Bells & Whistles

Watch Me!

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

For one of my film classes a year ago, I had to make a film using appropriated footage from the internet. This assignment got me interested in footage of old advertisements from the 50's-70's.

I find it remarkable how, from a random collection of old t.v. commercials, each one manages to incorporate themes of:

women needing to please their men,

women who cannot get out of tough situations without the help of a man,

women as alluring prizes (so if men buy the product, they get the prize (the woman)), etc.

These are great to watch not only for their entertainment value but also for the portrait of gender inequality they paint.

Questioning Gender at a Young Age

I came across an article and it reminded me of the Newsweek article “Rethinking Gender” that we read last week. The Newsweek article focused mostly on adults who changed genders, but this article is about a child. Born a boy, Jack decided to become a girl when he was just 10 years old.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/31/transgender-10-year-old-j_n_943654.html?1314816454&icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl2%7Csec1_lnk1%7C91654

Rotating Content

Play

The boy’s parents were openly accepting of his decision to live as a girl; in fact, when they meet new people, they refer to him as their daughter. While the parents are accepting of this change, the boy’s grandfather is not. He questions how a child can make this important life decision at such a young age.

I don’t really understand how a child can make that kind of decision either. Kids usually act crazy and and have really creative imaginations. They change their minds and opinions almost daily. It doesn’t seem appropriate to let a kid make such a big decision on his own.

Is there a certain age when it should be appropriate to let a person make this kind of decision? At a certain point does it become acceptable or non-controversial to want to change genders? It is interesting to think about whether the fact that changing genders has become more common among adults has influenced the rising population of children who want to change genders. Do you think the child’s parents have influence over the child’s decision? I am struggling with trying to understand how a child can make this type of decision, or even how a child’s parents can let the child make this type of decision. Since there are more and more cases everyday in which children decide to change genders at a young age, will it become less shocking, or more socially acceptable at some point to do so? Does anyone have any ideas about this?

Female Author Suggests Women Use Sex to Get Ahead

The other day, I read an article saying that a social scientist recently wrote a book called Honey Money: The Power of Erotic Capital. In her novel, Catherine Hakim basically advocates females to use their looks and sexual appeal to get ahead in life, whether it be the work field or in relationships. She states that many men will do anything to get sex, and that women should use this to their full advantage. Her opinion has of course been very controversial, with some saying that whether people like it or not, looks have and very likely always will be an advantage in life. Others say that this idea presents women in a very demeaning manner, making them no different from prostitutes. Although I do not agree with the author, I think it is odd that when men do things like this, it is often comical to people. For example, on the show "Friends", Joey Tribbiani, an actor, would often sleep around with various women to get an audition, a favor, or anything else he wanted, and his friends and the tv audience would laugh at his actions, finding it humorous. If a female did this, many would call her a whore, and it wouldn't really be much of a laughing matter.

Whose line is it anyway - Funniest Songstyles ever!

So this is a video of a female Bodybuilder named Jane. This hilarious video reminds us that women can do anything men can do. It also portrays the surprise of a female body builder. As soon as Jane walked in there was a roar in the audience and everyone was at least intrigued. We would probably all agree that female bodybuilders are not a common sight. Many people in the audience and on stage humorously implied that Jane was attractive. Ryan Stiles even made the gesture of taking his wedding ring off. I took away a theme from this: strong is beautiful. Woman who are fit or muscular, "man-like", are received as beautiful and attractive women. It's also worth noting that although Jane exhibits manly characteristics, she is clearly womanly and genetically female. She does not appear to have a gender disorder. This is because She expresses herself as female. She comes out in a bikini and heels, has long hair, and makes a suggestive move on Wayne Brady ;)

I really enjoyed this video for its humor and class relevance. What do you think about it?

The Expectations Placed on Men by Gender Roles

While we have been discussing much about how gender constructs have affected women, gender roles have also shaped the expectations placed upon males. And what better way to depict social expectations of males than with a top charts hit by the iconic Village People? So let's break down this 30+ year old music video.

[Video Description: The 1978 music video for Village People's first hit: "Macho Man" (before their biggest hit : "YMCA" four months later) This video was downloaded from Youtube.]

First things that jump out at the viewer, besides the groovy 1970's retro funk and pop, are the images of burly men tensing their muscles in the gym. The close-up views of biceps and pectorals depict the male body in an exaggerated fashion. This old method of exaggeration could be compared that of modern tendencies to use photoshop to edit magazine covers of women to sensualize them. In both occasions, the end result puts impossible body shapes up on a high pedestal to be revered by society. The ridiculous size of the muscles can be noted by comparing the muscle guys to the actual men of the Village People, who are much leaner. But to compensate, the Village People dance in a very sensual manner (just look at the guy in the Indian headdress!)

Secondly, (after rewatching the video for the fifth time...) you notice the lyrics (because you've probably started singing along). But the lyrics themselves bring to light the messages society has about the male body.

Starting with the beginning verses:

Every man wants to be a macho macho man,

to have the kind of body, always in demand.

You can best believe that he's a macho man,
ready to get down with anyone he can.

Every man ought to be a macho macho man,
To live a life of freedom, machos make a stand,
Have their own life style and ideals,
Possess the strength and confidence, life's a steal,
You can best believe that he's a macho man
He's a special person in anybody's land.

Then moving onto the catchy chorus:

Macho, macho man! (see my big thick mustache)
I've got to be, a macho man!
Macho, macho man!
I've got to be a macho! (Dig broad shoulders)

The blunt message behind the video is that males want and should have a toned physique that would make Superman jealous. And only after the physical traits have been acquired, then a man will have the confidence to take life by the horns (which is what a man must do).

These ridiculous expectations are not logical and cannot be forced upon everyone. Not all males can be expected to be body-builders that extrude an aura of confidence and dance like the Village People. But to much of the dismay of boys, society strongly supports this social construct, as can be deduced by the success of the song and by the most "thumbed up" comment for the Youtube video, which is:

By far the straightest video on Youtube.

What do y'all think about the expectations of gender roles that are placed upon males? What parallels can you draw from the physical expectations of males to that of females? And how many times did you replay the video?

Beyonce is Pregnant!

Yesterday at the VMAs, Beyonce publicly confirmed the pregnancy rumors by ending her performance by opening her jacket and rubbing her belly. A bit shocked to hear this myself, I googled "pregnant Beyonce" and found these sites (and many more, of course).

http://www.usmagazine.com/momsbabies/news/source-beyonce-is-pregnant-20102010

http://news.yahoo.com/destiny-child-beyonc-announces-pregnancy-133803530.html 

A quote that jumped out at me was:

"B was shocked. She loves kids, but she wasn't ready to be a mother just yet," says a source of the singer, who married rapper Jay-Z in 2008. "She really wanted to get her album done and tour the world again."

What does it mean exactly to be "ready to be a mother?" Do future mothers have to have some type of mindset that "I am ready to conceive" before they should have a baby? Is it something that they decide by themselves or is it socially constructed?

And the fact that she wanted to wait until more of her business goals were fulfilled before having a child suggests that even in modern society today, a woman having a career and having a baby don't go along together. It almost seems as if she feels she has to decide between one or the other. Is this true? How do you feel about the fact that women have to face this decision while men can easily choose both?

Another interesting quote was:

“I always said I would have a baby at 30,” Beyoncé said during a June “Piers Morgan Tonight” appearance.

What do you think about the fact that she knew she wanted to have a baby at such a specific age? It seems like she was planning it way ahead of time, like she has to follow a set life schedule for herself. Also, is this entirely based off her own opinion or is it influenced by what society perceives to be the "right age" to start a family?

Feel free to answer any of the questions or leave a comment! Thank you!