Reading Analyses

Danae Martin

Due September 18, 2017

Week 3

Your “takeaway”

The assigned readings for week three all had a prominent theme that linked them together. Before this class I did not pay much attention to how women were depicted by media and films. However, I previously thought films were depicting women differently in the present. Although from completing the readings I see the history of how women in the past and present are being portrayed in very stereotypical and narrow roles, which was explained in the Smith and Tuchman readings. Something that I am taking away is the narrow category of how the media depicts women, which are normally just in roles like a mother, wife, or a female sex object which as depicted in the Bordo reading. I was also surprised to learn how women are also portrayed as less than and seemed to be picked apart more in films and media. Most importantly, my take away from the reading is the stereotypes that have been presented in films and media has influenced many aspects of people’s life by making it the cultural norm.

A new theme or concept from the assigned reading, defined in your own words.

A new theme from the assigned reading this week is the effects of media. I never thought about how the media has huge effects on different groups of people. The media creates many problems, which involves stereotypical roles. Just the effects of creating gender roles create many different messages. In media and films stereotypical gender roles being presented leads to children, youth, and adults wanting to accept the stereotypical gender roles that are being portrayed. In the last class we discussed power and oppression. These gender roles and portraying women in a certain way in media creates gender oppression because of the inaccurate gender stereotypes that are being presented in the media.

            How you might use the material in your own research/everyday life.

 

The assigned readings will influence my research in many ways. In my opinion, being aware of how women are portrayed in media and films can lead to a set gender stereotype that is being presented in the media by power. I think understanding how the media is portraying women and gender roles help us understand how the media and films effect children, youth, and adults. Being aware will help research by understanding how media creates a gendered oppression as well as films and media intersecting with other forms of oppression. Researching to have a better understanding of the media and films contribute towards gender oppression will give a more historical background regarding cultural norms and attitudes.

 

Smith, “The Image of Women in Film,” in Sue Thornham (ed.), Feminist Film Theory

 

Tuchman, “Women’s Depiction by the Mass Media,” Signs, 4,3 (Spring, 1979): 528-542.

 

Artel and Wengraf, “Positive Images,” in Patricia Erens (ed.), Issues in Feminist Film Criticism

 

Bordo, S., “Never Just Pictures,” in Twilight Zones: The Hidden Life of Cultural Images

 

 

 

 

Question:

 

Do you think that film and media has contributed to harmful and inaccurate gender stereotypes? If so do you think this would be considered gendered oppression?