Gender Differences

Gender Differences In the excerpt from the book, Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus, author John Gray discusses the stark differences between men and women. He states that the personality traits between men and women are so dissimilar, that each sex might as well have originated from the planets, Mars and Venus, respectively. He explains that men value power and achievement, and they choose certain occupations and offer others solutions to their problems based on these values. Comparatively, women believe communication and relationships are more important, and they desire empathy when they interact with others. He details that these different character traits often cause confusion and communication barriers between men and women. Gray’s excerpt explains his unique definition of male and female personalities; however, it is a broad assumption to say that all men and women behave in a certain way solely based on their gender. The stereotypes that Gray specifically utilizes in his excerpt oversimplify the complex interactions between men and women instead of showing their differing emotional responses based on particular situations. The two emotional responses that Gray does not compare are stress and anger. The male and female reactions to these emotions offer the best example of the differences between the sexes.
More often than not, men and women respond to stress in different ways. Women tend to externalize their feelings when they deal with stressful situations. They often confide in their significant other, friends, and family as an outlet for the stress in their life. Typically, once a woman has effectively deliberated and discussed her feelings and issues regarding stress, she often feels better about the stressful situation. In her book, You Just Don’t Understand, expert Deborah Tannen similarly explains that women use complaining as a way to feel close to others. She calls this way of conversing “troubles talk.” She says, “For women,