Gender Inequality and Media Objectification: A Feminist Perspective

1856 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Female objectification in advertising

In today 's society, women have been getting more attention on important issues that affect their lives. Feminism is becoming more popular and people are starting to realize the inequality that woman face is more than just a small scale issue. The sexism and oppression that are the result of living in a patriarchal society, play a large role in how women in our culture are treated. The effects that living in this society have had on the individuals that take part in these societies, are very commonly highlighted by the media. The objectification of women in the media has become a very serious issue. Although at first glance this may not seem to be such a problem, but these constant objectifications in the media subliminally become an acceptable reality for men and women alike. “Conflict theorists argue that gender inequality …show more content…

When I asked people around me how they felt about these commercials, I was very surprised by the answers I received. The most popular answer for why this was an acceptable form of promoting anything was “Well that 's just how they do it.” or “Sex sells.”, but I still could not fathom what the media was making women out to be. I seemed to be the only one who found these ads to be abnormal, and that was just it. Everyone I had asked about these ads had never questioned why they might be wrong, and looked at them positively because they fit the demographic that these ads are made for: the average, straight, cisgendered, male. And this is exactly the problem. As soon as men accept the objectification of women as their reality, it becomes completely normal. Overtime this furthers the regression of women 's rights, and promotes rape culture. Because of the fact that these ads show women as merely objects of desire made for men 's pleasure, this highlights the second idea in rape culture, that says women are treated as objects of masculinity among other

Show More
Related

  • Analysis Of The Media Representation Of Women

    1060 Words  | 3 Pages

    women in powerful positions on television. If girls are not able to see themselves in such

    Read More

  • Objectification Of Women In Hollywood Essay

    1708 Words  | 4 Pages

    A few months ago, Jennifer Lawrence caused the men and pearl clutching women of Hollywood to gasp collectively when she published an essay about the gap between wages of men and women in Hollywood. She was unafraid to publicly call her male costars out for making significantly more money than her. She did it with elegance and class. While this was a good step in the right direction, it’s one white woman’s perspective. There are hundreds of other non-white perspectives in Hollywood to be considered. Women in Hollywood have overcome innumerable obstacles compared to their male counterparts, including a lack of diversity within Hollywood itself, stereotypes that come into play in roles made for women, the gap in pay between what male and female

    Read More

  • Misrepresentation Of Women Essay

    1007 Words  | 3 Pages

    On a daily basis people are exposed to some sort of misrepresentation of gender; in the things individuals watch, and often the things that are purchased. Women are often the main target of this misrepresentation. “Women still experience actual prejudice and discrimination in terms of unequal treatment, unequal pay, and unequal value in real life, then so too do these themes continue to occur in media portraits.”(Byerly, Carolyn, Ross 35) The media has become so perverted, in especially the way it represents women, that a females can be handled and controlled by men, the individual man may not personally feel this way, but that is how men are characterized in American media. Some may say it doesn’t matter because media isn’t real life, but people are influenced by everything around them, surroundings that are part of daily routine start to change an individual’s perspective.

    Read More

  • Sexualisation Of Women In The Media Essay

    1608 Words  | 4 Pages

    Sexualisation is regarded as the process of making something sexual in its nature, or to become aware of its sexuality (Harper Collins Publishers, 2017; Merriam-Webster, 2017). Overall, sexualisation is linked to sexual objectification which is the idea of reducing a person to an instrument of sexual pleasure; they are a commodity.

    Read More

  • Essay On Sexualization Of Women In Media

    1007 Words  | 3 Pages

    The sexualization of women in the American mass media has contributed to a relapse and neglection of women's independence and created corruption within our youth. Distorted media is creating classes of men and women, influencing concealing stereotypes enabling women to be individuals. The generations to come will be exposed to aspiring role models resembling as sex dolls, the youth and future absorb multiple forms of sexist media presenting the viewers with unattainable or objectified images of femininity. Modern media's current obsession with sex has resulted in an advancing society based off of profanity. The media’s and corporations greed for money is distorting one's morals while publicizing the degradation of women and influencing sex to make profit. Our youth will lose its innocence followed by a constricting society filled with social norms and distorted perceptions of modern women. This paper dissects two popular media artifacts uncovering its covert rhetoric.

    Read More

  • Sexism In Advertising Essay

    756 Words  | 2 Pages

    The difference of men and women are usually defined by the organs they develop, and the ways in which those are used. Upon opening most magazines, a warm greeting from a woman’s slim, photoshopped body or an oddly attractive man with a six pack will be offered. From images similar to these, the clear gender difference provokes resentment and sexually fueled difference in society between man and woman. The sexualizing among men and women today merely enhances negative interactions between each gender; overall society would benefit grandly if the sexism in media was regulated.

    Read More

  • Media and Gender Power

    754 Words  | 2 Pages

    The topic I am undertaking is Gender power. Throughout all forms of the media it is obvious to see that we live in a world that is obsessed with sexuality. Magazine advertisements, magazine pictures, commercials and even ads on the internet are shown in a sexual way and women are usually the objects of sexualisation in these ads. Media is the most powerful source of how we view men and women. Throughout our daily lives, media implants its messages into our minds like a disease. All forms of media communicate images of the sexes, many of which perpetuate unrealistic, stereotypical and limiting perceptions.

    Read More

  • The Portrayal of Women in Advertising

    2734 Words  | 6 Pages

    Women – beautiful, strong matriarchal forces that drive and define a portion of the society in which we live – are poised and confident individuals who embody the essence of determination, ambition, beauty, and character. Incomprehensible and extraordinary, women are persons who possess an immense amount of depth, culture, and sophistication. Society’s incapability of understanding the frame of mind and diversity that exists within the female population has created a need to condemn the method in which women think and feel, therefore causing the rise of “male-over-female” domination – sexism. Sexism is society’s most common form of discrimination; the need to have gender based separation reveals our culture’s reluctance to embrace new ideas, people, and concepts. This is common in various aspects of human life – jobs, households, sports, and the most widespread – the media. In the media, sexism is revealed through the various submissive, sometimes foolish, and powerless roles played by female models; because of these roles women have become overlooked, ignored, disregarded – easy to look at, but so hard to see.

    Read More

  • Gender Roles In The Media Essay

    1042 Words  | 3 Pages

    Media and communications are a central element of today’s society, yet the thought that media has little to no effect on gender and sexuality shapes how each individual views their own self-identity. Over the years we have witnessed the launch of social media sites, music sites such as YouTube, new genres of music, and other forms of media, that all contribute to the outlook of gender roles and stereotypes. The media contains countless standards based on how the genders should act, look, and feel, that is seems almost ordinary to satisfy these stereotypical demands of society. For example, Meghan Trainor’s “Dear Future Husband,” is a catchy song with a 50’s themed video that portrays standards of a feminine woman spoiled by strong, caring and masculine men. Now, it is unusual to catch the issues between the lyrics and video at first glance, but, the controversy shared between the two are quite focused on gender roles, stereotypes, and

    Read More

  • images of gender in the media

    1249 Words  | 3 Pages

    Finding a simple or concrete definition of gender maybe near impossible. Gender roles are what men and woman learn and internalize as the way they are supposed to act. These roles are commonly thought of as natural rather than a construction of culture. Gender is thought to flow from sex, rather then being a matter of what the culture does with sex. This theory is widely and exhaustively debated, according to Wood “Sex is based on biology; Gender is socially and psychologically constructed” (Wood 19). This statement suggests that culture’s discourses and ideologies form the complexities of gender and gender roles. It is easy to say that girls are made of sugar and spice and everything nice and boy are made of snips and snails and puppy dog tails, but we are actually more intricate then that.

    Read More

  • Media Image Of Women Analysis

    312 Words  | 1 Pages

    If social views impact how the media displays women sports and female athletes, then what exactly is being represented in the media? The media displays the social views of sexism through the images and commercials they produce. Associate professor of American studies, Dr. Cheryl Cooky noted in her research on the media coverage of women’s sports, that you are “more likely to see women in bikinis versus on the field” (Cooky, 2016). Dr. Cynthia Frisby, an associate professor of strategic communications at the University of Missouri, research on the media coverage of the 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics supports Dr. Cooky’s statement, noting the “number of microaggressions” (of which includes sexual objectivation) “against

    Read More

  • Objectification Of Women

    1173 Words  | 3 Pages

    The women are physically abused, yet, they are still on display to be viewed by men. The background music in the commercial describes the women's agonizing emotions as the slow, dispiriting song sings “You are my biggest reason of why I have capsized” as the men continue to walk around in fascination. The man in the advertisement walks up the woman addressing her, “Aren't you a sexy little thing, huh?” The roles of the women are not depicted as humans but instead as a “thing” with selfless sensations. The stereotypical roles of women are never seen as strong and independent but rather weak and delicate, incapable of defending themselves. Comparatively, in an article “Two Ways A Woman Can Get Hurt” Kilbourne implies advertisements are manipulating how women want to be portrayed: “The deeply held belief all women, (...) are really temptresses in disguise, nymphets, sexually insatiable and seductive, conveniently transfers all blame and responsibility onto women” (Kilbourne 504). The way women are depicted in advertisements makes it seem women want to be perceived in a sexual way based on their appearance. Based on Kilbourne statement it contradicts the way women want to be represented, just as in the PSA advertisement, women do not have a voice until wrongdoings are preceded. Transferring all blame to women would agree that women are

    Read More

  • Advertisements Are Harmful To Sexualize And Objectify Women

    292 Words  | 1 Pages

    These ads impact all people in very negative ways. Men learn that it is okay to sexualize and objectify women. Women are shown to be submissive and below men, so that is the exact way they are going to be treated.

    Read More

  • Women: The Objectification Of Women

    477 Words  | 1 Pages

    Men always feel superior or one-step ahead of women because they have always been perceived as strong and intelligent. On the contrary, women, for centuries, are always viewed in a negative manner. I argue against this notion and strongly believe that women should not have to be objectified to be appealing to society. In the summer of 2014, “No Comment” issues in Ms. Magazine publish “Made in Bangladesh”. The model in the American Apparel image is represented as if she is going to disrobe all her clothing. Many companies believe having half dressed models brings a higher sexual appeal to their viewers. However, there are many negative effects that out way the positive effect. Younger generation no matter where or what culture they are more likely to become westernized. The model in this ad image is portraying that people should have a certain body type.

    Read More

  • Influence Of Femininity In The Media

    978 Words  | 2 Pages

    Media has a big influence on how femininity is constructed, particularly in South African magazines where stereotypes of race and sexuality are reinforced and maintained. Sanger argues that there are deeper patriarchal systems that uphold stereotypes around femininity, which are embedded into modern society. The use of language and the images are used reinforce ideas of what an ‘ideal’ body is, making it a normative option for women to try achieving this ideal. Drawing on binaries of race, sex and gender, we uncover how the portrayal of femininity differs depending on cultural expectations and how these expectations are unfulfillable and continue to remind women of their oppressed and undervalued nature in society.

    Read More

More about Gender Inequality and Media Objectification: A Feminist Perspective

Open Document