Gender
Gender stereotypes are everywhere. Stereotypes are defined as a "generalized view or preconception concerning attributes, characteristics or roles of members of a particular social group" (Burke-Fogel 2010). From a young age, the fact that males and females possess certain characteristics are embedded in us. Boys play with action figures and cars, while girls play with dolls. Men are considered to be dominating, powerful, masculine while women are considered to be nurturing, sensitive, and feminine. These stereotypes are visible everywhere from social situations to media representations. My aim to is to shed light on the gender stereotypes, especially that of women, portrayed in media today.
In the popular TV show Grey’s Anatomy, the character of Dr. Christina Yang played by Sandra Oh is ambitious, driven, highly motivated and knows what she wants. She excels at everything and is a go-getter. However, along with all these positive attributes comes the fact that she is emotionally unavailable, cold, insensitive and does not want children. In the movie, Devil Wears Prada, Meryl Streep portrays the character of Miranda Priestly who is the editor-in-chief of Runway magazine. Her character is portrayed as an “ice queen” who is dominating and tough on her employees. These two depictions of two powerful women are clearly stereotypical. Society has created this norm where women have to be one thing and not the other. In the above cases, women who are successful in their career are stripped off their feminine characteristics of being loving, caring, and pleasant to be around. There is this notion that women have a hard time balancing career life and family life. But the fact is that today a family needs two earning members. While it is hard for women to find that perfect balance between maintaining a successful career and having a happy family life, millions of women around the globe do this unlike the preconceived notion.
In the popular TV show Grey’s Anatomy, the character of Dr. Christina Yang played by Sandra Oh is ambitious, driven, highly motivated and knows what she wants. She excels at everything and is a go-getter. However, along with all these positive attributes comes the fact that she is emotionally unavailable, cold, insensitive and does not want children. In the movie, Devil Wears Prada, Meryl Streep portrays the character of Miranda Priestly who is the editor-in-chief of Runway magazine. Her character is portrayed as an “ice queen” who is dominating and tough on her employees. These two depictions of two powerful women are clearly stereotypical. Society has created this norm where women have to be one thing and not the other. In the above cases, women who are successful in their career are stripped off their feminine characteristics of being loving, caring, and pleasant to be around. There is this notion that women have a hard time balancing career life and family life. But the fact is that today a family needs two earning members. While it is hard for women to find that perfect balance between maintaining a successful career and having a happy family life, millions of women around the globe do this unlike the preconceived notion.
Females are not the only ones who face the pressure to conform. In an episode of one the world’s best-loved TV shows Friends, the character Ross is completely taken aback when his son picks up and plays with a doll. To add some background information, Ross’ son lived with his ex-wife and her lesbian partner and he shares custody of his son with them. This episode revolves around Ross’ attempts to get his son to play with GI Joes and other more masculine action figures as opposed to the doll. What is not highlighted in the episode is the fact that the child does not understand the difference between the toys. Children don’t understand the cultural pressure to conform at a young age, but as they grow older gender stereotypes are instilled in them so that they fall in place with their gender roles.
Race
Just as in the case of gender, racial stereotypes are present everywhere. When a combination of gender and racial stereotypes are broken, chaos evokes in society. One of this season’s most talked about episode in the TV show Glee was titled “Asian F”. In this episode, the character of Mike Chang receives his first ever A-, which is considered an Asian F. His enraged father sets up a meeting with the school Principle and blames his son’s active role in the school’s glee club for this drop in grade. Furthermore, Mike faces the dilemma of pursuing his dreams about becoming a dancer while still doing what his father wants him to. The Simpson’s, America’s longest running and most beloved TV show portrays another Asian stereotype. In the show, Apu is an Indian immigrant who runs a supermarket and has a large family. This stereotype is one that is often heardoff in the United States and Apu represents that stereotype. Similar stereotypes relate to Asians, Latinos and African Americans are seen not only in TV shows, but also in advertisements and movies.