Legally Blonde (2nd to last blog)

So while writing this paper i was excited I got to watch one of my favorite movies Legally Blonde. Although it may seem like a romantic comedy the movie actually has an under lying message about feminism and breaking out of gender role stereotypes. While my first draft I feel was a
good start I still have a lot of work to do.

With the help of my peer reviewers I now think I know what I need to do to take the paper to the next step. I need to expand more and not only focus on the main character Elle and her stereotypical gender role but also explore other characters. Her two love interest in the movie are complete opposites of each other and really tie into what we have learned about male gender roles. Warren her ex boyfriend who she follows to Harvard is the stereotypical man, while her budding love interst Emmet is the new man. A great article that I will be able to use to back up my arguements is the Disney/Pixar article about the new man.

The previous articles we have read will also help build foundation for my arguement. Along with Devor's article which I have already used to define Gender, I will also use " Two ways a Woman can get Hurt". I will also use support from the Feminism Article to further explore Elle's need to use her body to get what she wants

third wave feminism

The article is very insightful on three women in three different aspects of the media in the 90's. Women identified with Alanis Morsett and her lyrics because they were emotional and women related to her words. Her music lead other musicians (especially women) to branch out and use real emotions to identify to their audience. Her album was a huge success and had a large impact on a generation. While Ally McBeal on the other hand showed a different side of feminism. Ally was a smart Harvard grad doing her best to keep up with all them men in an uptight law firm. She used her sexuality and her body to get ahead, but then had to use her skills to stay there. She was a negative influence for women in the workplace. I didn't like how they used Kate Moss as a feminist icon. Yes her ad for Calvin Klein was good because it showed a perfume that worked for both sexes, but she isn't a good for feminism. She is so thin ( scary thin) that she is a bad role model for women.

Source:
Shugart, Helene, Catherine Egley Waggoner, and D. Lynn O'Brien Hallstein.
“Mediating Third-wave Feminism: Appropriation as Postmodern Media
Practice.” Critical Studies in Media Communication. 18.2 (2001): 194-210.

The new men in DIsney

Disney over the years has established stereotypical gender roles in their movies. Almost every Disney princess fits the role of the damsel in distress who needs a man to rescue her and fulfill her life so they live happily ever after. Well, more recently Disney has tried to evolve from these stereotypical role and has made most of their main characters males. These males such as Woody, Buzz and Mr. Incredible are not the stereotypical men, but newer versions. In the movies these characters face dilemas that challenge their roles as a dominant male in society. These new character are more about community then personal gain. I think Disney is amazing for trying to change gender roles. Kids are the future, and it is a lot easier to shape the mind of a child than it is to teach an adult new ideas. Teaching kids at such a young age has its advantages and makes it easier to change the stereotypical genders roles. I like how in each movie ( Toy Story, Cars, and The Incredibles) the main characters ( who are males) face obstacles that if they acted like the stereotypical male, they would not be able to obtain their goals.

Source:
Gillam, Ken, and Shannon R. Wooden. " Post Princess Models of Gender. The New Man in Disney/Pixar." Journal of Popular Film & Television. 36.1 (2008):2-8

TV in the 90's

I had this article for discussion leading and it was really interesting. Although the article was more statics than writing, it showed how media and society views gender roles. The article dealt with race and social class, as well as gender inequality. Women face many obstacles on TV shows that are also the same in real life. There are less single mothers on shows, even though there are many women who face this reality everyday. There are also double standards when it comes to marital status for women on TV. Like real life, it is more acceptable for a man to be single on a show then it is for a woman. There is even more inequality for women of color. Women who are black and hispanic are not equally portrayed on TV, and usually play race specific roles and are rarely ever the main character. Although since the 1970's the roles women play on TV have become more prominent, there is still a huge gap between females and males in important roles. These roles include jobs inside the home and outside of it as well. Families no longer are like the family in "Leave it to Beaver" so why does the media keep portraying them as if they are?

Source:
Signorielli, Nancy, and Susan Kahlenberg. "Television's World of Work in the
Nineties." Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media 45.1 (2001): 4-22.

Hilary Clinton response

I enjoyed the article even though I'm not a big fan of political figures. The article did a great job of stating the facts about the things that Hilary supported before she became the first lady, and the mistakes she made. She started off as a very strong supporter of feminism and never tried to stay in Bill's shadow, but when her husbands affair with Monica came to be public knowledge, Hilary's decision to stay by his side even though he cheated on her tarnished her image. Although many feel that she did this to save her political career in the future her actions made her seem like a hypocrite. The article showed how difficult it is for a woman to be in the public eye. Hilary's ratings actually went up when she went back to "baking cookies" and doing wifely duties. For someone who was so for stepping outside gender stereotypes, she sure was a bad influence on American women.

Source: Peery-Giles S.J. (2000)Mediating Hilary Rodham Clinton: Televison news practices and image-making in the postmodern age, Critical Studies in Media Communication.

response to 2 ways a woman can get hurt

I thought the article was very insightful and used the right ads to get the argument across. Ads now in modern society put a lot of emphasis on sex and violence to sell their product. These ads usually depict men and women in stereotypical gender roles. Men are strong a dominant and usually a little violent to get what they want. While women are portrayed as being submissive and eager to please her male counterpart. I think these ads have a negative effect on the young people. It shows girls that in order to get a man's attention they need to be extremely skinny and do everything that he says. It also teaches young boys that they need to be violent and aggressive in order to attract the opposite sex.

Source:
Kilbourne, Jean. “Two Ways a Woman Can Get Hurt: Advertising and Violence.”
Rereading America. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s. 2004. 455-75.