Hello media scholars,
This is an open blog for those interested in studying and evaluating gendered representations in the media. Your opinion matters. It has power, especially if you have studied your media texts and thought about what you like and don't like about the way women and men are "meant" to be and behave. Please put your name to your posts and we hope to have some fascinating discussion and some constructive ideas about how to save what is good and improve what is not so good about mediated men and women.
While this blog is intended for media studies and gender and women's studies majors, civil dialogue from all corners is welcome.
41 comments:
I'm not exactly sure how to post on here, but here it goes...
The mediated text that I chose to analyze for mainstream gender roles was the film "Mean Girls." I understood this film to resemble more of a parody than a hard-core rule book for females to follow.
To begin, Cady Heron, once home schooled in Africa, enters the new jungle-like atmosphere of public high school, where “fresh meat” are tormented, unless, as in Cady’s case, immediately accepted by the popular girls. Although Cady believes that she is undergoing a secret operation to help tear down the “mean girls,” she becomes so engrossed in the world of popularity that she becomes the person she was trying to overthrow, a “mean girl,” also known as a “plastic.” “In order to fit in with the plastics you have to be white, on the border of -or in- the upper class and have the typical ‘hot body’” (Hanson). With help from Regina George, Gretchen Wieners, and Karen Smith, Cady confronts psychological warfare as she encounters dilemmas with males, betrayal among supposed friends, and, in terms of how she was raised in Africa, survival of the fittest.
One instance of gendered assumptions placed on women in this film concerns sexuality. Although these girls are only in high school, Halloween presents them with the opportunity to dress as slutty as possible. Usually wearing only lingerie, the “plastics” are not called “sluts” by their peers simply due to the fact that it is October 31st. However, Cady does not find out about this rule until she arrives at a Halloween party dressed as a dead bride. When asked why she chose a costume that was so scary, she replied, “It's Halloween.” Although this may seem like a normal response, think about the question itself. If it is Halloween, which is a holiday known for scary ghosts, skeletons, and monsters, why would anyone ask why she chose a scary costume. Perhaps, this question was asked because she disregarded the “feminine” rule to wear the least amount of material possible. As repayment for dressing this way, Aaron, under the influence of Regina, believes that Cady is obsessed with him, and chooses to once again date the popular, and obviously slutty- in her barely there lingerie and bunny ears- Regina George. Although this did not happen solely based on her outfit choice, if she would have dressed as slutty as the other girls, would he have cared if she was obsessed with him? Odds are, no. In society today, it is women who are looked down upon if they dress in a slutty manner; however, this does not stop males from wishing that all women dress provocatively. This gender-specific role undermines the intelligence of women and chooses to focus solely on their sexuality.
Moreover, the “Burn Book” created by the “mean girls”- Regina George, Gretchen Wiener, and Karen Smith- declares and clarifies the assumed gender roles for both men and women. If you don’t dress according to the rules set by the popular clique of wearing miniskirts, idealizing pink, or styling your hair and makeup on a daily basis, then you are regarded as a dike. If you do not fit the gendered roles of male is masculine and active and female is feminine and subversive, you are considered to be homosexual. If you, in any way, deviate from the assumed gender roles that society has formulated for you, then you are abnormal.
Although the film "Mean Girls" was very amusing and in some ways accurately depicts high school life and drama, it greatly distorted the image of women through the utilization of assumed gender roles. In a way, this film parodies the expected roles of women. Although gender roles such as femininity, meekness, and sexuality are all gender assumptions for women in society today, this film greatly exaggerates them in order to create this comedy.
I wasn't quite sure how to do this either.
I also wrot about the film, "Mean Girls". I mainly focused on Cady's character and how she was a critique on society and gender roles, as well as the idea of "girl world" and how it is problematic.
While I appreciate the film for its witty satire of high school and and the concept of popularity, I realized as I analyzed the film more that the way that "girl world" was depicted had many gender stereotypes in it.
The film recognizes the way these girls act as common sense and only shows this as a female problem. There are no men explicitly involved in any of the social aggression that takes place, except damien, who is shown as feminine and flamboyant because he is gay. So, it is only women, who are assumed to be feminine: unassertive and overemotional who engage in this behavior.
It is clear that "Mean Girls" is trying to go against the grain and make fun of societal "issues", but this film's main idea revolves around one big stereotype about women. As a popular piece of media it is entertaining and pushes the envelope, but not as much as I would hope it would. by only recognizing this as a girl problem, it only perpetuates stereotypes about women and how they are "supposed" to behave.
I wrote my paper about a "dramedy" that was popular on American television in the late nineties - "Ally McBeal." More specifically, I chose to analyze the differences between two characters, Ally McBeal and Nelle Porter, and what implications these two extreme personalities have concerning the depiction of working women on television.
The show is generally about a group of young lawyers working together at a private firm in Boston. Its general spirit is one of blended humor and drama, hence the term "dramedy" as coined by several critics. The attorneys that belong the to the firm was very much intertwined in each others' lives, whether by marriage, strong friendship, or even passionate hatred; indeed, they are like a family, with the same benefits and challenges.
After examining the structure of the show, I took a deeper look at Ally and Nelle. Ally is a bit neurotic in a very charming way. She is warm and caring, but she is also slightly eccentric, often hallucinating in the workplace. She is absolutely obsessed with finding love, specifically a soul mate, and she puts everything else second to that goal, including her career aspirations. As a result, she has a very rich personal life but is rarely rewarded in the workplace. Nelle is quite the opposite of Ally. When we first meet her, in fact, she is introduced to us by her nickname, the "Ice Queen." She is hard-headed, clever, and sarcastic. She is very career-oriented, stopping at nothing to accomplish her goals. Because of her rather cold exterior, she often has trouble forming friendships with others in the firm, particularly other women. She is finally accepted in the firm's "family" only after she begins to date partner John Cage. In the show, it is clear that Nelle is punished for being so adamant about breaking through the glass ceiling, for she must do so at great cost to her personal life.
In conclusion, the show's writer, David E. Kelley, portrays working women on "Ally McBeal" as either one extreme or another - fragile, flightly, and obsessed with finding a man, or quite simply a complete and total bitch. While I actually love the show very much, I see the problem with projecting this image to young women, for it pigeonholes them into believing that they can either choose to fall in love or choose to advance in their careers. I think the best solution to this portrayal would be to advocate for more mainstream characters to be shown on television, particularly female characters who don't tend to either extreme. In this way, women will feel more able to accomplish any and all of their goals.
I did my paper on MTV's popular show "A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila." In my paper, I explored how this show reinforced an unrealistic and blatantly untrue stereotype of bisexual and non-white women.
Tila is a former Playboy model and stripper who was born in Singapore. After becoming famous through her slew of MySpace friends (she has over 2 million), Tila was given an offer by MTV to host her own reality dating show.
The show is a contest between 16 men and 16 women for Tila's love and affection. The contestants have opportunities to "win" dates with Tila through a series of rather offensive, and disgusting, challenges. Some examples of this include wrestling in chocolate syrup, eating testicles and taking shots of animal blood. All of these things, it's important to include, are done while the contestants are half-naked.
During most of the show, the female contestants in particular are prancing around their mansion home in bathings suits and sometimes less.
The show as a whole is an insult both to straight and non-straight women. Lesbian women on this show are depicted as aggressive, unstable alcoholics. Men on the show are forgettable, they occasionally argue with one another, but overall produce no real interest from the audience or Tila. In 2007 this show was MTV's most popular show and in the top 15 cable shows.
There is no doubt that real success of this show can be linked to the ways in which women are portrayed and consistently objectified. Lesbian and bisexual identity is simply disregarded, and as a result, these women are portrayed as attention-hungry people who only serve to entertain us. At no point during the show's existence are real issues addressed or real relationships formed; it is all a publicity stunt to make Tila and MTV money. What's forgotten are the ways in which viewers inevitably learn who bisexual women are. Seeing as how this show is one of the only ones that even features non-straight people, it should do so in a respectable way to the gay community.
The text I chose to analyze was the movie “Love and Basketball”. I explained how the movie displayed socially accepted gender stereotypes of both men and women, through the images represented by the main characters.
Best friends turned lovers Monica and Quincy share two loves, one of each other and the other for basketball. Their love of basketball brings them to love one another. The movie takes place in the 1960’s and 1970s. It shows the transformation from women being the passive, traditional housewife to dominant women defying the traditional stereotypes of women. It reinforces the stereotype of men being the “bread winners” and women staying at home. The mothers of the film are housewives and the daughters seem to be breaking the tradition, specifically Monica. Monica is the dominant female in the movie, defying all the stereotypes of women, showing that women do not have to be passive and can be the bread winners of the family too. She shows that women shoe be considered equal to men.
I enjoyed the film, I liked how they showed the transformation of equality for women through the generations (mother/daughter). It pinpointed the time period of the 60s and 70s and acknowledged how women and men were/are viewed. Monica’s character really stood out to me. Her dominance captured my attention and I was able to identify with her. Her strength and determination made me obtain an admiration for her. although the film did reinforce some typical mainstream gender roles it also showed that they can broken. That is why the character Monica is important to the movie. This movie should be learning module for women to show that we do not have to conform to what mainstream media wants us to be.
Allison K
The text that I chose to analyze was “Sex and the City: The Movie.” In this film I recognized several instances were the main characters in the movie displayed culturally acceptable gender roles and several instances were the woman displayed non-traditional gender roles.
The movie is a finale to the television series “Sex and the City.” It begins right were the HBO series left off and in my opinions gives the Sex and the City fans a sense of closure.
I feel the movie does a good job balancing the traditional and non-traditional female behavior. For instance, even if the women do not admit it they all need men for one reason or the other. In the movie this ranges from love and support to sex. Needing a man is very traditional behavior for a woman however using a man for sex is very un-traditional behavior.
All of the main characters excluding Charlotte have very good paying jobs. Miranda is a corporate lawyer, Carrie has a popular column in a newspaper and Samantha is a public relations specialist. Charlotte acts as the traditional housewife. She has a husband, a daughter and the perfect house.
The women also display a very traditional look. Carrie, Samantha, and Charlotte all love to dress up and look girly. They spend a great deal of their paychecks on clothes and always dress to impress. Miranda on the other hand has a more masculine look. She still dresses well just not as feminine as the other women. In the television show as well as in the movie Miranda dressed in conservative business suits for work and in casual sweats when relaxing.
In conclusion even though the women in Sex and the City push the envelope in several situations they still display very traditional female behavior in many circumstances. They are smart, professional, promiscuous, and attractive. They don’t’ need men for everything but yet all of them excluding Samantha long to find the perfect mate.
The mediated text I chose to analyze was a music video called “Upgrade U” by Beyonce Knowles, which stars Jay-Z. In the video, Beyonce sings about how she should be a certain individual’s girlfriend in that she would “upgrade” them.
Essentially, within this video, certain gender roles and behaviors are normalized. As a result, this contributes to the misrepresentation of the female gender and, in particular, African American females in popular culture, as it has instigated society to readily accept these controlling images as the group standard and what one’s role in society should be as a male or female.
In particular, the video is maintaining images of the black female as a diva, gold digger, and jezebel. With the diva image, it is exemplified by particular camera angles, which show her giving attitude and yelling at the camera and demanding attention. The gold digger image is upheld throughout the video through the props (diamonds, extravagant clothing) and color schemes within the setting. However, the most prevalent image of Beyonce is that of the innately sexual being or temptress. Black feminists refer to this image as the jezebel. Essentially, the mise-en-scene of the entire music video establishes Beyonce as a jezebel and draws attention through the sexual atmosphere. Through the combination of light and dark, color schemes, camera positions and angles, and the movement within the frame, Beyonce is depicted as a sexual temptress. Whether it was rolling around on the ground or standing in the water, the movement of Beyonce’s body within the frame and the glare of her eyes towards the camera (or audience member) portray her as a seductress. Furthermore, camera shots focused on certain body parts that have sexual connotations. In particular, there are multiple shots that focus on her eyes, mouth, butt, legs, and breasts. Thus, because the jezebel stereotype often displays the African American female as seductive, tempting, and innately promiscuous, the connection between Beyonce and the jezebel is reproduced to the consumers as they view this video.
Like Beyonce’s video, there are several other music videos today that degrade and uphold stereotypical images of the female population in general as well. An example of this would be “Buttons” by the Pussycat Dolls, which is a singing group comprised of five women of all different racial backgrounds. The song itself is about women “loosening up their buttons” for men. Obviously, the lyrics are suggesting that women engage in sexual activity. In addition, the singers, who are barely dressed, dance on poles and chairs and have multiple camera angles that focus on sexual body parts. This shows how not only black women are subjected to controlling images in popular media, but women of other backgrounds as well.
All things considered, the only way to possibly eliminate certain images created by popular culture is to actively do something about it. As mentioned before, producers recreate these music videos in order to please the audience. Thus, it is my goal that through this blog, you (or the audience) can voice your opinion on these images that I have described above and help change content in the music video industry.
Shayne Z
David C.
The text that I chose to analyze was an episode of the popular comedic cartoon "Family Guy" entitled "I am Peter, Hear Me Roar." The episode took a family that was generally very typical in terms of gender roles and switched the masculine father's behavior to very feminine for this episode.
Peter Griffin is a man of social construct and gender-role consistency. In this episode, his womanizing ways get him in trouble at the office. After various instances of female objectification and insensitivity, he lands himself in further trouble and is sent to a Women's Sensitivity Retreat. He comes home revolutionized, and is completely feminine in his actions. He is emotional, gossipy, talkative, and nurturing--to name a few. The whole episode is spent trying to get him back to his old behavior. When this is achieved, conflict is solved, and all is well.
I do not necessarily feel that this episode was all bad--it provided a funny outlet and mixed up gender roles for a change. This presentation of an alternative gender role is rare, and the fact that they even did this is positive in the acceptance of non-stereotypical behaviors.
However, there are a few things displayed in this episode I'd like to see change. First of all, the episode gained virtually all of it's laughter from the fact that Peter was acting like socially feminine. This only shows that we are going nowhere as far as acceptance of varying behaviors goes. If a difference is so funny that a show can get laughs for the whole time slot, than we must be a very rigid society in regards to gender. If we can break from this norm, we will be more accepting. I feel alternative gender behaviors need to be mediated more in a serious way so that we can truly start accepting.
Also, I do not like that gender roles being restored was the only way that the episode could resolve the conflict. If alternative gender roles is seen as such a problem, we are not making much progress as a society. A different form of resolution would be ideal.
While I agree that the episode offered some good insights, I do think in order to gain tolerance of sexual differences, we need to increase exposure of these differences in a non-comedic, serious environment. The sooner that happens, the more united we will be.
I chose to analyze the film, "Little Children." It is a very unconventional film in the way that its main characters do not obey and therefore act within their specified gender roles.
I focused mainly on the husband and wife in the film: Brad and Kathy Adamson. Brad is the stay at home father and Kathy is the bread-winning wife and mother in charge of expenses and the family as a whole. Because of Kathy's overpowering nature, Brad starts to feel unhappy and ultimately cheats on his wife. They individually begin to deteriorate and so does they're relationship.
Mainstream gender roles are so common that we never even give them a second thought. But when watching such an out of the ordinary piece like "Little Children," you begin to realize what is actually happening in society. I would like to see more of the media portraying gender role switching in a better light. This way, mass audiences can begin to see that independent women don't have to be the cause of a man's downfall and men don't have to feel like being a house dad is undermining their "masculinity."
The text I chose to analyze was an episode of I Love Lucy, where she makes a bet with Ricky that she can be truthful for an entire twenty four hours. After truthfully telling her husband that she believed him to be a coward for not letting her go into show business,
Ricky takes her to an audition. Shortly after the interview starts, she realizes she has no background experience. In an attempt to redeem herself, she exclaims she knows Italian and can assist the man being auditioned with his performance. Little does she know that he is a knife thrower, and she is the body he is throwing them next to. In the end, she goes crying to Ricky saying she will pay the bet.
Throughout the series, Lucy is constantly trying to escape the restrains society places on women, but never seems to succeed. “By entering the public sphere she inevitably makes a spectacular mess of things and is almost inevitably forced to retreat, to return to the status quo of domestic life that will begin the next episode” (Newcomb). She constantly is taught a lesson through her mistakes. The show uses comedy to show just how ridiculous her schemes are and in the end how she is always better off at home. I Love Lucy reinforces gender roles and sets women’s attempts at equality farther back.
Lucy Ricardo's attempts at rebellion are usually sabotaged by her own incompetence"(Newcomb 496). She is constantly trying to break free of this gender role, but every episode fails at doing so by her own demise. Instead, she reinforces these gender norms that women have to be housewives and caretakers for their husband and children by showing that she can not succeed elsewhere. She even undermines women's attempts for equality by portraying that women can not succeed anywhere else but the home.
I chose to compare this show with another popular show in the 1950’s called The Honeymooners. The Honeymooners goes against the typical gender roles, while I Love Lucy reinforces them. In I Love Lucy, women are supposed to stay in the house and not question their role in society. She is the housewife, and Ricky is the head of the household. If Lucy attempts to try to be anything different, it always blows up in her face. In this episode of The Honeymooners, it is evident that Ralph is not really the head of the household, and in fact the woman is the protector. Considering the fact that these shows were aired around the same time, it is almost comical that the show that emphasizes gender roles rather than breaks them would be more popular.
Due to the fact that I Love Lucy was a comedy, it poked fun at the idea of her trying to branch out of the home. Each and every time she attempted to do so, she was incapable of going through with it. This show contradicted everything women were doing during the women’s movement at this time. Instead of encouraging and supporting women’s ideas of equality, this television show was making a mockery of their efforts. It was representing an idea that the women's movement was incapable of happening, just like Lucy was incapable of being anything but a housewife.
I Love Lucy’s plot was made very clear that this show was not about Lucy breaking through the gender roles society created, but rather to enforce them. There were very clear set boundaries for women and men to see where they stood in society and what the appropriate way for them to act was. It causes one to wonder why it was such an influential show at a time where women were making such strides for equality.
For my engagement I wanted to see if some of my female friends felt the same way I did about House’s take on sexuality and our cultural norms regarding that. I wrote up a small questionnaire and had them fill it out after I showed them the transcript from the pilot episode of House M.D. regarding the section in question. That transcript, as well as the questionnaire and some of their more interesting responses are as follows:
This conversation happens when one female doctor, Allison Cameron asks her boss Greg House (the star of the medial drama) why he hired her to work for him.
House: "The only thing that matters is what you think. Can you do the job?
Cameron: You hired a black guy because he had a juvenile record.
House: "No, it wasn't a racial thing, I didn't see a black guy. I just saw a doctor with a juvenile record. I hired Chase 'cause his dad made a phone call. I hired you because you are extremely pretty."
Cameron: "You hired me to get into my pants?"
House: "I can't believe that that would shock you. It's also not what I said. No, I hired you because you look good; it's like having a nice piece of art in the lobby."
Cameron: "I was in the top of my class."
House: "But not the top."
Cameron: "I did an internship at the Mayo Clinic."
House: "Yes, you were a very good applicant."
Cameron: "But not the best?"
House: "Would that upset you, really, to think that you were hired because of some genetic gift of beauty not some genetic gift of intelligence?"
Cameron: "I worked very hard to get where I am."
House: "But you didn't have to. People choose the paths that grant them the greatest rewards for the least amount of effort. That's the law of nature, and you defied it. That's why I hired you. You could have married rich, could have been a model, you could have just show up and people would have given you stuff. Lots of stuff, but you didn't, you worked your stunning little ass off."
Cameron: "Am I supposed to be flattered?"
Question 1) Have you seen House M.D. before?
Question 2) If so what do you think of the show?
Question 3) Regarding the above quote, what do you think of his logic and reasoning for hiring Cameron?
Question 5) Do you think House was right to hire her because of that, or was he being sexist?
Question 6) Do you have any other thoughts regarding the quote?
Now when I asked a few of my female friends, some of whom were longtime fans of the show and others who had never seen it to answer these questions I got a few notable quotes that I would like to share.
From Katie, “When I first read that I was pissed at House’s character, I just thought he was being sexist and rude to Cameron but the more I thought about it the more I found his position interesting. It was like he was being sexist, but for the right reasons if that makes any sense. “
From Erica, “Even though I think he wasn’t trying to be sexist that’s all he comes off as, he’s obviously a pig because of what else he said in that episode and as much as I love the show I do have to hate him as a woman, he’s just so crass sometimes he pushes the boundaries a bit too far (especially with Cuddy).”
From Sam, “I know he, I mean House is an ass but I can’t help but think he makes great points. That’s kind of the whole point of the show, House is meant to solve cases no one else can and bestow some sort of universal truth about society upon us. I can’t help but think that he’s doing it here too, just in his own weird and deviant way.”
Hopefully some of the females in this class will answer the questions as well and maybe then we can get a larger sampler as far as responses go.
Kaleigh P
I also chose to analyze Gossip Girl. It is such a popular mediated text in both book and television form that I believe its analysis will be important to a broad spectrum of people. In researching for this paper I came across numerous blogs and fan sites. The vast majority of these are focused on very superficial topics such as the characters fashion or scandalous love interests. My academic work would be completely out of place in that context, which is why I am engaging in this forum.
Gossip Girl is a sitcom set in modern day New York City. Narrated by the mysterious internet blogger "Gossip Girl", it follows the dramatic lives of wealthy privileged teenagers through their times at the city's most exclusive prep schools. Their home-life is complicated by the struggle to balance life's trials and good reputation. These young wasps have every opportunity but are also under a great deal of pressure to succeed.
In this particular episode, the characters are captivated by the sudden return of the mysterious Serena after her self-imposed exile to boarding school. Her "best friend" Blair is less than pleased because its always been rumored that there might be a flame between Blair's boyfriend Nate and Serena. Shortly after patching up their friendship, all niceties are forgotten because Blair's worst suspicions are confirmed; Nate and Serena slept together causing her to flee the city. Blair forgives Nate because she is "destined" to marry him, but does not extend the same courtesy to Serena.
Even thought the show is set in modern times, the characters have very traditional values, especially about their gender roles. I believe their high economic and social class have conditioned them to fulfill these outdated beliefs about gender. Like I mentioned, Blair easily forgives Nate's indiscretion because she is supposed to marry him. Her ultimate goal is marriage and he is the quickest way down the aisle. Also, it is traditionally more acceptable for a man to be unfaithful than a woman. I believe this is why Serena is punished, because it is not socially acceptable for a woman to be promiscuous.
I found further proof of the influence of economic status in the creation of gender roles in the sitcom Sex and the City. The four characters all come from different backgrounds and hold very different beliefs about gender roles in society. Samantha believes women should act the same as men, and be very promiscuous. Charlotte has very old-fashioned morals and high standards for relationships. Miranda values her professional life over her personal life. Carrie is constantly changing her mind and using her experiences to interpret modern gender roles in relationships. Out of these characters, Charlotte is the only one from a wealthy background and also the only one with traditional ideas about gender. I believe it is her background that created these strict beliefs.
Although Gossip Girl reinforces traditional gender roles, the modern setting introduces a bit of irony into the situation. The characters may follow traditional gender roles, but the audience can see the ridiculousness of it at times. There are also other characters of lower economic class (the Humphreys) that do not follow traditional gender roles. These things all give the show a very realistic feel which adds to its appeal.
Michael M
The test that I wrote about was an episode of Malcolm in the Middle and how they gender roles are characterized.
Malcolm in the Middle is a sitcom about a middle class family that has 4 children that are boys and a mother and a father. The boys are always getting into trouble and the mother has to discipline them and take care of house and her part-time job at a grocery store. While her husband works at a dead end job and is often starting trouble himself.
The text makes the female of the household take on many responsibilities and gets little recognition for it. She must do all the cooking, cleaning, and disciplining of the children. Also she is not as educated as her husband. The father is generalized as not too intelligent and childish. Without the female the male would be helpless. Also, the young boys are shown as being very immature and constantly getting into trouble and inappropriate situations.
I examined the gender roles in the cartoon the "Family Guy". What I found was that the main characters fit nicely into the gender roles that have been defined by the media over the decades. Some of these gender roles are blatantly obvious as a farce of the absurdity of gender roles in our society, while others were slipped into the script to be taken as conventional.
Peter is a comedic character because of his unintelligent ideas that inevitably get him into trouble. He makes sexist and racist remarks, but the viewer innately recognizes that the character is intended to be a farce of the white, middle-class American, similar to Homer Simpson or Archie Bunker. He believes a woman's place is in the home, and we find that funny because he sticks to antiquated ideologies of gender.
Lois can be viewed as a strong, smart, independent woman that rectifies everything that Peter messes up every episode. She, along with Brian the dog, and Stewie the infant, is viewed as the most intelligent and capable character on the show.
The viewer recognizes that it is funny to have a smart dog and a smart infant because they are not found in real life, however, because Lois is the only other remotely intelligent character on the show, it is possible that the writers want the viewer to also find a woman being intelligent as ironic, therefore funny.
This show should definitely be taken as a satirical show, and the majority of the viewing audience recognizes this. However, there are blatantly obvious sexist jokes that are to be taken as funny because of the absurdity of the skewed ideologies that Peter has. However, Lois' willingness to accept Peter's behavior and revert into a submissive role when necessary is to be accepted rather than found as funny. Therefore, the writers should seriously contemplate what they are writing as funny or fact and act on it.
Natasha B
The text that I did was "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days", I analyzed the representation of woman in a relationship.
The main character, Andie Anderson, is given the assignment to write a "How To" column on the dating faux pas of women. She must find a guy and date him for ten days, while doing everything that women do wrong to drive him away.
The other main characther is palyed by Matthew McConaugehey, Benjamin Barrie. He wants to land a big diamond accunt at work and to do so he must prove that he canmake any woman fall in love with him in ten days. If he succeeds he gets the account. The two end up dating one another. It becomes a fight to see who can withstand the longest.
The main thing that I talked in my paper was how woman were represented in the film. It seemed as if the both characters were pointing out everything that women do wrong with no glance at the male role in a relationship. The actions taken by women were the only ones being put on display to say they were wrong. Women end their relationships and here are all the reasons why.
One interesting things was the fact that the way the main character was acting wasn't her eal personality. She dah not only put on a front but get advice from other woman on how tho maintain this act. She, herself didn't actas she was and felt that all of those actions were ridiculous. When she was with her friends she displayed more masculine characteristics.
The film was entertaining because of the comedy in it. But it reaised a lot of red flags about the general message behind the movie. I felt like there was not balanced look at relationships in this movie; everything tht could possibly gowrong was the woman's fault.
Mike O
The media text I chose to analyze was a specific episode from "One Tree Hill". The gendered assumptions in this text are essentially opposite of "typical" gendered norms...
Now being educated on the topic of gendered assumptions in the media, I think that “One Tree Hill” is an innovator in representing power for female characters. All of the women in the show are self-reliant, which shows the independence women can have in our society. They showed strong personality attributes, which has allowed the general public to view women more naturally as leaders. Women are going to continue establishing themselves both in the work place and at home as influential and tough leaders. The more women get involved and contribute to our society in a positive way, the more our society can develop. It is said best by UN Secretary, General Kofi Annan, that “study after study has taught us that there is no tool for development more effective than the empowerment of women” (In the Public Sphere, pg. 1).
In Hee S
In Hee S
Engagement: I chose to write about an episode of Saved by the Bell that portrayed genedered roles of men and women. I mainly talked about Kelly Kapowski and Screech, and their similar zit problem. I believe that this episode did a great job of demonstrating how females are more concerned about appearance than males.
Throughout the episode, Kelly cannot stop thinking about a zit that recently formed on her nose. She is running for homecoming queen and believes that this zit will lose her chance of winning. Screech, on the other hand, discovers his first zit on his face and is thrilled. He is amused and while he thinks about it for a little while, it slips his mind after a short time. Kelly lets the zit consume her life and thoughts for days.
The aspect that I like most about the episode is that this is an issue that many people encounter. It is relatable and realistic. An aspect that makes me question the episode is the fact the Screech is used as the person with the zit. Screech is very strange and would not be one to be concerned with his appearance. Zach, on the other hand, is more relatable to Kelly. He is popular, good looking, and constantly looks at himself.
Males and females are portrayed differently because they focus on how much Kelly cares about her looks and how little Screech cares. It is clear that they are depicting women to be so concerned with their looks allows viewers to see how silly it is to stress out for so long about something so little. I think this is a great way to let women realize that sometimes these little problems are not worth stressing over. These are problems that all women can relate to and can most likely admit that they over-stressed about a problem like a zit.
In Hee S.
Hello. I'm sorry about the previous postings with my name and no comment.I had problems with posting.
Here is my ENGAGEMENT.I chose Pretty Woman(1990)as my mediated text. The film starred Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. I focused on Julia' Roberts' character, Vivin Ward, and how she is represented in the movie.
Pretty Woman is a typical Cinderella story about how male protagonist and femal protagonist of different social background fall in love with each other. The film resembles the Disney movie Cinderella. Vivian is a prostitue in California and Edward, played by Richard Gere is a wealthy corporate raider. Edward is from a high class but Vivian is from a lower social class. Edward "hires" Vivian for a week to keep his business socializnig. However, as Vivian and Edward spend their times together, they find similarities between them. As a week goes by, their relationship deepens. In the end, they realizes that they have feelings each other and it is implied that they get marry.
First thing to notice in the film is sexsim on occupations the characters have.The male protagonist, Edward is a wealthy, successful corporate raider.He has power in a society. Also, the male charcaters in the movie are lawyer, manager of hotel and shop manager but the females are secretaries or saleswomen. Vivian also earns money by prositution.
Second, the males are represented as active and females as passive in Pretty Women. Not only Edward has money, but also power. He is a dominant figure and tries to control Vivian. Most of what Edward tells Vivian is orders. Vivian does what she has been told to do. She is helpless without men. Once, she goes shopping by herself to buy a dress but fails to buy one. The film shows a hotel manager who is a man helping Vivan buying a dress. She also gets help from Edward on shopping.She is dependent on men. Vivian also gets raped by Edward's colleague, Philip when she is not with Edward. Vivian is saved from the sexual abuse by Edward. The rape scene also shows male dominance over female. Men are represented as exerting power over women whenever they feel like. The film represents men as rescures of women. The movie also shows dependent women who are always in need of male protection and care.
Also, Julia Roberts' images are sexualized. The camera focuses on her body and her way of dressing. She is objectified as sexual objects. One of the first scenes the audiences see are her pelvis, waist and legs. And the scenes are all close-ups. Vivian is fetishized with dresses and other accessories. Pretty Women does not represent women as subject with individual thoughts or opinions. The only time Vivian shows her feelings or activeness is when Edward has betrayed her. She tells or orders Edward to not hurt her feelings again.
I enjoyed wathcing the movie but did not agree with the representation of women in the film. The film raises the question of is being passive and submissive really "feminine"? and being active and dominant really "masculine"?
Julie Z
Gossip Girl is a television show about a group of teenagers in high school who are growing up in the wealthy Upper East Side of New York. The show follows the main characters as they deal with sex, drugs, and many other kinds of drama. Gossip Girl depicts its female characters in traditional female gender roles and reinforces negative female stereotypes which is harmful since so many young women watch the show.
There are many specific and traditional female gender roles in this television show. For example, the females always seem to be the ones that get caught up with the stereotypes and the drama. The gossip girl is the one that gets a hold of all of the juicy information and puts it on her blog for everyone to see. It is very interesting how as soon as a new post is made, the camera only shows surprised female faces and never any male ones.
The male female relations demonstrate that the woman has the power of sex appeal over the male. For example, with the love triangle of Blair, Serena, and Nate the girls hold the power and are seen as sex symbols. Serena had the power to seduce Nate and he slept with her because she was right there and very alluring and feminine to him. Also, Blair is able to seduce Nate to get what she wants and thus holds the sexual power over him. This female behavior can be both good and bad. The positive aspects are the obvious reasons of the female being able to be in a position of power over the male. It is also negative because then the female is relying solely on her sex appeal and is belittling her other qualities such as her intelligence and her personality. This does not present a good image to the viewers.
The writers should realize how many young girls are watching the show and try to change it a bit so that the women are not constantly put into negative traditional gender roles. I think that it is very important to present a better image because this show influences such a large audience of women. The qualities that the female characters possess such as their intelligence and personalities should be highlighted instead.
The text that I chose to write about was a particular episode of Sex and the City.
In this particular episode, the first situation mentioned is Steve’s insecurity with having only one testicle. The characters are all gathered at a bar playing pool. When Samantha mentions having “only one little ball left” to shoot before winning, Steve becomes uncomfortable with the indirect comment and leaves. This situation of Steve’s insecurity progresses throughout the episode. At one point, he takes Miranda to a plastic surgeon to help him decide if having testicle implants would be a good idea. They find out the procedure is still in clinical trials and Miranda tells Steve to forget about it. Miranda tries to help Steve heal emotionally but she realizes that what Steve isn’t just bother by the fact that he has only one functioning testicle but is afraid women will misjudge him and leave him for having only one.
The second situation encountered is Trey’s sperm test. Charlotte’s strong desire for a child and failed attempts left her with no option but to be clinically tested. The first mention of this topic angers him because of he fells it is a waste of time. However, as the episode progresses, Charlotte learns that he isn’t upset over that matter but really scared that he doesn’t want to face the fact that he may be reproductively challenged.
The third situation involves Carrie, the main character, and her current boyfriend Aidan. She recently commits adultery with her ex-boyfriend Big. Even though she has limited her interactions with Big, Aidan still feels threatened. In this particular episode, Big becomes extremely depressed because his current love interest leaves him for no particular reason. When he calls and visits Carrie for support, Aidan becomes distant, angry, and upset.
Finally in the fourth situation, Samantha is rejected a job she was qualified for because of her gender. When Samantha mentions this to the rest of the girls, they all agree that, at one point, they have been rejected or made fun of because of their display of emotion at work. Samantha points out that if a man gets angry after a meeting, it means he’s hardworking and passionate about his work, but if a women reacts the same she’s either on her menstrual cycle or too emotional, both a horrible option. Samantha feels that she was an unsettled score, and so she returns back to Richard’s office to discuss his decision in hiring her. Samantha calls him out in saying that if she were a man and with the same qualifications she would’ve not only got the job but also a scotch and cigar.
This entire episode dwells on that fact that gender roles are stressed in society and when they break, we're shocked. Many of us believe that gender roles are the rules of life, but really its not. There's more than just that. We need to go out and realize that women are not fragile emotional flowers and men shouldn't be expected to be emotionless. We are all the same people only with different sets of reproductive parts. We need to come to terms and break this social norms.
Norms will only blind us from what we can really achieve.
I'm not sure if it goes here or I was supposed to create a blog. So I did both.
My paper is on the show "Sex and the City", I'm sure everyone knows it, and I'm sure people think that it is really progressive and bringing us closer to feminist TV. But I just want to point out how often Carrie and the other women depend on a man to help them or fix something or bail them out. First off the entire show revolves around two things, the friendships and the relationships. But has anyone noticed that even Samantha who never wanted a relationship ended up with Smith Jarred in the end?! Single women just can not be in TV, it is not seen as a happy ending. We need a show where the women are not stereotyped as stupid and ditzy and instead shown as smart strong women who make good choices. We need a show where if the woman does not end up with a man it doesn't mean there is no happy ending, just a different type of happy ending. This is really setting a bad example for teenage girls, because they watch these movies and shows think they have to dumb them selves down to get a guy to like them and also need a man to be happy. we need better role models for young girls.
Tom E goes like
I chose to analyze the character of Cameron Phillips on the TV show Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Cameron is a cyborg sent from the future to protect John Connor, a teenager who in the future will lead humanity in its war against intelligent machines. Cameron’s character almost constantly runs afoul of gender role assumptions, because she knows very little of them. She is not female, nor is so human, and she knows relatively little of (present) human society; so she is free to act as she pleases. At one point she even asks, “Why are diamonds a girl’s best friend?” She is also incredibly strong, as strong as any other Terminator for those familiar with the series. She betrays females’ traditionally passive nature in media by being the most active person on screen; after all, she “never sleeps.” But at the same time, she is tasked with blending in to society, so she attempts to constrain herself when she deems it necessary.
A telling example of the series treatment of women and gender roles occurs in the series pilot. The Connors and Cameron use a time machine to escape another Terminator, and go to the future, but the time machine only allows living things through, so they come out naked on the other side. A nude Cameron proceeds to step in front of a car of ‘frat guys’ that get out of the car, thinking they’ll have their way with her. Instead, Cameron beats the crap out of them and takes their clothes and leaves them naked on the street. The men who attempt to take advantage of or objectify her are punished for their mistakes. She is a woman to be reckoned with, and she knows it.
The Sarah Connor Chronicles, while not perfect, is an excellent example of a show that features, powerful, active, and in control women who do not let society’s traditions affect them or their actions. The irony is that if they constrained themselves to society’s ideals, humanity would be doomed to extinction.
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In class, we talked about how homophobia is expressed in terms of a homosexual character being made the fool in the situation or being punished for being homosexual. However, I was thinking of Jack on Will and Grace. He is frequently the butt of jokes and always seems to find himself in troublesome situations. However, of the two creators, one of them is gay. If making one of the gay men the fool in the show is a sign of homophobic text then would the show be considered homophobic? Even though the creator is gay himself?
In Hee Song/Engagement
I chose the original version of "My Sassy Girl" as my text. I closely examined the traits of the female protagonist who is unnamed in the film. "My Sassy Girl" is a romantic comedy but also considered a melodrama. Like many other romantic comedies, the film shows a man and a woman who meet and fall in love each other after some obstacles and arguments. The male protagonist, Kyun Woo meets the “sassy girl” on the subway station. The girl is all drunk and Kyun Woo helps her move to a safer place. Kyun Woo finds himself attracted to this girl and starts to meet her. The girl also tries to find her dead ex-boyfriend from Kyun Woo. The girl is however extremely wacky and sassy. She shows masculine traits such as aggressiveness and assertiveness. She often beats him for fun and writes stories in which female characters show masculine traits. She controls Kyun Woo and talks to him in a domineering tone. Her wacky nature adds comic elements to the film. The girl is also vulnerable in that she has emotional hardship forgetting her dead boyfriend. She often shows tears which characterizes femininity. She becomes emotional when she is unsure of her true feeling towards Kyun Woo. She eventually realizes that she is in love with Kyun Woo. In the end, the audiences find out that Kyun Woo is a cousin of the girl’s ex-boyfriend. Kyun Woo also demonstrates masculinity by protecting the girl throughout the movie. He saves the girl from danger and serves as a source of pleasure for the girl. He even decides to help the girl heal her broken heart. However, he is very submissive and obedient to the girl. He accepts the girl’s torture and just follows her. Both characters have good mixture of masculinity and femininity. It seems that the movie puts the man and woman in the same level and position. I think the movie represents a new and refreshing gender role.
Kaleigh P
I chose "V for Vendetta" for my second mediated text. This is an action film with strong political themes. There are several characters with progressive qualities, but I chose to focus my analysis on V, the main male character.
V has a mysterious pass that has made him into the person he is in the film. He has both strong political and moral ideals, and strong motives for revenge. He is the outlaw hero in a dystopian future Britain. He is the first person to take a stand against the oppressive totalitarian government and all of their extreme restrictions. The characters in the film identify with him, and the ideas he represents, despite the government's best efforts to make him out as a terrorist.
His unlikely companion in his plot for revenge is Evey, the formerly passive, unassuming working class girl who got caught up in V's extravagant scheme. I would call this encounter a coincidence, except V continually stresses that there are no coincidences throughout the film. The two characters develop a unique relationship throughout the film through a combination of forced and planned encounters. V rescues Evey several times throughout the movie, and in the end she saves him, or at least the "idea" of him.
Through their interactions, the audience sees (mostly through Evey's eyes)the softer side of V; his more feminine traits. He falls for Evey, even though he believed he could never love again. He illustrates this emotion when he asks to see her again, and then again after she leaves and he smashes a mirror because he is ashamed of his appearance. We also learn that he is a renaissance man, interested in classic music, poetry and art.
The combination of these feminine traits and his very action-oriented masculine traits are what make V a progressive character. It also makes it easier for the audience to identify with him as a male character because he is more similar to "real men". I think young males would benefit from more progressive male characters for role models. It was difficult to find a progressive male character in mainstream media, and although V is not perfect, he is a step in the right direction.
Raana H.
I wrote on the movie Legally Blonde, the film is a chick flick, that starts off seeming like a mindless film with mindless characters. However, contrary to the audience's first impressions Elle Woods is a very positive woman in the movie. She is extremely feminine which usually is not seen as something that will go hand in hand with being smart. However she is also very smart and she works very hard to get where she is. She starts off by following her boyfriend to Harvard, but then realizes that she does not really want him once she finds her self. the movie is about self discovery and realizing you self worth. Elle, being feminine is very important because she is nurturing and "woman like" but she also is able to become valedictorian of Harvard Law, and she is the reason that they win Brooke's case. Elle is a very strong character because she stands up for herself, in the beginning she seems slightly stupid but she fully redeems herself by the end. Even though the movie is probably not seen as a feminist film, i disagree. I think that it is feminist. The things that the movie stands for, really show a feminist standpoint. Elle becomes successful, she works hard and gets to the top because she deserves to be there. She stands up for herself and what she believes in. When looking past the pink and the hair, it is evident that a lot of thought went into creating such a strong well rounded character.
I wrote my paper on Madonna and her role in reconstructing female sexuality showing women are able to hold the power of the gaze and create pleasure for themselves. Laura Mulvey in her work Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema discussed patriarchal society which confines women as passive and males as active spectators. Specifically, men are in control of the gaze which puts them in control of the female body, creating erotic pleasure for the male protagonist and the male audience that is able to identify with him. In her music videos Material Girl and Express Yourself Madonna defies this male gaze by being in controlling the image she is portraying and at all times being in full control of the male body. In both videos Madonna controls the actions of the men and is able to use them for her own physical pleasure. Furthermore she returns the gaze by looking straight back at the audience, illustrating that she is not a victim and does give the audience control of her body, rather she is the one in charge. In addition, through her parody of Marilyn Monroe in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Madonna redefines herself to not be objectified rather the one in control of the scene, whereas Marilyn Monroe surrendered to the male gaze. By reconstructing herself to be in control of the gaze, ability to objectify the male body resulting in pleasure for females, Madonna is able to reconstruct herself to be in control of her female sexuality and not a victim of objectification. I wonder if the class feel the same way or whether they believe Madonna fails at this task and is just another female victim in patriarchal society?
I chose “Little Big Man” for my second text. In this film an American man named Jack was rescued and raised by Cheyenne Indians. When he was a young boy he received his Indian name, “Little Big Man.” He was called this because despite his small size he had a very large heart and was very brace. Throughout his life he dealt with many hardships because he was forced to shift between two very different cultures, the Cheyenne Indian culture and the American culture. Neither of these cultures were subordinate to one another because he was equally out of place in both situations.
When Jack shifted between the two different societies he also changed identities. In the Cheyenne world he was Little Big Man and his identity was formed by his name. He was considered brave and honest in spite of his small size and non-masculine behaviors. In the Anglo-American society he was know for all of his failures in life. Such as a failed businessman, a drunk and a muleskinner. However, he was not the same race as the Cheyenne so even though he was more respect he was never truly one of them.
While doing research for this paper I stumbled upon some of Carrie Fisher’s writings and of course became familiar with her personal life and I found her fascinating. For a woman who portrayed (what I would define as a positive character) she has taken that idea into her private life and run with it. Active writing, editing scripts and continuing to act she hasn’t missed a beat in her professional life but still found time to become deeply engaged in the gay community. Years of drug problems and identity issues growing up a Hollywood star under her parents names left her with a very unique outlook on life, and it’s something that I would love to hear more about. While I myself plan on reading her books (she has five out currently) I also wanted to suggest to either the Illini Union Board or even a gay rights group on campus to perhaps try and get her to come and speak. Hugely successful over her life I think she would be a fantastic guest lecturer, and one that would draw a lot of interested students to hear her speak on a myriad of topics. Active in the gay community because of her ex-husband’s late realization of his homosexuality, she is openly pro-gay while still remaining herself heterosexual but doesn’t care what others think about her choices or opinions. Either way, I think she would make a great lecturer and I plan on suggesting her to IUB for next school year.
I chose to analyze the 2006 film "The Devil Wears Prada." The film stars Meryl Streep as Miranda Priestly, Editor in Chief at the popular fashion magazine "Runway" and Anne Hathoway as Andy, a recent journalism graduate. Andy is hired at Runway as Miranda's new assistant. The film follows Andy's journey at Runway and watches her transfrom from a "normal" woman with "average" fashion knowledge to the ultra-sleek fashion savy assistant. However, the journey is not easy. Miranda is not easy on Andy. Her requests are often vague and extremely difficult to carry out.
Overall, I believe Miranda Priestly portrays progressive gender roles because she has taken on a role that has traditionally been carried out by men. When the film was released in 2006, only two percent of Chief Executive Officers of Fortune 500 companies were female. Miranda Priestly would have been part of this tiny fraction of fictitious female C.E.O.'s. She is a rare find and it is encouraging to see a woman in a position that is so often carried out by males.
What I enjoyed most about the film was that Miranda felt very satisfied with her career path. Miranda receives a profound level of respect from her employees as well as from other leaders in the industry. It is assumed that her hard work and assertiveness led her to the top. She may have had to make sacrifices along the way but the film rewards her for it. Most importantly, Miranda asserts that she has no regrets about her past decisions.
Michael M
I choose to analyze the show Weeds and the progression of the character Nancy. Weeds is a show about a widow and her family. They live in an upscale neighbor in California and to support her family Nancy turns to selling drugs as a mean to an income. While it is not the most ethical way to support her family Nancy does demonstrate a very good balance between "feminine" and "masculine" traits. She is strong, determined, and leaders, while being romantic, emotional, and taking care of her children. She is a good role model to girls because she overcame many obstacles in her way to get the respect that she deserves. She is a physically beautifully woman and this does not help or hurt her because of the determination and drive that she shows through out the episode. The character is quite strong and determined, but she is not perfect. She is doing an illegal activity and is discriminated by a few men along the way. However, it is a more positive light than other show on the air such as "The Bachelor" or "Extreme Make-over"
30 Rock is a sitcom airing on NBC that centers on Liz Lemon, played by Tina Fey, the thirty-something and single head writer of the (fictional) NBC sketch comedy show The Girlie Show. The show (as well as the humor) is over the top and the situations absurd. And although Liz Lemon is far from perfect, complete with her own special set of insecurities, she manages to run TGS when few other people would be able to. She is a modern feminist, strong in her convictions and loyal to her friends. She has a great career because she is very capable, and although she needs help from those around her from time to time she is in no way powerless. She has taken leaps beyond Lucy, Mary, and Murphy and works in a world where those around her truly respect her, when they’re not trying to take the rest of the day off. Liz is not too feminine, because she feels it’s usually too much work, and because she prefers to know she succeeds because of her wit and talent than wonder if it is because of her looks. She has everything she wants except a husband, but she’s not sure he’d be worth the effort.
Tom Edmoundson
I analyzed the movie “Two Can Play that Game”. I explained how Characters with an equal balance of female and male qualities have a well-balanced emotional system, which allows them to lead a successful lifestyle.
Senior advertising executive, Shanté Smith plays mind games on her boyfriend, attorney Keith Fenton, when he she catches him dancing with his co-worker at a bar after he cancelled their dinner plans. In order to teach him a lesson she ignites her “Ten Day Plan”, which is designed to “keep him in his place”. To her surprise Keith has a few tricks up his sleeve, with the help of his best friend Tony, “who brings a players perspective to the games girls play”. Through this on-going battle Shanté realizes rules cannot be applied when love is involved.
Keith and Shanté have well balanced female and male qualities which allow them to have successful and luxurious lifestyles. Their capability with one another allows them to show alternating or opposing gender roles. Also, their ability to know when to display certain emotions enables them to succeed in their careers. Managing their emotions gives them a sense of control, the control they need in the workplace to maintain the lifestyle they desire.
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