Week 9: Response to Peer's Blog

This week instead of finding mediated examples of sexualized images, I was asked to review a peer's blog. My classmates have also been creating sexual imagery blogs over the past 9 weeks. We are nearing the end of the term and I will be presenting on topics that have appeared throughout the course. My partner, Liz and I have yet to choose a topic but first, I was asked to critique her blog.

You can find Liz's blog here.

Photo courtesy Liz's Sex & Media Blog

After reviewing Liz's blog I found that we both have similar writing styles. I was really impressed with how her writing and style has improved from the first week she posted up to Week 8. Looking at her first post, Liz focused much of her critique on the week's artifacts and what they portray more than how they can be applied to the week's theme. Four out of the five artifacts were television images, later through the term she began to use a variety of mediums, including advertisements, music, etc. As I look through her weekly postings I recognize her Week 5 posting to be the best.

Her Week 5 post on Examples of socially "appropriate" sex in the media is creative and written extremely well. I found this blog to be her best written because she stayed on topic, relating all examples to the readings and theme of the week. She focused a lot of her posting on the article "Twenty-one Moves Guaranteed to Make his Thighs go up in Flames: Depictions of "Great Sex" in Popular Magazines" by Menard and Kleinplatz. Liz used Cosmo and print advertisement/images as a media example which was specifically appropriate for this reading. According to the authors, often within popular magazines sexual content can be found in 3 sources: 1. advertisements 2. photographic layouts and 3. editorial content. This content in women's magazines is far different from that seen in men's magazines. Within a men's magazine, the sexual content tends to be more hardcore. While, there are gender stereotyping images as well as narrow sexual scripts, there are also infinite number of images of women portrayed as sexual objects.

Her specific examples also display the 3 themes within sexual content of women's magazines. One theme displays "great sex" as being intimate, in a long term relationship, heterosexual and caring. According to the Cosmo cover it shows a second theme, sexual techniques can be taught. Third, "great sex" is chemical and beyond our own control. Meaning that there are ways women can be taught to perform to satisfy their man's needs.

Surprisingly enough, men's and women's magazines have more similarities than differences. Each gendered magazines display in magazines advice on how to have "great sex" in 5 different categories.

1. technical/mechanical/physical factors: using new techniques, improving health, (diet and exercise) how to kiss, appropriate duration of sex. This is very common in women's self-help and beauty magazines.

2. variety: get ideas from porn. Sexual experimentation, using props, sex in different places, “kinky” play, “rough” female initiated sex. These also show women how to have confidence, particularly in how to talk dirty and what to wear in bed.

3. relationship factors: have a strong emotional and physical connection, communication but verbal and nonverbal very important for “great sex”, touch more often and look into each other’s eyes. I would suggest that this theme would be talked about more in a woman's magazine but I would argue that men may be more oblivious to this theme.

4. personal factors: improve masturbation. Again, self-help magazines popularly display this theme.

5. pre-sex preparation: self prep and environment prep (candles).

Works Cited:

Menard, D. & Kleinplatz, P. (2007). Twenty-one moves guaranteed to make his thighs go up in flames: Depictions of “great sex” in popular magazines. Sexuality & Culture, 12, 1-20.

As for Liz's blog she did an excellent job of using a variety of mediums. She used examples from TV, film, magazine and product placement/advertisement. Each example was different from each other and appropriate for the topic.

First, she began her post by discussing how sex is portrayed in the media as socially appropriate or acceptable. I agree with her perspective on sex most commonly being displayed as missionary between a man and woman and that are of a young age. Her examples she chose fit this description well. Her example of the man being seduced by the woman on the bed (Artifact 3) is very stereotypical. I cannot tell you how many times I have seen an image exactly like this. It is the woman performing for the man and the man graciously accepting the sexual act. Liz does a great job of explaining how this is a common perspective in our society and within the media.

She further goes on to explain that the ideal beauty of Western society is also displayed in sexual context of the media. Her example of Cosmopolitan I agree fits for this extreme ideal. I often see "ways to have sex and loose weight", "positions that help you burn calories" all of these seem to attract the younger female audience. Liz was able to connect the idea of heterosexual and beautiful sex as a theme for this weeks topic. Her perspective on what we had learned from Menard and Kleinplatz that week was very eye opening. I enjoyed her writing style because she was able to connect all of the images rather than describing each image individually.

After her Week 5 posting I recognize Liz's writing and ability to connect course concepts to her sexual imagery blog, continuing to improve. I believe that Liz has done an exceptional job of meeting the assignment requirements and educating her audience with concepts learned in class. Great job Liz!!

Week 8: Sexualized minorities, "sexual otherness" and heterosexism in media

This week, our class on Monday was cancelled. Therefore this blog post is based on readings assigned this week and by conducting individual research. This week we were to read articles by J. Kim, T. Jenkins and J. Dennis, each article discussing heterosexuality as the "norm" in the media. Each author explored how when same-sex desire is shown in the media it is going against social norms. Specifically, this idea is shown on primetime network TV, recent film and cartoons. As a heterosexual being I have experienced the societal norm as a relationship between a man and a woman. I would agree with the authors that my first response to homosexual content is "this is weird or not normal." Oftentimes I feel uncomfortable when viewing homosexual content, other times I never notice the content as having homosexual tendencies.

Below, I will demonstrate how heterosexual content vs. homosexual content is displayed in the media and how I (and possibly our society) responds to them differently.

Heterosexual: (The following responses are from J. Kim's article; "From Sex to Sexuality: Exposing Heterosexual Script on Primetime Network TV").

- Sexual messages are gendered

- Looking at heterosexual content comes from a feminist perspective

- Depictions of "normal" messages are between men and women

- The heterosexual script: actively pursuing sex

- Female characters are willingly objectifying themselves and being judged based off their sexual conduct

Homosexual: (The following responses are from J. Dennis' article; "Signifying Same-Sex Desire in TV Cartoons").

- Examples of homosexual relationships: Yogi Bear and Boo Boo, companions and domestic partners. Also, Ren and Stimpy, both male characters although one portrays female characteristics often. Also, Spongebob and Patrick, sleepovers together as well as tickle fights. Another relationship would be Mickey Mouse and Goofy, when together it's almost as if Minnie is always absent.

- Erotic desire between characters

- 1970s sparked visibility of gay identities within society and on TV

- 1080s relationships shown as aggressively heterosexual

The above relationships between cartoon characters were a shock to me. This is because until this week I hadn't observed these characters and the extent of their relationships. Before analyzing the characters I thought of them as only best friends, not potential partners or lovers. For the remainder of my post I will continue to analyze characters shown within the media, including film, advertisements, music and TV.

David Bowie "Queen Bitch"

(An example of same-sex desire)

I'm up on the eleventh floor

And I'm watching the cruisers below

He's down on the street

And he's trying hard

to pull sister Flo

My heart's in the basement

My weekend's at an all time low

'Cause she's hoping to score

So I can't see her

letting him go

Walk out of her heart

Walk out of her mind

[CHORUS]

She's so swishy in her satin and tat

In her frock coat

and bipperty-bopperty hat

Oh God, I could do better than that

She's an old-time ambassador

Of sweet talking, night walking games

And she's known in the darkest clubs

For pushing ahead of the dames

If she says she can do it

Then she can do it,

she don't make false claims

But she's a Queen,

and such are queens

That your laughter

is sucked in their brains

Now she's leading him on

And she'll lay him right down

But it could have been me

Yes, it could have been me

Why didn't I say,

why didn't I say, no, no, no

[CHORUS]

So I lay down a while

And I gaze at my hotel wall

Oh the cot is so cold

It don't feel like no bed at all

Yeah I lay down a while

And I look at my hotel wall

But he's down on the street

So I throw both his bags down the hall

And I'm phoning a cab

'Cause my stomach feels small

There's a taste in my mouth

And it's no taste at all

It could have been me

Oh yeah, it could have been me

Why didn't I say,

Why didn't I say, no, no, no

Timon and Pumbaa, The Lion King

(An example of homosexual characteristics between two male cartoon characters)

Photo courtesy Glogster

Marissa & Alex on The OC

(An example of teenage homosexual "phases" that are portrayed in popular TV shows)

Click here for a video compilation *please excuse the cheesiness of the clip

Photo courtesy After Ellen

Jim Halpert and Pam Beesly on The Office

(white, employed, good looking, (typical) heterosexual couple shown in popular TV show)

Photo courtesy Tumblr

Gisele Bundchen and Tom Brady

(One of the "hottest" couples in the world - heterosexual/the norm/the ideal)

Photo courtesy Life & Style

Week 7: Mediated examples of femininity as specifically sexualized

This week our class looked at examples of sexualized femininity within the mass media. In lecture, we watched a video named Dream World 3. This video consisted of the ideal "Dream World" in which females long to be a part of and that which males desire to have. There is an underlying topic of femininity within the media and that is Conflating Gender and Sexuality. Three authors; G. Markle, N. Hunteman and D. Coon share their takes on femininity within the media. There examples vary from animated images of females in video games to Sex and The City and Charlie's Angels. Overall, there perspectives of femininity in the media is quite often the same, objectified.

First, D. Coon describes promotional campaigns for Charlie's Angels as being objectified as sex appeal. The women's bodies, being used to sell the product, in ways that they question gender roles and boundaries. They do so by fighting crime, "Go where no one else dares" and so all in heels. These women are inviting viewers to the movie to "Get some action." These campaigns are highly sexualized and revealing as it encourages male viewers to fantasize about the Angels.

Second, G. Markle in his article "Can Women Have Sex Like a Man?" he further argues the explicit depiction of female sexuality. Markle describes "sex like a man as being" a.) without feelings and emotions b.) for pleasure only and c.) without any form of commitment. The viewers of this show witness the challenges womens face from their relationships, sexual desire and risqué behaviors. Viewers can sense these sexual situations by forming to their "sexual scripts" these are learned messages from our culture that define how we behave and recognize sex. The women of Sex and the City deny the lack of independence as women are portrayed within the media. Instead, these women are quite opposite of the women we often see in the media; they are a.) economically independent b.) have professional jobs and stable relationships and c.) wear sexy outfits (ALL THE TIME.)

Below I have collected mediated examples of femininity as specifically sexualized. I believe these examples demonstrate a common idea of how feminism ought to be within our society. I have collected these examples based on ideas I was presented starting in adolescence up until now.

Beginning with:

Little Mermaid

"Part of Your World" (Watch the video here)

This movie was my childhood favorite. Beginning at a young age I learned how to depend on a boy for my happiness, that all things (materialistically) matter and that I am only beautiful when I am unattached (without a voice.)

Newlyweds: Nick & Jessica

"Nick wanted me to become more of a woman before he proposed to me."

(Click on the link above to watch the episode)

Photo courtesy Rolling Stone Magazine

During my teenage years a favorite show of mine was The Newlyweds, an MTV series featuring Nick Lachey and Jessica Simpson, following their "everyday normal married life." Yeah, right. This show (specifically) this episode taught me that to be desirable I need to be more of a woman. Therefore, I need to not only take care of myself but also cook my husband dinner.

American Beauty

Ashley Judd

Photo Courtesy the New York Times.

Also during my teenage years I spent a lot of time reading beauty magazines. This Ashley Judd advertisement was featured in almost every magazine. This advertisement taught me that to be beautiful I must a.) be married b.) be pure *dressed in white, in a very feminine dress and c.) wear makeup.

Now, a very popular music artist and idol for women of all ages, Taylor Swift. Taylor Swift produced a song called "What To Wear" this song places an emphasis that in order to get what you want (the man and the crown) you must dress the part.

Taylor Swift

"What To Wear"

She's looking in the mirror
The moment's getting nearer
She thinks about it as she walks her walk
Up and down the staircase
Make up fresh on her face
She thinks about it as she talks her talk

School dance, first chance
Always been a dreamer
There's one guy, she's shy
Sees him through the mirror
And everybody looks at her
She thinks about it

Blue dress, angel face
Looking in the mirror
Shoes, purse, hair tied back
And you should see her
She's got her magic
Floating through the air

Peace, love
One thing leads into another
Dream big, aim small
Man you gotta love her
She's got her hopes up
Got 'em up to there
Wondering what to wear

She's standing in her bedroom
He'll be pulling up soon
She thinks about it when she sees headlights
Looking out the window
She's got her diary to show
That she's been waiting for this all her life

First date, can't wait
Looking in the mirror
Heart all wrapped up
Wait until he sees her
He's looking right at her
She thinks about it

Sixteen blue jeans, Abercrombie T-shirt
Shoes, purse, hair tied back
And you should see her
She's got her magic
Floating through the air

Peace, love
One thing leads into another
Dream big, aim small
Man you gotta love her
She's got her hopes up
Got 'em up to there
Wondering what to wear

The years went by
The mirror saw her cry
She got up again
She got up again
The wind blew by
The small town lights
She got up again

Move out, find out
Where the world can take her
Bright lights, late nights
Living for the greater
Move to Paris
Living on a prayer

Peace, love
One thing leads into another
Dream big, aim small
Man you gotta love her
She's got her hopes up
Got 'em up to there
She's got her hopes up
Got 'em up to there
Wondering what to wear

Ohh, oh, oh
Wondering what to wear

Miranda Kerr

Vision of Femininity

Photo courtesy Models.com

Finally, in my attempt at modeling over the past several months I have been faced with an insane amount of sexualized imagery. I am being shown numerous photographs in which they say "Lauren, you should like this to be successful." Miranda Kerr is one of the top models in the world. She is a Victoria Secret Angel which in itself demonstrates the ideal woman in our society. Here, she is in an ad that I found ironic for this imagery posting.

Week 6: Mediated examples of masculinity as specifically sexualized

This week we discussed the topic of Conflating Gender and Sexuality: Masculinity. The four articles we read discussed masculinity in a variety of ways. First, an article about eroticism by D. Berkowitz, "Consuming eroticism: Gender performance and presentations in pornographic establishments," this article discussed the term "compulsory hetero" meaning that heterosexuality is normal. In most examples I can think of, heterosexuality is dominant throughout the media and in our society and culture. I’ve also noticed in this past week while we discuss relationships and actions that take place between two individuals we don’t specify when talking about males and females. However, if we are discussing actions between two people of the same gender, then we verbally verify that we are discussing a homosexual relationship. In class we talked about the differences of being heterosexual and homosexual in our society. Most importantly we recognized a problem: if you’re homosexual that is your primary identity. You can no longer be just an artist, athlete or teacher. Instead, you’re a gay musician, gay baseball player and gay professor. Furthermore, when I am talking about the actions of a male I will relate to him as being masculine as the norm. If he is not masculine I will most likely describe him as being feminine or weird, because he would be seen as different in my opinion.

When examining sex in the media, there is an issue of quantity over quality. The bigger the billboard, the longer the commercial airs, the better. This does not include the content of the advertisements or the words exchanged in a script. Therefore, if there is a commercial with 300 women chasing a man down a beach because he’s wearing cologne, what is this saying? Does it mean that women are easily distracted? Why do producers choose not to explain their reasoning and instead leave us guessing at their brainless productions?

Masculinity within the media is rarely toyed with and when masculinity is manipulated it is extremely obvious because it is out of the norm. Masculinity can be manipulated in a number of ways, but the most obvious is when men are seen as hyper-sexualized and feminine. For example, for a man to be holding himself and a small dog, this would be looked at as feminine or even more judgmental, that he is homosexual.

As discussed in another article we read this week, “Centerfold Syndrome” by Gary Brooks, masculinity has elements in which create an accurately portrayed masculine individual. Brooks claims these elements of masculinity and the downplay of femininity come from the concept of “centerfold syndrome” the way male and female bodies are patterned. In particular, Brooks describes 5 elements to masculinity:

(1) Voyeurism

(2) Objectification

(3) Need for validation

(4) Trophyism

(5) Fear of Intimacy

Below, I have chosen 5 media artifacts in which I believe best describe Brook’s 5 elements of masculinity.

Fear of Intimacy

The first time a man experiences intimacy is with his mother. During his childhood he was most likely reminded by either his fathers, brothers or friends to not be a "sissy" or affectionate. Men are told in our society that sex=yes! intimacy=no.

Trophyism

Specifically in the Hip Hop culture, trophyism or the desire to be viewed as prestige or surrounded by beautiful women, is popular. Here, Snoop Dogg not only has an award, but he also has two barely dressed women willing to flaunt themselves and support his awards.

Need for Validation

Sean "Puffy" Coombs or P. Diddy is known to have provocative, sometimes inappropriate advertisements. In this advertisement, I find it troublesome the way he has interacting with this woman. Here, she looks hopeless and under the control of P. Diddy. This shows that he has the need for validation that he is indeed in control, therefore he's placing her in a vulnerable position.

Objectification

Honestly, I found this photo hilarious. Ocho Cinco is a highly recognized, highly paid athlete in the NFL. This photo displays his athletic body and ability to hold a football in order to cover his genitals. This photo in no way displays his athletic ability or masculine appeal. Instead, he is objectified as a naked man, ready to be taken advantage of.

Voyeurism

How many times have we heard, "life isn't all that it's cracked up to be." I've heard this and other familiar phrases multiple times. This photo represents voyeurism as being a glorification of reality, promising success with unrealistic circumstances. This photo communicates to me that if you are a business man and you dress this way, you will get laid by a prostitute. This photo provides yet again, future expectations that men may have, which ultimately will never come true.

Works Cited

Berkowitz, D. (2006). Consuming eroticism: Gender performance and presentations in pornographic establishments. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 35(5), 583-606.

Brooks, G. (1999). The centerfold syndrome. In S. Maasik & J. Solomon (Eds.), Signs of life in the USA: readings on popular culture for writers (438-447). Boston: Bedford Press.