The Disturbing Sexualization of Young Girls

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Recommended: sexist stereotypes in the media

In the American culture today, women are becoming more sexualized at a younger age due to the influences of the corporate media. Corporate media and society form the perfect idealistic body that women should have and is constantly being promoted making younger girls start to compare themselves to them at a young age. Certain shows and movies, such as Disney, influence young children and teenagers through their characters as to how a woman is supposed to be accepted. The way the corporate media and society make this body image they want women to have starts in a very early stage in a woman's life without them knowing. There are these childhood movies, such as Disney, Barbie and Ken dolls, programs such as Netflix, teen magazines, and the most common source of them all, the internet.

There is a need that all human beings have no matter what they believe. Jonathan Haidt mentions in one of the chapters of his book, The Happiness Hypothesis, a quote that says, “This chapter is about that need for other people, for touch, and for close relationships,”(109). Basically, all three needs categorize the type of need people have to feel wanted somewhere. The main need is the need to belong in which most people will go through dire consequences to achieve this goal. Women turn to the media to find ways to fit in society to feel like they belong, when actually society turns to and controls the media by what they want and how they want women to appear, which is considered the ‘ideal woman.’ Women over analyze situations in which they feel like they are being judged if they are not the same size as either the models on television or people they hang out with. Corporate media, such as television, movies, magazines, newspaper...

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Nicholls, David. "Boyfriend Genes Now 50 Years Old, Barbie's Ken is Still Giving Young Girls Unrealistic Expectations of Manhood." The Daily Telegraph: 14. Mar 26 2011. ProQuest. Web. 4 Dec. 2013.

Thomson, Alice. "Stop Pimping Your Daughters." The Times: 4. Jul 04 2011. ProQuest. Web. 4 Dec. 2013 .

Traister, Rebecca. "Fathers Should Not Exploit Their Daughters' Sexuality." Is Childhood Becoming Too Sexualized. Olivia Ferguson and Hayley Mitchell Haugen. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2010. At Issue. Rpt. from "Miley Cyrus: Daddy's Little Hurl." Salon.com. 2008. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 4 Dec. 2013.

Vancura, Diana. "The Media Focus Too Much on Looks." Body Image. Ed. Auriana Ojeda. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 2003. Teen Decisions. Rpt. from "Beauty Brainwash." www.teenadviceonline.org. 2000.Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 4 Dec. 2013.

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