He means that institutions are creating gender difference because the positions within the institutions lead us to believe the people are a certain way because of their gender when actually it is the position that determines the way they act. In addition, usually the higher positions are created in such a way that it is geared towards a unique gender. For example: higher positions usually expect the person to be almost completely devoted to his work or role, but this clearly becomes a problem when women give birth and also need to take care of the children. They are also left alone to deal with that which doesn’t help. In the discussion, they talked about the inequalities between genders and how they are trying to change that by raising their kids along with their partner and teaching their children to respect and appreciate women. Another thing from the documentary that can be linked to what Kimmel said about gender being situational is how the men change their behaviours depending on the environment/situation (friends, family and workplace).
When talking about masculinities Kimmel suggests that there are multiple definitions for what it means to be a man. He uses this term because he thinks the term “masculinity” doesn’t encompass all the different forms of masculinity that exists in our world. The quotation “Understanding how we do masculinities…opens up the unimaginable possibilities of social change.” means that we are constantly creating and changing gender with our actions. The documentary talks about breaking or changing the man box in order to stop and prevent violence against women this is an example of how understanding better gender and society we can change things for the better.
Lovers and Fighters | Section 22 