As society has grew, many people have had a stronger view of stereotypes, and still till today many people are still discriminated. Although discrimination based on ethnicity, race and gender has always been around, now it has also included career path. For the past years, there has been a lot of discrimination against men in nursing. Nursing has always been dominated by woman for histories, therefore it has been quite shameful for a man to express to other individuals that he is a nurse.
It wasn't till recently, I watched the movie Meet the Parents, which showed a clear biased understanding of men who want to become nurses. In the movie, Gaylord Focker, a male nurse falls in love with a beautiful girl named Pam. When Focker visits Pam's parents, everything was a mess for him. Firstly, Pam's parents did not like Focker because he was a male nurse. When he was explaining to them that he preferred nursing, they took it as a joke. This shows that our society already demands men to become doctors, the dominant job in medical, and then for women to become nurses.
Men who go into nursing are always discriminated, because many individuals feel that nursing is more of a "feminine" job. The issue in this case is that gender discrimination is the same as other professions. Many other jobs I have encountered are also unequal for both gender roles. When I go to Dairy Queen, I only see women. The reason to Dairy Queen can be because of the name going under a Queen, rather than a King. Also, many construction jobs do not allow women, because they think construction is more of a "manly" job. Do you think nursing should be more of a feminine job, because it has been like that for all of history? Should society turn things around and make more female doctors and male nurses? Have you encountered applying for a job and being rejected because of your gender? Explain!
Nowadays in society young males all colors and cultural backgrounds are being misrepresented and labeled as thugs, criminals, and bad kids because they resemble what the "everyday criminal" looks like which is baggy jeans, hoodie, and head gear. because teenagers dressed this way they are harassed by police and quickly judged by store clerks and fellow citizens. People who are incarcerated for crimes like theft, murder, and drugs do usually dress like teens cause they're teens. just because this similarity exist doesn't mean that everyone is a criminal who chooses to participate in this trend and culture, teens dress that way cause its what they like and what they see around them in media. everyday teens are being given a hard time because they dress a certain, without any prior knowledge teens are automatically considered a threat. as a black teen i am often watched in stores, approached by cops, and avoided by civilians because i fit the profile as being a delinquent. Because of these stereotypes many young kids are being targeted. is it fair for adolescents to be judged with such harsh profiles? How would you feel if you were summed up as a criminal because what you like to wear?
These are examples of civilians taking action against teens because they felt endangered for their life with the Trayvon Martin case and Jordan Davis case. both teens that were victimized based on their Music, Clothing, and color. Both these teens have been shot and killed. R.I.P
Have you ever been stopped by the police? if you have what was the reason?
Cheryl Kilodavis is a mother of a young boy named Dyson who decided at a young age that he preferred to wear dresses. It started when he asked his mother to be a princess boy for Halloween and of course she told him that he couldn't be a princess. She eventually realized that the only reason she said no was because she had an issue within herself. She came to the realization that she should in force general gender roles upon her kids if it makes them unhappy. After Halloween Dyson began to wear dresses and the colour pink on a daily basis. Cheryl Kilodavis then decided to write a childrens book called "My Princess Boy" which received international attention, both positive and negative.
Mr. Mohammad Ali said it best "Me,we". This poem that consist of two words, two syllables, four letters is much more complex than it seems to be. This poem speaks about unity, bringing all kinds of people together. Cheryl Davis is simply discussing the evolution of man. She states that when something difference comes about it also brings discomfort. She understands that people feel uneasy with the thought of her allowing her son to dress in dresses so she presents images of famous people today who wear the "opposite sex's clothing". I put that in quotations because there is no clothing that is for one gender, clothes are clothes. She also discusses how bullying awareness is something that is taught but acceptance awareness should also be taught. society puts a big emphasis on the act of bullying but it doesn't include how really people should be accepting the difference that people bring. Cheryl is basically saying how yes people are different and yes people may feel a discomfort but we should be focuses on uniting everyone and accepting their differences. If the individual isn't harming you in any way why do people feel the need to disrespect it?
I guess I'm asking your thoughts on the way society reacts to things that aren't apart of the gender norms?
Should it be an issue seeing boys dress up in clothes that females usually wear? Vice Versa?
Why do people come off as disrespectful and defensive when someone new presents itself? Is it nessecarry for people to act so ignorant to things that cause no harm to them?
Why are people quick to reject rather than accept something new?
TELL ME YOUR THOUGHTS!
ME, WE
Thursday, 22 May 2014
This Is Michael Sam. A new rookie to the NFL drafted 249th overall by the St.Louis Rams in this years NFL draft. What makes Sam different from other athletes though is that he was an openly gay college athlete. Sam has gotten countless amounts of discriminatory remarks and criticism for his sexuality from the media and even fellow NFL players. This video has become the subject of controversy during the ESPN showing off the NFL draft. Many judged Sam's kiss, saying that its not something they wanted to see on tv especially on their favourite and most popular sports network. but how come there were no reactions to kisses from other players girlfriends?? Are people starting to judge just because it was two homosexual males?
This has become a big topic in sports with the support of homosexuality growing more and more each day. Recently in the NBA Jason Collins came out as an actively gay player and in the NHL, team Captain Dustin Brown has been out of the closet for a while. People should just stop being ignorant to the fact that this is normal and should be accepted as the norm. But are critics t right to say that this specific channel and network is not supposed to be showing this kind of stuff? It is a Sports Network at the end of the day right? Could all of this have been staged? -- Sam does do this kiss repeatedly while looking straight into the camera, or could his emotions just be getting the better of him in this joyous and momentous moment.
Sam will face hardships in his coming years as an NFL player, with fans, the media and players criticizing him but with the support of family and people who aren't completely Narrow-Minded, he will become successful.
COMMENT COMMENT COMMENT SHARE YOUR OPINIONS ON THE SUBBJECT
Swedish superstar and main talisman for the club Paris Saint-Germain, Zlatan Ibrahimovic has impressed with his best performing season yet. 32 years old and captaining the Swedish national team has been showing a lot of his colors lately as he compared women's football with men's football, "With all respect for what the ladies have done, and they've done it fantastically well, you can't compare men's and women's football. Give it up, it's not even funny," said the Paris Saint-Germain striker in an interview with Expressen Newspaper. The Swedish striker said more "When I come out in Europe they compare me to [Lionel] Messi and [Cristiano] Ronaldo. When I come home they compare me to a female player. With all respect for the ladies, they should be rewarded in relation to what they generate [financially].
"I was asked [by Swedish media] in the summer who was the better player, me or [Sweden striker] Lotta Schelin. You're joking with me, right? When I've broken all these records, this goal record, the goals in the national team, who shall I compare it to? Shall I compare it to whoever has the record, or the ladies?". Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the football world's most outspoken player and interviews like these are common with him everywhere. the main issue is whether Zlatan's comments are respectful towards women.
Men have always been viewed as the superior sex within numerous cultures and societies, but surprisingly, even the all powerful man has become a target of unrealistic expectations. In this Old Spice commercial there is a ruggedly handsome man talking to the audience about the man their man could smell like if he used Old Spice body wash instead of using "lady scented body wash". He goes on to describe the things he can do for a woman, such as take her on trips in his fancy boat and shower her with diamonds while giving her tickets to whatever she has always wanted to go to. This ad is basically telling men that they are nowhere near being the man women desire if they don't buy this product to at least smell like the perfect man. Nowadays, men are expected to be the CEO of a major corporation or some other high rank position, formally dressed but somehow look attractively disheveled posses a stoic personality but sensitive at the same time and basically be a 6 ft muscular Adonis who is amazing in bed. this generalization of something so impossible appears countless times in videos, commercials, photos, and TV shows. The media's perspective of the perfect man is a 6" 2 male with piercing brown/blue eyes, short dark hair, wearing an expensive looking suit with a sexy smirk forever plastered on their face. While we are constantly looking at how the media affects women, we don't consider that men are affected just as much, if not more.
Take a look at this commercial. This is another Old Spice commercial featuring Neil Patrick Harris advertising Old Spice Pro Strength Antiperspirant. In the commercial he walks around a hospital into an operation room. He clearly states that he is a pretend doctor and obviously does not know what he is doing (who puts a stethoscope on someone's nose??), but the nurse in the room with him just swoons at him, distracted by his confidence and probably his smell. This IS an Old Spice commercial after all. But what is the message here? that it's ok for men to lie about themselves to be perceived as extremely masculine? Is this why there are so many young men saying they are from the ghettos living the "trap life" when they come from a classy neighborhood and have good, nurturing parents?
I'd like to think of the TV show Two and a half Men to be perfect example for our perception of men and how they affect our choices. In this show, Alan Harper (guy in the back) and his son Jake live with his older brother Charlie (guy in the red shirt) after his divorce. In almost every episode, Charlie is either bringing beautiful women home, teaching Jake how to be a womanizer, or working on jingles for commercials. Of course Alan tries to play the field a few times, but it almost always results in him saying something wrong or the woman leaving the wimpy, nurturing Alan for the rugged, slick, womanizing Charlie. But this has been a question for our society for decades; why do women dump good caring men to chase after the ones that don't care about them?
Why does society care so much about how men look and act? Do you think it's possible for men to hold a candle to the media's expectations?
It's pretty funny how certain things unfold within a relationship... let's take a look at this video for example!
Although this is a hilarious parody of what really, the main idea is there. Essentially, a man was charged $66 every time for sexual pleasures from his wife. The reasoning behind this stems from the husband, Chen, spending most of his fiscal income away from his family and blew all of his money on other priorities. This, in turn, created a brief family issue which resulted in court with Chen having to pay a $660 monthly fee in order to insure that he is contribution as much as his full time working significant other.
How do you think this affects the views of women equality? Would you consider this a form of spousal abuse? And lastly try to flip the script and imagine if it were the wife that had been partying and not contributing, what social norms will be broken? Feel free to let me know, so comment below!
The CBS news website released an article about 2 years ago dealing with the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace. I found what was written had left me flabbergasted. In this article the author Penelope Trunk states and elaborates on 4 points as to why women should NOT report sexual harassment. This articles first point states that the laws governing sexual harassment in the US don't work. It suggest that if you are to report sexual harassment and take it to court chances are you'll lose the case and your job. If this just so happens to be the case why shouldn't fight to create better laws? We live in a society that once didn't allow women to vote, if that can change why not these laws? The point that terrifies me the most is the last one, it implies that harassment is the norm and should be leveraged.The idea that women should just be complacent is quite obvious and enforced in this point, as though we don't live in a democracy. This just proves that further more steps need to be taken before both men and women are equal.
As you would probably be able to guess this article has received backlash, recently on the website Tumblr.com.
The comments are harsh and definitely opinionated, I apologize for the course language. This goes to show just how many people have felt anger towards this article. I would be interested in hearing whether you agreed this article or not. Do you feel it's message is justified? If not what are your opinions on this article?
Ajak Deng a gorgeous Sudanese model who’s been
turning heads in the fashion industry for her graceful poise and strikingly
beautiful features recently caused controversy after she claimed that a high-street
brand, Balmain rejected her for being “too
black”. The gutsy model then took to her twitter to express her disgust
with the heavy-weight fashion brand. Deng further implied that racist
mentalities like that of Balmain’s remain rampant within the fashion industry,
stating “a lot of black models would
rather kiss ass than be honest”. Balmain’s refusal to comment on Deng’s outrage just adds insult to injury. What I am curious is as to why the fashion
world is being so tight-lipped about an issue that has clouded the industry for
so long.
Deng's Tweets against Balmain came as a shock to twitter users
Although to be fair it would be impossible to deny
that Balmain did indeed have a diverse line up for their runway. Opening up
with highly successful black model Jourdan Dunn ; however, other than sharing
skin color one can see that Dunn and Deng are not similar in aesthetics to say
in the least. Not to say Jourdan Dunn who has worked very hard to become so
established within the industry has not had her own battles with racism. In
fact Dunn has spoken out on numerous occasions expressing her blunt disgust
with the hidden discrimination towards ethnic models within the fashion
industry:“I find it weird when agents say “you’re the only black model booked for
the show, isn't that great?!” Why is that great? I don’t know why people applaud designers for having only one ethnic model. It’s not like only one type
of woman loves fashion”. On the contrary to be realistic it’s undeniable
that many of the ethnic models used in Balmain’s campaign were much fairer than
the stunning dark skinned beauty. The question designers are now faced with is
no longer whether to include black beauty but what type of black beauty onto
their runways and shows. In a society in
which the dominant discourse is that the fairer your skin the more beautiful
you are, where do we place Deng? Do
you think there is an aversion to being black in fashion or cosmetic
industries? When was the last time you’ve seen people resemble Deng on your
screen? How do you think ethnic models from the past would have reacted had
they had social media at their disposal?
Jourdan Dunn
Progress is being made slowly but surely with Puerto
Rican model Joan Smalls and British Model Jourdan Dunn dominating runways. The
praise for Lupita Nyongo’s timeless beauty echoing all over Hollywood and the
world, simply shows that we are as a
society finally acknowledging that beauty comes in all different shades. I
think it’s time for Balmain to step up and get with the program because in an
increasingly multicultural society there is simply no room for racism!
Before you start reading, I'd like you to watch the link below, it's only 40 seconds. Do it!
This is a Covergirl 2010 Makeup Collection Ad featuring Drew Barrymore. The collection includes the new lashblashlength (mascara), the new smokyshadowblast (eyeliner) and the new shineblast (lip gloss). The explicit message in this ad is that if you buy the collection, you will be beautiful. The implied message is if you don't buy the collection, you have "[given] up on glam" therefore you are not beautiful. This ad is teaching young girls to buy their products if they want to look "pretty" and not give up on "beauty".
In today's generation, it seems as if men expect women to wear make-up when going out on a date or even going to work. Although the dominant discourse here is that women wear-up up to impress other men but I suppose it isn't only men who expect women to wear make-up. I also believe that society in general [women and men] put too much pressure on how women should look[ either look pale, tanned or "light-skinned" as some prefer, tall or short but skinny, no acne, no breakouts, no blackheads, perfect nose, big colorful eyes, perfect eyebrows, health hair, clear and glowing skin, nails, no bruises especially scars and the list can go on forever from physical traits to mental traits]. When women look at other women, they automatically expect other women to look presentable [wear expensive make-up and clothes]. We give "make-up" way too much attention, many girls feel the need to wear make-up to go to the groceries and even to go swimming! really?! swimming. The picture next to it is a model wearing make-up at the beach with perfect hair. I strongly believe that make-up lowers women's self-esteem and many ads promote these products without realizing the consequences between what they are saying like for example in the video above she starts comparing glam and beautiful, if you want to look pretty, you HAVE to wear these make-up products.
In order to construct this ad, there was a group of people who had to organize it all to put this all together. The planning that was put into this commercial was extremely detailed; first there must be a commercial director involved leading the cast and trying to bring creative thoughts and ideas. In order to even get to the commercial part, he had to hold auditions to cast actors as well as hire a crew. Secondly, there is a script involved even if the commercial does not have a dialogue - acts as a reference for those working on the project and ensures that everyone is reaching for the same creative goal. In the ad the shooting script detailed out the shots, camera moves, dialogue, captions and any voice-over features that might be featured in the commercial. Wardroab is very crucial here to match the actors skin tone, the dresses colour, and the make-ups colour to all match. After selecting a location, the director and tv crew begins to shoot the commercial and it might even take days after days.
In the beginning she is wearing a fancy yellow blouse with a mini black skirt and black heels with black bracelet and her hair is up. They cleared her face to show that their product is good quality when in reality, I can trash it and not even worry about it. The words are bolded and its all bright colours to catch your attention. When as her voice gets louder she starts to question people about giving up on glam. Then she changes to a red dress like her other one wasn't enough. As she questions "DO YOU GIVE UP ON GLAM", she throws her coat on the ground and acts all extra and sharply says "no" like you should of just said no and still wore your coat. Then as if nothing happened, she begins to advertise their products and show her fake eyelashes with mascara on top and her perfectly done eyebrows and perfect colour eyes. Then as if changing twice in 15 second as not enough, she wore ANOTHER purplish dress to suite their "purple smokey eye product" then changes back to the red dress to advertise the red lip stick. I'm beginning to think she has wardrobe problems because when I'm wearing different products, I don't have to change 4 times to 3 different clothes so it matches what I'm wearing.
The belief that this director had met with the dominant discourse of who should wear make-up. Have you noticed that in this commercial, there was no men advertising make-up. Why? well because its not the dominant discourse, "men shouldn't wear make-up" but this is not the case because even in movies, men wear SOME sort of make-up - using fake blood on their face or fake bruise marks around their eyes.
The way I interpret this advertisement is, its shoving the idea "beauty" and "make-up" down my throat. You cannot use beauty and compare it to a product. These products do not define what beauty is, a better question is, how does the director and Barrymore define beauty? how does society define beauty? I strongly believe that women do not have to wear make-up to look or feel beautiful, even if you are wearing expensive make-up or expensive clothes, you will not feel beautiful until you realize that you ARE beautiful regardless of any other products.
Obviously, in this ad it is used to sell a product and its make-up products that specifically young girls would wear because they want to feel "beautiful" because Drew Barrymore feels "beautiful" wearing these toxic chemicals on her face that can more breakouts in the long-run.
Some logic fallacies to think about is Equivocation and Faulty Analogy like HOW are you comparing beauty and make-up. There might be improper appeal to authority involved as well.
Some questions to think about:
Do you think this ad is attacking self-esteem?
If it was another model advertising this ad, would you interpret the ad differently?
Why might people feel the need to wear make-up everywhere they go? even the pool.
If you've noticed, 98% (assumption) of the time, its women advertising make-up, why might men feel compelled to say a few good things about make up?
With discussion of racism within sports, NFL franchise Washington Redskins have come under the spectrum of media with their overt display of bigotry. We have seen recently with the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling come under fire for derogatory comments made and it should be noted that Commissioner of the NBA Adam Silver did punish Sterling for his remarks.
That being said Commissioner of the NFL Roger Goodell has in the past conducted polls on whether or not to keep the Redskins' name and more often than not the name has received positive reviews. Owner of the Washington Redskins Dan Snyder has stated that the name was chosen to honor Native Americans but the Oneida Nation has taken offense to this and many others have as well.
The common misconception with this issue is that had the team been named the Washington N-Words more outcry would follow but due to what society deems as controversial we turn a blind eye to this issue. Why is this situation not resolved and what legnths does this issue have to go to for change?
Please watch this video before you start reading (3:32 to 4:31)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBbSNnGmPfw
As you saw in the video, one reporter asked both Robert Downy Jr. and Scarlett Johansson a question, but the questions were very different in perspective. Robert Downy Jr. was given a question regarding his role as Iron Man and how his character Tony Stark developed. Scarlett Johansson was asked about what diet she had done to get into shape and what specific foods she ate. Tony Stark, being sarcastic stated that people were probably intersted in the question being directed towards Scarlett than his own. Scarlett seemed to be annoyed as she stated that she didn't understand why he got an interesting an existential question while she got the "rabbit food" question. She proceeded by answering that question very shortly by stating that since she does a lot of stunt work, she ate a lot of green foods.
Scarlett Johansson plays the Black Widow who featured only in Marvel movies. Black Widow is very smart, quick, flexible and she can defend herself without anyone needing to protect her. She does not like to be taking orders from other's and tends to makes her own decision. She is just as capable and strong as the other male superheros, yet does not have any superpowers. Her character seems to break away from the trend that women need to be protected and are weak, which is normally the first thing that comes to mind when people think about women. She is someone that almost every women would want to be like.
Although, through this movie, Scarlett Johannson seems is trying to break away the stereotype of women being weak and needing help from males, society still only seems to care about how she looks and how she got her healthy body. In the Avengers and other marvel movies, she seems to be a sidekick, helping the superhero's but not getting the equal amount of respect. She has the almost the same amount of action scenes as the male superheros, yet no one is really giving her credit for that. It seems as though she is in the movie, because the directors are trying to target the male audience. For women, having Black Widow in the film seems to be an accomplishment, since next to the four male superheros, she is the only female. What is sad is that society is quick to make comments, without knowing how much effort is put into her action scenes through the film. She is just seen as a model looking character in these movies.
Questions to Consider: If Black Widow were to come out with her own movie without any of the other superhero's, do you think the movie would still be a hit? Why or why not? Why are people not interested in her character development in comparison to the male superheros? Do you believe society is moving away from the stereotype that women are in need of protection in movies? Also, would you personally prefer a superhero movie with a male lead or female?
WARNING : This video contains explicit content
- for those with small stomachs for objectification
This music video was made for Jennifer Lopez's song I Luh Ya Papi, and was released on the 13th of March 2014. The video begins with Jennifer and her two friends discussing possible music video idea with a representative of the company. As the representative pitches ideas to the three ladies, it becomes clear that the ideas are not what the three girls had in mind. The two friends of Jennifer then go on to criticize the ideas and compare them to what would be shown to a male. They then go on to talk about how men always tend to degrade women, so why can't women do the same, then the video begins.
As a young female adult watching this music video did not empower me in any sense but made me feel ashamed as a female. I believe in equality and also think that men degrading women is wrong, but the solution is not to then go and degrade men. I believe that this music conveyed the message 'Men degrade women, so we'll degrade them to make things fair'. In the words of the Great Gandhi ' an eye for an eye will make the whole world blind', by doing this we not only objectify men, we also do exactly what we have asked them not to do.
Although many young women, like myself, don't agree to this videos message, there could always be young women who feel this is empowering. To these women I would like to point out that the second French Montana appears the whole purpose of the video seems to dissolve. In the music video he can be seen clearly degrading women, in a video thats supposed to speak out against that. With this in mind I feel as though this music videos true layout was based on sex sells.
For the young women out there did you feel empowered through this video? Did you feel degraded? How do you feel towards the theme? Also to the young men reading, how did it feel being on the other side of the issue? Did you feel uncomfortable watching all those barely clothed men? Did you feel a sense of insecurity in your own appearances? And lastly to all readers how do you feel towards this video and would you like to see women take more of a stand?
Dating is as hard as it is, but did you know how much more difficult it was in the past? For women at least. As we are aware now, women were often treated as less than equal than men, when in fact men and women are equal in abilities. Here we could see some incredibly sexist dating tips from the 1950's. As malicious as these comments were, it is clear that they were presented with a comedic, fun tone. So please, enjoy, and be aware of the ongoing movement for equality.
From this video, we learn how the man in the relationship holds virtually respect for the woman of the relationship, rendering her to be virtually worthless, disrespected, and even non-existent. I am quite pleased to know that we have moved past this kind of mistreatment and behavior as well as being able to say that the difference in value of men and women is slowly fading.
In the media industry, it is quite normal for women to take photo shoots for ads, commercials and magazines. Although, women are always advertising for famous brand names, American Apparel, a clothing manufacturer that is best known for knitwear, t shirts and underwear, expanded their clothing with jeans, leggings, dresses and pants. The famous industry is never too late for young women to pose sexy, and wear barely anything for advertisement. The photos become more extreme, and many of the women are topless.
The newest photo ad has a description writing "Now Open" with a young women opening her legs. This photo is attracted by many male customers, because the woman is posed very sexually, and the message is also very sexual.
American Apparel, who uses young models who range from everyday people, to models who work similar to a porn business. As the company gets more famous, it becomes more evident that American Apparel draws attention through "sex sells". Although many women are offended by the ads, it has become more sexual and provocative to the public eye. The women think that young women taking sexual photos is not necessary to advertise a clothing company.
Do you think the public eye is attracted to a women who poses similar to a "porn star" rather than a regular ad? Do women have the right to feel offended?
Magazines, commercials, Internet ads, these are all outlets in which women are constantly portrayed as these smooth skinned, toned muscle, flat stomach and tanned body beings. More and more I am noticing the women in ads looking like barbies and supermodels, but the truth of the matter is that not even these women look that way. Photoshop seems to be the new trend in which celebrities are created into these models. What is even more ludicrous is that these celebrities look just as beautiful without the extra touch up. These advertisements and magazines along with all the other types of media are shoving these unrealistic images down peoples throat of what a woman should look like.
And this is the Unicorn-Beauty Phenomenon, women striving to look like false, computer altered models, an image that virtually doesn't exist (much like a unicorn). Although many people are aware of these false images of women, many still strive to achieve these looks through lotions, potions, magical juices from the rain-forest etc. Many young girls have now resorted to using body wrap, intense diets and weight loss pills. In this article by Nina Bahadur, published on the Huffington Posts website, she talks about the fact that these ideas of being slim to be pretty have been around for decades. She also talks about the insane measures women would go too, to get this Unicorn type beauty.
Knowing that you as a reader have probably encountered these ads or messages conveyed through them, I would like to know how you feel about this? If you're a female have you ever felt the need/pressure to fit this image? If you're a male have you come to be more expectant of women to resemble these images? Leave a comment and share your thoughts :).
Recently I came across an article by Linda Holmes (a writer for NPR) criticizing the film The Other Woman; starring Cameron Diaz, Leslie Mann, and Kate Upton. In the article, Holmes implies that movies like this one are deceptive to audiences because on the surface they seem like they are portraying powerful women sticking it to the man (so to speak). However, on closer inspection films like this one, and the soon to be released Walk of Shame starring Elizabeth Banks, are incredibly sexist and actually reinforce stereotypes about women.
One of the things Holmes points out in her article is that the film The Other Woman does not pass the Bechdel test. The Bechdel test was named by an American cartoonist who had a character state that she wouldn't watch a film unless it fulfilled three requirements. Since then, feminist critics have asked the same three simple questions to determine if a film/television show is biased towards women. The three questions/requirements are:
1. Does the film have two or more women in it?
2. Do they talk to each other?
3. Do they talk to each other about something other than men?
Another interesting thing to consider is the lack of diversity in the casts of both of these films. Notice that Nicki Minaj is relegated to Camron Diaz' assistant. In Walk of Shame the only people of colour are played as negative stereotypes (the gangster/drug dealer). Take a look at this video that makes fun of typecasting by Hollywood.
Consider these questions and add your thoughts to the comments:
1. The Other Woman is a box office success! Why do you think people were keen to see the film? Did you see it? If so, what did you think?
2. Arguably television is becoming more progressive in terms of representation on screen. Why does Hollywood have to maintain and carefully control the portrayal of gender roles, sexuality, and representations of race?
3. Watch a film and tell me if it passed the Bechdel test. Did your findings surprise you?
4. How does the dominant discourse of women's roles impact young women and men?
The main character is introduced to Maid Cafes for the first time
Maid Cafes Serving Since 2001
Meido Cafes or as they are know in the west, Maid Cafes are not your traditional coffee shop. Built with the intention of servicing the growing otaku (people who are immersed in the anime/ manga lifestyle) culture in Japan. Maid Cafes special sell are the maids, who wait on customers, cook and socialize with the patrons, all with an attractively bubbly attitude.
Kawaii! More Moe!!!
A meme about Moe, a Japanese fetish emerging from Otaku culture
There is a growing movement in Japan of Moe. Moe (Mo-eh) a slang term, a pun of the word 'budding' or word 'burning', refers to an attraction to cute,young, innocent looking female characters, usually submissive. Moe characters are always featured in Japanese popular culture and media, usually the most popular characters among the male audience would be the one that fell into the Moe subcategory, not the strong willed female character. This connects the idea that the more submissive and indecisive a girl is the more attractive and adorable she is.
The image of maid's have been popularized by the increasing use of short skirted, maid characters in anime, gal games (visual novels), manga, etc. The heavy use of maids in Japanese media has created a new fetish of Moe maids. Usually, male patrons would go to maid cafes looking to see the real life manifestations of their desires fulfilled. An establishment to serve their perversive natures.
What can I get you Master?
Upon entering a Maid Bar, you are greeted by the all-women staff, bowing, bent at the hip, while in unison say "Okaerinasaimase, goshujinsama", translated into 'Welcome Home, Master". Meiko Cafes give the customers the luxury usually reserved for the rich, their own personal maids for the low, low price of purchasing a slice of cake. Girls at these cafes are there to fulfil the fantastical role of someone like a pseudo Moe mother.
The Maid Cafe Experience
In this video, the women's kneeling and shows extreme politeness suggests the male patrons have dominance over her. Her demeanour nearing the Q&A session of the video is also not as excited as when she is working, suggesting a misrepresentation of women's attitude and a stereotype that women should be fun and cute.
Maid Cafe Staff do basic cafe duties like:
- Cook cakes, cookies, and savoury dishes
- Clean after their patrons
But cafe staff also are expected to do extra duties like:
- Greet/Send off customers ex: 'Welcome home, Master" or "Please return Master"
- Spoon feeding customers
- Cooling Service (ie: blow hot soup)
- Kneel during table services (ie: when mixing customers sugar/cream in coffee)
- Entertain customers with table service
- Play games and socialize with customers
- Smile all the time
- Be pure and sweet
- Grooming Services
- Massages
- Take Photos with Patrons
- Refer to customers as Master
- Dress in costume maid outfits that includes short skirts/ beautify themselves
A typical maid's costume
Looking through a feminist lens, these extra duties put the women playing these roles in a place of vulnerability. The women working in Maid Cafes are performing the role of housewife, reflecting the stereotype that women are suppose to support men in the home, cooking and cleaning. These tasks literally place women below men, having to kneel when servicing them. In western cafes like Starbucks, we don't expect baristas to kneel when offering our order.
To refer to general male patrons as 'Master' is deeming and reinforces the stereotype that women are below males in the social hierarchy. A Meiko Cafe is a brothel in disguise, with its whole purpose to serve men and to satisfy their sexual fantasies. This emerging trend/ fetish for this fantasy girl is concerning and can manifest itself into expectations of girls in the real world.
Maid cafes are only the beginning, they are a sub-category of the cosplay cafe trend. There are also cuddle parlours with maid playing women who snuggle with patrons who pay a base fee. They also offer head petting services, spooning and whispering compliment services. Women in these trades are being subjected to sexist perversion of the customers. The fact that such establishments exist raises concern for what is becoming considered a norm in society.
For further reading look into this topic read this article about the first maid cafe opening in New York city. http://nextshark.com/meet-the-owner-of-new-yorks-first-japanese-maid-cafe/
Food for Thought
Maid from iMaid Cafe, a Maid Cafe in Toronto
Every year Toronto host a maid cafe of its own, Cafe Delish, as one of the events during the largest anime convention in Canada, Anime North. Do you see this culture spreading to western cities? If yes, is it concerning?
Do Maid Cafes constitute as innocent entertainment?
Why do Maid Staff choose to work in Cafes? Is it because of the respect oriented culture Japanese people are raised/ live in that makes the work feel normal?
Should Moe characters be idolized or fetishized? Why aren't the strong female leads as popular as the Moe characters in anime?
