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express their status as a male or female, in a situation where no clear biological assignment exists.
And gender is an important are of study in many disciplines, such as literary theory, drama studies, film theory, performance theory, contemporary art
history, anthropology, sociology, psychology and psychoanalysis. These disciplines sometimes differ in their ap is aproaches to how and why they study
gender. For instance in anthropology, sociology and psychology, gender is often studied as practice, whereas in cultural studies representations of gender are more
often examined. Gender studies also a discipline in itself, an interdisciplinary are of study that incorporates methods and approaches from a wide range of
disciplines.
2.4 Gender Equality
Gender equality is achieved when women and men enjoy the same rights and opportunities cross all sectors of society, including economic participation
and decision-making, and when the different behaviors, aspirations and needs of women and men are equally valued and favored. From Wikipedia, gender equality
is measured by looking at the representation of men and of women in a range of roles. A number of international comparative gender equality indices have been
prepared and these offer a way to compare Ireland’s achievements with those of other countries. Each index looks at a distinct list of parameters and the choice of
parameters affects `the outcome for each country. Gender equality and women’s empowerment are human rights that lie at the heart of development and the
achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Despite the progress that has been made, six out of ten of world’s peorest people are still women and girls, less
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than 16 percent of the world’s parliamentarians are women, two thirds of all children shut outside the school gates are girls and, both in times of armed conflict
and behind closed doors at home, women are still systematically subjected to violence. Rossi 1964: 261 states that:
The traditional conception of masculine and feminine are inappropriate to the kind of world we can live in during
the second half of the twentieth century. An androgynous conception of sex role means that each sex will cultivate
some of the characteristics usually associated with the other in traditional sex role difinition.
Rossi proposed that boys in socialized to be tender and expressive so they will later feel free express these equalities in their social relationships. He also
recommends that girls be inculcated with achievement need, workmanship, and assertiveness so they will feel free to express these equalities in their adult life.
This socialization strategy is assumed to ultimately enable both men and women to develop the full range of human equalities regardless of their gender. The
movement towards gender equality, especially in Western countries, began with the suffragette movement of the late- 19
th
century. Then there was a change in relation to a woman’s property rights in marriage. This situation has begun to
change in recent years. As more and more woman have entered the job market, husbands have begun to share responsibilities of home with their wives. It is also
easy for a working wife to feel responsible for any problems her children might have. Whereas she may feel guilty for not staying at home, her husband is likely
to assume that it is normal, and he will be take care their home. For example, like a construction laborers. With the rise of economics that
exist in Indonesia whatsoever should be done every human being, including
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working women have participated in the building to be porters. That is what a woman can do to meet the needs of his family and himself.
Gender equality began to influence society since the 15
th
century. On the European continent it started to effect society in 1602. In America, it is beginning
to happen in 1774. Meanwhile, in Asia, it started in the latest of 19th century. In Indonesia, gender equality began to be known since the emancipation of women
pioneered by RA. Kartini, in 1899. There are also countries that have a history of a high level of gender
equality in certain areas of life, but not in other aremas. An example is Finland which has offered very high opportinities to women in publicprofessional life, but
has had a weak legal approach to the issue of violence against women, with the situation in this country having been called a paradox.
Gender equality is a achieved when people are able to access and enjoy the same rewards, resources and opportunities regardless of whether they are a
woman or a man. Many countries worldwide, including Australia, have made significant progress towards gender equality in recent decades, particularly in
areas such as education. However, women continue to earn less than men, are less likely to advance their careers as far as men, and are more likely to spend their
final years in poverty. At the same time, some men find it more difficult to access family-friendly pilicies or flexible working arrangements than women.
The aim of gender equality in the workplace is to achieve broadly equal outcomes for women and men, not exactly the same outcome for all individuals.
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To achieve this requires: • Workplaces to provide equal remuneration for women and men for
work of equal or comparable value. • The removal of barriers to the full and equal participation of women in
the workforce. • Full and genuine access to all occupations and industries, including to
leadership roles for women and men. • Elimination of discrimination on the basis of gender particularly in
relation to family and caring responsibilities for both women and men. Achieving gender equality is important for workplaces not only because it is ‘fair’
and ‘the right thing to do’, it is also vitally impotant to the bottom line of a business and to the productivity of our nation.
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3. ANALYSIS OF GENDER
