I have seen many magazines where the man is on top of the woman or when there are three or four men all around one woman. All the men are half naked and the woman is wearing nothing but a bikini. Have also seen many walkthrough games where the woman are only used for prostitution or to rid the urges or the man by having sexual intercourse. These kinds of games and magazines portray to the society that women are only to be seen as sex objects or are only meant to stay home and cook and clean and look after the kids.
Many centuries have passed. Many great people sacrificed their whole life so that in the future everyone can be treated equally wherever they go. However, when I see women on the t.v, magazines and even games being treated as sex object and putting the image in the minds of kids everywhere who see these kinds of things just doesn't seem right. As you can see all these pictures that I have found on google images show women with bikinis or really short underwear pant looking things and even a woman who isn't wearing anything on the top but when looking at the men they are either dressed very nicely with nice clothes covering almost their entire body it kinda shows the huge difference between men and women in the media.
Overall, I believe that what the media, magazines, t.v, video games, etc... are not something that should not be permitted due to the fact that it could lead to many negative aspects for the future generations.
Questions for the class to answer :)
1) When you guys become a parent yourselves one day want your child to want to see these kinds of things and have these kinds of people to become their role model and people to look up to?
2) Why is it that even though there are a lot of jobs out there that give you good income women choose to do things like these? It may be easy money but is it worth losing your pride and morals over?
3) Do you as a person believe that the media or video game industries is right in trying to promote these kind of things to little kids and teenagers? Are they trying to make the future a better place to live in or are they trying to destroy everything that the past generation have gave up most of their years to achieve?
http://psychcentral.com/news/2011/08/11/medias-growing-sexualization-of-women/28539.html
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ReplyDeleteloool munira u weirdo
ReplyDeleteBerk, I wrote that "testing" comment b/c we were having a problem with Munira's account
ReplyDeletewhoopsy :p
ReplyDeleteYou've touched on quite the interesting thread, Berk. I believe that the reason why women in today's day and age are so objectified is because of how marketing works. Simply put, sex sells whether some people like it or not. Companies don't care about whether children are being exposed to adult material; if children purchase their products, that means higher sales and profits. As long as they're doing their part by putting a mature rating on their game like GTA V for example, then legally they're doing just fine. For your thread, I can touch on the fact that if you focus on advertising that targets men, you'll immediately notice that it usually contains sexual content to certain extents. For example, alcohol, condoms, cologne/perfume, sports, etc all portray situations where a man can use the product and get with a sexually appealing woman, or several women as seen in Playboy cologne ads, for example. Although majority of your post discusses women being objectified, men can also be put in a similar position. Underwear ads for companies like H&M or Calvin Klein also feature almost nude men to attract women to that brand of clothing. To answer your question about parenting, I believe that in this age, it's extremely hard to keep your children from adult content, especially in western society where sex is advertised on TV, is in movies and TV shows, music, and even relationships and kissing are introduced at a mediocre level on the Disney channel to kids. All you can do is teach them to comprehend and understand what they see in the real world in hopes that they will make educated decisions for themselves.
ReplyDeleteWow, your blog was relatively informative. Personally speaking I see hundreds of ads a day whether I'm surfing the internet or waiting at the bus stop and I strongly agree with the points you have put forward. It's come to a point in time where media and video game industries no longer pay as much attention to the content they put out to be viewed. If we go back in time, there were magazines that showed women fully clothed relatively larger in size in which we now look at as overweight or obese because of the change in standards. Essentially people began to lose interest in those magazine because as times were changing it just wasn't what they wanted to see and I think we can grasp that through your given article. As Hamzah said, in the society in which we live it's not about showing people realistic images of 'beauty,' but merely maintain daily readers and the only way they feel they can do that is through the subordination of women. Referring back to some of those pictures from the video, as a women that was pretty disturbing to see those provocative images opposed to bodies in their entirety. The companies are so focused with generating revenue and pleasing their targeted audience that in the midst they forget about reality. I don't necessarily think these companies are promoting per say instead they're doing what they need to do as time changes to keep up with pleasing others. As for the women in these ads, who are we to judge beyond the objectification? We all come form different walks of life and we all have different values, and morals and pride may be something that others are able to let down more easily. How do we know that the women in the advertisement isn't struggling to make a living and this is her only way to be able to afford enough to make a living?
ReplyDeleteIn respect to one day becoming a parent, of course I wouldn't want my child(ren) to grow up in a society where explicit advertisements are everywhere but at the end of the day what can you do? These ads will continue to appear whether we like it or not because majority find amusement in it. The best I can do as a parent is educate my child(ren) on the negativity and the unrealistic portrayal conveyed in the ads seeing as it's unattainable for half the population anyways as well as teach them or try to instill in them that beauty comes in many forms. As long as I play my role in trying to instill confidence and void ignorance in my children all I can do is sit back in hopes that they realize the wrong in those ads. I want to be able to give my children the knowledge and give them the freedom to make their own decisions.
I would like to reply back to your question two. Some girls tend to go to this career because it is their dream to become a model. These girls passionately work hard to meet the requirements of a model. In fact they become so crazy that they will starve themselves and deal with eating disorders to make their body perfect. For them this career is about them and their interest. For example, a person who relish studying sciences and likes to help people would go into a medical field. Just like that some girls love dressing up, enjoy reading fashion magazines, they love to pose when getting pictures taken, love to look good from outside and want to live a glamour life. . For these girls this profession meets their interest and they do enjoy working in this profession. They feel proud being a model because they gain popularity, fame and feel like beauty queens because a lot of girls look up to them and want to be like them. In their opinion doing bikini shots and a lot of body exposing shots is not consider something dirty but in their opinion it is art and an honor to wear a bikini designed by a popular designer. They gain pride when they get chosen to work with famous designers, photographers, advertise for well-known companies or brands and they feel very proud when they are they show stopper for a fashion show. In movies especially Bollywood they portray another reason for this choice of career. Girls that come from a very poor family they do not have education this means they cannot go into other professions. So when they get the chance to earn money by modeling they will accept it. They get forced into this profession and have no option. They know they will lose respect from the society around them but they are ready to sacrifice their body to support their family. In the end they will be an object in people’s eyes but they will gain fans that will compliment them and consider her a strong woman who did so much for her family. In the end they will have hates and they will have people who love them and make them their role model. Some models have a positive view to this profession and feel proud to be a famous model. They are not doing it for money but to gain success in this career. They challenge other model and want to be on the top list for being the sexiest models. Some get forced into it and in the end when they money is put into their hands they believe it was worth selling their body but when their family wont consider her their daughter they will feel like this money gave them nothing.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI agree with all those points you put out there as they are very visible as you mentioned. From television, games magazines and every other kind of media women are seen as sex symbols at a greater scale than men. The first question you posed about parenting my child, of course I would not like to have my child to be exposed to all this but looking at the situation now and comparing it to the few years to come, I only see increase in sexual content in the media if not already reached the maximum level. It would be really hard to protect my child from all this because its everywhere as even the cartoon channels are not spared. All I could do is give my child a better role model and raise him/her right so he/she can make good decisions in life even though almost everything around him/her “media” will stand as a great barrier.
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of women choose this career out of interest or just because it’s an easy way of income. Some women don’t take being "sex symbols" as an insult as they think that they are supposed to be appealing to the opposite sex so if they do have a body and face that can be sold in the media then why not ? If not all but most of the women who pose for stuff like this are willingly doing it. To many of these models posing half naked or naked might not be a problem at all, it’s basically your own morals and how you are brought up.
Almost all kind of sexual content is rated according so i think the media and gaming companies are doing their job by setting out the rules but when it comes to advertisements and stuff that are easily accessible then i would say that such kind of promotion is very wrong and is absolutely ruining new minds.
I strongly agree with your blog to the point where I became incredibly overwhelmed with all the information you were showing. The use of women in such positions, whether it be in ads or video games is harshly depicted. Even so, this goes along with the idea that Men are dominant over Women, so that they are easily placed in these roles. I believe there is a great deal of ignorance that surrounds 'Women being treated fairly and wanting respect.' Although once again, why should that be an irritating statement when Women are being disrespected, over and over again, to the point where yes they lose their sense of pride and self-respect. I viewed the video and I must say...This has got to be the most revolting thing I ever watched. With regards to all of those graphic pictures showing women as "toys" and "weak beings" - I can say that I have never felt so angry towards the fashion media in particular. Since the media has power over what we see and hear about in our daily lives, it is without a reason that they abuse that power. Such in way that as viewers, we don't think twice about what these ads on the T.V, magazines, etc are really trying to do. To answer your questions, I would never dream about allowing my children to be exposed to such cruel acts, because it would influence them in a negative light to think that, Women should be harmed and used, and its okay. Even so, my children should be able to look up to me, than those in the media who don't take account of what they are bringing to the table. With regards to question 2, Women are the basis for modeling, and that goes without reason that if you have a beautifully crafted face and attractive body, then that will get you somewhere in life. It's this idea' that society has implemented in our heads that, without beauty, you are useless, no one would want you. However, being a model, it is a well known title, something that may give you joy in life but rather has consequences that only those in the modeling industry can understand. Lastly, some may argue that video games are only directed for boys and that what will consume boys the most is essentially, Women, lots of women. These games that use females in provocative ways, In my opinion are for entertainment. Although they're destroying the respect, that men or boys should have for women or girls. Without a doubt, I am enraged because when it comes down to it, respect can only go so far, unless these negative traits towards women are abolished, demanding respect for women will continue to float.
ReplyDeleteYour thread was very enlightening, I do agree very much with all the points you have stated. Regarding the first question, I feel the answer is pretty obvious. Being constantly exposed to sexualized material can become very harmful for any individual, especially young underage children. For that reason, I would never want my own child to be exposed to these harmful media images for many reasons. Just as you mentioned, a result of being exposed to sexualized men and women in the media is that they become your role model and standard of beauty. For my own future child, I would never want these unattainable standards of beauty to be their main aspiration and standard. But as the other commenter’s mentioned, we do live in a society where everything is explicit, so it would be very difficult to hide this type of content from your children. The best I can do would be to educate them the best way I can, and hope they make the right decisions in life.
ReplyDeleteWith regards to the second question, I want to mention an interesting Ted Talk I recently watched by the famous Victoria Secret Model Cameron Russell. Throughout her talk, she mentioned that the main reason she entered this industry was because of the esteem and confidence she received from it. She mentioned she entered the industry at 16, when puberty was just beginning to kick in for her. At that point she said she was suffering from low self-esteem, so when she was scouted, she never hesitated in accepting. She almost saw this modelling gig as an opportunity to feel truly confident and happy with her body. In the end, she expressed brilliantly that if she had to make a decision again, she would’ve not choose to become an underwear model. Her story was very interesting because you get another side to this argument. That not every model chooses this industry simply for money or fame, but just to feel good about themselves, and feel wanted. So perhaps, this may be a reason why women may choose to go into this industry