Pumping Iron: Women and Sports :: Movies Television Film Females Essays

Pumping Iron: Women and Sports Ever since sports has been introduced into our society it has always been gender specific. Today, sports are still gender specific but not as much as before due to the change in social norms. Many people enjoy playing sports. For some it may be the competition, for others it may be for the love of the game. It has been difficult for individuals who enter non-traditional sports for their gender. Women have especially struggled with this matter until the Title 9 was issued. Before Title 9, many women were not allowed to participate in track and other sports that were not considered feminine. During the Victorian Times, women were only allowed to play sports that didn't make them look sweaty, tired or just messy. They had to stick to the norm of being conservative and looking proper. Can you imagine, they had to even wear skirts for baseball and other sports? How can you be comfortable and play well in that kind of an outfit? When it came to tennis, they had to look graceful like a ball erina. The main concern in playing a sport is enjoying it and playing it well. It never had to do anything with being part of a beauty contest. Women were given limitations into what sports they could participate in. However, realistically women were just as good as their counterpart when it came to playing sports in which they were not allowed to play. Being a female and seriously competing in a non-traditional sport is an arduous task. Many individuals question your sexuality, race and class just because you have decided to participate in a non-traditional sport. However, the main fact that is being disregarded here is that everyone has the capability of playing any sport that they want to play. There should not be any boundaries to anything because of gender. It is unfair because there are certain things that are acceptable and unacceptable in society which puts a lot of pressure on people that are into non-traditional sports. The question is, why does being accepted matter so much in society? Why is it so hard to be accepted for something that you want to do? I mean you are not hurting anybody yet you are made to feel guilty for trying to be good in a non-traditional sport. For this essay, I would like to use the movie "Pumping