thisisnotanessay

There are many levels of influence in our society and media plays a major role in dispensing influential images to us. Media comes in many forms, television, radio, newspapers, movies, and advertisements. The media is so intertwined in our lives that we do not truly comprehend on a conscious level how much influence it really has over us. Some of the images and messages we see and hear can be both positive and negative. More often than not, we are exposed to images that are so unrealistic and unattainable by the average person that we become discontented with our lives and ourselves. Images of luxury homes, cars, glamorous clothes, and glamorous body images make us more self-conscious of how we live and how we look.

Based on the above observations and the information I have researched on this topic, the media has an incredible influence over the perceptions we have of ourselves. Historically, women have been more susceptible to stereotyping and marginalization than men. The history of a woman's 'usefulness' basically began with being a sexual plaything, a mother, and a caretaker. Prior to the 20th century, men saw women as people without a voice, caretakers of the family, or just objects of sexual desire. Although we have recognized the many talents of women through the decades of the past century, we still have much further to evolve in our thinking. I believe most women would like to be thought of as equals in our society, but we are too preoccupied with them being sexual objects. Advertisements have women selling everything from food to cars. We continue to see that women are the focus of most advertisements and the biggest selling point for the product being sold. At the same time, men continue to be the strong, handsome leader in both our families and our society as portrayed in the media images. Although there have been many strides, the stereotypes have remained consistent whereas the women are the sexual objects and the men are the decision makers in our