John Reitan

Gender Stereotypes
Gender stereotypes often go unnoticed in our society, whether its through advertising, day to day activities, or the types of entertainment we enjoy. In the following media clips men and women are given particular gender roles to play in a variety of situations engineered towards typical male and female stereotypes. Whether its through television, music, or other types of media, people have become desensitized to the ongoing gender crisis. In the first media clip, we see the gender stereotype as it relates to different age groups. First, children are introduced to gender roles at an early age through television advertisements. The female children are introduced to the Cherry Blossom

John Reitan

Market and the Sweet Lilly Castle play- sets where imaginary work related roles such as ice-cream vendor, a sweet little princess in a castle waiting for her prince, and even shopping in a supermarket are portrayed as desirable roles for females. Also the Babys so real dolls give the young girls an opportunity to pretend to be mothers taking care of their children.

Oppositely, the male children are introduced to the Tonka Pods construction set. In this set the boys can handle the big manly, hands on jobs of hauling dirt, water and rocks. The pods can even interlock so that the boys can work together in a manly construction environment. In addition, the boys are also fed the notion of the Hot Wheels Octo Battle play set. In this set they can change the color of their toy vehicles and battle a large octopus in an oversized race track. Females are taught to be caring and compassionate, while

boys are taught the paternalism way of thinking that they must act as the tough, dominant ones. These kids have the idealistic gender roles hard coded into their minds from the time they could effectively absorb useful information.

In to the

the adolescent/teen years, this clip tries show how music can also have a serious effect on way gender is viewed. Through musical artists

such as Eminem, Rihanna, and Miley Cyrus, males are played out to be strong and dominant members of society, while women are portrayed as gentle, sexy, and submissive. And finally, as adults we should have gender figured out right? The last part of this clip shows the discrepancies between how men and women are and how each gender thinks relationships should work. As many people who rely on essentialism would believe, all of the above circumstances are created by the media to enhance the publics view on gender roles in our society.

One time or another, from personal experience, or through television and movies we have all seen the environment inside of a gym. Males are characterized as being the dominant, macho men of the weight room floor, by lifting heavy weights, avoiding cardio machines for fear of looking feminine, and trying to strike up conversations with the attractive females who enter the gym. The stereotype is that men must define themselves through what society tells them is their gender identity in order to feel confident. Inversely, females are portrayed as physically submissive individuals who travel to the gym to converse with each other, and try to squeeze in a light workout, and try not to be bothered by the muscle bound males surrounding them. But what if the roles were reversed? This clip shows a comical bit consisting of men and women role swapping in

order for viewers to gain an understanding of the typical male and or female situations in the exercise world.

My personal opinion constructionism, or the upbringing, is the major

of these clips is that result of a social key that advertising

companies like to use as a marketing tool for kids toy products. Children are told by the media that girls should like to play with dolls, go shopping, play the cashier or pretend to be a mother. And boys are told that they should like to play in dominant groups with construction equipment, and race cars with some sort of mechanical attachments. Children are the main targets for putting together an idealistic, patriarchy or a society where males hold the dominant power; as Nelson Mandela once said: There can be no keener revelation of a societys soul than the way in which it treats its children. (brainyquote.com).

After the child/adolescent stage, teens struggle to find their identity and will latch onto objects or idols that they look up to. For this reason music and celebrities are also strategically engineered by the media to help shape the image of an ideal middle or high school age individual. During adult hood we also face gender identity problems, and we are told by the media of how men should have a masculine job, or are mechanically inclined, and are somewhat successful in life. Meanwhile women are portrayed in the media as sex idols for all ages. They are told how they should dress, talk, and even be educated.

In summary, men and women must break away from what the media says we should identify with, and let our own individuality define our gender roles in society. Overall, male and female gender roles in society are designed by the media to create an ideal culture. Television shows, games, movies, magazines, internet, even our hobbies can be used as a form of manipulation in order to shape societys view on gender roles. Stereotypes can subconsciously form within our minds as to what a typical male or female role should be. Do we agree with the Essentialism or the Constructionism? Are we driving towards our natural, God given gender differences? Or, Are we the result of our social upbringing in society, and the tolerance of being told what typical males and females should or

should not like? We must see beyond reasonable doubt that each person has an individual identity, which is not defined by the media, but by their own actions, and life choices.

References "Nelson Mandela." BrainyQuote.com. Xplore Inc, 2013. 8 November 2013. http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/n/nelsonmand178795.html

paneldiscussion102. Medias Portrayal of Gender Roles. You Tube. 10 December 2010. Web. 5 November 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2bYinZ6RX0

Altermotion Media Entertainment . balancebyvisalus. Reverse Gender Stereotypes At The Gym. Youtube. 30 January 2013. Web. 5 November 2013. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QI7S7mKYHhY&hd=1

New Zealand Mortgage Finance. Click here to see the bigger picture.Image. nzmf.co.nz 5November 2013. 5 November 2013. http://www.nzmf.co.nz/

Gender Sterotypes in Advertising.Cartoon. wordpress.com October 2012. 7 November 2013.

http://iampwrhungry1.wordpress.com/2012/10/

Dennis Phipps. The Ideal Society? Book cover image.lulu.com 15 October 2009. 7 November 2013. http://www.lulu.com/shop/dennisphipps/the-ideal-society/hardcover/product-267437.html