ABSTRACT
All work is gendered and all work is embodied. The idea of effort inevitably leads us to considerations of the body and the pleasures and pains associated with performing socially necessary labour. This chapter stresses, firstly, that this involves men as well as women, both separately and in relation to each other. It also takes account of a shift in the discussion of gender from treating it as a noun with 'thing-like' or more or less fixed connotations towards treating it as an adjective or as a verb as when we use the words 'gendered' or 'gendering'. The chapter then shifts its emphasis to considering bodies. An analysis of the relationships between embodiment and gendered work may begin with an exploration of effort but it cannot end there. One final consideration linking work and embodiment is the extent to which the work is carried out under the gaze of others.
