware that different people expect different things, we can tailor our behavior to meet the demands of each situation.

¹James, W. 1890. Principles of psychology. New York: Holt.
²Mead, G. H. 1934. Mind, self and society. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.