Category: Institutional Artifact Project

Ligia Urdiales Institutional Artifact Project

There are certain customs that we never leave behind and for most people it is very important to continue with that mindset. Gender roles has played a big part in people’s lives. When we talk about gender roles we refer to the behavior or role that a person must follow based on their gender, in this case women have always been seen as sensitive and caretakers and as someone who needs a man in order to be stable, while men are the leaders as the ones with an important job or position in society and they are the ones who are supposed to provide for their families. An important artifact that I believe is important and needs to be analyzed is the show Friends. There are many events that take place that are very important and could be analyzed since this shows how gender roles, privilege and objectification play a big part of the 6 friends in this show. I will mainly be focusing on Rachel and Ross since these characters evolved through out the show.

As a woman I believe this artifact is important because the idea of woman needing a man or even a male figure in general to be successful is not always true woman can achieve great things alone and be even more successful. I do believe that in some cases race privilege allows woman or any gender to be able to have more opportunities to grow. In this case Rachel is a white privilege woman, meaning that as a white person she is seen superior than others and although she might not have the experience or the qualifications for some jobs she is definitely handed opportunities. Although Rachel’s white privilege helped her a lot she did work hard to keep her job and prove that she is capable of accomplishing things alone.

In the show Rachel was portrayed as a woman who depended on her families money, and she was going to marry Barry who was wealthy without loving him, when she made the decision of not marrying Barry she finds herself lost because she has never been on her own. She than proceeds to get a job, she finds a job as a waitress which is not a very professional job for her, its a low paying job for her or any woman, and its usually the men who get the high paying jobs, and we see this change when Rachel evolves with her jobs and even gets an offer in Paris. However Ross expects her to stay in NYC for him, after he finally realizes he loves her she must give up on her dream n order to stay with the man she loves however the question rises to me is why didn’t he move to Paris with her in order for her not to give up on her dream job?

Another great example of gender roles Ross and Rachel are trying to find a nanny for their daughter and Rachel wants to hire Sandy who is a man as the nanny and Ross is against this because he does not believe a man should be a nanny and he does not agree with the fact that Sandy is very emotional. Ross believes that man don’t cry. In the show Ross tells sandy, “I’m not comfortable with a guy whose as sensitive as you”. He also mentioned that he isn’t comfortable because of his father since while he was growing up his dad was a tough guy. This shows that Ross’s way of thinking man should never cry and be tough because that was the way he was raised. After  Rachel ends up not hiring Sandy because of Ross, this comes to show how man can have certain control over the decisions women make.

Objectification refers to the action of degrading someone to the status or being more of an object, and to be used for certain things. We see objectification occur with Rachel since men are only interested in her beauty and only want sex with her. Although she worked hard to accomplish her goal she was always seeking male attention. When Chandler tell her coworkers Rachel only wants to have a fling multiple are interested, but when he told his coworker Patrick that Rachel was actually looking for a serious relationship, Patrick ended up breaking things up with Rachel. Through the show Rachel never finds a serious relationship other than with Ross.

After going into depth and analyzing the show through gender and privileges it made me realize things that I personally did not even realized when I first watched this show. After watching and discussing gender roles, sex and gender in general it made me see certain episodes and really see the meaning behind them. Every women in this show either had a low paying job meanwhile the men had jobs such as an actor , office, and paleontologists. It was interesting to see the roles be reversed in the show when Rachel finally gets her dream job, Monica gets a job as head chef, while Ross is on temporarily leave due to his behavior and anger, Chandler loses his job and does not like the fact that now Monica is the only provider at home. This show evolves and it shows us different aspects of how gender roles are implied and it breaks that, like I mentioned Sandy is a very emotional man, Monica becomes the provider and Chandler is at home cleaning and Rachel who was always very dependent on her families money is evolving with getting a job I the fashion industry which is what she always wanted.

 

Lisa Blamfort Institutional Artifact project

As someone who grew up in a Catholic family and who went to a Catholic school since kindergarten to senior high school, I am confident that religion is among many important characteristics associated with the differentiation of gender inequality in society since the beginning of the world and all over the world. The role of a women in religion nationwide  especially in a Catholic religion is in the household by being mothers and wives, it is also grant on the respect for women and their vital role in family life, but Catholic Church does not promote emancipation a complete equality with men because the opinion of women most of the time is hardly heard. The artifact that society uses to apply its norms to people is a holy book called the Bible, it also uses the 10 Commandments of Moses, the rules of the Catholic Church, 7 Deadly Sins in Dante’s inferno etc.…

The connection between religion and gender equality can be interpret clearly by the very first pages of the Holy Bible in Genesis 2:4-3:24 that explain God or Yahweh created Adam who is man before and Eve a woman is created from one of Adam’s ribs to be his companion/servant. The holy Bible even accused Eve to seduce Adam to eat the Forbidden fruit and make him lose his place in the Garden of Eden. Another disturbing part in the Bible is men did polygamy like King David had many wives and multiple concubines in 2 Samuel 5:14-16 KJV but if women committed adultery, they will stone to death in the Gospel of John 7:53–8:11

Another artifact that really affects equality issues in the society is the most powerful characters in the Catholic bible almost all the religious leaders are men such as Daniel, David, Paul, Job, Joshua, Jesus, Moses, , the Pope Francis for catholic church, even Yahweh AKA God who nobody never sees face to face or even talks to is considered as a white man. In more than 10,000 saints recognized by the Roman Catholic Church that I used to pray every day, only 20 women Saints who made a mark on the Catholic World.

Jesus did make a contrast of gender in the Bible by choosing only 12 Jewish men as apostles that means for a religious person that women are invaluable and inequal to men. Because of that theory in the Bible, women are barred from becoming pope, priest and cardinal, the catholic church even argues that “If Jesus wanted women to be priests, he would have called them to be his apostles.”  Women were not allowed to aid in the revitalized diaconate by Pope Paul VI in 1967 and the church refuses to admit women to the priesthood, the catholic delivers a message to the world: women are inferior to men and they are still going be and nobody cans anything about that in the Catholic Community.

The Bible tell us “Obey the government and its rules, for God is the One who has put it there and if we refuse to obey the law punishment will follow.” This verse in the bible makes everybody fearful and this example is a Psychological theory include psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic feminism because most people go to church and follow their gender through memories related to their religious norms or the bible rules but not based what they truly feel inside themselves.

The Bible is known as the oldest book in history of mankind, people didn’t have access to other books in the past because books were considered as a luxury limited item own by rich people and religious leaders only, our peers did grew up through and by the bible because it was more accessible than other well informed books. And this this where the critical/Cultural theory come play a role in the inequality of gender. And unfortunately, this biblical culture was transmitted from generation to generation.

Social Constructionism play a big part also in gender aspect because those holy books have a lot of common despite their differences in name and location, all the powerful minister of religion in the Bible were male, most of them were white with green or blue eyes like Jesus who is described as a blond hair and green eyes man, rich in power and material because most of them were kings and those are the same people who wrote those holy books. This theory helps the feminist movements how to end bias in our society.

It is evident that the study of the rank of women in religion also affects the status of women in society as a whole that’s the reason I choose religion. The man was created before the woman and therefore may have authority even if the first human body ever discovered was a woman named Lucy.  Man’s dominance over woman is presented as part of the consequence of sin because eve ate the apple and force Adam to do so, suggesting that such dominance was not God’s original intent. And the last page of the Bible Apocalypse concludes that a woman will give birth to the anti-Christ. The Problem with that those religious institutions such as religious school, universities, seminaries and religious homes and orphanages they are woman’s enemy. The Catholic religion is there to oppress woman in every aspect in their life, it lifts men up and women down just for their own self-esteem. The issues with exclusion of women and girls makes our society unhealthy and unbalanced. We need to educate each other how to love and respect others for a better world.

 

 

Michelle Rodriguez Institutional Artifact

Family–parent/child communication

Everything begins at home. All that a child learns, such as love, hate, how to treat others, morals, etc., begins with their initial surroundings and begins as soon as they leave the womb. How to play, talk, walk, laugh cry, etc.

I believe we need to stop promoting this notion that a “normal/traditional” family consists of a mother, father and siblings because that is just not the case in every “family”. You put multiple people in a room from different ethnicities, backgrounds, etc. and ask them their definition of what a family consists of and there will be many variations as everyone identifies and defines family differently. We have witnessed that time and again with the many family sitcoms on tv, such as Modern Family, Growing Pains, Married With Children, Full House, and even in cartoon shows such as Family Guy, American Dad, etc. Each person has their own idea of family and one type of family shouldn’t discredit another for their dynamics nor should their be a “standard” to which a family is held against. For example, a child with two mothers would see their family as “normal” as would a child who has “two dads” and who would we be to say that it’s not? As is the case in the show Modern Family. Not only does it consist of a gay family, but an interracial and blended marriage with children, which is representative of different family dynamics all over. Growing Pains, mentioned above, though would fall in the category of a more “traditional” family, it was representative of a certain kind of family and they attempted to tackle issues relevant to them at their times. Family Guy is a cartoon family, and a little more in “tune” with today’s issues and puts a crude comedic spin on the issues facing us today, though they can be offensive about it. The point is the world is ever changing and we need to continue change right along with it. We need to make those who haven’t felt comfortable ever, because of the unfair standards society imposes, feel comfortable with who they are, how they chose to identify and how they chose to show the world, because everyone is needed in order to have a functioning and productive society.

In order to have a productive society, we need to begin with communication. Communication is one of the best weapons we have and we have the ability to use it at our disposal yet we use it so infrequently. Communication in any relationship is important, but one of the most important relationships is a child with their parents/family. Children should be able to talk to and go to their family about anything, such as, issues at school, issues with a family member, bullying, to talk about their feelings, sex, and so on and so forth. Children need and should be able to feel safe and comfortable at home. On the other hand, children also need to be taught to be accepting of others despite appearance, skin color, gender, etc. and that not one person or group of people, regardless of gender, sexual identity, health, disability, etc., is better than the other. And all should be treated equally. By ignoring the existence of different groups of people doesn’t make the disappear but it does do a great disservice to the child and to the group of people being “ignored.”

Once a child knows they are able to go to an adult, regardless if it is their mother, father, aunt, uncle, etc., about any issue they may be having, whether it is bullying, just to talk, school, etc., they will most always do so. When children feel heard, appreciated, accepted, etc., they will continue to keep the lines of communication open. Just having the ability to be able to go to someone may be a great deterrent to something bad. Not everyone has someone they can lean on and that can have lasting and detrimental effects.

Communication also works in correcting inappropriate behaviors. though most behavior is initially learned at home, children, as they grow, venture out of the house and learn on their own as well. Sometimes they are exposed to behaviors that are unbecoming of a fellow human being and that’s where we must step in and correct the behavior and explain what was wrong and explain the appropriate remedy.

There are books that aid in all types of discussions to have with children that help teach about gender, race, bodies, sex (not necessarily intercourse), trans, etc. and are broken down into age groups. Books geared towards younger children may contain pictures that better help the child understand while books geared to older children go into much more detail about different subjects which would help further what they should have begun to learn in their early years.

Teaching children that people are people should be the first thing we as humans should be doing because what matters most is the person you are, how you treat your own family, others around you along with any contributions you may or may not make to your family and eventually to society. A person’s skin color doesn’t define a person. It is part of a person’s makeup, but not something that should be used against someone. And shouldn’t that be what you should be teaching them? Shouldn’t we be teaching our children not to judge others based on based on their looks, how they are dressed, their occupation, their nationality, etc. so they grow into adults who are decent human beings that would think twice about judging someone based on outward appearances and further who know that there are many different types of people in the world, and each person may or may not fall in to more than one “category” but that not one person is better than the other and we all deserve respect regardless of our circumstances, education, health, etc. We should all be learning about each other rather than relegating everyone to their own separate corners and categories. I’d like to think that we are on the right track to achieving equality amongst everyone, but we still have a ways to go.

Firdawce Gender Institutional Artifact “Legally Blonde”

Media and especially today’s movies reflect the social behavior and the impact of gender when it interacts with race, sexuality, social or economic class, backgrounds, and physical ability in both sexes’ male and female. Legally Blonde Movie is one of the many movies that identify with the society gender bias and reflects how we treat and communicate with each other based on sex and body parts.

Legally Blonde movie 1 was released on July 13th,2001. The actress Reese Witherspoon plays the role of Elle Woods, a sorority girl who attempts to win back her ex-boyfriend, played by Matthew Davis, by getting a Juris Doctor degree at Harvard Law School, and in the process, overcome stereotypes against blondes and triumphs as a successful lawyer.

Stereotyping bias, sexism, and cultural capital are some of the aspects the movie presents in the character of Elle and her struggle to overcome them. According to De Francisco, Victoria Pruin., et al.’’ Gender in Communication a Critical Introduction’ ’Gender in Communication a Critical Introduction,3rd ed., SAGE Publications, Inc. ‘’gender is not just an attribute of individuals;  instead, gender is systematically structured in social institutions  Gender is created,  not just within families or interpersonal relationships but also within the structure of all major social institutions,  including schools,  religion,  the economy,  and the state. These institutions shape and mold the experiences of us all. (p.3 0; italics in original)’’.

This aspect of gender stereotyping bias is seeing in the society where blonde women are described as dumb, sensitive, privileged with a wealthy family, and don’t see the need to earn a degree or go to school, while Selma Blair portrayed the character of a mean strong girl with black hair and strong character. Even her ex-fiancé was mean to her and doubt her intelligence to become a lawyer by telling her that she was dumb and did not deserve to be a lawyer. Another similar show is the shows of the ‘’the girls next door ‘’ with Hugh Hefner. All his girlfriends were skinny, blonde, and somehow dump.

One other noticeable aspect is the sexism and harassment in the workplace. The movie demonstrated the sexual harassment of ”Elle” in the workplace because she is a blonde girl who dressed preppy and stylish with no power to express her ideas or creation. The movie showed an imbalance universe when men outnumber women, the statistics show that more men are lawyers than women because there is always that assumption that women are more emotional than rational.

Elle’s character as a blonde rich woman wearing pink reflected the social consideration that she is incapable of performing her job as a lawyer, this can only reinforce old gender stereotypes idea even more in a society where men and women are assigned different jobs based on their sex.

The domination of one sex over the other creates an imbalanced environment where men have more power, more knowledge, and always have a higher position is seen as a normal thing because that is the way it supposes to be and that is what the social norms are. With this power comes more strength and will to dominate and harass women and pressure them to accept flirting, unwanted advances, and or gifts.

Cultural capital is obvious in the Legally Blonde movie. Reese Witherspoon” Elle Woods” a character comes from a wealthy privileged family. Her acceptance video shows her huge pool, house, and her physical appearance that kind of bought her an easy ticket into Harvard school. All these characteristics reflect a soft stylish, rich, and well-spoken female.

Legally Blonde movie is one of the feminists’ movies that reflects the character of Elle as a woman who can change their destiny. If one is daring enough to acquire the business skills one needs, then s/he will achieve greatness. Studying and hard work can take one higher place no matter if they come from a wealthy background or middle class like the character of Paulette, the beauty professional that Elle befriends when she went to her new nail salon near Harvard.

The society can create labels for people, but it is up to the individual to revolt against their circumstances and turn them around to their advantages and be successful and happy. Elle’s personality and motivation will prove that this assumption is wrong when she becomes a lawyer and solve the case of her old fitness instructor who was accused of killing her husband. Martha P. Jonhson’s persistence paid at the end, and CeCe McDonald ‘s story and her perseverance turning around her life made her a star and a good example to follow.

”Elle’s quote: Have faith in yourself”.

 

 

 

 

 

Stephany Pineda Cardoso Institutional Artifact

Women not always covered their breasts, and while we aren’t sure when women started covering this part of their body, western societies agree that a women’s breasts should be hidden. Because of this, brassieres (bras) have become an artifact of femininity and womanhood. Masculinity and femininity deal with gender expression and sex (female, male, or intersex), is the biological composition of a body (Killermann) however, bras have forced the correlation between these two concepts, creating the idea that if you are not feminine and a female you are not a woman. This is obviously challenging for people who are not cisgender, and the question of what it means to be a woman lingers, is it the challenges or history? What does this artifact exactly do for individuals?

The article “Reshaping the Body; Clothing and Cultural Practice” published by the University of Virginia, states that men also wore corsets, but by the mid 1800’s this custom had been ridiculed (by the choice of men). On the other hand, this was not a choice for women, wearing a corset was a way of disciplining women’s bodies. Caresse Crosby is attributed to have invented brassieres by separating the traditional corset into two pieces. Wearing a bra was not widely accepted, it became popularized when world war two started because women were asked to refrain from buying corsets to preserve metal for weapon production (Pandika). Based on this information we can infer that bras were adapted out of the custom of wearing a corset and not because of a want. You can also argue that this situation is an example of how a simple validation by men pushed women into a different social norm.

The current problem is not a debate of whether women should use a bra or not, rather, it is how bras are used to create detrimental societal norms and how these in turn result in the oppression of women. Advertisements from the 1500’s aimed to portray thin waists, not larger breasts. Breasts became hypersexualized soon after the invention of bras, in which movies, magazines, and other forms of media took a large part in promoting. Mass media has promoted the hypersexualization of a female’s body, and this hypersexualization results in objectification, “Objectification occurs when people are viewed as objects existing solely for the pleasure of the viewer, rather than as agents capable of action. The person being objectified often is reduced to body parts: breasts, genitalia, muscles, curves, buttocks, and hair” (Lynch 2012). Marilyn Monroe is an example of the effects of this system, she became a sex symbol because mass media objectified her body. These views can have damaging effects on women as is proven by her death. Women tend to internalize these views because of institutionalized ideals, this is called self-objectification. In result people engage in body surveillance which is critically looking and judging one’s body. This causes a drop of self-esteem. The lack of optimism and confidence can deprive women of higher success.

Wearing a bra has also become a shield against society. Due to this objectification and hypersexualization, women are forced or feel pressured to cover their breasts to prove modesty and feel safe. Not wearing a bra can be for comfort but it is usually perceived as vulgar or provocative. Wearing a bra might not be an ideal choice for some, but it is done to avoid being viewed as a sexual object. Wearing push up bras to feel validated and not be faced with bullying is also common. From this you can see that this artifact is used to please everyone but women.

As a child I personally felt embarrassed of my body’s changes, somehow, I immediately knew I needed to wear an extra layer of protection, interesting enough my breasts at that time were nowhere near an A cup. As a 9-year-old girl I perceived my growth signs as something that could be shameful. Sadly, this is the experience of many girls. Wearing a bra for the first time is a sign of change towards womanhood and this can be exciting. Since a bra can signify growth, it can also assume physical maturity, the bodies of young girls can in turn be sexualized, this is an additional problem that arises. Women’s breasts main purpose is to nurture and there is nothing sexual about this, and nevertheless should a child’s body be viewed this way.

Some may say push up bras (for example) are something that contributes to body empowerment, but true empowerment requires in depth understanding. Corporations have found themselves supporting this body empowerment movement through intimate wear, but marketing statements like these can reinforce gendered attractiveness. Gendered attractiveness happens when a normative physical appearance is seen as beautiful and sexually appealing. We can look at Victoria Secret’s brassiere marketing content in contrast to other brands like TomboyX or Girls will be Boys. Victoria Secret illustrates women who are skinny and have large breasts to attract their audience, they perpetuate the traditional idea of how women should look.

The denial of wanting to look a specific way to please society only supports the ideals we live in. Some do not notice that their behavior reflects norms placed by society. Traditional behavior is enforced many times by other women, and not necessarily with bad intention. Mothers for example want to protect their young girls, so girls might be taught a behavior associated with being a “good” woman. On the other hand, some are trying to reclaim the power of bras by wearing lingerie as shirts or going braless, unfortunately, neither is the option for specifically working-class people because of the extreme retaliation and additional obstacles presented by for example job institutions.

Reclaiming our power through this simple piece of clothing is so complex. Many use it to express their femininity or amplify their gender identity. We can see how this is a double edge sword, any way of approach calls for challenges. The problem intensifies when a bra is no longer an item to support breasts or comfort, but rather a tool that fulfills perverse thoughts and reinforces harmful traditional ideals. Cultural norms and societal views on a female’s body greatly makes up how women dress. I am not saying lingerie and bras should be abolished, I am saying women should have the power to dictate how their body is viewed and how they choose to use this artifact. Why is it that people who have sexualized this artifact and body part do not get retaliation? Instead they are applauded for reinforcing their thoughts, women are then persecuted for not conforming.

Outside sources

Darren Curnoe Chief Investigator and Co-Leader of Education and Engagement Program ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage. “Where Were All the Women in the Stone Age?” The Conversation, 21 Oct. 2019, theconversation.com/where-were-all-the-women-in-the-stone-age-73374.

“Men’s Corsets.” Reshaping the Body: Clothing & Cultural Practice, exhibits.hsl.virginia.edu/clothes/mens_corset/#:~:text=Some%20men%20wore%20corsets,create%20the%20required%20smooth%20silhouette.

Pandika, Melissa. “Bra History: How A War Shortage Reshaped Modern Shapewear.” NPR, NPR, 5 Aug. 2014, www.npr.org/2014/08/05/337860700/bra-history-how-a-war-shortage-reshaped-modern-shapewear.

Megan M. Ramdin : Gender Institutional Artifact Project

In the popular Netflix series “Thirteen Reasons Why”, a beautiful young girl named Hannah Baker leaves behind thirteen audiotapes before she commits suicide, with each tape addressed to a specific person and explaining how that individual played a role in her death. The main reasons for her death were because of constantly being bullied, harassed, and self-hate.

Throughout the first and second seasons, Hannah Baker struggle with her self-esteem. Adolescence wasn’t an easy stage for her. Like every other teenage kid, high school was a big deal. It’s where you relate and connect with people, try to fit in and be accepted, and try to discover who you are. Hannah like everyone else starts to become interested in boys. She wants to make friends and adapt to her new school. In season 1, episode 1, Hannah immediately locked eyes with Justin Foley instantly attracted to him. After exchanging numbers, they decided to meet at a nearby park. Where they played, laughed, and talked on the playground and Hannah received her first kiss from Justin. The next day, Justin was showing his friends a picture he took of Hannah while she was on the slide, and her skirt flew up. Bryce Walker, Justin’s friend, snatched Justin’s phone from him and mass texts the up-skirt picture of Hannah to everyone in the entire school. Hannah was heartbroken. She felt alone, isolated, and became severely depressed. Throughout the episodes, we see Hannah face consequences by being repeatedly groped by the boys. Derogatory names like “slut” and “whore” were projected towards her. She cuts her long brown beautiful hair into a bob during summer break in order to get a fresh start before junior year. The image others created of her led Hannah decided she didn’t want her hair any longer solely to represent her past experiences. She began to feel like she actually has a fresh start. Hannah’s actions refer to a concept known as Gender Expression. Gender expression is how an individual outwardly shows their identity whether it’s through clothing, hairstyle, makeup, etc. The traumatic experiences that Hannah went through can also be empowering for women to cut their hair as a part of the coming-out process, just as a way to present themselves, that feels closer to who they are.

As the tapes proceed Hannah Baker was not only bullied but sexually assaulted. We not only see this with Hannah but also with two of her other friends, Tyler Down and Jessica Davis. In season 1, episode 9, Jessica throws her end of the year party, Hannah doesn’t want to attend but she only goes because Clay Jensen is going. Going back to the party, Hannah was looking for the restroom and stumbled upon Jessica’s bedroom. As Justin exits, he bumps into Bryce, Bryce forces his way into Jessica’s room drunk telling Justin, “What’s yours is mine”. Bryce then forcefully to rape Jessica, helplessly. After witnessing the rape of Jessica, in season 1, episode 12, Hannah reveals Bryce raped her in the hot tub during another party.  Throughout the first and second seasons, the boy’s baseball team is known as the “JOCKS” of the school. From Bryce’s behavior in the shows portray the Toxic masculinity of men.

Toxic masculinity is telling men not to express their emotions or making anger the only acceptable masculine emotion. By defining “manliness” as being violent or treating women like objects. The form of sexual assault both Hannah and Jessica experienced was all emotional, sexual, and physical violence. Bryce allowed inflicting his command on his prey in an agonizing way. We need to stop placing boys into a box that keeps them “tough, insensitive, and violent” to prove their manhood. We also need to keep girls out of the box that reduces their bodies into objects. Hannah and Jessica weren’t the only ones who experienced traumatic events but also Tyler Down. Montgomery de la Cruz (aka Monty) was also a jock and idolized Bryce as his brother. Monty was naturally violent, mainly because he had an extremely abusive father. In season 2, episode 13, Monty confronts Tyler in boy’s bathroom about an issue. Monty then begins to feel rage and smashes Tyler’s head against the mirror and dunks his head into a toilet. Monty then takes the end of a broom and brutally sodomizes Tyler as he screams out in pain. Monty leaves Tyler lying on the bathroom floor hurt and bleed. Monty is homosexual but no one knows until season 3. Monty creates this barricade of feelings towards his sexuality because he portrayed himself as a tall and strong man e and does not want to be judged for being “gay”.  Monty not only is a bully but inflicts pain on others to hide who he really is. The image Monty portrays was developed through his father. The violence his dad presented was toxic masculinity and expected his son to be exactly like that. Someone who doesn’t display emotions but only toughness.

In “Thirteen Reasons Why”, socialization plays an important aspect in each and every character. The group of friends always has each other backs but sometimes out casters influence their behavior based on gossip. Throughout the seasons, the gossips among the students tend to get intense, to have them turn on one another. In season 2, episode 2, Courtney and Hannah share an intimate moment, that Courtney initiated. A photo was taken by Tyler at that moment and released to the school. Monty also played a role in spreading the rumors about Hannah and Courtney kiss. When Monty confronts Courtney that she is one of the girls in the picture, Courtney is afraid to admit she’s lesbian and throws Hannah under the bus to protect her image. All of these scenarios that take part in the series are based upon one’s actions. Sometimes in an act, we don’t think of the consequences and when it’s time to fix a dilemma. Instead of performing the ethical act, we ponder upon how others would view you in a situation and create a sustainable image for yourself. Socialization is the process of learning to behave in a way that is acceptable in society.

As the tapes proceed it way down from one person to the next, we see numerous events of bullying, sexual violence, gossips, and objectification. “Thirteen Reason Why” was made to display the life of high school students facing these matters. It shows us that the dominant masculinities demonstrated throughout the series still play a role in how young men interact with their peers and girls. Also, girls are expected to be spontaneous and attractive. “Thirteen Reason Why” demonstrates a numerous topic that any individual in high school might be going through.

Institutional Artifact Draft – Sex and the City, Seasons 1 & 2

The media influences how individuals perceive themselves and the world at large. The different types of media include movies, radio, and television shows. The media influence people either consciously or unconsciously regarding how they should view and interact with the male and the female gender. This essay examines gender representation in movies by looking at the portrayal of characters in Sex, and City season 1 and 2. The results reveal that male subordination is evident in today’s films and following the notion of social constructivism such images of gender representation are affecting the perception of viewers on what a woman or a man is.

Terms Used

Social constructivism is the idea that concepts, definitions, social order, and what is the right or wrong change from time to time as meaning are created through interactions and relationships between people (Popa et al. 1103). 

Representation of gender in the media is the use of language to depict men and women differently and in a way that conforms existing statements about gender and proper rules of talking about gender (Scharrer 442).

Gender traits and gender stereotypes are socially constructed and generalized beliefs about what it means to be a man or a woman (Popa et al. 1102). A gendered film depicts women as having acceptable feminine traits such as submissive, physically weak, dependent, nurturing, follower, physically attractive, accepting advice, and ashamed, while men are physically strong, give advice, with a higher economic status, perpetrator, problem solver, leader and independent.

Representation of Female Characters

Analysis of the personalities of men and women as depicted in Sex and City 1 and 2 is instrumental in understanding how language is applied to create different representations of men and women. Carrie is the central character that falls in love with Mr. Big after coming to New York to look to big love. Another character, Charlotte, is depicted as a woman who is on the lookout for a perfect husband and family. She is also shamed for openly talking about sex. The third woman, Miranda, struggles with maintaining balance motherhood, wife, and having a successful career. Another character, Samantha, is depicted as a woman who doesn’t care about how other people perceive her and doesn’t shy away from having open discussions about sex. However, she is concerned about looking young, and despite being successful, she can do anything to keep her youth.

Overall, women in Sex and City 1 and 2 are represented to have an obsession with their physical appearance. They work extremely hard to look beautiful by applying makeup, wearing styled clothes, and having styled hair. Also, women in the movie are portrayed to be always on the search for husbands or boyfriends to fulfill their love life. the portrayal is informed by the stereotype of women as dependent on men. 

Representation of Male Characters

Mr big is described as a very rich man who remains in a relationship with Carrie for about ten years. The masculinity traits of men as being more financially stable and problem solvers are evident in how Mr. Big buys Carrie expensive clothes and help her in finding solutions to her problems. Another character, Steve, the husband to Miranda, is very much bothered my Miranda being too focused on her work instead of concentrating on her role as mother and wife. A third character, Harry, is a perfect husband for Charlotte as he is economically stable, independent, and ambitious and financially takes care of her and their daughter. The fourth man, Samantha’s boyfriend, Smith, receives a lot of support from Samantha. Smith is always at work and has little time for Samantha, which annoys her and makes her feel trapped. 

Overall, all the male characters are represented as independent and having a strong economic status. It is apparent to a large extent that female characters depend on the male characters emotionally, physically, and even economically. The male characters also wear male clothes to emphasize their masculinity (Scharrer 442). Vitally, the males in the movie receive support from their women, and they are not concerned with looking attractive and young as the women. Steve is the only male character who depicts feminine traits of having emotions. 

Impact of the Message on Creating, Maintain, or Changing Understandings of Gender

The gender-specific features explored in the movie reinforce the existing gender system about what a woman and a man are and serve as examples of how men and women should behave while relating to each other. For instance, women are represented as working towards attaining the highest level of beauty, and such reinforces the socially constructed view that physical appearance is critical for women. Again, Sex and the City also create understandings about how modern women should behave. Despite being an independent woman, Samantha does not challenge the gender power structure in some aspects. For instance, she still depends on a man for love and even supports Smith in his career. The movie shows that the modern woman though economically independent should still uphold the traditional female traits of being supportive to men, dependent and emotional, and should feel ashamed if their relationships do not work. To some extent, the film challenge existing stereotypes by portraying women as financially independent and Samantha as taking control of her sexuality. The depiction of Steve as having feminine traits of having emotions shows that men as well can be feminine.

Possibilities from the Findings and their Meaning

Although the movie depicts women as having some similar characteristics with men such as being employed and financially independent, men are still represented as the subordinate gender. Despite the progress on an international level regarding the acceptance of women’s rights, the same is not presented in its full potential in the movie, Sex and the City 1 and 2. It means that gender roles that viewers are presented with on a daily basis are lagging behind in showing improved images of gender equality.

Works Cited

Michael., Parker, Jessica., Star, Darren & Melfi, John. Sex and City: The Movie. 2008. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v9WsB8AYn1M

Michael., Parker, Jessica., Star, Darren & Melfi, John. Sex and the City 2. New line, 2010.

Popa, Dorin & Delia Gavriliu. “Gender Representations and Digital Media’’. Social and Behavioral Sciences, 180, 2015, pp. 1199-1206.

Scharrer, Erica. “Representations of Gender in the Media.” Handbook of Research in the Social Foundations of Education, 2013, pp. 436- 445.

Abdoul Galiou Dabre Institutional Artifact Project

Social institutions are areas having people with similar goals or are serving the same purpose. These institutions are part of a larger dynamic social order, which governs how people conduct their activities. Some conventional social institutions include education systems, families, religious institutions, and places of work. In these places, both men and women interact freely, causing some gender-related issues. In most cases, members of one gender are oppressed by fellow workers, or the law put forward by the social institution. All education facilities from the lowest to the highest are social institutions that human beings go through. Many gender-related issues arise, affecting both boys and girls in the learning institutions. In the lower stages of the education systems, many gender-related cases are not reported. Still, as students grow, they understand how society runs, making it easy to identify gender bias in the institution.

Some artifacts in the education system that may cause gender-related issues include specific school curriculum, anti-bullying policies, university guidelines on athletics, textbooks, healthcare advice, parent-child communication, and policies on sexual harassment. These artifacts in the education system have created gender bias against boys or girls. Anti-bullying policies are common in almost all American schools to protect students from harming each other. These laws have been beneficial in maintaining safety and order in schools since bullies are caught and punished according to the school’s rules and regulations. However, these laws are not just since they oppress male students. When a boy bullying a girl is presented before the school’s administration, studies have shown that the judges are likely to be biased against male students. This is because male students are masculine than girls, making everybody assume that a boy is the most likely to be the bully. However, many cases have shown girls who are aggressive bullies in schools.

Textbooks used in the school curriculum have shown to have issues of gender bias in the examples used in explaining various concepts. Gender bias is demonstrated in how they assign distinct gender roles to girls and boys. Commonly, girls have to deal with house chores such as cooking, cleaning, and looking after children. Girls are shown not only washing their clothes, but also the whole family’s clothes, mostly with male siblings. In contrast, boys do not perform any chores in the house, since cleanness and beauty are duties of women. Indeed, some textbooks in the curriculum present a gender stereotype in the occupations men and women engage in. Men engage in more professional jobs, while most women are housewives with no career or income source. This shows how the male child has been empowered to dominate over women, while the female sex is submissive to men (Blumberg, 355).

In educational institutions, policies of sexual harassment have presented many cases of gender bias in passing judgment over many instances. Universities and colleges are educational institutions that report numerous sexual harassment cases such as rape, sodomy, and body shaming. Most rape cases biased against girls since most boys argue by claiming they had consent from the girl. Almost all girls in universities are eighteen years and above, making them responsible for their actions, and this makes it easy for male suspects to evade jail time. Many universities have recorded many cases of students sleeping with the lectures to get good grades or to avoid harsh punishments such as expulsion. Many of the girls who suffer from this abuse hardly report it to the authorities because it is shameful or because of the leverage the lecture has against the student. The laws that protect girls from such forms of abuse are not followed in many cases making it hard for girls to get justice (McDonald, 5).

Another artifact in education is the university guidelines on athletics. In most cases, girl’s athletics are poorly funded by schools while the male athletics team is adequately funded. This is a clear indication that the school administration is biased towards girls. It shows how women are underrated in sports activities, and there have been many women who have made it in the world of athletics. Communication between parents and children is an education artifact since it affects the academic performance of students. As children slowly become adults, the nature of their interaction with their parents changes. Fathers tend to be hard on their sons while showering their daughters with love. Male children feel neglected, and this causes a huge communication barrier between the children and their fathers. These create an academic decline since boys lack male role models to guide them as they grow.

From the artifacts’ analysis, it’s clear that the education system and its objects cause significant gender case issues. The study changed my view on gender-related topics since it is difficult to have a permanent solution. Most of the people who promulgate gender bias do it unintentionally, but people misunderstand the message. However, education institutions should be at the frontline in fighting gender issues and promoting both male and female genders in school activities. This will play a significant role in promoting equality among men and women and creating equal chances for women and men in society.

Tiffany Zeno Institutional Artifact Project – WNBA

The social institution selected for analysis is the WNBA. The artifacts of analysis in relation to the said social institution include marketing and salaries. These can be analyzed using gender theories/concepts in comparison to the NBA. The gender concepts that shall provide the analytical frame include gender equality, gender stereotypes and gender mainstreaming.

Gender equality in the WNBA can be analyzed in light of salaries and the size of the leagues. There is a huge pay gap between players in the NBA and the WNBA. The gap is so staggering that it cannot be explained a simple case of economics. To illustrate, an NBA star like Stephen Curry earns 37.4 million dollars yearly while salaries in the WNBA as a whole can only gross $71,635 in a year. The huge discrepancy in salaries between the NBA and the WNBA points to the absence of gender equality. In the prevailing sense, gender equality represents the provision of equal opportunities, outcomes or conditions for men and women. This is not only evident in the salaries but also in terms of the size of the leagues. At the moment, the NBA has 32 teams with 15 players each while the WNBA has 12 teams with 12 players each. This discrepancy is inexplicable outside the lens of gender inequality.  Thus, salaries and the size of the league in the WNBA point to the lack of gender equality in the institutions.

Gender mainstreaming and stereotypes are manifested in relation to the marketing of the WNBA. To begin with, little is known of WNBA and its stars, with far less publicity accorded to stars in the organization in comparison to the NBA. This can be explained in terms of gender mainstreaming, which has failed to be undertaken in marketing policies in the NBA and WNBA. Gender mainstreaming demands that considerations like gender equality, representation and fairness are factored into policymaking and related processes. Without gender mainstreaming, all the publicity in Basketball has been reserved for the NBA, ignoring the WNBA. The absence of marketing and publicity for the WNBA can also be explained in terms of gender stereotypes whereas Basketball is considered a male sport. This has led to the lack of interest in promoting the WNBA and consequently, the lower levels of publicity.

Srijana Bhandari_Institutional Artifact Project

A social institution is a set of norms that are distinct and independent of individuals. In the Stanford Encyclopedia of philosophy, according to Seumas Miller, “the term institution and social institution are used to refer to a miscellany of social forms, including conventions, rules, rituals, organizations, and system of organizations.” Institutions are patterns of social orders focused on meeting social needs such as government, education, family, religions. Among various institutions found in all human beings, a family is one of the most important, created by blood, marriage, or adoption. Family is deeply rooted in human nature and exists everywhere. It is essential for the development and maintenance of order. Order here can connote the way things work in society, different rules which are followed, or should follow. Family plays a vital role as they shape our first step into the world. 

I recently watched the movie “Little Women,” directed by Greta Gerwig. It was a big screen adoption of the novel by Louisa May Alcott with the same name, “Little Women.” This movie is a story about march sisters- four young women based in the 19th century Massachusetts. When their father is away serving in the civil war, the mother and four daughters Jo, Meg, Amy, and Beth are left alone faced with poverty. In this movie, Jo March, played by Saoirse Ronan, is the protagonist, who reflects on her life, telling the story of her family and also shows the present scenario of all four sisters. In the movie, Jo struggles to make a name for herself as a writer in a male-dominant New York city. The movie starts with Jo going into a publication office full of men. She introduces her writing as someone else’s to Mr. Dashwood, who sits with his leg up on the desk and smoking. He takes her story after she agrees to alter things; he later suggests that “if the main character is a girl, make sure she is married by the end. Or dead, either way.” Jo is an ambitious tomboy whose primary goal is to support her family until her sister Amy marries, someone wealthy. Amy, one of the youngest, is learning to be a lady to please herself and others around her. She is opposite to Jo, who doesn’t like to fall under the ladyhood. Amy, accompanied by her aunt, is expected to marry someone wealthy to support her family. The oldest March sister Meg shows the character of a stereotypical woman, someone who gives up her liking for the family. She is a traditional wife who is struggling to adjust her life under her husband and children. The youngest daughter Beth, who was severely ill, dies later in the movie. The story shows the struggle of the March sister in converting from a girl to woman while Meg then finds her love and marries a professor. Amy finds her love in Laurie, Jo’s best friend. And Jo herself, who rejected Laurie being a tomboy and ambiguous, married a German professor. 

The movie not only shows the character falling under gender stereotypes, but it also shows each of them directly or indirectly coming over it. The stereotype is an over-generalized belief about a particular category of people. They generally conform to a fixed or general pattern. A gender stereotype is an over-generalized belief of male(masculine) and female (feminine). The protagonist, Jo, is shown as a rebellion to the norms of what women should do. Her name or even the way she dresses challenges the stereotypes. Her full name is Josephine March, which gives a feminine side to her, but she prefers the name Jo which gives a masculine touch. Throughout the movie, Jo wears more of male clothes like vests, button-down shirts, blazers, and neck-scarves — a typical dress for boys in the 19th century.  Which goes against the usual dress up girls in the 19th century would do ( represented through her sisters). Some of the scenes in the movie show Meg accompanying her sister Jo and asking her to behave in a certain way, don’t shake a hand, don’t stare, and more.  Meg was pretty and enjoyed dancing; her only dream was to get married and have a family that was different from what Jo wanted. Jo explains her felling of regretting being a woman as she couldn’t accompany her father in the civil war. Throughout the movie, she is someone who does not fall under the stereotype of what women had to do, job, working alone away from the family, and staying away from love and marriage. On the other hand, Theodore Laurence, Jo’s best friend and later Meg’s lover, is more into music, mostly linked with the female profession. He hangs out with all four March sisters and joins their drama club, hanging with females more than his male friends. 

In the 19th century, women’s life was limited at home. The only goal in their life would be to get married and form a family, which is taught in the family. The March sister had seen their mom living at home taking care of them while their dad was away in the war. They are said to look pretty and attend many parties where they will be able to meet boys from upper-class families and marry them. That’s how I relate Little Women with gender stereotypes and with my life. Directly or indirectly, there were a lot of limitations in my life as well. I learned a lot of things through my family. Seeing my mother giving up her needs for the family’s needs has shown me the limitation I have to face being a wife and a mother. I will be expected to marry before 25 or convince my family until 27, which is the limitation I have to face being a woman. These are the things which I expect to happen as I have seen it happening in my family. 

I can also relate to Jo, as coming from a family having five sisters, I have always been someone who reacts with impatience to the many limitations placed on women. I am someone who is ambitious and has a great sense of helping my family. I can easily compare myself to Jo as someone who is always told by my sisters to behave in a certain way. 

The movie Little Women shows the struggle of gender stereotypes that remained in the 19th century but still in today’s 21st century. Through different characters, the movie shows the struggle women face due to the stereotype of various institutions and families, which not only me but also every woman relates to. The way of how a woman is seen and what women should do always comes from the family. I was told not to wear shorts or show skin, speak softly, and help my mother in the kitchen while my brother will help my father with his work and laugh with his friend. Although I have seen most of my sister and other women falling under this institution and following the so-called rules of being women, I have always tried to challenge myself. I have helped my mother in the kitchen but also my dad with his work, looking after finance. I am outspoken and confident about myself but also have my values within me. It’s up to us whether we want to follow the stereotype and forget our actual dream-like Meg or Amy or to do what you wish to and devote your time to yourself like Jo.