While at the same time my sister was playing with baby dolls, Barbie's, and so on. Whether a father gives his son a G.I. Joe because he himself is in the military, or because he was once in the military or had even wished he had joined, it doesn"t really matter. Whether it is through the toys we are given as boys, or the television shows and videos glorifying war, subconsciously boys are prepared for war at a very early age. .
Another form of preparation for war also begins with sports, most of which are male-dominated, as is much of the military. Sports like football, hockey, rugby, and wrestling are all extremely athletic and aggressive activities. The coach runs the group similar to how a drill instructor runs a platoon. The coach will bark orders and evaluate each player on his or her performance. Poor performance or behavior can result in extra physical training, in addition to the tremendous amount of exercise already done. Michael A. Messner writes in one of his articles about sports and gender relations, that, " As long as he (the athlete) is successful in this public presentation -of-self as heterosexual/masculine, he will continue to contribute to (and benefit from) men's power over women" (468). It is at an early age that a boy's masculine identity is found, and through sports begins the power struggle over women. Now although women's leagues have been created in such areas, they are not as common. .
The issue at hand was not whether or not to allow women into the military, but to make sure that they would be treated just as their male counterparts would be. Right away we found that women were held to lesser standards in terms of fitness, but where allowed to graduate along side the men who had done twice as much to qualify. Holly Devor writes in one of her articles, " both males and females are popularly thought to be able to do many of the same things, but most activities are divided into suitable and unsuitable categories for each gender class.
