This introductory unit approaches the study of gender both as an academic practice and as a feature of our everyday lives.  It acknowledges that in most societies, gender plays a crucial role in the life of the individual, influencing everything from the clothes we wear, the ways we move our bodies, the food we eat, the activities we do, to the kinds things we think we can achieve in our lives. The unit introduces students to the history and meanings of many of the terms used in the analysis of gender, and to a range of understandings of how gender is produced. In addition, it introduces students to ways of reading and ways of seeing gender in visual and written texts, and provides an overview of some of the most influential recent writing on gender and bodies.