In this lecture we looked at Sex and Gender and we started with a bit of context: the Equality Act 2010 (UK) legally protects people from discrimination in the workplace and wider society, yet equality is still not achieved worldwide - in 2013 70% experienced physical or sexual violence.
We all should care because it effects how you will/ have been treated and an understanding of the issues can help you to communicate and relate with the audience of your work more effectively.
Defining 'man' depends on who you ask though - it can mean something different to everyone. It can be any age and may not be the same as reaching emotional or psychological maturity.
The 'natural attitude' is that there are only 2 genders: this is often seen as 'unquestionable' and is based on reproductive organs.
An 'essentialist' understanding of sexual difference is quite rigid as well and assumes that masculine and feminine is not a choice and any deviation from this is a pathology.
Even the cultural definition and dominant representation in mass media of a 'man' aren't necessarily right. They define them as: white, agentic, pursposeful, strong, fearless, independent and heterosexual. Masculinity is sometimes classed as being what it is not - femininity, which is shown as being: an object, purposeless, passive, dependent, fearful and weak.
In general the mass media promotes an exaggerated version of human 'sexual dimorphism', difference between sexes, often physical, yet it's the smallest difference in all other primates. E.g. a strong female is stronger than a weak man.
The media can often exaggerate all of these 'definitions' though, presenting a 'hetronormative' discourse, straight seen as the norm, others seen as abnormal. This can also lead to 'symbolic annihilation' of other identities, where they're seen not to exist.
Certain traits have also been given significance for each gender, for example, a desire for power is seen as a masculine trait, where as in a woman it is framed as unattractive. As well gendered identities are sometimes understood as being 'performative', where there's a 'choice' to their behaviour. Judith Butler in her book Gender Trouble (1990), identifies gender as 'doing', rather than 'being' - encultured rather than biological.
Roles can be normalised by repetition and re-iteration in the mass media. Theories related to this include Laura Mulvey's 'the gendered gaze', first introduced in Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema (1975). She highlighted the use of the camera to naturalise ways of looking at men and women - simply the power of the gaze. Mulvey studied how the camera is used as a tool to objectify and normalise this, e.g. the camera being used to suggest that women are simply there to be looked at.
In general gender characteristics can be dangerous and limiting as stereotypes are formed which we feel we must conform to.
Our cultural understanding of gender effects our work and our audience. Through our work we have to be aware of whether we perpetuate or challenge these cultural constructions of race, gender, beauty etc.
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