In the United States, women in politics, business, media, and in many other positions are present, but rare. This is especially the case the higher up the ladder the position is. Popular culture and media plays a strong role in this demographic as it may send the message to women that they are not fit to be in a position of power. Because women are not “fit” to be in the workplace, women are often pressured to be qualified exceptionally so that they would be taken seriously. Women may feel that they have to excel in many aspects just so that they are not looked down upon by men.
The idea of popular culture is debated by some scholars to have been post-industrial, having arisen beginning in the late 1800s, while some argue that it traces much farther back. After all, the definition of popular in popular culture is “of the people.” This is usually associated with the likes and dislikes of the hoi polloi, or common people, rather than that of the elites of society, as far as literature and the arts are concerned. Women’s role in popular culture has been diminished in such a way that they are only seen as the domestic, simple house wife that television and other media have shown since its inception.
This advertisement discriminates and isolates women as being primarily domestic and does not consider that women are capable of more competent roles such as those in politics and business. Playing on the idea that only women are doing housework and also on the assumption that women have to be consuming all of their time doing so allows for the success of the ad to lift the burden of work off of women’s shoulders.
In this cartoon, a gender line has literally been drawn to emphasize a possible huge prejudice occurring in hospitals between male and females. The gender line is meant to divide men and women into two groups: doctors and nurses. In popular culture, men are deemed “smarter” than women, so, women can only be nurses who aid doctors because they would be incompetent otherwise. This cartoon shows how, because of expectations of popular culture, job roles in hospitals are expected to be filed by men and women.
Through all types of media, including movies, television, and advertising, the stereotypical representation of women in popular culture pervades throughout society. The reason that women are represented this way in media may be simply because of the fact that males overwhelmingly dominate the media industry whether they are writers and editors or directors and producers. This means that women have been represented and classified into roles that men have designed them to fit in, or in other words, their expectations and desires.
In present popular culture, women can be seen in other aspects than just a housewife. It is not surprising to find women in power or authority on television or in other types of media. For example, actor Kyra Sedgwick plays the leading role of Deputy Police Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson in “The Closer.” This has now become part of popular culture because many people have begun to accept the equality between men and women. In this way, popular culture today is significantly different from what it was merely a few decades before.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kbNbMm_Pnk&feature=related (embed disabled by request D: )
However, men are often linked to women in power either by role of a mentor or guide, a boss, or some other kind of superior. For example, in “Bones,” Dr. Brennan is a forensic anthropologist that conducts investigations in murder. However, Special Agent Seeley Booth often has to rescue her when she gets into trouble with criminals. In this case, although the woman does have a powerful and intelligent role in the TV series, she is still subject to danger and distress and sometimes has to be saved by a more “dominant” male figure.
Conclusively, although women representation in popular culture has greatly improved in relation to being equally capable as men, there are still some discrepancies. Men are still viewed in a more dominant manner because women can still be seen as desirable objects or damsels in distress rather than intellectual individuals. Even though there is no proof that men are any more mentally capable, that mindset continues to pervade our way of thinking by way of stereotyping a helpless, subservient female and then putting all women into this same category.
Works Cited
Magoulick, Mary. "Women in Popular Culture." Folklore Connections. Georgia College and State University, 2006. Web. 20 Sep 2011.
“Bones~~ Booth saves Brennan.”Online Posting. YouTube,5 October 2010. Web. 21 September 2011. < http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjDk4JZHqaM >.
“The Closer – “Old Man?!.”” Online Posting. YouTube, 16 September 2008. Web. 21 September 2011. < http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kbNbMm_Pnk&feature=related >.
Images
"Female Stereotypes: Representation in Popular Culture." Infographic. Carlisle History. Carlisle, PA: Dickinson College, 2008. Web. 20 Sep 2011.
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