Presenter: Adriane Knorr
Faculty Mentor: Erin McKenna
Presentation Type: Poster 19
Primary Research Area: Social Science
Major: Philosophy
By interweaving philosophy of the mind, the anatomical body as well as feministic theories given by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, we can see how perceptions and emotions relating to trauma and sex are often considered to differ along gender lines. Sex and trauma are very closely linked in the human brain regarding the emotional and physical ties that remain after the acts. This presentation is a combination of a literary review of Gilman’s work and a scientific study of whether or not emotions can be gendered due to social constructs and anatomy. Gilman’s argument shows how she believes that male brains have gotten the opportunity to grow physically as well as mentally over time. This has led to gendered primality of the emotions and perceptions from our everyday lives. The neurological studies suggest an argument that neurological differences between the sexes have been linked with greater impulsivity and aggression in males. According to this argument, men are able to build metaphorical webs within their lives that lack the plethora of emotions that women often tie to their worlds. This can have a possible hindering effect on women when they try to move on after traumatic events due to denser connections to emotions that come tied to their memories. These three arguments derive an answer to the gendered emotions and perceptions that are prevalent in trauma and sex. Combining male and female brain discrepancies with the differences in cognitive understanding of sex and trauma we can see that the perceptions and emotions are heavily gendered based on social constructs as well as the scientific understandings of male and female anatomy.