Large Group Project
Title: GPC Hatchet
Job: Actress-Atypical Axe Girl Model
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Friday, July 24, 2009
The Price of Finding Mr. Right: Is It Worth It?
What is love? Women are always constantly asking that question to themselves as they enter into a bar hoping to find Mr. Right. Maybe if women appear sexier like Cosmopolitan and Glamour writers emphasize in their articles, men might find them more desirable. If they just say the right words suggested in an article “What Should You Say After He Approaches” maybe more men would ask more women on dates. With so many advices about love, sex and relationships, women should have no problem finding a man. However, how realistic are these suggestions? Are the majority of these advices even plausible? The effects of these contradicting messages in woman magazines about attracting the opposite sex are powerful sources that feed off women’s insecurities of being undesirable to strengthen the behavior of self-affliction.
American women in today’s society can go to college, earn a degree, have the right to vote, have a career, and have the right to express themselves as individuals. Women today can even run for president; women tend to take these rights for granted. Their ancestors can only dream about most of these rights. However, women today are still feeling restricted; not mostly by the male society, but the reflection that they see in the mirror. Why? According to Wolf,
“Many are ashamed to admit that such trivial concerns—to do with physical appearance, bodies, face, hair, clothes—matter so much. But in spite of shame, guilt, and denial, more and more women are wondering if it isn’t that they are entirely neurotic and alone but rather that something important is indeed at stake that has to do with the relationship between female liberation and female beauty” (120).
Women are constantly relying on sources in woman magazines to become the ideal woman. The more a woman comes close towards imitating the look and behavior of an ideal woman portrayed in magazines the more power she earns towards her happiness. What’s usually an American woman’s dream? Like most of the TV series, books, and movies that women usually prefer to watch, they want to belong to a good-looking, independent, and hard working man that supports and showers them with unconditional love. However, the process of becoming the ideal woman isn’t easy; this is where woman magazines, like Cosmopolitan and Glamour, become a woman’s bible and secretively her kryptonite. Writers for these magazines are constantly giving advice to women on how to attract men. While these writers are aiding women to be more attainable to men, they are also illustrating contradicting messages to their young women audience. Just look at the titles of these articles: “Get Hit On All the Time”, “Sexy vs. Skanky”, “So, Guys: What Kills the Mood For You”, “7 Sexy Things that Aren’t”, “What Should You Say After He Approaches”. These articles are instructing women between the ages of eighteen to thirty-nine to be sexy. . . but not too sexy. A woman should show off her vulnerable side but not to appear completely helpless. A woman shouldn’t appear skanky but rather overtly confident in her skills in the bedroom. These contradicting messages develop this beauty myth, or the illogical “idea image of feminine beauty” (120). Sadly, these messages are destroying women’s lives and self-esteem. The power of the “beauty myth” is causing many women to suffer.
Women are constantly insecure, obsessing about how they appear towards the opposite sex. From just running around the block to going to class, women devote a tremendous amount of time just getting ready for the day. They spend much of their paychecks on beauty accessories, clothes, make-up, hair care and more things that they see in these woman magazines. The way they talk, places they hang out, the way they eat, how much they eat, how much they spend, and how they associate with the opposite sex is closely related to the contradicting messages. Some of these messages are encouraging women to be sexually active to be even considered “sexy”. In my collage, one man’s advice of what turns him off towards a woman is the following: “When a girl is uncomfortable with her body. Even if I love how she looks—if she doesn’t, she’s going to hold back in bed.” However, women who overtly express their sexuality maybe labeled as “slut” or “skanky” and eventually would be a turn off to men. In one of the articles that I cut out for my collage, it listed the things that shouldn’t be done when a woman is trying to be overtly sexy towards a man. For instance, a woman shouldn’t blow into a man’s ear as a form of seduction or wear fish net stockings. Why are so many women willing to follow these contradicting messages? According to Kilbourne, “In the Western world…the anxiety of nonrecognition (‘I don’t fit in’) faced by the majority of spectators is more often translated into identification (‘I want to be like that’) and attempts at self-alternation than into rage” (260). Because society reflects and reinforces these contradicting themes towards women, the ones who are less likely to imitate the ideal female constantly feel isolated and are more likely to feel ashamed, anxious, worthless, and develop low self-esteem. So, what’s the price of finding love? Well, definitely not the same price as purchasing a Cosmopolitan or a Glamour magazine.
Work Cited
Kilbourne, Jean. “The More You Subtract, The More You Add: Cutting Girls Down to Size”. Can’t Buy Me Love: How Advertising Changes the Way We Think and Feed. 1999. 258-267
Wolf, Naomi. "The Beauty Myth." Chapter III: Gender and Women's Bodies. 199): 120-125.
Friday, July 17, 2009
Hegemonic Representation of Masculinity and Femininity
When the young female audience watches “Supernatural” they immediately fall in love with the gorgeous, heroic, and daring Winchester brothers who save beautiful women from demonic forces. However, depending on the audience’s view of masculinity, there’s a controversial debate between the brothers and which one is more heroic from one episode to the next. The debate itself is not only fan made but also a constant theme throughout the TV series. Even though Dean and Sam Winchester are brothers and often use their collaboration to solve mysterious paranormal phenomena; these characters are also constantly battling over dominance. Power struggle is a clear conflict between the brothers. In the episode called “Bedtime Stories”, the interactions between characters reveal simultaneous and inconsistent messages on the audience’s perspective on masculine and feminine roles.
Most viewers immediately sense the typical tough guy persona from Dean Winchester. He impatiently interrogates victims without sympathy. He uses violence when necessary to save the damsel in distress. Dean’s interactions with other characters throughout this episode reinforce hegemonic masculine messages. According to Newman, “For decades, the quintessential Hollywood leading man was square-jawed, rugged, not particularly chatty, violent when necessary and unemotional” (93). While Dean Winchester reinforces the typical male role, what the audience may find rather complicated is that Sam Winchester simultaneously disrupts the typically masculine role his brother follows.
Sam Winchester’s only power over Dean is his academic and emotional intelligence. Sam’s academic intelligence alone can be extremely powerful. According to a quote from a reality show, “One thing with your intelligence is that it can intimidate people” (Ponzer, 97). His preference of researching the solution to the mystery rather than taking physical action deviates from the masculine heroic role. According to Newman, “Boys are more likely to be portrayed in adventurous pursuits or activities that required independence and strength (90).” However Sam’s personality and interaction with other characters deviate from this claim. He prefers to interact with the victims, find out all the information about a case, and deals with emotional conflicts between the victims, the father, and Callie’s spirit. While the author claims, “The traditional tough guy image has also given way to a less complimentary image; that men are dumb and clueless” (Portraying Difference, 93). Sam does not appear to be clueless and dumb throughout this episode. Like the male characters’ actions in this episode, the female characters actions towards conflicts also exhibit inconsistencies about hegemonic ideas of gender.
Most of the victims in the episode are mostly women. Because the mass murders are portrayed according to the Brothers Grimm version of fairy tales, the women are subjective to be dependant and weak. From the victims to the doctor’s comatose daughter Callie, they all reinforce hegemonic message of femininity when they rely on Sam and Dean to save them from evil. The author states, “Girls were more likely to be confined to indoor activities and portrayed as passive and dependant” (“Manufacturing Difference”, p.90). Like the female victims, the female antagonist, the crossroad demon, is also dominated by her circumstances. She is subservient to her master. She even goes so far as to use seduction to threaten Sam. The crossroad demon reinforces the idea that “females are significantly more likely than men to use sex and charm to get what they want.” (“Manufacturing Difference”, 92) Even though most of the female characters in this episode appear to be damsels in distress or sexy demonic slaves, a few female characters disrupt the message of femininity.
Women using violence as a solution is atypical feminine action. During the interrogation by the two brothers, Mrs. Watson, one of the victims of the fairy tale mass murders, confessed that she was forced to use violence to kill her attacker for survival. Another example of a female character choosing violence to deal with conflict is Callie. Callie’s soul uses violence as a desperate cry for the Winchesters to help her communicate to her father. Also, her soul apathetically watches a brutal attack in which an old woman carves the victim’s body like a turkey. Usually, younger girls would be shocked, flabbergasted, and terrified when seeing an inhumane event. According to the author, “women express emotions much more easily” (“Manufacturing Difference”, 92), however, she remains calm and even unmoved.
Each character plays a major role in reinforcing and disrupting messages of masculinity and femininity to the public audience. Dean and Sam have the same intentions; they both want to save innocent people from the paranormal. This classic theme of being a hero emphasizes the male role in society being power, dominant, independence, and action oriented. However, how these brothers interact and approach conflicts both reinforces and disagrees with the hegemonic male. The women characters, both victims and demonic culprits, appear to be dependant and inferior to the male characters in the episode. However, the few female characters that use violence as a means of resolving a conflict break away from the typical female role. The effect of simultaneously sending reinforcing and inconsistent messages about femininity and masculinity to the larger, diverse audience is that “difference” sells. According to the author who uses a direct quote from Keller,
“Difference sells. Capitalism must constantly multiply markets, styles, fads, and artifacts to keep absorbing consumers into its practices and lifestyles. The mere valorization Also, the “difference” as a mark episode reinforces more masculinity and femininity overtones rather than styles and artifacts if the difference in question and its effects are not adequately appraised” (Raymond, p. 105).
Works Cited
Newman.” Portraying Difference: Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality in Language and
the Media”. 71-105.
Newman.” Manufacturing Difference: The Social Construction of Race, Class, Gender,
and Sexuality”. 30-70.
Pozner, Jennifer, L. “The Unreal World”. (2004) 96-99.
Raymond, Diane. “Popular Culture and Queer Representation A Critical Perspective”.98-109.
Most viewers immediately sense the typical tough guy persona from Dean Winchester. He impatiently interrogates victims without sympathy. He uses violence when necessary to save the damsel in distress. Dean’s interactions with other characters throughout this episode reinforce hegemonic masculine messages. According to Newman, “For decades, the quintessential Hollywood leading man was square-jawed, rugged, not particularly chatty, violent when necessary and unemotional” (93). While Dean Winchester reinforces the typical male role, what the audience may find rather complicated is that Sam Winchester simultaneously disrupts the typically masculine role his brother follows.
Sam Winchester’s only power over Dean is his academic and emotional intelligence. Sam’s academic intelligence alone can be extremely powerful. According to a quote from a reality show, “One thing with your intelligence is that it can intimidate people” (Ponzer, 97). His preference of researching the solution to the mystery rather than taking physical action deviates from the masculine heroic role. According to Newman, “Boys are more likely to be portrayed in adventurous pursuits or activities that required independence and strength (90).” However Sam’s personality and interaction with other characters deviate from this claim. He prefers to interact with the victims, find out all the information about a case, and deals with emotional conflicts between the victims, the father, and Callie’s spirit. While the author claims, “The traditional tough guy image has also given way to a less complimentary image; that men are dumb and clueless” (Portraying Difference, 93). Sam does not appear to be clueless and dumb throughout this episode. Like the male characters’ actions in this episode, the female characters actions towards conflicts also exhibit inconsistencies about hegemonic ideas of gender.
Most of the victims in the episode are mostly women. Because the mass murders are portrayed according to the Brothers Grimm version of fairy tales, the women are subjective to be dependant and weak. From the victims to the doctor’s comatose daughter Callie, they all reinforce hegemonic message of femininity when they rely on Sam and Dean to save them from evil. The author states, “Girls were more likely to be confined to indoor activities and portrayed as passive and dependant” (“Manufacturing Difference”, p.90). Like the female victims, the female antagonist, the crossroad demon, is also dominated by her circumstances. She is subservient to her master. She even goes so far as to use seduction to threaten Sam. The crossroad demon reinforces the idea that “females are significantly more likely than men to use sex and charm to get what they want.” (“Manufacturing Difference”, 92) Even though most of the female characters in this episode appear to be damsels in distress or sexy demonic slaves, a few female characters disrupt the message of femininity.
Women using violence as a solution is atypical feminine action. During the interrogation by the two brothers, Mrs. Watson, one of the victims of the fairy tale mass murders, confessed that she was forced to use violence to kill her attacker for survival. Another example of a female character choosing violence to deal with conflict is Callie. Callie’s soul uses violence as a desperate cry for the Winchesters to help her communicate to her father. Also, her soul apathetically watches a brutal attack in which an old woman carves the victim’s body like a turkey. Usually, younger girls would be shocked, flabbergasted, and terrified when seeing an inhumane event. According to the author, “women express emotions much more easily” (“Manufacturing Difference”, 92), however, she remains calm and even unmoved.
Each character plays a major role in reinforcing and disrupting messages of masculinity and femininity to the public audience. Dean and Sam have the same intentions; they both want to save innocent people from the paranormal. This classic theme of being a hero emphasizes the male role in society being power, dominant, independence, and action oriented. However, how these brothers interact and approach conflicts both reinforces and disagrees with the hegemonic male. The women characters, both victims and demonic culprits, appear to be dependant and inferior to the male characters in the episode. However, the few female characters that use violence as a means of resolving a conflict break away from the typical female role. The effect of simultaneously sending reinforcing and inconsistent messages about femininity and masculinity to the larger, diverse audience is that “difference” sells. According to the author who uses a direct quote from Keller,
“Difference sells. Capitalism must constantly multiply markets, styles, fads, and artifacts to keep absorbing consumers into its practices and lifestyles. The mere valorization Also, the “difference” as a mark episode reinforces more masculinity and femininity overtones rather than styles and artifacts if the difference in question and its effects are not adequately appraised” (Raymond, p. 105).
Works Cited
Newman.” Portraying Difference: Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality in Language and
the Media”. 71-105.
Newman.” Manufacturing Difference: The Social Construction of Race, Class, Gender,
and Sexuality”. 30-70.
Pozner, Jennifer, L. “The Unreal World”. (2004) 96-99.
Raymond, Diane. “Popular Culture and Queer Representation A Critical Perspective”.98-109.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Feminists at rock concerts
http://community.feministing.com/2009/06/feminists-at-rock-concerts.html
RMJ
community.feministing.com
RMJ
community.feministing.com
Is It Romance, or Stalking?
http://community.feministing.com/2009/07/bloodsucking-is-a-boys-world.html
lauraalysse
community.feministing.com
lauraalysse
community.feministing.com
Which Is Worse? Super Sixteen or MANswers?
http://weirdtv.blogspot.com/2009/04/which-is-worse-super-sixteen-or.html
Disney Princesses: A half-arsed feminist analyis
http://dancer-inthe-dark.blogspot.com/2009/07/disney-princesses-half-arsed-feminist.html
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