The song “If I were a boy” by Beyonce Knowles is about a girl who says she would treat her girlfriend a whole lot better if she were a boy. Unfortunately she is stereotyping the typical male and almost makes them look bad. Of course there are men who do not treat their girlfriends right, however, there are plenty that do and those might see this song as offensive.
The first few sentences describe the stereotypical guy actions; when getting out of bed dress however the want and go drink with the guys. It makes it sound like males can do whatever they want without any consequences. However, in reality males usually have jobs where appearance could be an important factor and drinking during the day is out of the question.
The song also describes how bad she was treated by her boyfriend and that if she was a boy she would treat her girlfriend completely different. She says, “If I were a boy/ I think I could understand/How it feels to love a girl/I swear I’d be a better man” “I’d listen to her/’Cause I know how it hurts/When you lose the one you wanted/’Cause he’s taking you for granted/And everything you had got destroyed.”
It is basically saying that men do not know how to keep a relationship and how to treat women the right way. It is extremely sexist towards men and is a assumption of what a man’s life looks like on a daily basis.
Of course not all men act this way, this song is everything but in favor of men and gives them a bad image. I would not be surprised of some males would be insulted by this song as the lyrics continue to stereotype the male.
It is mostly young teenagers who listen to this kind of music and who view Beyonce as a role model, giving this audience the wrong message about boys. They believe that because Beyonce sings about it, it is really true and that all males are this way. Of course they have their “tough” image but that does not mean they cannot treat a girl the correct way or have a successful relationship.
lyrics:
http://www.metrolyrics.com/if-i-were-a-boy-lyrics-beyonce-knowles.html
Posted in Uncategorized April 18, 2010
I am sure we have all heard the myth that all blondes are dumb. It is a worldwide myth because I remember this saying from when I was little in my own home country. Of course we all know this is not true. I know plenty of blonde girls who are everything but stupid. There have been plenty of times however that I have been somewhere and the comment was made about a girl and her hair color. Why is it that not more people take this as an insult? Maybe because it has become a norm in society.
There are numerous commercials, advertisements, movies and stories about the dumb blonde. Most of those commercials and advertisements all make it seem like blondes rely more on their looks than their intelligence. Then there are the stars who are as well stereotyped by their hair color such as Britney Spears (although many of her actions have a lot to do with it as well), Christina Aguilera and Miley Cyrus and the blonde actresses who played “dumb” in movies and tv shows such as Phoebe in Friends.
Of course the color of one’s hair has nothing to do with someone’s intellectual. We are either born with the “blonde” gene or we dye/bleach it blonde, obviously this does not mean we are born dumb or the moment we change our hair color to blonde we automatically become dumber.
I believe that because this saying is so normalized today that we just automatically relate our actions to the way we look. Blondes make an even better target for this. Fortunately there have been movies that show the exact opposite of the “dumb blonde” such as Legally Blonde. The sexist jokes however are portrayed several times in this movie.
Sexist jokes such as all blondes are stupid or blondes just want to have fun are obviously not always true. Why isn’t it that the brunette’s are dumb? Why specifically the blondes? All I know is that this saying has been around for many years and people still today use it without even thinking about what they are saying and if they might be insulting someone who is a blonde. Of course even if there were, no one would say anything about it because it is so normal in our society.
Posted in Uncategorized April 18, 2010
The movie “Enough” with Jennifer Lopez is a well-known movie about a woman who is beaten and threatened by her husband after finding out he is cheating on her. The gender roles are definitely portrayed in the beginning of the movie, however; soon after the husband hits his wife she leaves and lives a life of fear and terror with her young daughter Grace.
Slim (Jennifer Lopez) works as a working class waitress in a small café where she does not make a lot of money. After she marries Mitch she is the typical housewife who stays at home and does not have to worry about money; Mitch is the boss of the family because he provides her with everything she needs. Of course this is what society expected and what a lot of girls dream of. After they have their child Grace, Slim caught him cheating which results in him hitting and abusing her; again a sign of male toughness, control, power and violence.
After she runs away with their daughter he continues to follow, stalk, and attack her. He uses intimidation, emotional abuse, minimizing, denying and blaming, children, and threat as violence (5 ways of violence is exercised) She decides to stand up for herself and take matter into her own hands, something unusual for women because they usually do not show their limits. She then hired someone to teach her self-defense and everything related to that such as the law and what she can and cannot do when confronting her ex-husband. She ends up confronting him at his apartment, which ends up in a fight between the male and female and eventually death of the ex-husband.
The fighting back is something you do not see very often or hear about, yet there are thousands of women who are being abused by their husband or boyfriend. Unfortunately they are afraid to do something like Slim did and sometimes end up in the hospital or even dead. The gender roles in this movie are also a important factor because Slim is a middle class working girl who ends up with a wealthy man who provides her with everything she wants. He also uses this against her as the movie progresses. The fact that they have a child makes their family look even more perfect, something that society expects. Both Slim and Mitch have their gender roles as Mitch is supposedly working all day while Slim is the stay at home mom.
Of course there are many similar movies to this, however I do think it is important for women to know that there is the option of leaving a abusive relationship. More women should be more familiar with the law; of course something that Mitch made sure Slim was unaware of.
Posted in Uncategorized April 18, 2010
I have seen this advertisement by Guess in several magazines such as Vogue, the Cosmo etc. Guess is a brand for clothing; however, most of their advertisements show everything but clothes. It usually involves a single person with barely any clothes on or in this case a male and a female holding each other with a lot of skin showing. The targeting audience for these advertisements are teens, mainly young women. However, would parents really want their 12-16 year old kids to look at magazines filled with images this sexual? Doubtful.
The fact that this is a clothing advertisement and the male in this image is half naked holding the girl makes it look like he is in control. His eyes are closed and his facial expressions represent acting tough and invulnerable. The female is wearing a shirt that reveals her stomach and her bra; she is also leaning back as if she is not sure if she wants this. The look on her face and the fact that she is looking straight into the camera makes it almost look like she is asking for help.
The gender roles are portrayed by showing that he is controlling her in a sexual way representing the idea that women are sexual objects and that her purpose is to please the male whether she likes it or not. It also seems that because both male and female are attractive young people they are giving teens the idea that you have to look a certain way in order to be noticed by one another. As discussed in class it is about “the power of being looked at” which can change very quickly. Do girls really need to wear as little clothes as possible to get noticed by guys? Because many of the Guess ads are advertising this image making girls who are looking at those adds insecure about themselves.
As I said before the female is looking into the camera as she is asking for help making her look almost like a victim as the male is holding her tightly with his eyes closed; he is in control and has all the power over her. She however, does let him get away with it giving young teenagers the wrong idea of gender roles. This image gives teenagers the idea of what society expects from them; a perfect body with the thought of men always being in control of the women.
Unfortunately a lot of girls (and boys) really do believe that society expects them to have the perfect body in order to “fit in” whether this includes working out daily to get this body or use plastic surgery. Ads like this give them the wrong idea of gender and their purpose in society. And again, the fact that this image is a clothing advertisement is nowhere to be recognized.
Posted in Uncategorized April 18, 2010
I remember reading we had to read this book called “A Doll’s House” by Henrick Ibsen last semester in my English class and how it portrays the typical gender roles within a family. “A Doll’s House” is a play in the 1950s and is about a family and its main character Nora who is not content with her role in her marriage. Nora is the loving mother and wife acting exactly how she is supposed to, making it look like they have the perfect little family. Her husband was the provider who worked a lot; by providing his family with money he believed he was the perfect husband to Nora. Both man and woman have defined roles throughout the play.
It is obvious that there was no real love between Nora and her husband Torvald and that their relationship was that what society expected; Nora does not and is not allowed to work, the children are well behaved with the help from a nanny and her Torvald provides her with money and basically treats her like a doll. Because the maid does most of the “housewife” work it leaves Nora wondering what it would be like outside of the house. Nora does not show how she really feels to anyone because what she has is supposed to be what every other girl is dreaming of. Nora wanted to know what it was like to work and make money, however, he status in society prevented her from doing so. We can relate this to the public and private spheres that we have discussed in class; it is obvious that Nora is living in the private sphere as she stays at home wondering what it would be like in the outside world while Torvald is living in the public sphere working all day and taking care of the bills.
What is also interesting is that this family has a (African American) maid who takes care of the children and house chores the majority of the time; she was doing most of the chores that a typical housewife does. She is not really mentioned a lot in the book but enough to know that she is a minority who does not have enough money to take care of her own daughter who she writes regularly. It is clear that working as a maid is her best option to provide for herself because of her skin color.
Lastly, there is no equality between men and women; their roles are so defined that it is all about what society wants; breaking this gender role can have major consequences. Nora basically slams the door closed on her and Torvald’s marriage; she decides she wants to leave her role as a mother and wife and learn what it is like to work and make money. What is interesting is that Torvald is very upset with what the community will think of them. You would think he would be upset with the fact that his wife is leaving him. Instead he is more concerned with the embarrassment he will have to deal with and how bad she make him look.
Posted in Uncategorized April 17, 2010
Hanna Hall is one of the oldest buildings on the University of Bowling Green and is therefore almost inaccessible for anyone that is blind, deaf, in a wheelchair, or even on crutches. I work at Hanna Hall all summer and work there this semester every Tuesday and Thursday and realized from very early on how difficult it would be to access this building if I was physically disabled. For example, there are no doors that open automatically (by the push of a button) and the doors are rather heavy because they are so old, also, there is only one entrance that allows a person in a wheelchair to have access in the building however, this only allows you to enter the first floor because any other floors all require climbing multiple flights of stairs.
Furthermore, none of the rooms in this building have any signs with Braille lettering making it extremely difficult for a blind person to find the correct room. Again the stairs would also be a problem for someone blind; Hanna hall has so many stairs and no elevator that it would be difficult to climb all those steps with a seeing-eye dog or a cane. The hallways in Hanna Hall are big enough for anyone to walk through, however, once you get to the bathrooms (which are extremely difficult to find for anyone blind and/or deaf) it would almost be impossible for a person in a wheel chair to enter. First, the tiny hallway to the entrance of the rest room is too small for a wheel chair and once in the rest room there are no stalls for people who are physically enabled and there is not enough room for a wheelchair to go through. Basically making it impossible for someone who is in a wheelchair to use the rest rooms in Hanna Hall.
This building would not necessarily be bad for a deaf person with the exception of finding the restrooms (however, this is basically difficult to find for any BGSU student). All the rooms are provided with a chalkboard, television and projectors. The building itself needs to be updated to meet the requirements for people who are disabled; the doors are heavy and do not open automatically, there is only one ramp to access the first floor of the building, there are no elevators, no Braille lettering or signage, and the bathroom are difficult to find and use.
Posted in Uncategorized April 13, 2010
Kelly Ripa portrays the typical “super mom” in the Electrolux commercial. When I first saw this commercial I immediately thought of my American Culture Studies class where we discussed the classic housewife of the 1950s; a stay-at-home mom taking care of the children and the chores around the house. Although in this commercial Kelly Ripa does show part of her career, it directly goes into what a typical mother is “supposed” to act like; get the groceries, cook dinner, take care of the children and all of this with help of those great kitchen appliances, hence the little caption at the bottom that says “our daily Ripa”.
What is interesting, however, is that it does not show a husband or father figure at any point in the commercial. This makes Kelly Ripa look like she is responsible for all the daily chores that also include going to work, host parties, and look under the bed for monsters before the kids go to sleep, doing all of this with a smile on her face throughout the entire day. Because it leaves the male out completely, it makes it seem like the husband can come home whenever is good for him because he knows the wife is taking care of the household which is exactly what Kelly Ripa illustrates.
I do think it is interesting how they showed Kelly’s job to the audience in the first 3 seconds of the commercial making her look less vulnerable and more like the dominant person in the family. The fact that the commercial is about Electrolux appliances it does make it look like Kelly Ripa would not be able to finish all of the chores in one day if it wasn’t for all those great electronic devices she has in her house.
As I mentioned before, we have watched several commercials from the 1950s that are very similar to this commercial. However, the commercials from the 1950s make the female look more vulnerable than Kelly Ripa. Both however show that those devices will make their lives easier as a housewife.
Kelly Ripa shows that even though she does not have the typical 8-5 workday, a woman’s life can be just as busy. She proves that it is possible to be a hard working woman who can get things done such as going to work, cook dinner, host a party and a sleepover party, take care of the dog, and check under the beds for monsters; all of this without the help of a male OR her children.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDBMHz1Dthw
Posted in Uncategorized March 22, 2010
The design of Barbie and Action man illustrates how gender is portrayed to younger children. Both dolls have changed significantly over time and always gave children a physical role model or something that they want to look like when they get older. I remember when I was younger I always wanted the pretty dresses that Barbie wore or be just like the gymnast Barbie that came out when I was around 8 years old. What is funny however, is that Barbie was always about dressing her in the perfect dresses and highest heals. It was never about what she could do or what she portrayed; they were all the same and it was all about looking pretty and happy. Her knees kind of bended an her waist slightly rotated, her arms could move just a little bit and you could move her head from side to side. However, she never aged over the years; she still has the blond hair, bright blue (I think?) eyes, long skinny legs, and a busty torso. Unfortunately this all evolved over time making these characteristics even more noticeable.
Action man (who by the way is the complete opposite of Barbie’s boyfriend, Ken), however, is very muscular and is supposed to look tough; he doesn’t really smile or bend. He looks as if he has been fighting a lot, a very masculine image. Boys look up to action man and want to act just like him; violent and strong. As the movie “Tough Guise” mentioned, men wear masks; they aren’t supposed to act vulnerable, instead they should be tough, strong, and independent because that is what makes one a real man.
The images of Barbie and Action man reflect gender expectations because those toys are everywhere; every child owned or has played with one which somehow ended up influencing this child’s life by the way those dolls are portrayed. Girls aren’t supposed to play with an action man because those are for boys and the same goes for boys, they cannot play with Barbie dolls because that will make the boy act or look feminine.
What is interesting however is that today those dolls are transformed into Bratz for girls and transformers type figures for boys. Bratz today portray a doll with a rather large head, big eyes, big hair, and barely any clothing. Transformers however show even more masculinity; it does not show any emotion and although there is no muscle shown it still portrays acting strong and tough.
These toys are changing over time, however, Barbie and action man are still recognized and almost everyone will know what one is talking about when mentioning them. They portrayed a image that children looked up to. As those dolls evolve over time they still represent the same gender image and making children believe that boys and girls have to act and look a certain way.
Posted in Uncategorized March 16, 2010
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