5.+Gender-Media-How+we+learn

**__ GENDER AND THE MEDIA: __**  … h O  **w W e L E a R n  ** 

 It used to be said that your boy should try to be a “macho-man” while the girl should be a “girlie-girl”. The impact which media has on children is undeniable. According to Haffner (2008) young people aged eight to eighteen consume nearly six and a half hours of media each day. The average teen and child watches an average of three hours of television per day, and a total of nearly four hours a day with media…videos, DVD, and TiVo’d (p. 148). The media not only reflect and perpetuate gender roles, it also creates different ways of doing gender. Therefore, a child’s perception of gender roles is largely influence by their continued and extensive exposure to what is presented in the media. Parents, peers and the media…not only transmit display rules, they play an active role in influencing them” (Brody, p. 236).   After viewing multiple television shows, and listening to different interviews of children, it seems that kids are still raised to believe this. “Parents want to raise children who are well liked, and to be well liked means acting in accordance with the stereotypic norms for one’s sex" (Brody, p. 236).

In one interview, five young children were asked multiple questions regarding their gender roles. The host simply asked quick questions about boys and girls, while he recorded the children’s answers. The first question, which was asked to a young girl, was “can boys wear dresses?” She answered no. Kids at young ages know their gender roles and know what to expect out of each gender. Another question, which was asked to a young boy, was “are you ever going to be a girl.” With a smile, the boy responded no! Throughout this interview, it is seen that children know their gender roles starting at very young ages. Through the television shows they watch and advice from their parents, children are raised to know how they are supposed to act being the gender that they are.

**__WHAT KID'S THINK OF GENDER:__ __INTERVIEW WITH KIDS ON GENDER ROLES__** Below, is the exact video of the aforementioned interview of the five children about their perceptions of gender roles. []  ** __Socializations in Children’s Entertainment__ **



**// Disney’s Depiction: // **

It is obvious from researching a variety of popular children’s entertainment outlets, that children have been exposed to the media’s portrayal of gender roles and gender socializations through cartoons and television shows. Disney is one of the largest corporations for children’s entertainment, and has been dazzling young audiences with fairytales since the release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves in 1937. From that time Disney has introduced the Princesses Cinderella, Belle, Sleeping Beauty, Ariel, Jasmine, and so on. All of these women have in common outward beauty, the gift of song, less than desirable situations, and handsome princes, and each perform the roles traditionally considered female roles of homemakers and damsels in distress. On the other hand, the males in these films always perform the role of the rescuers, and are typically portrayed fulfilling tasks of fighting the dragon and possessing true love’s kiss- tasks that seem to require much strength and ability.

According to the article, Gender Role Portrayal and the Disney Princesses, “While the Princesses were not likely to be portrayed as physically strong, unemotional, or inspiring fear, these characteristics were more common among the princes. The princes were least likely to tend to their physical appearance, in contrast to the princesses.” (Decartes, 2001.) Since, in the past, society has so obviously adopted the belief that women are the more emotional, weaker gender and are expected to fulfill the tasks considered “girly,” such as housekeeping, cooking, and looking pretty, these behaviors depicted through popular Disney characters, insinuate and support the traditional views of society.

**Femininity in Disney movies**: [] **Masculinity in Disney movies**: []  However, such depiction has changed overtime and the more recent ‘Disney Princesses embody a stronger and more capable role model. In the film Mulan, the young woman surprisingly aids the men in rescuing “their people,” from peril. Unlike princesses of the past, Mulan battles along side the men and struggles with the idea that she is defying the traditional roles stressed by her culture and family. This movie defies the idea that Princesses are never the heroes, and are limited to baking, cleaning and picking flowers while wearing dresses. It also confronts the cultural and social expectations of women to serve their families by making a suitable home and marrying well. Mulan shows girls that she too can contribute beyond social expectations and represents a stronger more capable woman than the princesses of the past.

Disney also breaks away the traditional female roles through their television shows. In the Disney channel show //Lizzie McGuire//, targeted toward early teenage women, a young fashion-obsessed Lizzie obsesses about the typical predicaments of high school life. In the episode “One of the Guys,” Lizzie dabbles in athletics, but when she finds that she excels in the area, she worries her athleticism will challenge her femininity. Despite the criticism from classmates, and obvious rejection of the idea of a girl excelling at sports, Lizzie realizes that it is perfectly acceptable for a girl to be athletic, and athleticism should not change one’s personal identity. In hindsight this lesson rejects traditional gender socializations and the limitation of individuals based on gender, rather the portrayal of women as the damsels in distress.

// **Dating with Disney?** // <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"> Children’s entertainment has fed into the sexual socializations and limitations that differ by gender as well. Based on sexual socializations, and the idea that a girl “…can't do what the boys do and still be a lady," the portrayal of the roles of men and women in dating and romantic involvement in children’s entertainment has not always been evenly portrayed. Men, being considered the stronger gender, have filled the role of the pursuer, while women are the ones waiting to be ‘summoned.’ This is another obvious depiction in earlier Disney films. As seen in the case of Cinderella and Prince Charming, Prince Charming pursues the women of the kingdom by inviting each to a ball at his palace. The women in turn prepare for the ball in hopes of winning over the princes affections. Ultimately, the prince pursues the owner of the glass slipper, Cinderella, and the two live “happily ever after.” Similar circumstances are portrayed in the story of Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and the Little Mermaid. According to these portrayals, it is obvious that kids can assume the males to be more apt in the role of pursuance and the women to be those waiting to be sought after. However, such bias is being disputed in modern day entertainment. In modern day Disney entertainment, specifically preteen/early teen entertainment, dating and the pursuance of romantic interests, is evenly portrayed between males and females.



<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Modern day Disney shows, such as Hannah Montana and Drake and Josh, portray little difference in the pursuance of boys by girls and vice versa. All individuals in these shows are in their early-mid teens and are beginning to date. In several episodes of the popular Hannah Montana, the main character, which assumes the role of Miley as well as her alias Hannah, is often portrayed having "crushes" on and pursuing boys. Likewise, on the show Drake and Josh, both boys are involved in dating and even make the process a competition. Comparing these two shows, dating is now portrayed in children’s entertainment evenly between boys and girls, and through modern shows girls are even encouraged to pursue boys rather than “wait to be summoned.”

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">This, of course, is contrary to past depictions as discussed above, and despite the fact that modern shows seem to be breaking away from socializations, //yesterday’s// entertainment is still well liked. With the popularity that such fairytales still have in our society, it is not silly to believe that children are still being exposed to a gender biased portrayal of gender and sexual socializations through entertainment. Especially since what is depicted in any entertainment does not necessarily represent all modern day socializations, and based on some of our findings, the limitations and traditional socializations are evident in other forms of entertainment and various opinions.

**__Gender In Parenting Magazines and Websites__**

 * //Advertisements and Appearance://**

Magazines are another form of predominant media outlets that can influence the perception of readers, and each one is targeted toward a specific audience. As Cosmopolitan is indented audiences concerned with fashion and love, and ESPN for sports fanatics, Parents is a magazine intended for individuals who are attempting or eventually plan to rear well-rounded children. Upon researching the contents inside this publication it appeared to offer similar substance as other magazines of that genre. However, it wasn’t as much the content of the articles or the advice given that caught our attention to this magazine- it was the visual appearance, and the ads. According to the article Being Boys, Being Girls: Gender Representations in Parents magazine, the ads featured in the publication represent and portray more than the products being advertised. The article reads: “Through a qualitative exploration of the text, advertising imagery, and supplemental imagery present in six randomly selected issues, this analysis suggests that readers are receiving a variety of stereotypical messages about gender. Key themes regarding girls included: girls as associated with pink or purple; girls as sleeping princesses; the sectioning of girls’ bodies; girls as passive; girls as secondary to boys; girls as unskilled; and, intra gender interactions among females as collaborative or instructive in “how to be women”. Themes that spoke to the gender expectations of boys included: boys as associated with eating; boys as disruptive or combative yet not requiring discipline; boys as miniature versions of their fathers; and, boys as skilled or instrumental."

After exploring this hypothesis, the results were obvious. Various covers of multiple issues of Parents with boys on the front are either coated in blue, or green, or orange, colors traditionally associated with masculinity. The covers that appeared pink, yellow, or purple, featured either girls on the cover, or girls along with their moms, or animals; never with boys. Since the colors pink, yellow, and purple are traditionally considered the more feminine or “softer” shades, it is easy to make the connection with those colors, and girls being traditionally seen as pretty and feminine.

Furthermore, upon analyzing the ads one specifically stood out. It was an ad for Chef Boyardee, and it showed a little boy eating a bowl of raviolis. Even though the boy’s face was a mess, a very large grin spread across his face as he prepared to scarf down another huge spoonful. The article claims that boys are the ones featured in the food advertisements, and when looking through the issues, not one food advertisements featured a girl. Perhaps the Chef Boyardee ad would not have been as affective if it showed a little girl with a messy face and mouth full of food. Based on socializations, girls are supposed to be more proper and clean than boys, and if a girl was covered in food it would probably be disgusting- not cute. However, Parents is not the only child-rearing magazine to be gender-biased in terms of advertisements. When looking through the magazine Parenting an ad for the company Roommates was featured, and itself featured every gender stereotype imaginable. The ad pictured two twin beds, one pink one blue, and a girl sat on the pink and a boy on the blue. The girl was dressed in a pink boa and above her pink bed were stickers and pictures of butterflies, and flowers. The boy was adorned in blue swimming goggles, and above his blue bed were stickers of footballs baseballs. This ad was clearly designed with a gender-biased outlook and portrayal of colors, interests, and apparel.

Although ads cannot be considered advice to parents, they do offer a subliminal depiction of what is acceptable and appropriate for different genders. The magazine may not be featuring the ads to intentionally support gender socializations, but parents are still being exposed to such concepts.

The internet is yet another media outlet from which parents can access a variety of websites with information and advice about child-rearing. From ideas for rainy day activities, to advice on healthy diets for a five –year- old, parents look to these website’s experts for guidance. When researching through several parenting websites, one website stood out for its Q&A section. Under the topics “Gender Norms,” and “Gender Identity,” the following questions were asked by concerned and inquisitive parents and answered by an educational expert. I know this is normal for three-year-olds, but I have trouble not reacting negatively to it. I don't want to encourage this behavior, so I try to ignore it. But the more I ignore it, the more involved he becomes with it. My older son also engaged in this type of play, but not to this extent. Should I be worried or should I let it go? At age three, your son is still forming his own identity and may play with many kinds of toys. Just as your older son did, your three-year-old may in time move to playing with stereotypical "boy" games and toys. Make sure that your son has access to clothes and toys that are traditionally worn and used by boys. You can also find dress-up clothes for male-stereotyped jobs. React positively when your son plays with these things and encourage him to play with his older brother and other boys in your neighborhood.
 * //<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Websites Expert Advice: // **
 * Question: ** I'm very concerned about my three-year-old son. He acts like a little girl. He says he wants to be a girl, he pretends he's a girl, he even plays with all girl things -- dolls, dress-up clothes, etc. He has an older brother who is five and a younger sister who is one.
 * Answer: ** You are wise not to react negatively to your son's play. Even though you try to ignore it, your son may be sensing that you are upset. Children are very perceptive, and he may be aware of your concerns.

** Question: ** My daughter will be six years old next month. She has fought with me since she was age two about what to wear. We have had to cut off every tiny satin bow on her T-shirts. She will wear a dress only for church. She has expressed the wish to be a boy since age three and insists she's going to be a boy when she grows up. She speaks of this at least once a week. She has an older brother and sister. I know she is probably just a tomboy, but please advise. With many children, the enjoyment in wanting their own way comes from the reaction of the adults around them. Think about your responses to your daughter. Do you try to argue with her and give her more attention because of the things she says? What happens if you ignore her or just say, "We'll see?" Since this has been going on for almost three years and she talks about it at least once a week, you may want to talk with your school counselor about giving your daughter some individual time. If you or the school counselor thinks she needs therapy, the counselor or your pediatrician can help refer you to someone in your community. ** ◊◊◊◊ ** The parent in the first set of Q&A was clearly concerned about their sons desire to play with //girl// toys and wear //girl// clothes. The boy’s desire for objects and clothing traditionally intended for girls makes his parent worry about his ability to accurately identify his gender. It is obvious that this parent is caught up in the socializations of doing gender through //appropriate// interests and apparel and the idea that girls play with dolls and boys with trucks, not vice versa. Instead of advising the parent to encourage the child’s individual identity through whatever toys he wants to play with, the experts advises the parent on how to solve this //problem//. Such advice feeds into the socializations and stereotypes and does not benefit the child. The second set of Q&A is similar to the first, except the child is a female who doesn’t enjoy wearing and doing traditional “girl” things. The expert gives similar advice as the first, and ultimately offers the option of therapy if the school counselor agrees. The concept of therapy not only insinuates that the little girl is confused or abnormal, but that she is in need of being //fixed// through such a form of rehabilitation. In these advisory websites, the advice being given on how to rear a gender conscious child, supports the idea that girls need to act and dress like girls and boys need to act and dress like boys. In circumstances where children play and dress in the opposite genders objects, the experts give advice that reinstates the socializations traditionally set.
 * Answer: ** Many little girls wear clothing in cycles: they want to wear frilly dresses for awhile, and then they switch to T-shirts and jeans. But it does sound like you have a strong-willed child. She simply may be a "tomboy," admiring the clothing that men and boys wear and the things they do. Does she play mostly with boys, or try to do things that boys do and reject the play activities of girls? Talk with her teacher to find out what goes on at school, such as only playing with boys on the playground.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> **//<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">Daniel Gomes' "Sissy Boys" and "Unhappy Girls": //**

Not only are children directly influenced by what they are exposed to in the media, but they are also indirectly affected as many parents nurture their children according media perpetuated gender norms. Parents are bombarded by a plethora of media influences from books, talk shows, magazines and televisions. This reality is nothing new, in fact, for decades much research has been done to examine the media effect on parenting. One such paper was done by Daniel Gomes, titled: “Sissy” Boys and “Unhappy” Girls: Childrearing during the cold war.

Gomes’ “Sissy” Boys and “Unhappy” Girls: Childrearing during the Cold War, illustrated how the social climate of the day impacted/dictated the values of middle class America. Gomes, through his observations showed how post cold war anxieties influenced childbearing and rearing. Our observations have revealed that the more things changed, the more they stayed the same. Women have challenged men’s patriarchal dominance and have made significant head way towards achieving equality. However, what we have discovered is that the some men have responded by taking masculinity to levels not seen in decades past. Gomes was able to link the cultivation of gender identities to the effects of the Cold War. Today, the undergirding social climate which now influences the way we do gender is men’s attempts to defend, and in some cases reclaim patriarchal dominance. //Because the status quo benefits men, many husbands [men in general] resist these changes. Thus when wives [women] attitudes become more progressive, there is likely to be more overt conflict//…(Amato, 1995, p. 58)//.//Men have also resisted change by so to speak, supersizing masculinity; boys are encouraged to be bigger, tougher and even more competitive, than back when Gomes did his study.

How the Batman Doll has evolved:


The 21st Century is seemingly the era of masculinity on steroids, literally and figuratively. Sports heroes are no longer satisfied with being talented and working hard. Being the best is no longer enough, it’s being superhuman that counts, this can be seen through the significant number of “sports heroes” whom it has been revealed have used performance enhancing drugs. Women are undaunted and continue to challenge gender norms, and breaking their way into male dominated areas. According to the United States Department of Labor 2008 statistics, women now make 59.5% of the labor force and “the largest percentage of employed women (39 percent) worked in management, professional, and related occupations; 33 percent worked in sales and office occupations; 21 percent in service occupations; 6 percent in production, transportation, and material moving occupations; and 1 percent in natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations”. The percentage of women in the workforce has seen steady increase since Gomes did his study 33.9% in 1950, 37.7 in 1960 and 43.3 % in 1970. This clearly indicates that what is portrayed in the media isn't always in reality whats engendered in society.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;"> <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> **Parenting Websites: and the Role of the Mother and Father**

This article displays key ideas on this:[|"Work it out with your wife": Gendered Expectations and Parenting Rhetoric Online.]

While presenting you with some of the main points of this article, we were able to show you that with millions of parents turning to websites for advice, it is definitely clear that parenting roles are still not even today clearly defined. This article clearly demonstrates that women are mainly using these websites, and that men even though there roles are changing are still not seen as being in the picture as much as the women, with the father mainly acting in a "supporting role". It goes to show that their are some people who still follow the traditional gender roles, with the one woman praising her husband for giving her a little bit of help around the house. On the other hand some mothers were complaining that, they would get an argument about doing such simple tasks as doing dishes. Both men and women are pretty much in a losing situation when it comes to criticism on there roles in parenting. Many fathers are criticized for not taking enough of role in parenting children, but yet in many households they are expected to be the main support for the family monetarily. So how can a father be expected to work all day, and yet still play as big of role in parenting his children as his wife. On the other hand a mother will be criticized if she chooses to work a full-time job, because how can she be raising her children correctly if she is not there as much as she is "supposed" to be. Another key point is a woman will be criticized heavily for just making a simple mistake when it comes to parenting, while a man will overly praised for just doing the simplest of tasks. So in closing it is very interesting that millions of people are turning to parenting websites for advice, when we do not even have clear definitions for the roles parents should be playing. It is clear that fathers are still getting of on the easier side of things, as many people are still buying into the traditional gender roles. But is not easy for men or women, while these roles still continue to defined, because it is to easy for them to be criticized. While many mothers and fathers turn to these sites everyday, they have become more of place to discuss there problems.Until we have fully defined parenting roles, there cannot be any true "experts" on parenting, so parents should just play the role they feel is correct, instead of constantly being criticized by so called "experts".

** Bibliography ** Amato, P. (1995). Changes in Gender Role Attitudes and Perceived Marital Quality. American Sociological Review, Vol. 60, No. 1 (Feb., 1995), pp. 58-66. Retrieved July 19, 2009, from http://www.jstor.org/pss/2096345

Brody,L. (1999). Gender, Emotion & the Family. Harvard University Press

Descartes, L., & England, D. (2001) //Gender Role Portrayal and the Disney// // Princesses //. Retrieved June, 28, 2009, from University of Connecticut Human Development and Family Studies Web site: www.familystudies.uconn.edu. Haffner, D.W. (2008) What Every 21st-Century Parent Needs to Know: Facing Today's Challenges with Wisdom and Heart. Family Education. //Gender Norms//, //Gender Indentity.// Retrieved June, 28, 2009 from Web site: www.familyeducation.com // Parents //. May, 2008.

// Parenting //. February, 2006.

Quick stats on women workers (2008). Retrieved July 18, 2009, from: http://www.dol.gov/wb/stats/main.htm

Rashley, L. (2005). "Work it out with your wife": Gendered Expectations and Parenting Rhetoric Online, NWSA Journal, No.1 (Spring, 2005), pp. 58-92. Retrieved July 19 2009, from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,cpid&custid=s5436611&db=aph&AN=16211375&site=ehost-live