The Normality of Gender Roles in Society - Case Study Example

How Media Construct the Normality of Gender Roles in America Goffman defines gender as the behaviors, expectations, and attitudes that are considered appropriate for either a woman or a man in a given cultural setting (3). The gender roles vary from one culture to another. However, Shields and Heinecken note that regardless of culture, the mother is always regarded as the caregiver of the children in the family while men are viewed as the head of the family and the principal provider of basic needs in the family (12). The media have adopted the use of gender role in recent times as a construct of normality of gender role. Deborah notes that most media of today are more focused toward constructing the normality of gender roles in the society (8). In this regard, she notes that most of the American televisions tend to portray women as people who engage in different roles such as cleaning houses, modeling, washing clothes, taking care of children, and acting as sexual objects in the society. Men, on the other hand, are in most cases depicted as people who are authoritative, aggressive; decision-makers on matters affecting the society (Shields and Heinecken 21). These are some of the normality of gender roles expected of either of the genders in the contemporary American society. This paper will examine how the media in today’s society construct the normality of gender roles in American society. Gender advertising has become commonplace in American media today. Gender advertising in this case refers to the use of images in advertising that stereotypes the gender roles in the society according to Goffman (6). Gender images are mainly used as an advertising tool to construct the normality of gender roles for both genders. Goffman argues that the marketers have become deeply obsessed with gender in advertising (6). He notes that most advertisers prefer using gender in advertising because a majority of people like referring to themselves by gender thereby making it easier for media marketers to use it as a theme during advertising. Media advertising has become a valuable tool for socialization in this modern age where almost everyone in the society is able to access a television set. Survey reveals that more than 90% of America households have access to television (Abelson Par.3). This implies that almost everyone in the U.S. is able to receive first hand information relayed through the media. However, this is also dependent on the channel used to relay such information as noted by Abelson (par.3). As such, advertising is used as a means for preserving gender roles in society. In this case, the media of today try to make clear distinctions between women and men to reveal roles considered appropriate for either of the genders. In most cases, one will see the media depicting the two genders as differing in many ways such as in behavior, attitudes, and social status. The differences depicted reveal how the two genders differ in terms of their roles in society. Deborah argues that the gender displays are developed in order to reveal real life situation, which some call ‘Commercial Realism (9).’ He notes that advertisers do not take that which does not exist for use during the advertisement of a product. Rather, they use something that is real to communicate to the audience who can favorably relate to the object or subject in the advert. As earlier mentioned, media tend to portray both gender in accordance with the reality in the society. In the America society, the media tend to portray women as sexy and sexually accessible (Hawke 9). This is the true picture in American society. In this regard, most media adverts tend to display the beautiful and sexy bodies of women to persuade people to buy the product. In fact, some ads go to the extent of showing the sexy women half naked which may be taken to imply that they are sexually available (Hawke 9). For example, in the American music industry, producers in most cases display sexy women who appear to be sexually available in a bid to lure the audience towards their product. Therefore, what the media are displaying is the reality on the ground. A growing number of media ads are also depicting men as sex objects (Hawke 9). This has been evident in adverts that deal with underwear and fashion cars in which men are shown as being obsessed with their bodies. In this regard, men are mainly shown using with well built bodies, strong muscles, broad chest, and shoulders and well groomed (Goffman 11). The depiction of masculinity of men in the media is also prominent in adverts since it is still being viewed as a cultural symbol in a contemporary American society. In the American society masculinity is viewed as the norm for the male in the society. Goffman notes that women are also portrayed touching their bodies, which certainly depicts how delicate and precious it is to them (12). This is the true picture of women in America since a majority of women in America values their bodies very much. As a result, they tend to endeavor to keep their bodies in good shape and feel it in a bid to appear sexy and beautiful. In addition, they are also displayed caressing objects, which is generally the nature of the American women (Goffman 12). In this regard, there are depicted as people who are just there with nothing much to do. Men, on the other hand, are depicted take hold of objects as a symbol of control over their lives (Goffman 12). This is the normal thing in American society where men are still viewed as heads of families and therefore must take control over the matters affecting their lives and those of the family at large (Shields and Heinecken 26). This is not true with women who are depicted as just being there, which is a common thing in American society. Men are also displayed as being brave, up right, strong, commanding, and adventurous and having the ability to thing rationally (Hawke 16). These are some of the traits expected of the American man in the society in order to be able to execute their mandate of being the heads of the family. In addition, they are portrayed as people who have the ability to make autonomous decisions and take up initiatives (Goffman 13). It is believed that an American man must be one who is able to think independently and make a rational decision affecting the society. As such, what the media portrays is the reality of the duties of men in American society. Therefore, in order for men to be in a position play their roles effective, they must have the attributes shown in the media. The military ads and the strong, silent Marlboro, which teaches youths to be all they can be, are a good example of male gender display according to Goffman (12). Women, on the other hand, are in most cases depicted as caregivers as some of the media adverts portray them nurturing children (Goffman 13). The duties include washing, dressing, and breast-feeding and dropping children to school every morning. This is a true reflection of the American society where women are basically the caregivers. In this case, they are expected to nurture the children in all manners possible by keeping in close contact with the children. Men are not shown with such attributes since men are only shown with their children during leisure time. Most media still portray women in America as housekeepers, engaging in various activities such as cleaning the houses, cooking for the family. This truly reflects the traditional American society where women are responsible for maintaining cleanliness of the house and everything in the house is neat, in addition to taking part in, kitchen duties such as cooking and cleaning the utensils (Goffman 13). During advertising, females are normally portrayed as being preoccupied with their looks, and fascinated by such things as jewels and dolls. Fat women that are featured in adverts or media programs are normally subject to ridicule and jokes by the males which means that they are portrayed as being subject to scorn. As a result, they are portrayed as being lazy and incapable of accomplishing tasks that require strength, dedication, and perseverance. Essentially, media stereotypes women’s role in society by always assigning them tasks that seem less important in spite of the fact that today women in America hold as good positions as their male counterparts. Therefore, the media social construct is a true picture of the roles of women in the contemporary American society. However, the media portray men in a very different way since, unlike women; they are depicted as being aggressive, authoritative. Generally this is the nature of men in America as the norms expects them to be aggressive in whatever they do as well as being authoritative in the family in order to make the family grow in an upright manner (Shields and Heinecken 31). Men are also expected to be authoritative in order to be able to make independent decisions, be it at work or at home. In most cases, women are depicted in the media as un-alert, confused, and ignorant of the events around them (Shields and Heinecken 31). Men, on the other hand, are mainly shown as being attentive, and ready for any potential threat. This is true of what is happening in the American society and is therefore not strange in any way to the audience. For instance, in American society, men are expected to play the defensive role in the family in case of any threat (Shields and Heinecken 31). This explains why they are depicted by the media as being alert and ready for any potential threat that may befall the family. The males are portrayed also as being independent and emotionally detached. The woman, on the other hand, does not play the defensive role, which explains the reason why they are depicted as being un-alert and confused about the surrounding. Furthermore, they are often portrayed as victims as they are always subject to violence, harassment, murder, and assault. What this means is that the women are portrayed as people who are generally weak and who cannot perform certain tasks as good as their male counterparts. While to a great extent women are portrayed by media to have less important jobs and roles in the American society, there are a few instances where they are favorably portrayed. For example, successful women are depicted as being hard faced climbers in political and corporate dimensions. Also, a few women play role of hero/heroin in adverts and programs. Conclusion Normality of gender role in American society is indeed constructed in a number of ways by the media. This is because it is evident that what the media depicts in the form of ads is a true reflection of the gender roles in the contemporary American society. Nevertheless, such social construction may change with time as gender roles continues to change from time to time due to women’s advocacy for equality in America. From the discussion presented above, it is sure that media provides a somehow biased view regarding the roles of males and females. Males are mainly portrayed more favorably compared to their female counterparts in spite of the equality that almost currently exists in the society. That said, it is also worth stating that main stream media normally features more males than females with stereotyping being the order of the day. Most of the time, females are portrayed by media as being weak, emotional and continuously preoccupied with looks. They are portrayed as being objects of sex, at the disposal of men to satisfy their urges. By extension, they are portrayed as individuals whose roles are reserved to the home environment if not acting as sex pets outside the home environment. While this is the case, it is worth noting that much needs to be done to end media stereotyping that commonly is practiced today. Work Cited Abelson, Shannon. Gender roles in American society. Web. 27 Nov. 2012, http://www.helium.com/items/2129296-gender-roles-in-american-society. Deborah, Blum. Sex on the Brain: The Biological Differences between Men and Women. New York, NY: Penguin, 1997 Print. Goffman, Erving. The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life. New York, NY: Peter Smith Pub Incorporated, 1999 Print. Hawke, Lucy A. "Gender Roles within American Marriage: Are They Really Changing? “ ESSAI: Vol. 5, Article 23, 2007. Web. 27 Nov.2012: http://dc.cod.edu/essai/vol5/iss1/23. Shields, Vickie R., & Heinecken, Dawn. Measuring Up: How Advertising Affects Self-Image. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2002 Print. Read More