The Portrayal of Men in Women in the Media
Its Time For A Change…. |
“We’ve begun to raise daughters more like sons. But few have the courage to raise our sons more like our daughters.”(Gloria Steinem quotes 2012). These influential words from Gloria Steinem reflect that we should dispel what negative views we may have about gender roles. Gender role is the behaviours, attitudes values, beliefs and so on that a particular cultural group considers appropriate for males and females on the basis of their biological sex.” ( Latibeaudiere, 2012).What we accept as the prescribed sex role in our society has been shaped by the influence of the media around us. According to Nicholson 1995,” It is apparent that mass media portray men and women differently.” The media is so intertwined in our lives that we do not truly comprehend on a conscious level how much influence it really has over us. Often times Women are shown as being dependent on men. According to Limpinnian 2012, “the most recent ‘Toilet Duck’advert for example, the housewife’s attempt at cleaning the toilet proves unsuccessful. The voice-over (female) tells us of Toilet Duck who provides active tablets to wash away the grime. It is not explicitly stated but by his top hat and tails we are encouraged to believe him to be male, indicating that the woman needs a man to invent products in order for her to do the work well.” Some of the images and messages we see and hear can be both positive and negative. More often than not, we are exposed to images that are so unrealistic and unattainable by the average person that we become discontented with our lives and ourselves. Images of luxury homes, cars, glamorous clothes, and glamorous body images make us more self-conscious of how we live and how we look.
The glamorous sex kitten, the sainted mother, the devious witch, the hard-faced corporate and political climber. At the current rate of progress on stereotyping women, it will take another 75 years to achieve gender equality in the media. Popular
“We’ve begun to raise daughters more like sons. But few have the courage to raise our sons more like our daughters.”(Gloria Steinem quotes 2012). These influential words from Gloria Steinem reflect that we should dispel what negative views we may have about gender roles. Gender role is the behaviours, attitudes values, beliefs and so on that a particular cultural group considers appropriate for males and females on the basis of their biological sex.” ( Latibeaudiere, 2012).What we accept as the prescribed sex role in our society has been shaped by the influence of the media around us. According to Nicholson 1995,” It is apparent that mass media portray men and women differently.” The media is so intertwined in our lives that we do not truly comprehend on a conscious level how much influence it really has over us. Often times Women are shown as being dependent on men. According to Limpinnian 2012, “the most recent ‘Toilet Duck’advert for example, the housewife’s attempt at cleaning the toilet proves unsuccessful. The voice-over (female) tells us of Toilet Duck who provides active tablets to wash away the grime. It is not explicitly stated but by his top hat and tails we are encouraged to believe him to be male, indicating that the woman needs a man to invent products in order for her to do the work well.” Some of the images and messages we see and hear can be both positive and negative. More often than not, we are exposed to images that are so unrealistic and unattainable by the average person that we become discontented with our lives and ourselves. Images of luxury homes, cars, glamorous clothes, and glamorous body images make us more self-conscious of how we live and how we look.
The glamorous sex kitten, the sainted mother, the devious witch, the hard-faced corporate and political climber. At the current rate of progress on stereotyping women, it will take another 75 years to achieve gender equality in the media. Popular
References: Gloria Steinem quotes (n.d) retrieved from http://thinkexist.com/quotation/we-ve_begun_to_raise_daughters_more_like_sons-but/207640. html on February 22,2012. Latibeaudiere, S. (2012) Exploring gender identity: Challenging stereotypes [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved from http://vle.bcatja.com/file.php/6/Introducing_Gender_and_Gender_Roles2.pdf Macdonald, Myra, 1995, Representing Women, Myths of Femininity in the Popular Media, London: Edward Arnold Nicholson. H (1995) Gender as a Dynamic Concept in Media Limpinnian.D. (n.d) retrieved from http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Students/del0001.html on February 23, 2013.