Ways of Living

Abstract

In previous chapters we have discussed ways in which gender operates as a social practice rather than a natural attribute. In considering contrasting areas such as the construction of subjectivity, the mediating role of language and the capacity of literary and media representations to both reflect and shape our identities, we have demonstrated how gender is political rather than natural in the ways it operates. Our discussion has also shown that the category of the social relates as much to internal, private domains as to external, public ones. This chapter considers how we live and ‘do’ gender in light of these connections. It does so in the immediate context of everyday life, in particular with reference to the workplace, home life, the use of space and the negotiation of gender roles by young children.