Gender Roles

Many religious groups impose gender roles on their followers.  There have been many well known cases of persecution of women for not following their set gender roles, especially in fundamentalist Islam.  These cases include the stoning of "adulterous" women and punishment for not wearing the veil.  However, other religions have been known to impose harsh gender roles, as well.  For example, according to the Hindu religious epic, Ramanaya, "A woman's only duty is devotion of body, speech and mind to her husband" (qtd. Kramer).  Basically, the Ramanaya is saying that women only exist to support and please their husbands.  The implications of defying these gender roles are often sanctions in the home, but, in more fundamentalist areas, social sanctions can be received.  As a whole, this results in tensions that can tear apart a family, or even a community if exacerbated enough.  A solution to these issues is teaching men of, not only Hindi faith, but any faith, or no faith at all, that women should not be treated like objects or property.  In Things Fall Apart, gender roles, when broken, are punished with domestic violence.  This, as well, is a problem that could be solved the same way.  In all, gender roles exacerbate the objectification and misogyny of religions.

Work Cited:

Kramer, Daniella. ""Women Are the Root of All Evil" : the Misogyny of Religions." Secular Web Kiosk "Women Are The Root Of All Evil" : The Misogyny Of Religions. The Secular Web, 30 Apr. 2002. Web. 27 May 2012.