Preview

What Does Marilyn Monroe Mean In Chapter 3 Of Becoming Our Own Jails

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
327 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What Does Marilyn Monroe Mean In Chapter 3 Of Becoming Our Own Jails
SOC 2560 W. 1-4
5 January 2014
Chapter 3- Becoming Our Own Jailers In chapter three, the title tells it all. At a young age we are conditioned to police ourselves with the ideas of masculinity and femininity. Social institutions such as school subtly change how we view ourselves and makes us fit into the norms of society. A relatable example that was used to show the norms of society and how hard people try to fit them, is the body shapes of women. Each culture and time has their different standards for how people should look and act. In 1947 Marilyn Monroe was a beauty icon but if she was compared to someone thought to be beautiful today her figure would seem too full. Many girls have self-esteem issues today because they cannot perfectly

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    This goes in touch with what was stated previously about men pushing these standards; because there are two reasons why women try to imitate these standards: to be deemed as attractive and to fit in. When women see everyday these perfect, flawless models or these women that society deems as attractive. They want to be seen in the same light. For example, in advertisements these women have clear skin, perfectly fit skinny bodies, long eyelashes, nice lips and so on. This causes many young girls to have lower self esteems because they see that they don’t look like that or cannot achieve that look. This can also result into self hatred and sometimes leads to eating disorders. This aim to fit these standards leads young girls and women to starve themselves, exercise daily, or get plastic surgery to feel attractive. According to Valdes-Rodriguez “ My best friend Stacy and I set out dieting right away that summer, to lose our hips so boys from the heights….,would like us”. She was only 12, when she started doing this. You might say that’s a young age to try to seem attractive to boys by dieting and hardcore exercising .But that’s what results from the influence of the media and outlets around you These portrayal of women by the media are everywhere and men finding these features attractive result in many young girls such as Ms. Rodriguez herself…

    • 913 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Mostly females, feel this pressure to have a “perfect” image, some females blame it on society, other, put the blame on their elder siblings. For example, a campaign exists today against the classic Barbie doll. A majority of women, feel they are in competition with this plastic doll. A large number of people, see this doll as “unrealistic”, stating that the dolls waist is seen as an “unrealistic” view of women. Another example, would be the view on models. Another chunk of women, see models as “unrealistic” for women, stating that a majority of females do not, or cannot look like they do. This puts pressure on females to be seen as “perfect”, while “perfect” does not…

    • 419 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    In recent discussions of Susan Bordos reading about women’s pressures in society, one controversial issue discusses how women have expectations in society that they think they have to follow. These expectations consist of being able to cook and work in the kitchen, look beautiful, and dress certain ways to gain attention. In contrast, other arguments are; men do not have to worry about their weight, they should be strong and maintain a fit body, and not needed to cook or help out in the kitchen. Proponents of this position, emphasize that women in this world have to follow what society portrays of them, otherwise by not doing it, they will not receive the same attention as they would if they listened to society. Overall, the issue presented…

    • 1254 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Best Essays

    dove v. axe

    • 3784 Words
    • 16 Pages

    beauty are limited to say the least, Dove’s campaign to counter such ideas are similarly…

    • 3784 Words
    • 16 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    Is Pink Think Alive?

    • 573 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Today, there are new stereotypes for young women that are very much alive, and unfortunately they’ve gotten more drastic and cause grief in many of their lives. Once, the idea of how girls were supposed to behave was beneficial to them in some ways, which is assumed to be the reason they were created in the first place. Today, the toxic concepts are that of those that the media has poisoned young women with. Due to popular celebrity idols, young women are led to believe that in order to fit in, and be “popular”, they must dress scantily, hold the sexual attention of the young males that surround them, and party with the “popular” crowd. Models today encourage young women to be unreasonably skinny, encouraging behaviors such as eating disorders, drugs, and unhealthy diet rituals. Celebrity female music artists encourage young women to carry sex appeal, attracting unwanted attention from men young and old that may cause them more problems in their already complicated transitions. And now, even certain television shows encourage young woman to become pregnant at a young age when they are not ready for it because the idea is glamorized by making it to the “big screen”.…

    • 573 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The media puts an overwhelming amount of pressure onto females, in magazines and on television to look, act and dress a certain way essentially for the male gaze which Gauntlett discusses. In each teen magazine there are a number of advertisements about plastic surgery, dieting and fashion which could lead to depression, eating disorders, suicidal thoughts and negative labeling of other girls in society…

    • 662 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    You have just bought a new pair of jeans. You think that you look absolutely great in them until you turn on the television or compare yourself to the person on side of you. Today, women all over the world are focused on the way society views them, which has an influence on the way they view themselves. The field known as sociology of the body investigates the ways in which our bodies are affected by our social experiences, as well as by the norms and values of the groups to which we belong (Giddens, Duneier, et al, 2007). Body image is an ideal image of what one’s body looks like or what she wants it to look like. It can also be defined as the value one may put on physical appearance. This may create severe personal problems such as mental and eating disorders, and it may have an effect on sexual behavior. Unfortunately, this issue is mostly found amongst women.…

    • 840 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In addition, many girls feel the need to fit into the mold instead of being there true unique selves. Single individuals are different in their own way, however the media has drilled it into every girls mind, and they must have a Barbie doll figure in order to be happy. In today’s world, young women are constantly under the impression that they have to fit the current definition in order to fit in with society so men can recognize them. The mass media establishes ideological standards that if achieved will equate with happiness and acceptance. However, most girls are never able to meet up to those standards for numerous reasons, which will cause a great deal of…

    • 507 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Body Image Oratory

    • 948 Words
    • 4 Pages

    What if I told you that little girls everywhere idolized a woman who is five foot nine and weighs only 110 pounds. Her bust in 39 inches, her waist only eighteen, and her hips measuring in at mere 33 inches. You may think me a little crazy. Her name is Barbie. Created in March 1959 Barbie was used to fill a gap in the ever growing doll market (Barbie). But should little girls really be idolizing this woman? A life size barbie would have a body mass index of only16.24 which falls into the category of anorexic (Barbie). With society emulating such a being, we are forced to ask ourselves, does society's view of the ideal human being affect an individual's view of them self? The answer is yes. Due to the stress society puts on perfection, the individual is forced to put that same stress on them self.…

    • 948 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    has found that mothers who are fixated on their body image are more likely to…

    • 489 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the essay, “The Globalization of Eating Disorders,” Susan Bordo says images in magazines and other media influence young men and women. In order to be admired by their peers they would have to look like the fashion models in magazines and other media sources. I agree in today’s society these images do influence men and women because men and women are always in competition with one another to be respected, accepted, and admired by their peers. I know this from experience.…

    • 643 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    “Girl” & Barbie Doll

    • 2455 Words
    • 10 Pages

    In contrast, the short story “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid suggests that women are sentenced to patriarchy as a result of socially constructed gender stereotypes. She criticizes the idealized patriarchal norms and pressures which overshadow the lives of women. Starting early on in their childhood, little girls are explicitly exposed to the pressures and expectations of how they should live. As a result of gender stereotypes, young girls are brainwashed to believe that their role as a woman is a domestic homemaker and that they should always be kempt and maintain a feminine outer appearance. Kincaid ultimately criticizes how women and girls are trapped under a system of patriarchy that can not be erased.…

    • 2455 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Media and Body Image

    • 1083 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Women around the world, from different age groups and cultures share a common problem; they are not happy with their appearances. Most images of ideal beauty imposed by various media devices make women feel that they do not meet the cultural or social standard. "Women are, taught to see their bodies in parts, and to evaluate each part separately. Breasts, feet, hips, waistline, neck, eyes, nose, complexion, hair, and so on-each in turn is submitted to an anxious, fretful, often despairing scrutiny." (Sontag) Women see magazines from cover to cover in which unrealistically beautiful and skinny girls are collaged on ever single page. Body image is greatly affected by the mass media 's portrayal of the thin ideal body type.…

    • 1083 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Social Construction

    • 804 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Not only does a social construct set standards for how men and women should act but there are many beliefs as to what men and women should look like. The Beauty Myth, a book by Naomi Wolf, looks at an interesting tribe in Nigeria known as the Wodaabes. In this tribe male beauty is obsessed over. Men spend hours in make up sessions to compete in beauty contests judged by women. Also in this society the women hold economic and political power.…

    • 804 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Unrealistic Body Image

    • 510 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The media is responsible for creating ideals about beauty and body image, it can influence self esteem and acceptance, but can cause major harm. The media tends to make people strive to achieve an unrealistic image of perfection, a stereotype of beauty, and have led to a decline in self acceptance. Teenagers learn what society deems beautiful mainly from the media, they are overwhelmed with photos, magazines, television and movies on what is considered the ideal body (“Body Image”). According to the article, “Recent studies have found that by the time a woman is seventeen years old, she has received more than 250,000 commercial messages through the media” (“Body Image”). The majority of the media today presents the perfect body to the public,…

    • 510 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics