Americans believe that they have the freedom to speak, dress, and act how they please, but they may not realize that they are subconsciously put under pressure to speak, dress, and act a particular way depending on their gender. Gender in America is either feminine or masculine with no in between. In Aaron H. Devor’s book “Becoming Members of Society: Learning the Social Meanings of Gender”, he discusses the way that society defines gender roles and how these specified roles are learned and applied throughout life. Next, in the book “‘Bros Before Hos’: The Guy Code” by Michael Kimmel, he examines the standards that are set for masculinity and how men apply and use those to make their behavior seem acceptable in society. Lastly, Jean Kilbourne …show more content…
The standards of masculinity can further be described by Kimmel as “The Guy Code,” which is “...the collection of attitudes, values, and traits that together compose what it means to be a man” (Kimmel 541). This “Guy Code” consists of rules telling men to not act like sissies, effeminate, or gay in any way. It also emphasizes men must not be wimps and they should be wealthy and in power or dominant over others. While on the surface these may seem not harmful, they can be damaging to men who like to have a sense of fashion or show emotions because those are qualities that a man shouldn’t have. The “Guy Code” forces men to suppress their urges to dress the way they’d like and pressure them into not revealing their emotions. This type of degradation can lead to men having low self-esteem, body issues, and other mental health problems. For example, Kimmel argues that a boys parents and other authority figures lead them to believe that they need to “...deny their emotional needs and disguise their feelings...so many boys end up feeling emotionally isolated” (Kimmel 548). Since its already known that kids learn gender roles at a young age, it should be no question that they start to affect them at a young age. Telling young boys that crying isn’t how you act like a man causes them to suppress their emotions. Bottling up emotions for any human leads to …show more content…
Many advertisements that can be seen everywhere in our lives are influenced by gender roles. When ads show images picturing violence against women it leads to the “...objectification and disconnection [that creates] a climate in which there is widespread and increasing violence” (Kilbourne 171). Femininity displays women as being submissive which is a stereotype the media plays into. The media uses women as subordinate and submissive objects that won’t fight back because they are weak. This also gives the impression that it’s normal and ok to view women only as objects that can be beaten on. When advertisements view women as items, it degrades them from the human beings that they are to nothing, meaningless, worthless objects. The gender roles of dominant men and passive women give a bad impression to young people by allowing “Many young men feel they have the right to judge and touch young women and the women often feel they have no choice but to submit” (Kilbourne 511). The sexualization of women in ads leads to men feeling entitled to a woman's body. This normalization allows men to think it’s ok to use sexual aggression, violence, and rape because they have seen displayed across societies media. Women feel that since it’s feminine to be passive and submissive they should let men dominate over them when really it only leads to crime. Kilbourne
The movie, Tough Guise: Violence, Media and the Crisis in Masculinity produced by Jackson Katz and Jeremy Earp, deconstructs the concepts that create the social constructs of masculinity. Masculinity, a set of behaviors, roles, and attributes correlating to men, is earned, not given (Conley 190). Starting from television shows to children’s toys, the idea of masculinity has infiltrated their minds starting at a young age. Moreover, the concept of masculinity has physical attributes, such as muscles, a deep voice, and be able to protect themselves. Masculinity, for boys of any races, socioeconomic classes, or ethnicity, has grown up with the same stereotypical image of what a man should entail. Since many media outlets show that a form of masculinity
For centuries, the ideal masculinity has been seen as the provider, the macho man, the cowboy and the emotional rock, but new representations of manliness in the media have been challenging this idea (Watson 2015, p. 270). Within these new depictions, there lies a hierarchy where one form of masculinity is more accepted than the rest (Kluch 2015). Macho masculinity has been seen as being dominant in the hierarchy for generations, however, in recent years, there have been an influx of new representations of masculinity that disrupt traditional hierarchal ideas. The masculinity of the twenty first century includes emotions, sensitivity, discipline, and intelligence. These new aspects of the hierarchy have been introduced by movies such as Brokeback Mountain, 22 Jump Street, The
Whatever we see in movies, television, video games, or any other source of entertainment, there will always be a male figure who symbolizes masculinity to the fullest extent. All that masculinity representing empowerment is what seems to appeal to men nowadays. In Michael Kimmel’s Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men the novel presents the irresistible desires that men seek in order to receive the approval of other men. An approval where men gain access to the concept of Guyland, where young men become masculine in order to fit in socially and to feel empowered. However, achieving absolute masculinity leans toward the use of violence that is presented in the media, presenting a message where violence is used for the purpose of
Kimmel speaks to how boys are taught how to become “men”. The men who follow the quintessential rules of the “Guy Code” are often seen as the most successful. The basis of masculinity is to impress other men and embody older men and male role models. Kimmel was researching a book that spoke of the history of masculinity and found that, “American men want to be a ‘man among men,’ (465). The teachings of masculinity that span many generations can be seen by how men desire to see the fruit of their labor. Men who follow the code do not care for attention from women, but rather solely focus on the respect and acknowledgment from male peers. The practices that embody masculinity clearly have no intention to impress anybody other than men. The fear associated with not being manly is far more when another man is accusing one of such a heinous crime. This introduces that the “Guy Code” is harmful to men, and in turn society. Men are fearful of being attacked by other men for trespasses against the code. This fear of trespassing is often explained as being biological and natural for men. Guys do not risk their own self-value, friendships, and maybe their lives biologically. This behavior is taught and is due to generations of teaching these “hard-wired” behaviors. Kimmel states, “What these theories fail to account for is the way that masculinity is coerced and policed relentlessly by other guys... In truth, the
Kilbourne includes various advertisements where the woman is the victim and target. The advertisements and media depicted women being overly sexualized, they promoted or glorified date rape, sex is the most important aspect of a relationship, fetishizes various products, and made men believe these were the correct ways to view or treat women. The audience these advertisements are appealing to are men because media depicts women as always being the victims. Men are lead to believe that they should buy certain products as portrayed in media or advertisements because they will get the attention from the ladies. “The violence, the abuse, is partly the chilling but logical result of the objectification” (Kilbourne 498). When women are so used to seeing themselves as objectified they soon start to believe it. Women become more vulnerable because it shows men that anything is possible with just a spritz of perfume or a certain brand of an alcoholic drink. Industries do not think twice before making an advertisement because they are not the victims. Violence is the main problem that arises due to advertisements. “Women are always available as the targets of aggression and violence, women are inferior to men and thus deserve to be dominated, and women exist to fulfill the needs of men” (Kilbourne 509). As long as industries make money, nothing is off limits to put on advertisements even if it is making someone a victim. No remorse of any sort is shown because as long as money is present nothing else matters to the
Masculinity is described as possession of attributes considered typical of a man. Hegemonic masculinity is a form of masculine character with cultural idealism and emphasis that connects masculinity to competitiveness, toughness, and women subordination. Masculinity hegemonic is the enforcement of male dominion over a society. Masculine ideology dates back to the time of agrarian and the industrial revolution in Europe when survival compelled men to leave their homesteads to work in industries to earn a living for their families while women remained at home to take care of family affairs (Good and Sherrod 210). Women did not work in industries then because industrial labor was considered too physical beyond their capacity. This led to definition of roles which placated the position of men in a society while condemning women as mere subordinates who cannot do without men. The critics of gender stereotypes in America describe the following five hegemonic features of masculinity: frontiersman ship, heterosexuality, occupational achievement, familial patriarchy, and physical force and control (Trujillo 4). The advent of the 20th century led to sweeping changes in American masculinity.
The Bro Code breaks down the establishment and encouragement of sexism into four “steps” that society uses to form sexist men (Keith). These steps are: “1. Train Men to Womanize, 2. Immerse Men in Porn, 3. Make Rape Jokes 4. Obey the Masculinity Cops”(Keith). Thomas Keith begins by addressing the fact that he grew up in this “bro culture” and that men today are continually taught to have the same mentality that Keith had when he was younger. However, he claims that “bro culture” has changed and has become a more “dangerous sexist” (Keith). Our culture continually promotes this behavior through music, television and media, all which tell men that in order to be successful and true men they must be rich, strong and surrounded by women.
In her film “ Killing Us Softly 4,” Jean Kilbourne (2010) delivers a strong wake-up call to the general public who are aware of what is happening with how femininity is being represented in advertising but not realizing fully the impact of the collective image that they give. Kilbourne examines what’s the same and what’s changed from the earlier versions, which illustrate how woman are objectified and presented as sex-objects; a portrayal which, cumulatively and unconsciously, leads a society to think it is acceptable to commit violence against woman. Jean Kilbourne has driven her point home from the first part of her speech shown in the video. To quote: “Ads sell more than products. They sell values, they sell concepts, they sell images of love and sexuality, of success, and perhaps most important, of normalcy. To a great extent they tell us who we are and who we should be (2010).”
According to Kimmel, the earliest embodiments of American manhood were landowners, independent artisans, shopkeepers, and farmers. During the first decade of the nineteenth century, the industrial revolution started to influence the way, American men thought of themselves. Manhood was now defined as through the man’s economic success. This was the origin of the “Self-Made Man” ideology and the new concept of manhood that was more exciting, and potentially more rewarding for men themselves. The image of the Self-Made Man has far reaching effects on the notion of masculinity in America. Thus, the emergence of the Self-Made Man put men under pressure. As Kimmel states,
“society ridicules men who not in control of their women and disparages fidelity and commitment” (493). One of the main points in this article is that in many of the advertisements Kilbourne studied, women are shown in situations that are compromising to their personal safety, or women are depicted as submissive objects rather than people. Kilbourne declares “turning a human into an object is almost always the first step towards justifying violence towards that person” (498). The article also showed a statistic that “one in five women will be the victim of rape or attempted rape by the time they turn seventeen” (Kilbourne 500). Kilbourne also mentions that there is a critical difference when men and
In Kimmel’s essay “’Bros Before Hos’: The Guy Code” he argues that the influence of society on masculinity is equal to or greater than biological influences on masculinity. In the essay, Kimmel uses various surveys and interviews to validate his argument. He points to peers, coaches, and family members as the people most likely to influence the development of a man’s masculinity. When a man has his manliness questioned, he immediately makes the decision never to say or do whatever caused him to be called a wimp, or unmanly. Kimmel’s argument is somewhat effective because the readers get firsthand accounts from the interviewees but the author does not provide any statistics to support his argument.
Women are characterized as inferior in comparison to men. For instance, she says, “The woman is rewarded for her sexuality by the man’s wealth” (459). In one ad Kilbourne explains, how a tie company advertises ties by seeing ties laid in a messed up bed, as if indicating that this brand of tie will help you get laid. This also sends out a mixed message to men that a tie will actually help them score with women. She also shows an advertisement in which a man is standing over a woman while the women is saying, “no” but laughing or possibly screaming (461). This explains how men are encouraged to not take “no” for an answer, and it’s the cause for many rapes. Kilbourne uses some of the images that degraded women, like a women being strapped down by wrist watches, a man pulling a women 's hair back aggressively, little girls in panties, a girl with the word bitch on her, and many others that show how society depicts women. These advertisements are displaying violence towards women; this violence will soon become more socially acceptable in our modern day society. In addition, advertisements that encourage women and young girls to act in a submissive, teasing manner further promotes sexual harassment and violence when
Through media, women are used as sex symbols and only used to help sell products, products that mostly men buy, and also that hurts women and girls as a lesser counterpart than men. In an ad by Calvin Klein, the photo was of a naked man, but Kilbourne talked about how the man was less damaging to men and how a woman in a model catalog is more objectified. (Kilbourne 500-501) Through this article, women are used to manipulate men into thinking that they have to buy this product, while making women think they need to buy a certain product to look amazing or to be more successful than what they would have been without that product. Through violence, women are hurt everyday by objectifying women and much worse by being abuse by a significant other. Kilbourne talked about how sexual assault in America is a problem and how commercials about alcohol are damaging women. They are making it seem that it is easier to drink and talk to women with alcohol. This article was informative in how I see how harmful we are to women without even trying. We, as a country, should think of a better way to sell products and to do it without hurting women as well. Kilbourne has helped me to view that violence and advertising are very harmful to women and that we should approach this issue more
With so much exposure to this type of media, it is easy to become desensitised to it. With America becoming numb to the violence in these advertising tactics, domestic violence is an increasing problem as brutality against women has become trivialized. Jean Kilbourne 's “‘Two Ways a Woman can get Hurt”: Advertising and Violence’ argues that violence in advertising profoundly affects people in a skewed physiological manner, leading to violence against women. Kilbourne insists that “...violent images contributes to the state of terror...” felt by women who feel victimized by men who “...objectify and are disconnected...” from the women they mistreat (431). She furthers her argument by dictating that “....turning a human being into…an object, is almost always the first step towards justifying violence against that person” (431). So much of the media that America consumes is centered on dehumanizing women into an object of male enjoyment. It is difficult to have empathy toward a material object. Because of this objectification, men feel less guilty when enacting brutality upon women. Violence becomes downplayed because it is seen everywhere - in advertising and media - and this has contributed significantly to the cases of domestic violence in America. America has become numb to violence against women in advertising, leading to an alarming increasing domestic violence in this
Masculinity and femininity are two terms, which have been interpreted differently throughout history. Both the males and the females have responsibilities and duties but these duties differ based on one’s gender. Gender has played a prodigious role in the economy, politics, and the society. Everyone starts making interpretations of the strengths and weaknesses based on one’s gender. These interpretations are not always based on his or her ability but is usually based on his or her gender. Males tend to be judged as extremely strong and unfashionable in terms of appearance. Whereas, females are judged as expensive and very fashionable. Males and females both differ in their abilities and their enjoyments. Fashion, entertainment, and strength are three topics, which are used to define masculinity and femininity in the 21st century.