Gender stereotyping: as long as the media exists, women will always be pretty and men will always be tough…

The Focus – October 29th, 2007 by Sarah

To carry on with the theme of my last blog, what on earth is with the way women are portrayed on television? Within one hour of prime-time television on a commercial network last night, I witnessed almost every irritating gender stereotype relating to women there is. The squealing, ditzy blonde teen, the frustrated housewife, the cute and coy young vixen, and we can’t foget the pretty, polite and perky sales assistant. These are just a few of many. Yes, while they do vary and present a number of perspectives on the female experience, they essentially suggest that overall, real women should be physically attractive, helpful, heterosexual, agreeable, overtly sexual yet sufficiently ‘pure’, obsessed with physical appearance, pleasant and physically attractive. So ladies, you can be anything you want, as long as what you want to be includes a number of the abovementioned characteristics. Did I mention that being physically attractive is a good idea?

To be fair, men don’t exactly escape from being victims of gender stereotyping either, with the ideal man being strong, a provider, physically attractive, heterosexual, generally ignorant about women or impossibly suave and charming.

Don’t get me wrong, there isn’t anything wrong with wanting to be a pleasant, attractive, helpful woman. Nor is being a strong, charming man a bad thing. The problem is that many attributes beyond these standardised characteristics are considered as being a bit unusual, a bit risque and sometimes undesireable. The idea that women and men are free to be themselves and embrace their unique qualities is a little difficult to swallow when the media is so consistently perpetuating age-old concepts of what it is to be a ‘real’ man or woman.

Now, I realise very little of what I’ve said so far is particularly new or exciting. It isn’t news that the media thrives on beauty and all things superficial, or that stereotyping is a necessary process the human brain must adopt in order to process the vast amount of information out there. But the reality is that individuals of either sex will never be truly free to embrace their own definitions of what it is to be male or female as long as society continues to accept these stereotypes as the norm, labeling everything else as slightly odd. Why is it ok that a heterosexual stay-at-home mum and heterosexual husband with a full-time job lead more acceptable lives than a single bisexual woman, or a husband who chooses to stay at home with the kids? Rather than simply accepting and perpetuating these gender concepts without a second thought, we must challenge them. Next time you’re relaxing in front of the tele, be critical of what is being presented to you, and consider whether ‘normal’ actually exists.

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One response to “Gender stereotyping: as long as the media exists, women will always be pretty and men will always be tough…”

1. hoodoff

   February 25th, 2009 at 3:11 am

   As you highlighted, America’s “norm” is stereotypical. But that’s o.k. The sterotypical images are there to entertain and persuade us. Your ugly ass on the other hand blogs about it.

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