After reading Uglies and looking at most of the posts that people had done, I was curious and wondering if there are stereotypes out there for men? I mean, I know we live in a pretty critical society and everyone is judged based on race, class, gender, etc., but to what extent are men stereotyped? Women and girls are inevitably pressured and mislead by advertising and society all the time starting from a young age. I did some research trying to find any articles relating to young boys being the influenced by the ever controversial topic of Disney Movies.
The article which is called Do Disney movies affect boys the same as girls?, the author, Nicholas Brookes, states that he personally feels that Disney movies had a positive influence on him rather then the negative influence that seems to be portrayed on young girls. Why is this, I ask myself? Does this come down to the mere double standard that women are inferior to men? Are we still in a constant battle of trying to prove that we are just as equal as men? Brookes does acknowledge the negative messages and stereotypes that Disney movies portray, but he also says that Disney movies should be encouraging young girls to have more important roles in our society.
So, with the Disney movies and the book Uglies, I find it very interesting that the main character Tally, who is a girl, is the one so obsessed with becoming a "pretty". Sure, we hear a mention of her friend Peris, who gets the surgery, but we never really get the impression that he was so disgusted with the way he looked. So, does Uglies have some stereotypes in it too? Having more emphasis on beauty with the female characters, or is it nothing?
I would be interested in hearing any one's thoughts on this matter. If guys feel they are stereotyped in some way I'd encourage you to share it! It really interests me to find more this topic of men being stereotyped, because we are so accustom to hearing about only women's issues. It'd be different to hear the other gender's side of the story.
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Very interesting thoughts. Though they were not very distinguishable, The Uglies, like many other young adult novels, carried stereotypes. The first is the idea of being pretty. As aforementioned, it is usually the young ladies that are solely concerned with beauty and glamour. In the Uglies, Tally obsesses both day and night about becoming pretty. Her male counterpart, Peris doesn't seem to obsess at all. In fact it shows his operation just happening, without the big hoopla that Tally makes over the operation. This feeds into the general stereotype that females, more so than males, are obsessed with beauty. Along with common stereotypes, I saw stereotypes that were being broken. In today's society, the males are usually those portreyed as being the bad ass and/or rebellious. In the Uglies however the trouble makers tend to be females, i.e. Tally and Shay. They totally outshine their male counterparts as being the more kick ass characters with the powerful and rage against the system attitudes. This novel also challenged the stereotype that pretty is better. At the end it was learned that that the prettys were given lesions in their brain that made it so that they thought differently. This presented the stereotype that pretty people are stupid but also being pretty isn't necessarily better.
When it comes to stereotypes in the media, I definitely agree that women face discrimination based on stereotypes more often than men. If anyone saw The Box this weekend, with Cameron Diaz and James Marsden, the movie does an excellent job of stereotyping women as money-hungry and more susceptible to outside pressures. Different couples in the movie receive a creepy box with instructions to either push the button and get a million dollars, or not push the button. The catch is that if you push it, someone you don’t know will die. (I won’t give away anymore of the movie for those who want to see it, but I don’t recommend it). In every situation, the couple discussed the pros and cons of pushing the button, and if it was even probable to believe the man who dropped it off. Every time, the woman was the one to push the button. I believe this aspect of the movie, much like a lot of Disney movies, portrayed women as money-hungry and greedy. After seeing the movie, this really bothered me on the drive home. The husbands seem more rational, less greedy, and more passive, as if money doesn’t matter to them.
I agree with your comments that stereotyping women is much more common than stereotyping men in the public, but I wouldn't say men get off completely. Take for example most Disney movies - the main man character is a strong, handsome prince. In many of the sitcoms, men are just trying to get 'personal favors' from women: Friends, Two and a Half Men, etc. In a lot of movies, especially 'chick-flicks', the main man is generally buff, charming, handsome, and either is very wealthy and money driven or is the complete oposite and doesn't care about anything. Men are usually a 'bad guy' in a movie, and most monsters, aliens, gross creatures are implied to be a male.
It's not just in tv and movie shows either. In most of the children's books we have read in class, a boy is usually the troublemaker, such as in No, David and Where the Wild Things Are. Boys are viewed as emotionless, wild, usually loving to be rough and get dirty.
I think people use these stereotypes for a few reasons. Many of them are easy to laugh at and do sell movies. How many women really want to watch an 'ugly' man in a 'chick-flick'? I think they also help build characters by assuming the viewer or reader can associate a personality with a specific type of man. For example, if you see a prince in a picturebook you can assume he is handsome, wealthy, strong, and looking for a wife.
I think stereotyping happens just as much to men as it does to women. Perhaps we are just more knowledgeable to the stereotypes put on women because of the amount of airbrushing and media coverage advertisements with women in them receive.
If you view a men's fashion ad, chances are that man will be wearing jeans way below his pant line, but just high enough to cover up the private areas. He probably has an intense six or eight pack and a scowl on his face. They're also typically seen playing sports and drinking beer.
Ads like this is where we get tomboys in women, because clearly Men can only play sports as well as a negative view when men drink "girly" drinks.
Stereotypes are everywhere for every type of gender, race and even species. (We expect dogs and cats to hate each other, yet we are surprised when we hear a story of one caring for the other).
I have to start by saying the title of this post is hilarious. Props to the pun!
Second, I thought of another example of how Disney movies send negative messages regarding the appearance of female villains. With the exception of Ursula (The Little Mermaid) many of Disney's female villains are anorexically skinny: Cruella de Vil (101 Dalmatians), Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty), Madame Medusa (The Rescuers), Lady Tremaine (Cinderella), The Queen in Snow White. So it is rare to see an average size female in a Disney movie.
What about the associations made with appearance and male villains? Jafar (Aladin), Scar (The Lion King), Hades (Hercules), Captain Hook (Peter Pan) and Bowler Hat Guy (Meet the Robinsons) are all also extremely skinny. Designing these male villains this way creates a negative connotation towards skinny males. It seems that many males, especially in their adolescents, are self conscious about themselves if they are smaller in stature. Our media sends the message that males that are tall and cut with muscle are desired by the opposite sex vs. shorter males with a little extra "meat" on their bones.
So no, I don't think males always get off. I think there are plenty of negative messages being sent out (whether it be intentional or not) forcing males to think negatively about themselves. If a male disagrees, it's probably because he has been considered attractive his whole life.
I would argue that men do not get off as easily as we think they do. I am not a boy, but I have been dating one for two years so I feel I have some knowledge about the topic. My boyfriend is on the skinnier side and often comments about how he wishes he could be more muscular like some of his friends. Much like women today are so pressured to be stick thin and perfect, I feel that the pressure is on guys as well to be the "strongest" or the "fastest". Most boys are naturally competitive but I think they are just much more up front about it and that is why issues focused on boys and men are not as popular.
If two boys get in a fight, many times they can forgive and forget shortly there after. For girls, however, our sensitive nature allows us to be more suseptible to criticsm and the constant pressure to be perfect. Sure, I do think that boys are pressured, but men have been the one's creating so many standards since the beginning of time.
The pressure of beauty, however, is definitely an aspect of our society that is unequally balanced as a result of the media. How many movies are there about a 'not so pretty' girl finding a handsome prince charming? However, there are tons of movies where the nerd ends up with the beauty queen.
There are constant pressures for both genders and some be affected much more than others. I do feel, though, that the few pressures boys face are outweighed by the many that girls have to undertake as a result of our materialistic society.
I definitely think that there are stereotypes for men and women, but the women are more effected by the stereotypes then men are. The stereotypes for women seem to be more negative than the ones for men. Or at least they are portrayed as more negative or you could even say they have a more negative stigma about them. Such stereotypes for men are be strong and don’t show emotion while for women it is to be pretty, skinny and stay at home type work rather than a job outside the home. These kinds of stereotypes are physical or outside appearances that cannot be naturally attained very easily. If a man wanted to be strong all he would have to do is go to the gym and work out. For a women to be “pretty” considered to societies standards she would need plastic surgery to change her entire facial structure if it was not what society perceived as pretty. I think that also the stereotypes for women are more prominent because women make them that way in some ways. It always seems like women care more than men. If you talk to a man he generally doesn’t care what others say about him, but for women we are always looking for others approvals.
I do think that the fact the main character in the “Uglies” was a woman is a significant role. I feel if the author did not intend to have such a stereotype involved in the story it wouldn’t be the male figure. It is often hard to find men who are determined to be pretty according to the standards the society holds.
I don't think guys get off free. While females are typically stereotyped more for their looks, men receive harder criticism based on their personality and emotions. Women have more products aimed at them; mascara, eye liner, lip gloss, lip plumper, tweezers, wax, lotions, perfumes, skin firming lotions, and every other kind of potion. Women see these products and feel the need to spend their paychecks improving every wrong feature about their body. On the otherhand, men are criticized more for their actions. Men with feelings are called sissies or worse. Crying is seen as unacceptable, and an unsuccessful man loses some of his 'manhood' because he is not bringing home the bacon. Therefore men are not free from the pressures of society, they just face different ones than women.
first of all, I love the post title, not going to lie I was a little excited to read this. but you made a very good point. I completely think that guys always get off. The girls/princesses in the fairy tails are always the ones experiencing some terrible situation, until they meet their prince charming, who is always gorgeous, rich and happy. We never really hear about their stories do we?
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