Blog 4

So, for this week's post on structural functionalism, I found several images which I thought related to the theory. One of the most important areas to explore in structural functionalism is the importance of gender roles in supporting a healthy family dynamic.

The first image I selected was one of a mother teaching her daughter how to cook. I selected this image to try to demonstrate the way in which the theory sees women as being central to family functions, and how females play a critical role in rearing offspring. I hold great respect for any woman (or man) who takes on the bulk of households chores in order to support their family and/or partner's career. I think it takes bravery and selflessness to dedicate one's self to one's family in order to meet the needs of the family and make sure home dynamics are healthy and positive. The reason I take issue with the instrumental and expressive roles outlined by structural functionalism is twofold- first, because of the assumption that women and men should be assigned one capacity over another and, secondly, because there is a greater social value on one role over another.

The reason I selected the second image is to show how women and house work is overly simplified. A container so simple to open a woman can do it! The implication is that a container has to be simple to open for a woman (unlike for a man) so that it can be managed in the course of daily duties. Anyone who works (male or female) will tell you that there are definitely hard, grueling days in any career that try one's patience. However, to value paid employment outside of the home as superior devalues the work done within the home. Cooking, cleaning, child rearing- those are the easy things! Commuting, spending the day at the office, only to commute again- that is what holds real value.

The third image twists J. Howard Miller's "We Can Do It!" poster, also called "Rosie the Riveter." I was so surprised to encounter this re-imagination of the classic rendition. This marketing for cleaning products twists an iconic feminist image, which was originally used to represent women exiting a traditional, domestic role by working in manufacturing during World War II. By linking the image Rosie back to domestic cleaning, it undercuts what the image was meant to represent.

The final image from the well-known Cyanide and Happiness depicts a funny deviation of established social gender roles. Indeed, it gets to the idea of why men and women are assigned roles by gender. The cartoon shows how a man might prove to be a much better chef or baker, which means that everyone in the household, would appreciate the man's baking more. Generally, I think the structural functionalist approach does not acknowledge individual attributes that impact social functioning and family dynamics deeply.