Gendered Society

FROM THE PUBLISHER

In The Gendered Society, Michael S. Kimmel examines our basic beliefs about gender, arguing that men and women are more alike than we have ever imagined." "The issues surrounding gender are complex, and in order to clarify them, the author has included a review of the existing literature in related disciplines such as biology, anthropology, psychology, and sociology. With an eye toward the future, Kimmel offers readers a glimpse at gender relations in the next millennium.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Frustrated at the dearth of materials available for him to assign to students in his courses on the sociology of gender, Kimmel, a sociology professor at State University of New York, Stony Brook, has written an up-to-date survey of the academic literature that should serve his purposes nicely, although this book will be heavy going for anyone for whom it is not assigned reading. His secondary motivation is to counter the "fictitious pseudoscientific claims" of popular writers who preach that men and women are from different planets: "We're not opposite sexes," writes Kimmel, "but neighboring sexes." In chapters that will clearly serve as units on a syllabus, Kimmel (Manhood in America; Changing Men) reviews, from a feminist-friendly perspective, current research on how gender affects biology, sexuality, the family, parenting, marriage, the workplace, the classroom and violence. His thesis that "gender difference is the product of gender inequality, and not the other way around" leads to the conclusion that "the society of the third millennium will increasingly degender traits and behaviors without degendering people." Although Kimmel's emphasis is frequently on the necessity of transforming masculinity--the unfinished second half of the gender revolution of the 20th century--he is scrupulous in maintaining balance and comprehensiveness, discussing the lives of both women and men in a variety of cultural contexts. (Mar.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

Library Journal

Kimmel (sociology, SUNY at Stony Brook; Manhood in America) critiques beliefs about gender in society. Despite popular thinking on the topic, Kimmel finds great similarities between women and men and reproaches popular writers who claim that "women are from Venus and men are from Mars." He convincingly argues that the differences between men and women are not as vast as those among men or among women, and he proposes that gender differences are the result of gender inequality, not vice versa. Utilizing a social constructionist viewpoint, he further argues that gender difference and gender inequality are not inevitable facets of society; the differences we see result from variables in social position or situation. Kimmel also explores how gender inequality lays the groundwork for presumptions of gender variations, and he considers its effects on our lives. Kimmel, who has an exemplary record in the field of men's studies and gender studies alike, makes a strong case here, conclusively drawing much of his statements from research data without bias or manipulation. What results is a topical treatment well versed in academic research and theoretical analysis. Recommended for larger public and academic gender study collections.--Michael A. Lutes, Univ. of Notre Dame Lib., IN Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.\

Laura Ciolkowski - The Boston Book Review