However, in “The Farmer’s Bride” Charlotte Mew indicates that systemic sexism divests women of their human characteristics, as men treat them like objects and animals instead of people. Consequently, in “Girl,” Jamaica Kincaid demonstrates that both men and women contribute to the preservation of oppressive societal expectations as men manipulate women into compliance and silence any opposition to their unmerited privilege. Ultimately, social stratification justifies the oppression of those deemed inferior and dismantles people’s free will as they become dehumanized and forced into submission.
Gender stratification stems from the conflict between the devalued and valued genders as the preferable gender strips opportunities from those on the bottom of the hierarchy. In “The Social Construction of Gender,” Judith Lorber suggests that men reside at the top of the hierarchy, and as a result, their valuable characteristics define what the subordinate groups lack. In this imbalanced construction of gender, men’s work “is valued more highly” than women’s because of their elevated status in society (142). Consequently, the structured inequality