...way that many people can relate to. Media are constructions. Three individual families represent the complexity of "family" in today's modern world. The show aims to do this by including several mixed family situations. Jay Pritchett is divorced and remarried a much younger Colombian wife, Gloria. Gloria has son Manny Pritchett from a past marriage. From his first marriage, Jay has two children, Mitchell and Claire. Mitchell Pritchett and Cameron Tucker form a gay couple who adopt a Vietnamese baby. Claire married Phil Dunphy, and they have three children. Haley, the eldest daughter who dropped out of college, Alex, a bright middle daughter, and Luke, the goofy youngest son (Cast). Although Modern Family represents many modern tastes of what it is to be "family", the show still uses many stereotypes to build its humor. It becomes evident that without traditional aspects the construction of the "Modern Family" would fall apart. These stereotypes can create a negative sense of appeal to different demographics, including those they are trying to represent. This hasn't stopped the trail of success, Modern Family has received five consecutive Emmys for Best Comedy (Emmys). The media contain and convey values and ideologies. This hasn't stopped critics, as Modern Family has received much negative feedback for supporting gay stereotypes and unintelligent women figures. Claire is often seen as a dumb blonde, Gloria as the trophy wife, and Haley is...
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...successful doll ever produced. This iconic and often controversial doll has had a great deal of influence on every decade since the late 1950s. From its very inception, Barbie was an innovative fashion doll, whose desirability and influence among girls quickly skyrocketed. It was the first ever adult-bodied doll, equipped with breasts, long legs, and a small waist. Previously, the only dolls for girls were baby or infant dolls that allowed little girls to play mommy. But with Barbie, little girls were soon able to imagine being much more than just mothers or wives, and could play as any career they wanted. The Barbie doll was not simply a fashionable toy, but a role model for individuality and freedom of choice for all females. It broke through gender barriers by teaching girls they could be anything they dreamed. However, the doll received a great deal of outrage and criticism throughout the decades as well. In its early years, people criticized the toy for being too sexual and lascivious. On the one hand, this reaction was understandable because...
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...Big Bang Theory, one must first understand what gender theory is, and its role it plays in society. Gender theory began as the Feminist movement, which was started around the late eighteenth century. The Feminist theory was a proponent of gender equality. Mary Wollstonecraft played a prominent role in this movement (Allen and Felluga). The Feminist movement originally started with women wanting rights with education; but women realized just how unfairly they were being treated. Now they wanted the right to own property, which would come with the right to vote. The movement then went from public to private; women wanted equal rights in home and work (Allen and Felluga). Media played a tremendous role into society accepting the fact that women were starting have more rights in society, which is known as social action. Men were speaking out that women were not just the ones stereotyped in society, with this came gender theory. Gender Theory deals with conflict due to social norms, which varies culture to culture . Social norms are...
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...The worlds of Frankenstein and Blade Runner are effective representations of their context and the values which were catalysts for their composition. How has your study supported this? Throughout time, literature has served well as a window into the schools of thought and social concerns of any given era of human history. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner (Director’s cut), 1986, continue this trend. Frankenstein is a typical example of Gothic literature that engages with issues commonly raised during the Enlightenment and Romantic Movement. Blade Runner was composed in the early 1980’s, a time of radical change and development in areas of science and business. Despite their differing social contexts, both texts question similarly ethically driven issues. The question over man’s right to push the boundaries of science in the creation of life has transcended time, growing increasingly relevant with recent advancements in technology. The contentious issue was predominant throughout the Enlightenment period, an era characterised by significant change where reason was valued over religious faith. This contextual significance is mirrored in Shelly’s condemnation of Frankenstein’s experiment through the loathing tone of “now that I had finished, the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart.” She furthers her argument through the monster’s description of Frankenstein as an “unfeeling, heartless creator!”, reflective...
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...Being Girl: A Sociological Memoir My first memory of kindergarten was this: dozens of tiny, petrified 5-year-olds being dropped off at their first day of school, and dozens of exhausted, overworked mothers consoling their weeping sons and daughters. I remember it vividly because, despite the terror and chaos, a single thought pervaded my mind, the thought that “these moms are not as pretty as my mom.” I wasn’t entirely biased, either. By North American standards of beauty, I was correct. Here was my mother, a rail-thin, blonde-haired, blue-eyed statuesque stunner, among a sea of frumpy women with visible wrinkles and tangles of black hair. And here I was, the daughter of this perfect specimen, the proud owner of a mother who was more “feminine”, more “womanly”, and therefore, I naively deduced, “a better mother”. In fact, although my vocabulary was fairly limited at the time, I believed her to be the epitome of all mothers. She looked, I told her that morning, “like a mom was supposed to look.” In interviewing my mother, she said that this was my “first brush with what it meant to be a girl.” Throughout kindergarten, I was labeled “weird”. I dug for worms, collected Pokémon cards (which was deemed a “boyish” activity), and none of my friends were girls. My teacher, a young woman who had just recently graduated from university, was often concerned for me, and thought that my lack of female friends would be detrimental to my developing of social...
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...media, however realistic ‘never really simply represents the world direct. They are always a construction, a re-presentation, not a transparent window on to the real.’ (Branston & Stafford, 2003:90) ‘Re-present’ has prompted questions of how accurate the portrayal of race, gender and class have been represented within the media. The way in which the media represents groups of people has led stereotypes, these ‘are not authentic individuals, but are assumptions about specific groups of people that are exhausted throughout the media’ (Branston & Stafford, 2003:90). ‘The selection & construction of undeveloped, generalised signs which categorise social groups or individual members of a group’ (Taylor & Willis, 1999:41). Stuart Hall has described this act as the; ‘The mental frameworks – the languages, the concepts, categories, imagery of thought, and the systems of representation – which different classes and social groups deploy in order to make sense of, define and render intelligible the way society works’ (Stuart Hall, 1985) By this he means what is understood in the media all comes from an understanding of words and symbols underpinned by Ideology. Therefore plays a part in ‘constructing, mediating and framing our social identities’ (Thornham & Purvis, 2005;28). George Gerbner (1972) developed an interest in ‘Symbolic representation’ a thought that representation ‘signifies social existence’ as described by Cynthia Carter to be the way in which ‘media are thought to convey...
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...Social Anthropology Observations Chesney Ward- Smith Site D, Leslie Social Basic setting from the top stairs looking down- to my direct left there is a large tree as well as a parking lot which is semi- full. Further down on my left is a large concrete, grey building known as the Geographical Sciences building. It has about ten stories. This building is covered with ivy which has variants of greens, browns and reds in contrast with the grey concrete. In front of me are also four different coloured bins for recycling. They are red, blue, green and yellow. To my right is another concrete building, known as the Leslie Social building. It has five stories. There are glass doors which make it accessible from the side. To my immediate right, there is a small, round, little hut which is a cafe known as Bananazen. On the outside of it there are various pictures of fresh fruit. There are also many green, six- seater tables outside of the cafe which are covered by large white umbrellas. Looking straight ahead and down there are multiple levels of grey concrete stairs leading down to the avenue. There are also more tables. Overhead there are many concrete beams connecting the two buildings. They are literally joined together. These are very angular and run diagonally across the buildings. Observing with all my senses in detail Sight- This is a place of passing by and much human traffic in between lectures. During these times there are lines of people walking hurriedly to and from...
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...and discourses are devices that, in different ways according to different theorists, fortify media power. Critically analyse how these devices work, according to various theorists, and reflect upon which best explains communicative power. The social construction of reality is mediated through the communicative powers of stereotypes, narratives, ideologies and discourses and the media is extremely powerful in communicating messages with these devices. It will be argued that discourses are the most powerful communicating device used by the media in the postindustrial era today. Furthermore as per Croteau & Hoynes (2014, p. 9), the analysis will focus on recognised mass media that is readily available in print, film, radio, television, sound recordings and the Internet. Poststructuralists within sociology examine the structures of society and human agency. Human agency or action is influenced by sociocultural factors such as ideology that shape human identity and act subconsciously over an individual. Ideology is the system of meaning that helps explain, define and make value judgments about the world (Croteau & Hoynes 2014, p. 152). As we live in an interconnected world there are many ideologies as there are social structures in any given society. Related to this is that dominant ideas are hegemonic. Marx created the superstructure, which is the domain of ideas for example religion, legal structures, family, institutions and these are influenced by the interests...
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...Race and Ethnicity has been equivalently used by people as referring to both meanings being the same. Race is a biological myth, because society believes that it’s real. Ethnicity is a self-identity with a shared culture. Society is structured around one’s social perception of race and ethnicity, which enables society to categorize according to importance. I’ll discuss how one’s position in the racial hierarchy encourages and permits prejudice and discrimination. Today’s society is structured in a way by the dominant group that prejudice and discrimination comes across more subtlety and even at times unintentionally. This wasn’t always depicted that way in the past. For instance, in the 1930’s and 40’s the Nazi Party, the dominant group, was very open about their prejudice and discrimination toward the subordinate groups which included Jews, Gypsies, homosexuals, and Jehovah Witnesses. Not only did they express their feelings of hate, but also acted upon them by taking away their civil rights and perused them with violence. The terms race and ethnicity are often used synonymously to each other. The definition of race has altered by society and time. These terms need to be independently defined in order to fully understand when and how to use the terms race and ethnicity correctly. Race is socially defined as a category based on people’s distinctive physical characteristics that are inherited, such as color of skin, shape of eyes, facial structures. Many groups have...
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...Gender Inequality in Modern Day Cartoons Children often enjoy waking up extra early on Saturday and Sunday mornings because they know that they can enjoy warm pancakes, bacon, and eggs, and especially early morning cartoons. Weekend morning cartoons are always enjoyable to watch because they are simply hilarious. They usually consist of funny and innocent violence that is meant to attract a younger audience. Children are able to watch cartoons carelessly and laugh, not realizing how gender inequality or even racism is displayed in cartoons today. Research by Jerry A. Jacobs and Kathleen Gerson (2004) states that “gender inequality exists typically when women have less power than men or vice versa, and this can either be at home, school, or in the workplace” (p. 89). Gender inequality is socially constructed meaning people respond to changing behaviors in society. Cecilia L. Ridgeway (1997) researches that gender inequality is in fact socially constructed and she states “a part of that is learning how to display masculinity or femininity, which is seen or learned. For example, stereotypically, men are more focused with physical strength while woman are more focused on how they present themselves as viewing objects” (p. 225). Cartoon Network, a popular television network for children plays various cartoons such as The Flintstones, Dexter’s Laboratory, Johnny Bravo, Thundercats, and more. Although all of these cartoons are hilarious because of the characters and the dialect...
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...Orientalism in Films There have been many uses and abuses in Western view of the Eastern cultural and social concept of orientalism. This paper discusses how orientalism relates to the three films namely M. Butterfly, Madame Butterfly, and Lost in Translation. Like the title, "M. Butterfly" basically was playing about transformation. This is the first of the Giacomo Puccini opera metamorphosis that was famous, in which "Madame Butterfly" became the modern geopolitical argument to understand the culture. In this film, through love relations that really did not make sense between a French diplomat and the Chinese opera singer he believed the man became the woman, how could the failure for the wish to be separated from reality result in the deception and the tragedy. Gallimard changed Sole from "only humankind" in the "Perfect Woman". Due to his insecurity about his own masculinity, Gallimard needs to create Song in the image of the perfect Asian woman, which is exotic, sensual, and acquiescent, in order to feel wholly male. Although he seeks to confine Sole within the context of his fantasy, Gallimard poster vulnerability and need actually free Sole by providing her with an outlet to flee the Orientalist representation of Asian people. Gallimard transforms Sole into a butterfly, boots instead of transforming him into one of the butterfly. Whereas Gallimard, is actually the one who eventually ends up trapped by his own fantasy. Through an analysis of Gallimard practice cultural...
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...The systematic institution of racism constitutes a systematic accumulation of effort that goes unnoticed behind the façade presented to the audience. Hidden agendas surreptitiously make the effort to facilitate subordination of the disenfranchised and powerless amidst the easily perceived promising future of equality. In the following response, I will argue the integration of humanist ethical ideologies that illicitly and surreptitiously generate racist ideologies that subjugate the colonized non-Western “other”. Social Darwinism, eugenics, imperialism, nationalism, cultural relativity, and multiculturalism are the main ideas that support my argument which will be subsequently elaborated on. For centuries, the doctrine of white male hegemonic enslavement has dominated, degraded, and dehumanized the disenfranchised and powerless from the privileged. The beliefs, values, culture, and ideology that all these different number of systems of thinking would create the knowledge of humanitarian effort to intervene in trying to justify and clarify racism without question. Universalism helped to fuel the binary opposition of the colonizers versus the colonized. The binary system is far from valiantly subverting stereotypes, such manufactured ideologies are deeply invested in upholding stereotypes, which in turn generates the idea of “difference” and this difference plays a role in sustaining racism. In other words, if words like “progressive” and “civilized” are tied to the group “colonizers”...
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...Abstract The point of this paper is to help the reader grasp the different aspects of human identity construction with regards to ones race and/or ethnicity. This is a topic that is incredibly important to all races of people regardless of economic class or whatever else is seemingly more important. It is quite impossible to go throughout life without forming an idea of who you are or where you have come whether you care to make it a part of your daily life, have no choice or acknowledge it when it is convenient; without that knowledge I find it difficult to fully make the most of life. Through the readings from the semester and class discussions I have come to the conclusion that White ethnics choose to either assert their ethnicities thickly or thinly, or they chose to incorporate it into their lives symbolically. Blacks on the other side of the spectrum lack choice in their racial identity because their race is visible and so it is assigned to them. Asians have both the ability to choose to assert their specific ethnicities but they are racially assigned. The issue with racial and ethnic construction is that it is born of social construction-what others believe of your race to be true. This can make the identity construction process much more difficult depending upon your racial or ethnic background. Regardless, I find this to be an important part of the identity construction journey. How many cares one loses when one decides not to be something but to be someone. These...
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...What is the Difference Between ‘Sex’ and ‘Gender’? To start this essay I will clearly state definitions of ‘Sex’ and ‘Gender’ respectively. ‘Sex’ is described as ‘the biological properties that distinguish organisms on the basis of their reproductive roles.’(Princeton University – 2010). Whereas gender is listed as ‘the state of being male or female, typically with reference to social or cultural differences rather than biological.’(Michigan University – 2010). In this essay I will explore and investigate both sex and gender, whilst identifying the differences between the two. I will start by elaborating on the given definitions. Sex is defined on the Princeton University website as ‘biological’. This is a word that has recurred in many other definitions that I have researched for the word ‘sex’. This would suggest that sex is able to be categorized in a straight forward manner. However, there are several high profile cases in the media, when the issue of ‘sex’ has come into question. Perhaps most recently is the case of South African athlete, Caster Semanya. Semanya won the 800m race during the African Junior Championship, with the fastest time of the year. This lead to some spectators questioning her sex. When looking at the athlete she has an incredibly muscular and angular frame, and this coupled with her record breaking run made the International Athletic Association ask for a sex test. This case brought the issue of ‘sex’ into much disrepute. Now, we are...
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...So Ching Ashley SID: 1007623943 ENG3250 Other Literatures in English Paper Assignment 2 December 6, 2010. Orientalism in M. Butterfly: a Struggle from Gender Identity to Political Balance Long before Song Liling made her debut as M. Butterfly on stage, there was a woman called Cho-cho-san, playing Madama Butterfly with the fullest of her life. M. Butterfly’s counterpart Madama Butterfly presents readers Cho-cho-san, a pitiful and submissive Oriental Butterfly. Cho-cho-san’s character traits fit in almost every single aspect of the ideal of Oriental women, for instance, Cho-cho-san is a geisha, an exotic representation of Japanese women in the eyes of westerners, Cho-cho-san eventually dies of seppuku, which is the Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment, and her ultimate sacrifice of her everything from her religion to her very life. The attributes of Cho-cho-san are not exclusive to this character only but imposed on all Asian women. The western presupposition of some certain fixed and bounded Asian attributes defines the identity of Asian women and thus, creates an image of the sacrificial and submissive Oriental women. Moreover, the historical backgrounds of Hwang’s Butterfly and Puccini’s Butterfly are, in fact, the extension of gender tension to international power struggle. Cho-cho-san’s love story happens in the Meiji Period in which Japan first opened its door to foreigners; while Gallimard and Song Liling begins having an affair in the 1960s, in the midst...
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