Why would Bordo lead on the reader with opinions that are not really her own? Bordo shows her opinion toward the objectification of the male body throughout the essay by using advertisements. She begins her essay with the appreciation? towards the male model ads, describing the success its brought many companies, such as Calvin Klein, and the pleasure females take from looking at them: “The model...stands there in his...rip-speckled Calvin Kelin briefs, head lowered, dark hair loosely falling over his eyes. His body projects strength...” (133).
I agree with Sheets-Johnstone’s claim that “women inspire male sexual desire simply by existing.” In the twenty first centuries, targeting western culture, women are constantly examined by men based alone on their outward appearance. A woman can be reduced to only to certain body parts such as the genitalia. This is because a woman’s appearance alone can cause a male to become aroused which naturally leads to this kind of degradation. The woman as a whole is basically forgotten. Because it is common for men to behave in this manner, it is almost routine for a woman to be appeasing to a man for approval.
Bordo’s sense of humor and easy to relate style of writing makes her essay an interesting read and opens up the idea that men are starting to deal with being in the “sexual spotlight.” After reading this essay, I agree with Bordo’s argument. Men are entering a world of sexual critique. It is different than what we are accoustomed to. The introduction of men into a world of sexual critique and a constant gaze of desire from the opposite sex and, more importantly, the same sex, brought about many different evaluations and opinions. According to Bordo’s claims made in the essay, a man’s worth and pride are challenged with accusations that “real” men do not choose clothing that will enhance their appearance, do not look in a mirror, nor are they even supposed to know what a mirror looks like because each of these things would – stereotypically, of course – immediately turn a man gay.
‘God knows I do. But I’ll kill him dead before I let him beat me’" (Walker 40). One word repeated often in the quote, "fight," has a very masculine connotation and is very often associated with males. Because the word "fight" is applied to a woman, Sofia, Walker indicates that women are as capable as men to engage in masculine activities like fighting. Furthermore, Sofia describes her history as one entirely full of men; hence, Walker forces the reader to expect Sofia to be a female with many male behavioral patterns.
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.
And that the Male Gaze expresses an unequal power relationship, between the ‘viewer’ and the ‘viewed’, for example, that men impose their unwanted gaze upon women. Feminists say that some women however don't conform to the male gaze and are represented in the media by showing they are strong and powerful women without men or males. Some feminists argue that whether or not women welcome the gaze, that some women might merely be conforming to the norms established
It’s almost as though these “boys have also learned that men ogle primarily to impress other men (and to affirm their heterosexuality)”. Now, the definition of ogle is to stare at somebody desirously: to look at somebody for sexual enjoyment or as a way of showing sexual interest. ("ogle" Merriam-Webster Online Dictonary) To me that definitely is not a look that I would like to be given. There does not seem to be any way possible for a male to ogle at a woman without her feeling like an object unless she is portraying herself in a sexual manor. The Cindy Crawford commercial that Kilbourne discusses in her essay really brings the issue of the century long double standards to light.
This teaches women that they need to constantly dote on the man, whether he pays attention or not. The companies designing these ads are using women as a tool in order to empower the advertisement to engage the consumer’s attention and to sell more products. The woman's image is being degraded because sex appeal in advertising is showing her that she is nothing more than an item, who needs the product in the ad to seem more beautiful and important to the man. This is totally wrong; they only are going to have
He specifically noted that men tend to find greater enjoyment in sexually related humour, regardless of the gender of the person involved. However on the other hand, with hostile humourous scenarios, women find the situation increasingly funny if it is based on a man whereas men find the scenario more funny if it is about a woman. Mundorf (1988) found a complex interaction between gender, humour type and humour-victim gender. Interestingly, Herzog (2009) failed to replicate the findings of Mundorf (1988), therefore a level of controversy remains regarding gender differences in humour appreciation. Gender is often viewed as a system of meanings and influences, affecting access to power and influencing social status (Crawford, 2003).
Also, most of the super heroes are men because they are vigorous and muscular. Men that are not as strong and not as manly are generally judged. Humanity expects men to be athletic and macho, and when they are not they are sometimes they are looked at as flamboyant and girly. Another stereotype that men have today, is that they are sex machines and always have unattached sex. Roffman’s essay