Men vs Women: Are These Stereotypes Really Sound?

Men are from Mar; women are from Venus is one of the best-selling books explaining that women and men are different as if they were from different planets. They have many differences in their natures, so it is hard for one to understand the other. Nobody would argue that men and women are physically different. These differences are obvious and most of these can be easily distinguished such as shape, size and anatomy. The physical differences between men and women provide functional advantages to survive. Men usually have thicker skins, thicker skulls and stronger joints suitable for labor work. They are essentially made for physical confrontation and the use of force. While women, on the other hand, have four times as many brain cells, it offers more efficient ability to focus on more than one problem. They are designed to support men by dealing with complicated chores and observing enemies. However, the nonphysical differences between man and women are less obvious, and difficult to describe. These differences can influence how we perform our tasks, cope with problems and live in todays society. There are three major non-physical issues that men and women are commonly categorized differently: emotional feelings, the way they perceive the world, and their specific skills. Emotions are the first obvious difference that we think of when it comes to relationship between men and women. Women are usually perceived as passionate and emotional while men are more stoic and sensible. It is supposedly known that, in most relationships, women would be inclined to be the ones who become emotional more easily than men when they encounter problems. There are many scientific evidences supporting this idea. For example, Estrogen, female steroid sex hormones, influences brain function and emotions especially during pregnancy or menstrual periods. Other concrete evidence shows that men have deeper tear ducts

than women do, so it is harder for men to express their sadness. In parental relationship circumstances, women are considered as more caring. Women are the ones who give birth to children while men usually are the family breadwinner that need to be strong, stoic and sensible. In order to get through difficulties, both men and women need to play different. From both social and scientific aspects, it is fair to say that men, in general, are prone to be stronger and more logical; meanwhile women are more likely to be caring and sensitive. Another common distinction is that men and women perceive things differently. For men, what is important in relationship is quite different from that in most of women. Men feel closer and more intimated when they share activities such as sports, outdoor activities or sexual activities. Women, on the other hand, feel closer through sharing emotions, dialogues or personal prospectives which men sometimes considered as insignificant. Apart from different perspectives toward relationship, in risk-taking situations, women tend to take fewer risks than men. It can be seen as early as in childhood, in most cultures. Bernd Figner of the Columbia University said that it is true that men are willing to take more risks in finances. But women take more social risks such as starting a new career in their mid-thirties or speaking their mind about an unpopular issue in a meeting at work. These differences in perception may be partly because of their social factors such as peer pressure, social norms, and so forth. Lastly, it is a common knowledge that men and women have different skills and abilities. Generally, boys are better at math and sciences than girls while girls are better at languages. A number of students majoring in math are mostly men; students majoring in languages, on the other hand, are largely women. From my experience, I am minoring in English and taking an advanced speaking class, in which has only three men out of 22 students in class. It is undeniable that the notion of sexes has something to do with specific skills and abilities. Another example is

that women have wider peripheral vision than men. It has been scientifically verified that women can see wider picture without turning their heads. Some women have peripheral vision that extends to almost 180 degrees. While having significantly narrower peripheral vision, men have better distant vision. Mens vision is more acute and focused which is perfect for driving. This might partially explain why men are called good drivers and women are considered as great searchers. If a husband is driving a car with his wife, he will be able to read road signs before his wife. But if it comes to finding something in the closet or refrigerator, women are often better than men. Even though sexes have impacts on how we feel, how we see the world and what we are good at, each person still has different personalities and their own uniqueness. Some men have female characteristics while some women have male traits in to certain degree. If we talk about statistical data for the majority of the population in a country or in the world, I agree with all of those stereotypes I have mentioned. Yet, if we use these stereotypes to judge one person, I will not agree with it. This quick conclusion is a logical fallacy called hasty generalization which can be harmful in many situations. Thus, it is advisable to respect each and everyones individualities and try not to jump to the conclusion by assuming their stereotypes or differences in any ways.