Louis Althusser believed that our subjective social positions are named by "interprellation" or "hailing."  If we are called students, then we are designated this position by the institution in which the term functions (i.e., a school).  In this sense, we are asked to discard our individuality and assume a passive role of someone who quietly sits and absorbs information. When we believe in the reality of this identity and what it requires of us, we become the subjects of this "naming." 

In gender issues, if we are designated "female," we assume the role based on our understanding of what it means to be female in our society.