ENWR-105-BX 18 November 2013 In the essay “Female Chauvinist Pigs” by Ariel Levy, the author argues that women participate in practices that are responsible for their oppression. Levy’s argument is that women participate in “raunch culture” as means of embracing sexism and exploitation toward the idea of gaining empowerment. While some woman like Sheila Nevins, feel empowered and liberated by aspects of raunch culture, other woman like Tyra Banks, co-producer of ANTM, is discussed in “Ghetto Bitches, China Dolls, and Cha Cha Divas” by Jennifer Pozner using racist stereotypes in order to gain power. The judges in the show say they try and promote inclusive beauty standards actually reinforce racial stereotypes. Women are willing to participate in practices that oppress them because they want power.
The article “Raunch Culture” by Ariel Levy discusses how life in the twenty first century has become very raunchy and erotic. She talks about how easy it is to blame the males of our culture for objectifying women. However, it is the women who are volunteering to have these pornographic or racy photographs and videos taken of themselves. Even women athletes are posing for scantily clad pictures, and they are getting more attention for that than their specialized sporting events. This article discusses that women taking control of their sexuality and objectifying themselves are not, in fact, the same thing.
Sex and Young Girls In Kilbourne’s “Two Ways A Woman Can Get Hurt” she speaks extensively about how advertising could have many underlying and shocking meanings when analyzed closer. Some factors that Kilbourne speaks of in her essay allow us to look deeper into the hidden concepts of advertising and show a world of suggestive sex and abuse. Many of the ads allowed us take a closer look at how woman are portrayed as objects to sell a product. I believe that many of underlying factors influence our young girls. Many of the ads today give an image that in order to be happy and satisfied in life you have to be sexual or look sexy to get ahead.
Jean Killbourne, author of "Two Ways a Woman Can Get Hurt", has a very strong opinion of women being used for sex appeal, and that is that advertising has reached a point where bodies are portrayed as objects therefore normalizing attitudes that lead to sexual aggression. Although
Marie de France does this to criticize and combat the societal expectations and inherent inequalities in Norman England. The poem begins by Marie immediately introducing and defending herself as a writer. She declares that in her culture, People should praise anyone who wins admiring comments for herself but anywhere there is a man or a woman of great worth, people who envy their good fortune often say evil things about them. (5-10) This introduction reflects the negativity her society has against female writers. Where Marie de France comes from, many people disagree with women having power through literature.
Through wonder woman, one can see how her characterization has helped changed and challenge this ideology of male dominance in the world of comics and cartoon. In contrast, Betty Boop is characterized as a highly sexualized woman who constantly is taken advantage of by the male characters within her cartoon. Hence, both gender representations are important because we are shown both women characters who are equally sexualized, and have feminine attributes. Wonder Woman uses her gender as an advantage, quite differently from Betty Boop whom always needs to be saved. After an extensive analyzation of both characters it is evident that Wonder Woman uses her femininity and sexuality to her advantage and this can be seen through Marston's DISC theory, which states her to be a liberating character.
In Donna Smyth’s short story Red Hot, it is proclaimed that patriarchism, in a democratic society, not only encourages male empowerment leading to physical or verbal abuse of women, but also proliferates the vulnerability of women across culture, media and generations. To demonstrate various effects of this issue, Smyth presents Red Hot in a fragmented storyline, which revolves around the central story of Jane Stafford’s trial to address the constant patronization of women in media, in adult entertainment and in private homes. Furthermore, Smyth’s constant referrals to the violent erotic video, featuring physical abuse of a woman, and the condescending male figures strongly depict the tendency of male dominated society to impose masculinity over women for the fulfillment of its needs. Therefore, as the fundamental element of patriarchism, masculinity promotes corruption of men’s nature leading to chaotic violence and vulnerability strained upon women. As suggested by Smyth, patriarchal masculinity exploits the very essence of democratic freedom, allowing men to claim “In the privacy of my own home I can do what I want.” (533.27.7-8).
Patriarchal societies have always used stereotypes and images of women as means of control. Discuss giving examples of the controlling images of black women in American society, showing how do women of color seek to reproduce counter-images of ourselves. 3 Response one: In many patriarchal societies, both the cultural perceptions of active and passive female sexuality have been used as tools in terms of sexual politics, in order to dominate women and restrict their sexual and reproductive autonomy. The subjugation that women, and in particular women of color, have faced under the patriarchy that demands (particularly under a passive lens) women be “desirable but not desirous” has rendered and reinforced a visible double standard for the expectations of men and women in terms of sexuality. Patriarchy structurally depends on the existence of this double standard, because it holds men firmly above women in terms of sexual power and freedom.
Black Women In The Media Mainstream media’s affect on the credibility and imaging of the Black Woman “Bend over to the front, touch your toes, bounce that ass up and down and get low!” blasts the latest rap song that seems to get a substantial amount of airtime. This particular song instructs a woman on how to perform an erotic strip tease. These lyrics are a small fragment of the images conveyed of Black women to audiences domestically as well as internationally. The American medium which includes radio, television, film, and other forms of advertisement continues to produce degrading, misleading, and destructive images of Black women. These images become unrelenting negative stereotypes that weaken the Political credibility of
Explain the complexity of choice, as it relates to both Rachel Lloyds elucidation of the choices she made and that young girls make when entering and leaving “the life”? Furthermore, how it relates to Paul Farmer’s concept of structural violence. 3. Slavery, exploitation, and violence, as manifested through ‘prostitution’, have become mainstream in the media, hip-hop and popular culture’s embrace and portrayal of being a “pimp”. Give the evidence outlined by Rachel Lloyd for this assertion and discuss the possible implications.