Gender Stereotypes In The Media Research Paper
In exploring the topic of gender portrayal in the media, I interviewed five people of varying ages, sexes, and races. The first two questions I asked were based on how they generally saw each gender portrayed in mass media, including books, movies, television, advertisements, and video games. Then, I asked what traits they felt the media associated with both femininity and masculinity, respectively. Finally, I asked them to think about how media portrayal of gender might affect children and why. All of the people I interviewed said that they saw women portrayed negatively in the media. Based on my results, the media portrays women as objects. One of the interviewees, a young black female, cited Hardee’s commercials as an example- “They sell
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Some added that like females, males are heavily idealized. While this is true, it is not as problematic or widespread as it is for women. On the subject of masculinity in the media, several interviewees associated alcohol (specifically beer), violence, sports, and muscles with male characters in the media. An older white female said that to be a man you had to rescue the “damsel in distress.” Three out of five brought up the fact that men who are smart or non-athletic are looked upon negatively by the media and are viewed as less of a man. Nerds are weak, something to be avoided at all costs; jocks are the ideal. Male characters dominate mass media, and with this domination comes more varied types of men, yet the perfect male stereotype still …show more content…
This is also known as gender stratification. Most sociologists believe that social factors are the primary reasons for gender-specific behaviors, not biology. However, some sociologists are starting to believe that biology might have some effect, after all. Even so, James M. Henslin, a sociologist, claims that “the sociological significance of gender is that it is a device by which society controls its members.” My findings confirmed this- gender portrayal in mass media controls the way members of each sex behave, think, and
Some added that like females, males are heavily idealized. While this is true, it is not as problematic or widespread as it is for women. On the subject of masculinity in the media, several interviewees associated alcohol (specifically beer), violence, sports, and muscles with male characters in the media. An older white female said that to be a man you had to rescue the “damsel in distress.” Three out of five brought up the fact that men who are smart or non-athletic are looked upon negatively by the media and are viewed as less of a man. Nerds are weak, something to be avoided at all costs; jocks are the ideal. Male characters dominate mass media, and with this domination comes more varied types of men, yet the perfect male stereotype still …show more content…
This is also known as gender stratification. Most sociologists believe that social factors are the primary reasons for gender-specific behaviors, not biology. However, some sociologists are starting to believe that biology might have some effect, after all. Even so, James M. Henslin, a sociologist, claims that “the sociological significance of gender is that it is a device by which society controls its members.” My findings confirmed this- gender portrayal in mass media controls the way members of each sex behave, think, and