Why is gender such a central part of identity?

[Fer]

Is it because we are constantly conditioned to fit into our gender roles?
Is it because there are a lot of assumed responsibilities that come with either gender? or because it really separates the men from the women?

[cjennyb]

Yes!,  Yes!   Yes!

Every society has different expectations of its male and female population. Its gender expectations.
Those who are gender dysphoric express a divergence from the societal norm that makes them unique, different, often ostrasized.

Expectations are the problem. 

Society has concrete expectations of our gender roles.  Society has confused gender with sex.  Our sex determines our role in life.  Society does not distinguish between gender and sex.  Society is confused when our gender role does not match our sex. Society gets angry and becomes abusive or violent.  Society gets education.  Society finally understands.

[Berliegh]

Is it because we are constantly conditioned to fit into our gender roles?
Is it because there are a lot of assumed responsibilities that come with either gender? or because it really separates the men from the women?

I think so.....although it must have been pretty awful for someone living in the 1930's and 1940's where gender dysphoria wasn't really known. They probably lived a very unhappy life, given electric shock treatment to try and cure them and probably got a good beating..

We are much luckier in this day and age....

[Natasha]

It's simple, to me that is. For many years, life has revolved around gender roles, but times are changing now. 50 years ago, it would be considered odd for a woman to be something than a nurse or some kind of care, 50 years before that, a woman never even thought about work. Now, we are every bit as successful as men (in most cases, jobs, what have you), but we have been foundationally defined by gender roles. I suspect that social psychologists will agree that this will change over time. Another 50 years or so?

[Jennywocky]

Is it because we are constantly conditioned to fit into our gender roles?
Is it because there are a lot of assumed responsibilities that come with either gender? or because it really separates the men from the women?

I would not say that it is all socialization.

The fact is that physical sex impacts one's life experiences greatly, even on the non-socialized aspects: It's a different life experience to be female, to have female body parts and female hormones modifying behavior, to behave in ways that makes one function sexually as a female, to get pregnant and give birth, to be a nurturer/mom.. than it is to be male and have all of THOSE life experiences that are male based solely on the biological differences.

But society definitely does accentuate the differences and/or assigns a LOT of unnecessary baggage to each gender category... some of which have been discussed here (such as occupation).

Sometimes it is easier to see what is more rooted in the biology versus the society by examining gender roles in multiple cultures and seeing where the points of similarity are, and chalking the differences up to environment influences.

I think we have definitely benefited from the shift in gender expectations. The roles were very rigid 50 years ago, and some of the Boomer generation still maintains those expectations (because it's what they grew up with and came to value, plus the shift has caused some problems of its own as we seek to redefine everything), but in general today's Western world is so much more open to trans people than it used to be and we have definitely benefited.

[Dorothy]

It's not so much about gender roles as inbuilt gender traits. Men & women can be as successful as each other & roles can reverse but inbuilt gender traits influence our personality much more & make us the personalities that we are. We are mostly feminine or mostly masculine. There's not much we can do to change that no matter how much some try. That's how we are made.

[IsabelleStPierre]

Is it because we are constantly conditioned to fit into our gender roles?
Is it because there are a lot of assumed responsibilities that come with either gender? or because it really separates the men from the women?

I believe that there are a lot of factors that make gender such a central part of identity. There are many social rules, restrictions, ect. that are all based around gender or the perception of gender. There is a lot of socially learned differences between genders, but there are also some that seem to be inborn. Anyone straying from the socially accepted gender roles are often picked on or whatever until they change their ways to conform to people gender perceptions...things like...you walk like a girl...you throw like a girl...and my all time favorite...stop crying...boys don't cry!

So, yes, yes and yes

Peace and love,
Isabelle St-Pierre

[BriannaKatherine]

one thing i keep going back to is that the way it is now isnt how it has always been. that we were much more accepting about 2000 years ago and before than we are now. but since we have toi live in the 'now' its trying to find how to reveal to people that the role of gender is not a constant but what we make of it, what makes us feel ourselves. sort of like a question me and my adopted mother posed..how do you define a woman as, you cant say through physical characteristics because if an accident happens or disease where that changes they are still female, cant say by giving birth because some women are infertile and cannot give birth but again they are still female so how are such things defined?

[Pica Pica]

how do you know?

look at the bible and such and it looks like 2000 years ago was very much like now, but with more uncomfortable toilet paper.