Mapping Men’s Dilemma in Ghachar Ghochar
Author : Dr. Satish Kumar
Abstract :
In societies where patriarchal ideology governs the partition of work is made on the foundation of gender or sex of a person. It means that the allotment of diverse responsibilities, roles and jobs to men and women is based on social assumption of what men and women should perform and are capable of performing. Subsequently, different jobs and responsibilities are given to men and women, according to their gender not according to their capacities and interests. In this way, the choices and likes of individuals are completely disregarded because the gender stereotypes play too powerful a role to be controlled by individuals. One has no capacity to defy or challenge such roles. No doubt, modernization has brought great choices and opportunities on individual level, but liberalization and democratization of societal institutions has not been achieved. Modern men and women thus confront difficult situation-on the one hand, facing rapid modernization on the economic and political spheres and, on the other hand, rigidity, traditionalism and lack of alternatives on the social sphere. They often find it thorny to put together the two worlds and, therefore, experience angst and anxiety. In such conditions, men consider that posing the traditional man guarantees them of a small amount of peace, besides securing for them greater social endorsement and esteem. That is why, they are likely to be more inclined to be traditional rather than resist the traditional patriarchal system. Steadily, this system gages men’s voice, as much as they do women’s, and puts symbolically shackles on their psyche which permits them to perform only those roles which are approved by the socio-cultural forces.
Keywords :
Patriarchal society, masculine roles, provider, producer, dilemma, social expectations
