I extracted this soundfile from an interview Nancy Pelosi gave to National Public Radio (NPR) on the topic of equality.
She was referring to the Fifties, around the time some of your parents were born.
http://youtu.be/KkhxvCS5Me8
This is a clear case of a representation imposed upon women that had become the default assumption of an entire society.
What examples can you come up with in contemporary society (concrete, tangible, micro-example) show that women are still not in control of their own representation. Or, to the contrary, do you have examples that show that to some extent they are acquired some power of self-representation.
Use COMMENTS for your entry and REPLY to a classmate's comment.
YOU MUST BOTH COMMENT AND REPLY.
Contrary to many contemporary viewpoints on this matter, I believe that women have acquired the power of self-representation. Regarding the Nancy Pelosi clip, that was the unfortunate viewpoint of the general consensus in the 1950s. But here in 2013, women not only control their own voice, but also have some power over the voice of men. A major tenet of progressive masculism calls into question the consequences of the feminist movement. Ferrell Christensen states that progressive masculism “welcomes many of the societal changes promoted by feminists, while stating that many aimed at reducing sexism against women have had the effect of increasing it against men.” One of the major topics of the modern day is violence against women. While this is an important matter that must be addressed, there is no such concern over violence against men. In fact, violence against men is often depicted in the media as humorous; whereas, in reality, violence against men is just as important a matter as violence against women. (See this news report on violence against men: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlFAd4YdQks) In this clip, newscasters tape people’s reactions to a woman abusing her boyfriend in public. One woman cheers and chants “good for her.” The newscaster asked one man why he didn’t call the police and he replied, “I am a police officer.” Even certain officers of the law do not take this matter seriously. All of the passersby attributed the violence to the assumption that the man cheated on the woman who was abusing him. Women may be raised aspiring to be supermodels, etc, but women are also often taught at an early age that all men are untrustworthy. To sum up a long winded response, women certainly do have a voice and the feminist movement gave them that voice years ago. After all, most men in the media are attacked by feminist groups for saying basically anything (positive or negative) about any woman. All men fear being labeled a misogynist, yet no one seems to fear being labeled a misandrist. It is such a benign term that it is rarely used – misandry is the dislike of, contempt for, or ingrained prejudice against men and the male sex. These words are so uncommon and underused, that masculism, misandrist, and misandry, all come up as incorrect words on spell check, while feminism, misogynist, and misogyny do not.
ReplyDeleteI understand - and completely agree with - your point that violence against men rarely receives the attention it deserves. I just want to point out that the feminist outcries that you talk about are considered very radical.
DeleteThe majority of feminists don't hate men, and feminism is in no way a synonym for misandry. A feminist just believes that people should be equal in society, regardless of gender (as well as sexuality, race, ethnicity, and handicap, and these are also encompassed by feminism).
Unfortunately, for many different reasons, feminism has a bad rap and people misunderstand what feminism actually is. But feminist ideals embrace men's rights as much as women's rights, even though individual women might not.
I don't think we are still in control of our image because if we were #1 you would see women of all sizes, shapes in the media. #2 We would ALSO pay respect to female role models based on their achievements and not just their looks #4 have you noticed how high power or accomplished woman get portrait in the media? #5 Getting called degrading slurs we are called in these music videos is just mind boggling to me --but these rappers are paying the bills so they get to downgrade us a much as they want.
ReplyDeleteI've asked a couple of little girls that are family/daughters of friends, what do you want to be when you grow up? their answer is ALWAYS: a singer, a model, a dancer, an actress, a celebrity. Their answer doesn't shock me, it's what they are learning on TV. I'm not saying that wanting to be that is wrong, but they know they have other options?
Little girls are being thought from an early age that they have to look a certain way to be beautiful. They are also being exposed to sexified things every day of their life.
I couldn't agree more Leslie. The media also seems to portray women as sexual objects rather than as regular women. The sad part is that the people starring in these music videos, movies, etc., are ignorant to the fact that by acting so promiscuous in their projects, they're actually setting a bad name for women. For example, celebrities such as Kim Kardashian, Rihanna, and Nicki Minaj to name a few, have careers that seem to be solely built on exposing themselves and their bodies in such a way that young girls find appealing because this is what the media portrays as being "sexy" or even beautiful. Therefore, this is what young girls tend to look up to. In these cases, those celebrities are controlling the way they're represented because they know what makes money and what will appeal to an older audience, particularly men. However, they also seem to be oblivious to the fact that while they're luring in men, they are also impacting these little girls that you speak of as well.
DeleteI would have to disagree with you, Leslie. As I was reading your post, I was thinking to myself that although your post does have some truth in it, there are also many fallacies. In regards to your first argument that we do not see women of all shapes and sizes in the media, this is simply not true. Within the last couple of years especially, a large variety of female pop culture personas emerged in the media. Take Melissa McCarthy, for example. I can’t think of a person in the world who doesn’t adore her. She is an outstanding actress and comedienne, and everyone is aware of her accomplishments. It doesn’t matter to anyone that she is obese, and she in fact often uses her size as part of her comedy. Look at Adele for another example. She is loved and adored by millions around the world, and she is a fabulous singer. She is thought so highly of that she just won the Oscar for Best Original Song, even though it was arguably the worst Bond song in the history of the franchise. Perhaps the best example of this would be Oprah. She is probably one of the most powerful women in the world. She is also middle aged, black, and overweight, yet she is loved and adored by millions. These are just three examples, but there are many more female celebrities that do not fit the traditional stereotypical feminine beauty role. In regards to your second argument, I do not see how the media does not pay respect to female role models. The outward appearance of female role models usually doesn’t play a factor in their portrayal. Take for example, Amelia Earhart. Most people have no idea what she looks like, but her name and reputation are still respected. A similar example would be Sally Ride. Many people are unaware what she looks like, or have only seen a few pictures of her years ago, but her reputation and accomplishments are also still respected nonetheless. In regards to your third argument, only certain high powered and accomplished women get portrayed negatively in the media, but most necessarily do not. Take for example, Hilary Clinton, Condoleezza Rice, Nancy Pelosi, Sandra Day O’Connor, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan. All of these women are/were accomplished and high up in governmental ranks, yet all of them are portrayed in a positive light in the media. In regards to your fourth argument, I absolutely agree with you. But I do not feel like this occurs because women have a lack of voice. Everyone is being degraded and cursed at in certain rap songs – both women and men alike. In fact, I believe it is because of the powerful female voice in today’s society that this argument is directed mainly at women, when in fact, it can be attributed to women, men, homosexuals, and certain races.
DeleteA good example of how women in 2013 do not control representations of themselves in the media is the following statistic: the percentage of female characters in films has been dropping steadily over the past five years. It's now at 28.4% compared to 32.8% in 2007.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-women-film-20130513,0,2661695.story
Other interesting statistics from the study mentioned above- 31.6% of women characters in popular films are depicted wearing revelaing clothing. That number jumps to 56.6% when the women depicted are teenagers.
The issue here is related to several factors. The most prominent one is that these films (and most media) are produced almost entirely by men, which limits the agency of women to create onscreen roles that are truly representative of their realities. In short, there are still persistent significant gaps in gender equality even today.
"Other interesting statistics from the study mentioned above- 31.6% of women characters in popular films are depicted wearing revelaing clothing. That number jumps to 56.6% when the women depicted are teenagers."
DeleteWhile i find nothing wrong wearing form fitting clothes or even clothes that are revealing if they are done in good taste, I think it goes beyond what they are wearing, it is how we are often presented in these characters.
While I agree with Will that women have come a long way in gaining representation and equality in society, I also believe that the fight for equality is not over for both races. A good example of analyzing this inequality between the sexes is the serious topic of rape. In recent Western culture, there have been popularized misconceptions about rape and sexual violence. This article by the Daily Mail (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-369262/Women-blame-raped.html) states,
ReplyDelete"More than a quarter [of Britons] also believe a woman is at least partly responsible for being raped if she wears sexy or revealing clothing, or is drunk, the study found."
This misconception highlights society's misunderstandings of rape and sexual violence against women with the idea that women "asking for it" based on the clothes they wear or the way they act. Furthermore, this also hints at the idea that rape is not a crime of violence, but rather a crime of lust to be attributed to the victim.
On the other hand, as Will previously stated, there are also great misconceptions regarding abuse and rape against men. Stereotypically, men are thought to be strong and free of abuse from a woman (under the same stereotype, women are attributed to being homemakers and carers). Therefore, when a man is raped or abused, the media rarely takes it seriously, highlights the issue, or brings it up in society. This idea that women are abused and men are the abusers is very prevalent in our society today and can even be dissected through this screenshot of the Department for Child Protection website, http://i.imgur.com/FoFC7ow.png . In short, both sexes have issues that work against their equality and the only way to overcome these issues is to break down these stereotypes.
Just to clarify, the Department of Child Protection that I was citing is based in Australia, but it is still representative of the Western world, Western development, and Western stereotyping!
ReplyDeleteWhile I see where Will and Joe are coming from in terms of men and women's rights, I don't think gendered violence is a surefire indicator of the power to self-represent.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that women have this power; let's look at how women are portrayed in video games as an example. First of all, the most recent studies on game players show that there are an equal number of women and men playing video games. But despite the relatively equal gender proportion, the majority of video games are catered to men. A study done in 2010 (cited in this podcast, http://podcast.cbc.ca/spark/plus-spark_20101102_jenjensonfull.mp3) found that 85% of playable characters in video games are men. When women are found in video games - playable characters or not - they are extremely sexualized both in their physique and in their clothing (or lack thereof). Lara Croft or the women in any of the Grand Theft Auto games are perfect examples of the buxom and barely-dressed females that are incredibly common in most video games.
There are, of course, games designed with women as the intended audience, but these games don't have the same sort of marketing campaigns that male-oriented games do. As such, they don't receive the same sort of media attention, and so women are continually exposed to the same sort of representation of themselves, and they internalize this representation.
Another interesting point about the video games is the 4 different ways women are portrayed in them:
Delete1. females as sex objects or prizes
2. females as victims
3. females in feminine roles
4. females as heroes or action characters
Aside for the study that showed that only 15% of video games portrayed women as heroes or as action characters (I assume it was the same one you mentioned above), 21% portrayed women as victims/“damsel in distress” and 28% were portrayed as sex objects based upon physical appearance or sexually-oriented actions.
To take on a different approach, women also have no control of the way they are represented in the military. There are many things that men are able to do that women cannot that demonstrates the inequality between both sexes. For example, the fact that women cannot serve in combat is definitely not by choice. In a recent lawsuit on the pentagon, four women challenged the pentagon and said that because they are not allowed to serve in battle, they're unable to be promoted to about 238,000 positions across the Armed Forces. Hence, these 238,000 positions are obviously being held by men. That's 238,000 other jobs that women are being kept from just because of their gender. This also represents women as being somewhat weak. People may feel that because they cannot fight in battle, they're automatically not as strong as men or physically or emotionally capable of fighting. I'm sure that many women (more than the four I mentioned), want to show their strength and capabilities in battle, but they cannot because the government will not allow them to.
ReplyDeleteGreat point Alethia. That shows that women have the right to be part of the Army, but the meaning of equality is being redefined when the idea of placing a woman in a higher rank is not to be entertained by the Army.
DeleteAlethia,
DeleteThat's a great point, as Melissa stated earlier. However: the ban on women serving in combat arms professions was lifted in January of this year.
In fact, the Marine Corps has opened the infantry officers school to female candidates. To date four women have attended the qualification course. None have passed as of this writing, but that may change in the near future.
Here's an article with further detail:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/30/us/marines-test-women-for-infantry-roles.html?pagewanted=all
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ReplyDeleteThe media still has an enormous impact on society's image of a beautiful woman. These women are very thin and sometimes airbrushed to unreal proportions and influence a large number of women to put themselves under pressure to look "perfect" and to "lose more weight."
ReplyDeleteThere is an epidemic here in the U.S of women who have unhealthy relationships with their bodies and with food. I once found a photo on Tumblr of an anorexic-looking model and its caption was "Eating isn't very Chanel." This was so disturbing to me; that it's considered fashionable to starve oneself.
The point is, as long as society supports this impossible standard of beauty, the epidemic will persist and many woman will never feel comfortable in their own bodies due to the constant pressure to look "perfect."
Yes, it almost seems like brainwashing into giving women and young girls a eating disorder like bulimia or anorexia. They don't even know/realize that by this process they're killing their metabolism making it an on-going-cycle in destroying their own health. Also, how many have been convinced that they must look like "barbie"?
DeleteCarrie, I agree entirely with what you say in your post. I, however, feel that your post only helps to prove that women have gained a powerful voice in the recent years. Let me explain. Everything you say is true. Society does have a specific image of a beautiful woman and imposes that image on all women. But doesn’t society also have a specific image of an attractive man that is imposed on men. Hairy men are deemed to be unattractive and men are now beginning to shave or even wax themselves. Short men are considered to be unattractive as well, prompting many men to wear lifts or insoles. Obese, or even slightly overweight, men are considered to be unattractive. Throughout all aspects of popular culture, men and women insult large men for being overweight, women are almost always portrayed as being “too good” for a large man, and spouses of large men constantly try to slim their men down. Bald men are always portrayed as unattractive, prompting men to soak their heads in chemicals to prevent baldness or restore lost hair. Also, out of shape (non-muscular) men are considered to be unattractive prompting men to take all kinds of steroids and partake in extensive, unnecessary exercise regimes. Men are urged to look like Matthew McConaughey or Channing Tatum, etc. It is difficult for a man to call a woman unattractive right to her face, because of your arguments about female beauty (which are all valid). But on the flip side, in almost all instances, women can and will call a man unattractive without so much as a thought about it. Women have such a powerful voice today (and are somewhat in control in this manner) that a man is deemed wrong if he comments, either positively or negatively, on the attractiveness of a woman, but the same is not true for women commenting on men.
DeleteI think women have come a long way in gaining equality. Just look at the past couple presidential elections with the women candidates. Also, it looks like Hillary is gearing up for the 2016 election. She almost became the democratic nominee for 2008. So in some ways, they have come far. Even though in other ways, such as not making as much money as men may still be lacking.
ReplyDeleteThere are other ways in the western world where they still have a road ahead of them but compared to other parts of the world, I'd say there has been much progression in achieving equality. Other parts of the world still have a long way to go, in particular the middleeast. In that part of the world, they are still very far from having equal rights. For example, if a woman gets raped there, and is in court the womans testimony is worth only half of a mans.
I agree Adam. I was shocked to read recently in the news about rape victims from the middle east being tortured and killed because of their impurity. As if they had a choice in being raped. This always saddens me, and shows that humanity in general still has a long way to go to reach equality. I like to think that the lessons our own nation has learned through feminism and the women's rights movement should used as an example for those nations in the middle east that still fail at basic forms of equality and justice for women.
DeleteHillary Clinton has the highest favorability ratings of any member of the Obama Administration. (see link on my personal post below) So, I agree with you that many women are moving up the ladder despite the gender problems that still are present today. We, as women, need to work together to better ourselves as individuals. This, in turn, will make the entire sex look good and possibly help remove biases and stereoptypes associated with women and the work we can do and places where we belong.
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ReplyDeleteI remember reading once that 75% of women's magazines featured cover articles about enhancing one's physique and were 10 times more likely to contain advertisements and articles about dieting than men's magazines. A magazine in Australia chose to run an experiment against the practiced "advertising norms". It printed pictures of overweight as well as regular weight women in one of its issues. While met with enormously positive feedback from its readers, its advertisers were up in arms. They ended up reverting back to the "accepted advertising norms".
ReplyDeleteThis article I found extremely interesting as I did not realize how extensive the gender gap really is in the U.S. - what baffled me was the following quote: "Such figures belie America’s self-image as a world leader with enlightened values; the nation actually ranks 71st in female legislative representation, behind Bangladesh, Sudan and United Arab Emirates." There is something really frightening about the fact that we are "seen" as modern yet we really have a lot of progress to make.
Yes, we do have a lot of progress to make. However, considering that 50 years ago women were not allowed to vote, look at the progress we have made in so short a period of time. As a country we are still a baby compared to established countries from around the world, but i would venture to say that we have grown faster and stronger than any other country in the history of the world. The changes that we make, for better or for worse, are enacted around the globe as the model for developing countries. Women may not be represented now as they will be in the future, but thinking about it, we are constantly developing the future at a rate unprecedented, and will eventually change the world to where no country would ever think of restricting women's rights. That, i believe is what the "Power of Self Representation" means.
DeleteI would like to start off by stating that I know very little about feminism, women's rights, etc. From looking at the past in the short video and comparing it to the present, women have obviously come a long way from their misrepresented, and essentially "second-class" era. I feel the suffrage movement and feminism in general have boosted women to a status that is equal, if not greater to men. Let's start with a comical example. Not being 21 yet, and not having a fake ID, going to clubs and bars is a very difficult thing for me to do. For girls my age, and sometimes even younger, they put on make-up and a tight dress and they're allowed in. It gets better, most of the time they're allowed in for free. I don't mean to sound demeaning in any way by this but its an odd fact that I have noticed in today's culture.
ReplyDeleteOn a more serious note, women have worked hard to get to this point of essential equality. Throughout grade school, I realized that most of the girls were more serious, studious, and scored higher on tests than the boys in our classes. Girls mature faster than boys so this may be a reason for this, but the trend has oddly continued into higher education. In this forbes article a trend has been seen since the 1970s . This trend essentially shows that more women have been enrolling in college than men since the 1970s, and the trend is continuing upwards. According to this article the US average male-female ratio in higher education is about 40% male and 60% female. This fact is astounding and only leads one to assume that women will in fact hold more footing in the future economy as better earners than men, due to being more educated. Basically the men who opt-out of going to college will be working as laborers, while women are dominating universities and will be more dominant players in the workforce as well.
Link to forbes article: http://www.forbes.com/sites/ccap/2012/02/16/the-male-female-ratio-in-college/
Delete"I feel the suffrage movement and feminism in general have boosted women to a status that is equal, if not greater to men. Let's start with a comical example. Not being 21 yet, and not having a fake ID, going to clubs and bars is a very difficult thing for me to do. For girls my age, and sometimes even younger, they put on make-up and a tight dress and they're allowed in. It gets better, most of the time they're allowed in for free. I don't mean to sound demeaning in any way by this but its an odd fact that I have noticed in today's culture."
DeleteHi Michael, I don't see how this example has boosted women to a status that is equal, if not greater to men. Here is the deal. They want a lot more females in the club to lure men in that will purchase table service/botte and spend more money. It is not because we are cute, it's because the more females they have in the club the more men want to come in. The more men want to come in, the more "exclusive" they can be and force you to buy bottles and charge you at the door. Sure, it's somewhat an advantage to get in for free and never have to face door issues because at the end of the day we don't have to give you the time a day but it is not because we've come a along way.
In the future, please write a brief synopsis of the article's content rather than just leave the link. Classmates will decide based on your recommendation whether to follow up.
ReplyDeleteI believe that one can say women have acquired the "power of self representation". Do they control the worlds view on them and dictate how everyone sees them? No, but no one does. Women are uniquely powerful in that they were born with specific and unique skill sets, that a man can never have. They are able to fight as hard as men, think as well as men, and have the power to make men do things they never would without a woman's persuasive abilities. Women are not all powerful, but increasingly you see women that can multitask in their lives, having successful careers, raising families, and doing all that a man can do and possibly more.
ReplyDeleteHow can one see a woman as being less powerful or inferior when they can do all that a man can do and yet were given the ability to produce offspring and nurture them biologically? The female has at this point in time, proved to the world, and i would say changed the worlds perception of them, to one where man and woman alike, can no longer argue that they are inferior to men, and very soon may surpass men in all that they do.
Hey David, while I understand your opinion that women have gained the "power of self representation," I would also argue that by writing that women are "uniquely powerful in that they were born with specific and unique skill sets that a man can never have," the stereotype that women are inherently different from men in some way is also reinforced. Instead of viewing women as someday surpassing men, we should view women and men under an equal light. By separating women and classifying them differently based on their biological abilities and makeup, we also create a social divide that can (and will) be exploited to promote differences between the sexes.
Deletei can appreciate the fact that seeing men and women differently creates a division between the sexes, but i fail to understand why that would be a problem. One wouldn't expect a short person to play in the NBA, regardless if people have, the same way one wouldn't expect an ugly person to model. By acknowledging that people are different, and the sexes both have their different attributes, people can learn to utilize their talents and potentials to the fullest, rather than expecting every one to be equally good at everything regardless of their individual skills.
DeleteAnalogies tend to have short legs, meaning they cannot cover the whole ground. Just because a person is super tall, it does not mean s/he has to play in the NBA. Nor does it mean that all beautiful people wan to be models. To attribute someone a role based on their physiological traits deprives them of their freedom of representing themselves in the terms they choose. This is exactly what the original ideology of feminism was about, and it was expressed in the provocative gesture of burning bras. You can read semiologically all sorts of messages in that act: rejection of femininity, or affirmation of femininity through the rejection of the imprisonment and constriction signified by the bra, and so on.
DeleteThe household is another example of women not being in control of their representation. All domestic duties falls on the female, given both sex reside and utilize the house, its always the woman, cleaning, cooking, ironing...In addition to some of my peers points the media reinforces certain points. When we see a commercial on TV about a new vacuum or cleaning agents, who is the person utilizing these products? A woman. The media is telling us, Ladies remember your place in the world. Let's look at a more recent stir cause by a Swiffer ad, using Rosie the Riveter to promote the product, without realizing the message that is being sent to women.
ReplyDeleteMelissa, I would like to start by saying that I agree with everything you’ve said. But, much like my earlier arguments state, I feel that your post, whilst being true, only enhances the fact that women have developed a strong voice. Everyone has heard the argument you are making multiple times. In fact, when some men (myself included) see a commercial for a stove, or a pan, or bleach, or a vacuum cleaner, or cleaning products, etc. and the person using these products is a woman, we actually cringe thinking, “someone’s going to get in trouble for this.” Yet, have you ever seen a commercial for a Craftsman drill, for example? There’s always a man wielding the drill, or riding a lawnmower, or cleaning roofs or gutters, or climbing a ladder, etc. Your same argument applies here. Men are stereotypically placed in these roles that, frankly, not too many men appreciate. Men are perfectly capable of doing housework, cooking, etc, and conversely, women are perfectly capable of putting up drywall, laying floors, and climbing ladders to the roof to sweep leaves out of a gutter.
DeleteYes, if you look into the marketing aspects - women are used for objects which are "womanly" like cleaning products and such. The men are in the commercials with tools and gardening and what not. It kind of is ridiculous how even nowadays there is a separation between what a woman should do and what a man should do. Many men these days still have a problem stepping aside and having a woman do "manly" duties like changing a tire or even a light bulb.
DeleteI agree and even if in a non demanding macho way, men have come to expect that of their girlfriend or wife.
ReplyDeleteLeslie, your statement would have been perfectly valid about 30 years ago. I am dismayed to inform you than no man today under the age of 30 (and that’s a conservative figure) expects that from his female significant other. This is based simply on the fact that for the past 30 or so years, women have been raised with the notion that they can be more than a housewife. While this notion is perfectly valid, most take it to mean that being a housewife (or partaking in any sort of homey tasks) is somehow wrong. Men are most certainly aware of this fact. But I beg the question, what’s wrong with making a person your care about a meal? The answer is nothing. Whether it be a man or a woman, there is nothing wrong with cooking a meal for your significant other. But, again, it is the strong female voice that makes it only wrong for a woman to cook for her man. It is not seen as “anti-feminist” (actually, it is often seen as romantic) if a man cooks a gourmet meal for his woman, but it is, all of a sudden, a step backwards for the feminist movement if a woman makes a sandwich for her man.
DeleteSometimes I asked myself the same question "do women think?" I may persecuted for saying this but I believe it is good that women have equal rights as men, however we have pushed so far beyond that. Now it seems that women are no longer valued or held in the esteem that they used to be. I believe in the name of women's freedoms we have exploited ourselves. This may be an unfair assumption but I do not believe men value women as the used to. I believe this is because we devalue ourselves, allowing ourselves to be viewed as sex objects. In todays society women give away their power too freely through promiscuity, it's no wonder that we are not respected amongst men. "Do Women Think?" the answer of course is yes!! We are capable of so much and have come so far I hate to see it all thrown away. I believe to maintain our rights we have to respect ourselves and demand the respect of others and not sell ourselves so freely to man. It's still an unfair world out there, promiscuous men are called players, women on the other hand are viewed as easy or loose. So ladies stop and think what image do I wish to portray, we have to establish our value once more.
ReplyDeleteWomen are objects and not people - women are sold just as much as they are used to sell things. The media is doing us an injustice and we as a gender group cannot do enough to gain control of our own sex back. This is unfortunate and it scares me to see how it may only get worse or more difficult for the little girls growing up nowadays or in days to come.
DeleteMichelle, objectification is a two way street. Some men do objectify women, but that’s not true for all men. And the same goes for women. I can’t tell you the number of times that I’ve been shot down based solely on a single glance. I was just reading an article in the paper about an app called LuLu. It’s an app where women can rate men. They can rate a man’s appearance, his qualities (both good and bad), and his sexual ability. The man is then assigned a rating on a scale of 1 to 10, and this rating can only be seen by women (men are denied access to the app). The women can also upload a picture of the guy that they are rating. The creator of the app, Alexandra Chong, claims that she is doing a service for all women of the world. She also claims that she is putting the girls in control. Well, I’ve got news for you Alexandra, you’re only creating more of a schism between the sexes, and you should be ashamed. Could you imagine if a guy made these same comments and started a Yelp page to rate women? Enough said.
DeleteThis is a very interesting account to read about the lack of representation women have for themselves, especially in the area of politics.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.american.edu/spa/wpi/upload/2012-Men-Rule-Report-web.pdf
And I quote. "Today, if we glance at the television screen, peruse the newspaper, listen to the radio, or scan the
Internet, we might be tempted to conclude that women have made remarkable gains. Nancy Pelosi
currently serves as the Minority Leader in the U.S. House of Representatives. Secretary of State (and
former U.S. Senator) Hillary Clinton not only received 18 million votes when she sought the Democratic
nomination for president, but she also has the highest favorability ratings of any member of
the Obama Administration. And in 2011, polls repeatedly placed former vice presidential candidate
Sarah Palin in the top tier of potential candidates for the Republican presidential nomination."
But aside from politics, even in the workforce women today are still not given equal salaries as men. Of course there are exceptions to each "rule," however not enough to say that there is equality. Women in the U.S. are paid 77 cents from every dollar paid to a man. This is ridiculous and I do not understand why we cannot get over that and create equality. I do know that it takes baby steps, and as with my previous examples, women are surely creating names for themselves as individuals and as a gender group too.
In the media, women are below men and way more controlled. They are seen as sex objects, used to sell things - as it's always been. Campagins to have plus-size models and more "everyday" people on TV has been put into action but not taken as far as it should be. However, I do see some sitcoms on TV with large women and women who are actually in control of their husbands. But the media and magazines doesn't really change - it's always the skinny, made-up (or photoshopped) woman who all girls try to be but never can be, on the cover. We need real women on the cover and not women who have personal stylists waiting on their hands and feet.
Michelle, you said that in the media, women are below men and are way more controlled. This is absolutely a fallacy. I can’t remember a television show where the wife doesn’t control the husband; the girlfriend doesn’t control the boyfriend; and even where the sister doesn’t control the brother. Look at Everybody Loves Raymond and King of Queens, two shows where the wives treat their husbands like garbage on a regular basis. Debra calls Ray an idiot in every single episode of the show. Carrie called Doug a fat pig in half of the episodes, and in the other half, she is punching him and ordering him around. These are just two shows for example, but I could go on and on. The man never gets to “win” anymore, as far as arguments go. I remember when the man could sometimes (not all the time) “win” against his significant other – those were the days.
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