The Jerky Guy

This week's episode of 9021o featured Naomi and her new love interest, Liam. They both were on a spring break trip with Habitat for Humanity. Liam was forced to go, and Naomi went because she wanted to spend time with him. Liam is always a jerk to everyone that he meets. He treats Naomi meanly on a regular basis. He ignores her and acts like he is mad at her frequently. However, when the mood strike him, he sweeps her off her feet and makes out with her. He is totally bipolar towards her, yet she is still completely infatuated with him. She thinks he is extremely attractive, and she finds his bad boy vibe appealing. The more that he ignores her, and the worse that he treats her, the more she is drawn to him. Her ex-boyfriend tells her that he thinks Liam is a jerk, and she agrees, but then says he's hot and she wonders if he likes her. The episode demonstrates the classic girl falls for boy who doesn't treat her right scenario. The media portrays these jerky men as incredibly desirable, and they almost try and justify their mistreatment of other people as sexy and mysterious. This is a dangerous message for young girls. It tells them that it's okay for guys to treat them badly because it's all just part of their bad boy charm.

Fight, Fight, Fight!!

In this week's episode of 90210, the longtime feud between Naomi and another girl on the show is finally resolved. They had been having a long and bloody "war" over Nathan. Naomi had been dating Nathan for a long time. However, they broke up. Then the other girl moved here from Kansas. She originally was friends with Naomi. Naomi reached out to her when she first moved there and asked her not to pursue Nathan. This request was disregarded because the other girl thought she and Nathan were soulmates. Therefore, she was willing to throw her friendship with Naomi away in order to pursue a relationship with Nathan. Their feud continued for the long duration of their relationship. However, in this episode, she and Nathan break up. She apologizes to Naomi and says that she is very sorry for what she did, and that she knows she acted like a jerk. Of course, the two girls are willing to makeup and let bygones be bygones. Girls fighting over boys is not a new idea put forth by the media. It is a common stereotype of feminism. They are often portrayed as catty, and likely to fight over trivial matters, and forfeit their friendships for guys.

ANTM!!

Catfight!! This week's episode of America's Next Top Model opened with a serious girl fight. Every season catiness breaks out among the competitors of the show. This of course fits with society's usual stereotypes of girls never being able to get along with each other. After only a few episodes, the house has already split between "us" and "them." Celia called out Tahlia at the last elimination for wavering in her dedication to the competition. Tahlia and her group of friends in the house were of course outraged at this "backstabbing" move. Yet again, television portrays girls as two-faced. Of course, this disagreement ends up erupting into a yelling match in which Amita makes a total fool of herself. She tells Natalie that she is making herself look stupid. But, the irony is that Amita, who keeps yelling "you stupid, stupid, stupid" makes herself look incredibly idiotic. Whereas, Natalie portrays herself as being much more mature. Sarcasm, double-handed comments, head weaving and finger shaking filled the room. The show portrays what seems to be a very true stereotype involving girls and what it means to be feminine. The episode displays the catty, back-stabbing nature of girls.

America's Next Top Model

America's Next Top Model (ANTM) continues to follow the traditional beauty standards for feminine perfection. However, they also step outside the box of traditional beauty. In all the past seasons, they have had a height requirement of 5' 7", this goes along with the fashion industry standard that tall is the ideal and beautiful. ANTM also goes along with society's traditional standard, that to be physically perfect you must be a 00 and waifishly thin. Many people criticize this standard and complain that it leads to unrealistic goals and self-esteem issues among young girls. But, the media and models should not be blamed for girls' self-esteem issues. The girls should merely see these models as a motivator for them to achieve their best bodies. ANTM also includes one or two plus size models, which steps outside the traditional views of what a model should look like. While, ANTM embraces the traditional ideal body type, they also venture outside the traditional ideal of beauty when it comes to the visage. Many of the girls that they choose have unusual, if not downright weird looking, faces. Most of them do not fit the classic blonde girl next door standard of beauty. ANTM represents society's views of beauty and femininity very well. It shows that society is starting to embrace a more diverse definition of of beauty. They have girls on the show of all ethnicities, shapes, and facial structures. Society is becoming much more accepting of differing standards of feminine beauty.

Groovy Baby!

Society has determined that the ideal man should be attractive, confident, athletic, and powerful. Austin Powers does not quite fit most of these categories. We can safely say he has confidence under control. After all, he uses his confident mojo to win over the ladies. However, he in no way fits the ideal of masculinity when it comes to physical appearance. He is a short man with a beer gut and bad teeth. He also has a carpet of hair laying on his chest and back. Yet, somehow Mr. Powers seems to be completely confident about his ability to attract women. The film shows that everyone should, and can be confident, even if they don't fit society's standards. This also demonstrates that even though society puts so much pressure on looking good as a means to happiness, confidence is really the secret ingredient. Society may tell Powers that he is unattractive, but he still thinks he is incredibly sexy. Masculine and feminine ideals are extremely lofty. But, Mr. Powers demonstrates that society can not tell you what are the perfect feminine or masculine traits. You can decide that for yourself.

Pink is Awesome!!

Legally Blonde challenges society's stereotypes. Society portrays blondes as being ditzy and vapid. At first, Elle Woods comes off as a rich, sorority sister, who cares about nothing but shopping and parties. However, it is soon proven that she is an intelligent and hardworking woman when she gets accepted to Harvard Law. She quickly rises to the top of her class despite her obsession with pink. Society expects intellectuals to be like the preppy, uptight Vivian. But, Elle shows that bubbly, stylish girls can also be very smart. Of course, going along with stereotypes, the reason she decided to attend Harvard was to win back her boyfriend Warner. He had broken up with her when she thought he was going to propose. He said she wasn't serious enough for him. So, she proved that despite her sunshiney demeanor, she could be an intelligent law student. The film also plays up the power of beauty. Elle uses how attractive she is to help gain entrance to law school (her admissions video featured her in a bikini). However, she exceeds in school because of her brain, which just happens to be accented by beauty and style.

"You're On My Heart Just Like a Tattoo!"

There were some serious role reversals on this week's episode of 90210. Silver and Dixon have been dating for a long time now. Dixon finally works up the courage to tell her he loves her. Silver doesn't respond. She is very cynical and opposed to love, along with pretty much all societal expectations. Dixon ends up breaking up with her because of this. One would generally expect the girl to drop the L-bomb and the guy to be the commitment-phobe. However, these roles are reversed in the show. Later on, the episode returns to more typical gender roles. When Silver thinks Dixon is dating someone new, she flips out. She finally tells him she loves him because she realizes she will lose him otherwise. Silver immediately turns into a sappy, cheesy, ridiculously emotional individual. She used to ridicule individuals who were in love. She also deemed Valentine's Day a ridiculous commercial ploy to make money. Now she is obsessed with creating a perfect Valentine's Day. She even gets Dixon's name tattoed on her hip. She tells him that she wanted something that could be a sign of the permanence of their love. Dixon's face was very expressive following this exchange. He was visibly freaked out and surprised. Now, Silver is the stereotypical girl who is big on committment and having a serious relationship. Dixon on the otherhand is concerned about how serious Silver is getting. He is obviously concerned about just how permanent she expects their relationship to be. This is more fitting with the fear of commitment, which is part of the male stereotype. This episode is a very extreme version of the committment scenario, especially since they are both still in high school. But, it still demonstrates societal stereotypes very well.

The "Fem" Man

This week I watched "27 Dresses" again. In addition to being a great movie, it also has tons of examples of different types of femininity in action. This week I wanted to address "the feminine man." The lead male role in the movie is Kevin, played by James Marsden. Kevin is a writer for the New York Journal. Immediately you think of nice "manly" positions such as business or sports. But, no such luck for Kevin. He works writing wedding announcements. This section is one is the most feminine, mushy, romantic parts of the paper. Kevin writes under the pseudonym, Malcom. He tells Jane this is to avoid being mobbed by brides desperate to be featured in the paper. However, one has to wonder if he is simply trying to hide the fact that he has such a feminine career. Kevin gives off a very cocky vibe. He tries to act like a very "manly" man. He is very cynical, and he says he thinks marriage is like slavery. We later find out that his cynicism is merely a cover up for his emotions. Being emotional and showing your feelings is a feminine trait. Society does not approve of men being overly sappy. Kevin later admits to Jane that he "cried like a baby" at one of the more emotional weddings that he covered. When Kevin and Jane are having one of their arguments about marriage, we find out that his fiance cheated on him with his college roommate. First off, this gives us insight into the source of his cynicism and negativity towards love and marriage. Second, this situation is odd because men are stereotyped as the cheaters, not the one who is cheated on. Kevin's character demonstrates to viewers that having feminine traits is okay for a man. Not living up to society's guidelines of manliness do not make him less of a man.

Expectations

This week's episode of Priviledged on the CW deals with the double standard society creates for men and women. Sage thinks that Louis is going to dump her when he finds out she still has her V-Card. She believes that since he is an older guy he must be more experienced. When she finds out that Louis, due to religious beliefs, is also a card carrier, she is completely surprised. Rose on the other hand is nervous about telling her boyfriend that she isn't a virgin. She assumes that since he is a dork he must never have done the deed. She is completely surprised to find out that he has. Rose was worried that if he was a virgin, he would be uncomfortable with a more experienced girlfriend. This episode shows how society expects girls to remain pure. Guys on the other hand are allowed to be very open with their physical feelings. Film and other media sources merely reinforce this double standard. What difference does gender make? Both genders face consequences from their actions, so why is it deemed normal and acceptable for one and not the other.

Cougars, Cougars Everywhere!

So, continuining off of last week's theme...let's talk about cougars. This week's episode of Gossip Girl was especially intense and dramatic. But, the ultimate drama didn't even arrive until the last few seconds. Scandal swirled around Dan and Miss Carr this week. Miss Carr is a new teacher at Constance Billard who made the mistake of underestimating the great Blair Waldorf. Blair is slighted by the new teacher, and her vindictive wrath managed to suck in Dan Humphrey. She accuses Dan of giving Miss Carr, "more than just an apple!" Of course, these are initially false accusations. Notice that I say initially. Well, the scandal quickly gets out of hand, and in the end Miss Carr gets fired. So, sweet, little, not so innocent Dan goes to tell Miss Carr he is so sorry about what happened, and he feels to blame. Miss Carr, however, seems to be recovering quite well from her loss and manages to find a silver lining. She tells Dan none of this is his fault. She also mentions that she is no longer teaching at his school (wink, wink). In the end, Miss Carr ends up cougaring it up, and the audience is left gasping in surprise. It has been decades since Mrs. Robinson brought the cougar to the silver screen, yet it still hasn't found mainstream acceptance along with the creeping older man. Miss Carr wasn't even that much older than Dan, but we still think it is weird. This is just another example of how society decides what is acceptable behavior for the different sexes.

The Graduate

Mrs. Robinson is definitely lacking in anything resembling moral fiber; however, you have to give her some props. The lady totally seduced a good-looking recent college graduate, and she's old enough to be his mother. She earned the title of the original cougar. When their affair was discovered, Mrs. Robinson claimed she was raped by Ben. Of course her family automatically believed her. Who is going to suspect that a middle-aged socialite would initiate an affair with her friends' son. Scandalous! Traditionally, it's the old man who is leering after an extremely young girl. The Graduate turned these roles completely around. It crossed the boundaries of what our culture accepts as the norm. But, why is it that we find this switch so weird? Do cougars usually just fly under the radar, or are guys just into the young-uns a lot more than women?

Gossip Girl and Gender

In the latest installment of Gossip Girl on the CW, the dramatic saga of Rufus and Lily continues to unfold. They have committed to traveling to Boston in the hopes of locating and meeting the child they gave up for adoption years ago. While there, they meet with the man who adopted their baby. He tells Rufus and Lily that his wife didn't come because it was too painful for her. She could not bear to tell them her adoptive son had died in a tragic sailing accident. She could not face the pain again and speak about her loss. Of course, her husband had the strength to speak calmly and without emotional hysterics to Lily and Rufus.

The episode uses the traditional stereotypes that society has for men and women. The man is portrayed as the strong individual, who is able to keep his emotions in check. He does not shed a single tear while he speaks about his son's death. Meanwhile, the woman is portrayed as being very frail and weak. After her husband's statement about her inability to deal with speaking about the tragedy, you are left to imagine her bursting into tears at the slightest mention of her son's death. The stereotypes of society portray men as being the stronger gender who provide support for women, the weaker sex. This segment of the episode sticks to the traditional stereotypes.

If you skip to about five minutes into this video, you can view the segment of the episode that I wrote about.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqHiD160QRY

Practice Post

Hey, y'all! This is my practice post.