Topic > development of gender - 1425

Freud claims the formation of femininity through his explanation of psychic development during infantile sexuality. She explains that she doesn't want to explain who a woman is but only how she becomes feminine starting from her bisexual tendencies. Freud's theory of femininity raises speculation as he develops it in the context of masculinity. She states that the turning point in a girl's sexuality is when she realizes she has been castrated and develops penis envy. This raises concerns as it automatically places the male, at least the male organs, at a hierarchical advantage. However, Freud's theory can be justified from a socio-psychological perspective, considering that a girl is faced with disadvantages and inequalities from a social point of view which build in her a psychic inferiority which leads her to the conclusion that the lack of penis it makes it inferior. Freud explains the formation of gender through the four phases of psychic development starting from a child with bisexual dispositions. She states that boys have a much easier time developing their masculinity than girls do developing their femininity. The difference lies in the additional obstacles that girls must overcome during their psychological development. Boys and girls are more or less the same up to the phallic stage, in fact Freud states that "the little girl is a little man" because she has many masculine traits. During the oral and anal phase, both girls and boys derive pleasure from the same things. Even at the beginning of the phallic stage, both boys and girls derive pleasure from a similar area; boys by the penis and girls by the clitoris. According to Freud, this derivation of pleasure from the clitoris is a sign of masculinity by placing…… at the center of the card……and”” (114). He explains that this connotation derives from the sexual act in which the semen seeks the ovules and also from the fact that it is the male who seeks the female and penetrates her. Although the metallic attributes of gender associations attribute the patriarchy of masculinity, they do not explain how the little girl automatically identifies the penis as something superior to her clitoris. Indeed, Freud argues that the psychological characteristics of femininity do not privilege passive purpose. “Achieving a passive goal may require a great deal of activity” (115). Sometimes, it might be possible for a woman's passive tendencies from her sex life to carry over into her life. However, sexual behavior is not the only one that could push women to be passive “the influence of social mores, which similarly force women into passive situations” (115).