Books like The gendered society reader by Michael S. Kimmel

Judith Butler’s seminal text challenges essentialist views of sex and gender, proposing that identity is constructed through repeated social performances.

Hilton Als assembles sharp literary and cultural criticism to portray the complex figure he calls "white girls," spanning writers, artists, and public icons.

"Featuring extensive revisions and updates, the Second Edition of The Sociology of Gender: An Introduction to Theory and Research presents an introductory overview of gender theory and research, and continues to offer a unique and compelling approach to one of the most important topics in the field of sociology. Features extensive revisions and updates, and incorporates recent cross-national research on gender Expands and develops frameworks introduced in first edition Treats gender as a multilevel system operating at the individual, interactional, and institutional levels Stresses conceptual and theoretical issues in the sociology of gender Offers an accessible yet intellectually sophisticated approach to current gender theory and research Includes pedagogical features designed to encourage critical thinking and debate "-- "Featuring extensive revisions and updates, the new Second Edition of The Sociology of Gender presents an introductory overview of gender theory and research, and continues to offer a unique and compelling approach to one of the most important topics in the field of sociology. Drawing from recent and ongoing research in the field, gender scholar Amy Wharton develops and expands upon theoretical approaches to gender from her acclaimed first edition. These approaches emphasize how gender can be viewed through different "lenses," and how each one generates a particular way of thinking about gender and its role in social life. Wharton shows how individualist approaches view gender as part of the person; interactional approaches focus on the ways that gender emerges through social interaction; and institutional views emphasize how gender is built into organizations, social structures, and institutional arrangements. The book deftly summarizes and examines these three frameworks to facilitate an understanding of gender's contested meanings and vast areas of research. Also addressed is the importance of analyzing gender in relation to other kinds of distinctions, such as those based on race, social class, or sexual orientation. The newest research findings by key scholars are also discussed, and excerpts from contemporary scholarship and public debate allow for comparative analysis of different areas of study. The Sociology of Gender: An Introduction to Theory and Research, Second Edition, offers the most up-to-date and accessible overview of this prominent subfield of sociological enquiry available today"--

"In describing and explaining the sexes, medicine and science participated in the delineation of what was "feminine" and what was "masculine" in the Middle Ages. Hildegard of Bingen and Albertus Magnus, among others, writing about gynecology, the human constitution, fetal development, or the naturalistic dimensions of divine Creation, became increasingly interested in issues surrounding reproduction and sexuality. Did women as well as men produce procreative seed? How did the physiology of the sexes influence their healthy states and their susceptibility to disease? Who derived more pleasure from sexual intercourse, men or women?" "The answers to such questions created a network of flexible concepts which did not endorse a single model of male-female relations, but did affect views on the health consequences of sexual abstinence for women and men and on the allocation of responsibility for infertility - problems with much social and religious significance in the Middle Ages. Sometimes at odds with, and sometimes in accord with other forces in medieval society, medicine and natural philosophy helped to construct a set of notions that divided significant portions of the world - from the behavior of animals to the operations of astrological signs - into "masculine" and "feminine." Even cases that seemed to exist outside the definitions of this duality, for example, hermaphrodite features or homosexual behavior, were brought under control by the application of gendered labels, such as "masculine women.""--Jacket.