blog Nine

I plan on talking about how we are super culturally dependent on technology and my artifact is going to be the south park episode on when the internet goes down. Basically it exaggerates what what society would be like if we went without which really corroborates my point.

Blog 9

I want to write my paper on gender roles.  That was the one topic which actually interested me in all the exercises we did. Gender roles is an important concept that I live by.  I do not understand why people say "it is a one way street" or "don't worry he's a man, he will be fine".  Statements like these irritate me because we are all humans and judgement is still based off if you are a man or woman.  People base their opinions and perceptions on gender and it makes their views on them alter.  This can either end up changing the way the person lives because they don't want to get ridiculed for it or the person gets distanced from that group or person who said something.
This was a video I used earlier that I want to use again for this paper:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QthMrCqspww

https://youtu.be/brenYHCxaCo

This video shows all the things that frat guys apparently say and do. I want to write about the stereotypes that people have towards sororities and fraternities and prove to them that it isn't that way at all. There is so much more to Greek life but the only thing people see is the douchebags and all the parties and such. I will show everyone that it is completely different than what they suspected.

Blog 9

Frankly I still don't really know what I want to write about.  I want to talk about a song that means something to me, however It needs to be on the topic of a social issue.  The first thing that comes to my mind is handlebars, however we did that song during class.  I am also thinking of using Uprising by Muse with all the government related issues as of late.  If I don't end up using a song for my topic I will probably use a Southpark episode and use a quote from there to talk about.  All that matters to me is that its something that relates to me, as well as to the rest of society.  

Blog #9

I want to use heroes and/or villains from comics to connect themes they convey with problems or situations going on in our world today. My favorite hero is Batman, so I will be looking into speeches/quotes found in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy. There are several characters that try to send out a message, but the one I will be using is a quote from Joker, the main villain, who hints at an idea that should come from someone with morals and emotions, unlike him.

From "Batman: The Dark Knight"

Joker: Do I really look like a guy with a plan? You know what I am? I’m a dog chasing cars. I wouldn’t know what to do with one if I caught it. You know, I just do things. The Mob has plans, the cops have plans, Gordon’s got plans. You know, they’re schemers. Schemers trying to control their little worlds. I’m not a schemer. I try to show the schemers how pathetic their attempts to control things really are. So when I say that you and your girlfriend was nothing personal, you know that I’m telling the truth. It’s the schemers that put you where you are. You were a schemer, you had plans, and look where that got you. I just did what I do best. I took your little plan and I turned it on itself. Look what I did to this city with a few drums of gas and a couple of bullets. Hm? You know what I noticed? Nobody panics when things go “according to plan.” Even if the plan is horrifying. If tomorrow I tell the press that like a gangbanger will get shot, or a truckload of soldiers will be blowing up, nobody panics because it’s all “part of the plan.” But when I say that one little old mayor will die, well then everyone loses their minds! Introduce a little anarchy. Upset the established order, and everything becomes chaos. I’m an agent of chaos. Oh, and you know the thing about chaos, it’s fair.

Blog 9

I am going to write about gender roles and how it effects todays society. I am taking a human sexualities class right now and we have talked about this. This is my favorite topic we have talked about so it will be easy and fun to write about it. I'm not certain on what video I am going to use yet because I have a lot to choose from. I might even use some examples and pictures from the textbook. I am going to write a paper rather than a video or something like that. I am also working alone.

Blog 9

I have not found the exact video I'm going to use, but I know I'm going to use one that is funny and relates to young adults with today's society. I am looking for a video that puts certain people and norms into perspective, things that people don't realize on the daily basis but will laugh when they realize what is happening.

Blog 9

I always have a hard time picking out a topic, but I am thinking about doing something with gender roles.  Growing up I was mostly a Tom boy because I had two older brothers.  As you can probably guess, my toys included G.I. Joes, Power Rangers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, etc.  I wanted to choose a topic that could relate to me and the other children that grew up with me in my neighborhood.

Blog 9

Disrupting Education | Sharon Wong | TEDxYouth@Miami

         I want to work with this TEDx Talk because now a days students in the education system choose to no longer engaging in class work while the educational system no longer inspires student to want to achieve more. This TEDx Talk speaks about how students need to start engaging in their education more because we are the future and train qualified teachers. The educational system today is failing to educate children and both the system and students are to blame.  

Blog 9

As usual, I always overthink and have a hard time narrowing down a topic. However, having an extra day to brainstorm defintly came in handy. For the cultural artifact project I will be using the song I don’t mind, by Usher ft. Juicy J. I picked this song because men (not all men), see women as objects. As Usher says, “Shawty, I don't mind when you work until three, If you're leaving with me, Go make that money, money, money.”

Blog 9

For my project I'm going to do it on gender stereotypes. I think this is a big issue because everyone is taught when they are younger what girls and boys are "supposed" to act and be like. But if a girl does something like a guy or a guy does something like a girl then people look at them like something is wrong. Girls and guys should be looked at each other equally. The advertisement I'm using is 'Like a Girl' by Always because it shows perfectly what society has made us all grow up to think.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjJQBjWYDTs

Blog # 9

Our Roles

Men don’t cry, and women don’t fight,

And women wear heels so they look alright,

And make-up is important, and so is delicacy,

And when it comes to emotions, they all need secrecy.

And men wear pants, not wigs or skirts,

And they don’t admit it when they get hurt,

They must have power, they must be strong,

And acting different is obviously wrong.

Because female is one thing, and another,

Two separate categories, like father and mother,

And if you believe this, God bless your soul,

Does gender, so strongly, dictate a role?

What does gender matter, at the end of the day,

It’s not black and white, but an equal shade of grey.

“Men” can be “women”, and the other way around,

Until these expectations are nowhere to be found.

Poetry By: StrangeMind Other

For my topic, I would like to talk about gender roles.  I chose a poem that displays the topic of gender roles.  I chose this poem because it first discusses the stereotypical idea of how men and women should act.  Then it addresses the question of, why do men and women have to have such different expectations even though we are basically the same.

Blog #9

For my cultural artifact project I'm gonna be talking about gender-based violence and how it's been effecting the world. I'm gonna be using the Isle Vista shooting in Santa Barbara to relate and support this issue. The video I'm using is a YouTube video by Laci Green who offers an analysis of this massacre and brings out cultural issues and the actions that played out in this massacre.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPFcspwbrq8&bpctr=1427850670

Blog 9

for my project I will be analyzing YOLO (feat. Adam Levine & Kendrick Lamar) this is a lonely island digital shot from  the NBC show Saturday Night Live. For this project I will be exploring the social issue of living recklessly. Reckless lifestyles have become a problem in America’s culture today for a long time but it has become much more relevant since Drake released the song “The Motto" in late 2011.

Blog 9

For my project I’d like to expose this speech https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAJYlVnnafo about American eating habits and childhood obesity. Child hood obesity is a problem in America’s culture today and I am interested in what the solutions could be for this epidemic. Not only for childhood obesity but for better eating habits in the US.

Blog Post #9

For my cultural artifact project I will be focusing on a picture that was taken in Hong Kong showing the divide between the poor and the middle class. Analyzing how economic inequality affects society as a whole and what we can do to change it. The reason that I chose this topic is due to the fact that as the economic gap gets bigger, more people are unable to support there families and are forced to live in unpleasant conditions.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eddielaw/25437099/

Blog #9

For my cultural artifact assignment I want to focus on gender stereotypes because this is a very interesting topic to me and because it is a serious issue in our generation. The video I want to use is a good example of this issue because it shows a woman transitioning into a man and breaking through societies gender roles and stereotypes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFjsSSDLl8w

Blog #9

http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/blackeyedpeas/whereisthelove.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpYeekQkAdc

For this project I have decided to use the song "Where's the Love" by the Black Eyed Peas. It is starting to be an old song however, it still addresses issues that are happening still to this day. This song talks about the hate around the world and how that causes war. This is a controversial topic in the sense that it is a way or form for a country is able to defend it people and on the other hand many people are affected by it. The object they use to have people think twice about war is that the population that gets most affected by all of this is kids, who have homes and even family members disappearing.

Blog 9 - Revised

I am going to do my paper on human trafficking, and I want to do this topic because I think it's a very important issue today. Even in Chico, it is a pressing issue, and it is an issue in young women, even women who are in college like us are at risk. I just think it's an issue that I have currently became very interested in. I will keep looking for images and I will pick the main starting point once I find the right picture or video to open up my topic on.

---

I actually decided to choose a poster that has a story on it and is pretty powerful in itself. I think that it is an issue not many worry about because they can't imagine it happening in their own backyard. The way the poster appeals to the emotion helps spread awareness on the topic.

Blog 9

For my project I am going to expose real life issues in the workplace by referencing the TV series The Office. Although I don't have a specific episode yet I want to focus on how people's lives and relationships are effected by their work and coworkers.

Blog #9

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjJQBjWYDTs


I have decided to use this video called: Always #LikeAGirl for my paper. The reason that I chose this video was because of the way that it fights against gender stereotypes for girls and women, I think this is very relevant to social issues right now because of the rise in equal rights campaigns for women in the United States today. Not to say that there aren't gender stereotypes for men and boys as well, I would just like to focus on women and girls. I would really like to work with this text because as a girl myself I have lived through these stereotypes starting from a young age, and I feel like this is very relevant to today's social issues.

Blog 9

I've decided to focus on police brutality against African-Americans for this project. I chose this issue because over the last couple of years there have been a lot of unarmed African-American men being killed by the police.

Another thing that I could focus on is gender roles and how they do more harm than good in childrens lives. Just because a boy wants to play with a doll and a girl wants to do a sport it doesn't mean that their is something wrong with them, and gender roles make it seem like that is the case. The song "Little Game" by Benny explores gender roles and how society abides by them.

Blog 9

For my project I will be using the song Around My Way (Freedom Ain't Free) by Lupe Fiasco. The song talks about everything wrong with the society we live in. It is trying to spread awareness and create change by reaching a large audience. It brings up a lot of very controversial issues in its lyrics that people don't want to generally talk about and that is what makes it culturally significant.

Blog 9

The issue that I plan to address is male standards.  I plan to approach this by picking apart the slam poem “Ten responses to the phrase man up.”  I personally would like the address this issue because of the huge role gender standards play in our society.  In class while watching the clip of men being oppressed by society, I began to do some research to find that men’s suicide rate is three times that of women’s. Men are looked down upon for not conforming, yet women are praised. Shouldn’t they be able to be free to express themselves?  Shouldn’t they be able to have meaningful emotional relationships?  Shouldn’t they be able to be weak sometimes? Shouldn’t they be able to not like whatever they want? Why is there here is such harsh judgement on men not “maning up”? It has a huge effect on not only men’s lives, and society as a whole.

Blog 9

For the project, I am going to work with a poem from members of the Get Lit organization, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7505al6RjOM.  I decided to work with this cultural artifact because it is a poem by three young women, and it centers around sexism and racism in today's society.  It is a very present issue, and the poem provides knowledge in a very powerful yet understandable way.  This poem was performed at the Hollywood Bowl, and it really speaks to anyone who listens.

Blog 9

In my paper I plan on working with the South Park episode: It's Just Gone, which features a world where the internet has gone down. This episode is an attempt to tackle the social issue of how dependent people in modern day are of the internet. What this episode adds to the issue is a hyperbole of how desperate people would become if this were to actually happen. The episode not only features the writers opinions on the whole situation but it uses a famous literary text, Grapes of Wrath, to guide their episode. The idea behind the whole episode is that when the internet goes down people begin to migrate through the country where there is rumored to be internet.

Blog #9

I am going to work with the song "Guns for Hands" by Twenty One Pilots. It focuses on anxiety/depression and suicidal thoughts. Tyler, the singer, is reaching out to anyone who has had issues with these and he's relating with them because he also has dealt with them.

Blog 9

For this blog, link the artifact you have chosen for your project and explain why you want to work with that text. What issue does it speak to? What cultural work is it doing?

Refer to the class Google folder for instructions on the project in the "Cultural Artifact Project" folder. 

Blog #9

The issue I am going to write about is bullying. I am going to discuss the song "Bully" by Shinedown. This is not only a great song, it is also one that has a really powerful message against bullying. I want to discuss bullying because I think it is a common problem that devastates children all over the world.

Blog #8

In the TED Talk, Colin Stokes talks about how movies help influence gender roles upon our children. One of the major things I took notice in his inspirational talk was his story about his daughter and how in the end she did not succumb to gender roles.  She took it upon herself to look up to the wisest people in each movie she saw, which in this case was Glinda the Good from The Wizard of Oz and Obi-Wan Kenobi from Star Wars.  Children should not feel subjected to a gender that they were born into.  They should be able to freely look to other figures of the opposite sex as role models.  For example, Mulan is a great example for kids to look up to a mighty warrior while also being a woman.   It does not have to be just for the girls, but for the guys too.  Forcing children into  a certain ideal can be harmful to their self-esteem and well being.

Blog 8

During class we discussed many different texts but they all tied into one topic which was gender roles. They talk about how society demeans women like they are less than a man and how men should live up to the saying "be a man". The Penelope poem it's about how a women waits at home for her husband to get back and how he is brave for going out on the seas but all she is worth is to work at home and doesn't get any respect for that. Now days women go out and have jobs and work to make their own money, they don't need to depend on a man to do that. A good TV show that has strong women leads in it is The Office, they actually have 5 of them. Which is rare to see, even to see one is rare. Because most movie and TV shows have men as leads and women are usually just there for romantic purposes. The Office is a good show to make us notice how women work just as hard as anyone else to make money and can have the same job as men.

Blog 8

The mains point of the video we watched was that society says that people are suppose to conform to the stereotype that is created for them even if it is not who they really are. More specifically in the TED talk we watched the speaker was talking about traditional gender roles. He said that he is a father and has a young daughter, but he actually talked more about typical men's roles, especially in films and media. He mentioned the Wizard of Oz because it was a movie that did not conform to any stereotypes, and compared it to all the recent films that have come out which all did. He even showed us a test to see if a movie used very traditional gender roles or not.

Blog #8

In the TED Talk that we watched in class today, Colin Stokes talks about raising his daughter and the statistics of women who are sexually assaulted. He talks about how people are always teaching their daughters what to do so that they do not get attacked, things to avoid, places not to go, tricks like holding your keys between your fingers while walking in the dark... However, he also mentioned that nobody really teaches their sons not do assault women. This is a major issue right now because when we teach women what to do to 'prevent' being assaulted, we are basically assuming that it is her fault that she gets assaulted. "She didn't do this or that," or "She didn't do enough to protect herself," or even "She was asking for it." Men are taught nothing of the sort.

Blog #8

The main points we went over in class had to do with gender roles and how the affect men and women in our society.  Throughout time men have always been the hunters and gatherers, while most women stayed back and tended to the children and cooked the food.  As we get closer and closer to modern day we have become a more industrialized society and we have grown in so many ways.  Although we have grown and evolved the way we think, gender roles seem to have slightly sticked.  To many people being a man is somebody who is strong, confident, tough, and who can support a family.  They are expected to be the rock, and they are sometimes looked down upon for showing emotion or being "soft".  Times are changing and this is no longer the real definition of a man for many people.  The same thing goes for many women.  Now days many women are trying to get out of the typical gender role of the generation before them.  Any woman is able to do whatever she wants with her life.  Whether they want to be a CEO or a business woman or even a housewife or a caregiver they are all entitled to have a choice.  This generation has been very proactive with woman's equality and frankly the gender roles between men and women are slowly getting closer together.  Frankly I don/t see why we need to have " gender roles".  A man or a woman can have whatever role they want in society, or at least that is how it is supposed to be.  This is where the Ted talk relates to the main point of gender roles.  In many animated movies in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the main characters were primarily men going off to achieve one main message.  Now that gender roles are slowly changing and evolving we are coming out with more movies like tangled, frozen, and brave.  In all these movies the main character is a strong woman who is going out and accomplishing whatever it is they desire.  As we continue as a  society hopefully our "gender roles" will  slowly start to become a thing of the past.  There is no reason a man or woman has to be set in a path or lifestyle due to stereotypes.  Why cant it just be human beings doing whatever makes them happy?  Maybe some day in the near future there will no longer be a gender role.

Blog 8

The 3 pieces shown in class were very interesting. However, I have chosen to focus on the Ted Talk by Colin Stokes’, “How Movies Teach Manhood.” The main issue discussed when it came to this Ted Talk was the issue of gender roles. Till this day, gender roles are a current issue, as his primary example of movies inhabiting such issue, movies made till this day still practice this same issue. In our society whether it comes to a full out grown man or little boy, his role is to act like a man no matter what. Men are supposed to be strong, brave, not show any type of emotion since emotions are seen as a feminine trait. Stokes talks about how men are seen as the main protagonist in movies. They are seen as the hero and as a reward they get a pretty princess or what not. He addresses how he would prefer his children to follow the example in movies who are based on teams, instead of the traditional themes seen in movies. The traditional theme seen in princess’ movies is the boy being the hero and somehow saving the pretty princess, as a reward he gets the pretty princess in the end and they live happily ever after. However, as the example he talks about in the Ted Talk, the movie Brave, shows how a women can be her own hero, a heroin whom doesn’t need a man by her side in other to rule her kingdom. Two other example of princess’ movies that don’t follow the traditional princess theme is Frozen and Maleficent. In both movies, Frozen & Maleficent, it is shown how a princess could be saved with true loves kiss not by a man. In both movies they immediately think a kiss from a boy will save the princess’s, however after the attempt fails, the princesses are save by true loves kiss from a sister or mother figure.

Blog #8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2OcKQ_mbiQ

This video was made in Italy, and it is called "Slap her" and the purpose of it was to raise awareness on violence committed on women. These boys, aged 5-10 years old were told to slap the girl standing next to them. All of the ones in the video said no, and when asked why, they each gave their reason. It shows the different reasons, ranging from "you should never hit a woman," to a more general sense of the situation such as "Jesus does not want you to hit anyone," and "I do not believe in using violence." Domestic violence is an issue, even in our community today. although it mainly affects women, like in the video, it also affects men, and they are also abused. Rape culture is also something that can branch out from domestic violence, in a sense that men who commit the action on women thing that it is okay to do so. Education about the subject is a way to prevent incidents from happening so often. The education would be directed to both males and females, and it is actually a very serious matter. Violence only endorses more violence. 

This ties in with the gender roles that were mentioned in the poem "Penelope." How this ties in is because in domestic violence issues, the woman is meant to be submissive to her attacker, because more than likely it is someone they know that is close to them. In the case of rape, there are a lot of people who blame the woman depending on how she looks. The whole justification using the women's attire and the way that they carry themselves has to be a way that a man will be attracted to them. In the poem, and the whole story behind Penelope, her husband goes around sleeping with randoms, but she is being loyal and faithful. Why is it okay for men to do what they want and hurt their significant other, but if a woman hurts a man, shes a terrible b*tch and any other slurs that relative with negative FEMALE behavior. 

Blog 8

In the videos from class there are gender roles and stereotypes. Boys have to man up, if not they get made fun of and bullied. The stigma of men being pressured to act a certain way, to be tough and emotionless is very common in society today. They are told that they are not allowed to cry or feel sad. This can really mess with a person’s emotions. This can lead to violent behavior like homicidal thoughts or depression, often even suicide. Everyday 3 or more boys commit suicide. Some of these actions are even driven from the pressure of their own parents. This stigma/theme is also shown in an article I found called “Are You Man Enough?” by Andrew Smiler which is part of The Good Men Project. The author of this article is getting paid to study masculinity. His studies show that the pressure to be manly begins at a very young age, usually in elementary school, and continues into their twenties or thirties. Typically it does not subside until they are settled down, though it never entirely goes away. As human beings we feel the need to “fit in” and be part of a desired group or stereotype. So for men they feel the pressure to fit into the stereotype manly. This pressure can be dangerous and harmful and hopefully as society progresses men will realize that they can be accepted for who they are and parents will stop pressuring their sons especially at such a young age.

http://goodmenproject.com/health/are-you-man-enough/

Blog #8

          Today in class we looked at gender rolls in society.  Going all the way back to days that the Odyssey was written.  Penelope was left at home to “housewife” jobs, while Odysseus was out sailing the sea and making a name for himself.  Secondly,  in the video clip discussing roles and stereotypes of men and women, this idea was very present.  It transitioned from the roles each gender plays, to the idea behind why, and how men treat women.  Following this stand up, we watched a clip that directed its attention to the hardships present in the males “emotionless” role in society.  Lastly,  we analyzed a standup on “the friend zone” and the idea behind it. 

          The relationships and ideas present in the texts analyzed today got me thinking, and actually researching.  Men in society today are typically forced to carry out a double role in order to be considered a “nice guy”, and don’t find it beneficial to fall in that category due to the lack of “reward”.  So why would men want to do that?  Statically speaking, 1 in 5 women have been sexually assaulted, and the suicide rate for men is three times that of women.  Are men in society today under too much pressure that they are pushed into hardships causing them to act in drastic ways?  What gives them the ideas to act out in such measures?

          In the movie Just Go With it, Adam Sandler plays a character that is consistently struggling with trying to please the women in the movie along with the male double standard.  In this movie, his character goes through multiple changes as he tries to overcome being a “player”,  “jerk”, “self-centered” individual who grows to realize that he was best friends with his dream girl all along.  He manages to get her out of the so called “friend zone" and realize his feelings for his assistant.  

Blog 8

The main points shown in the videos in class had to do with gender roles. Gender roles have been dominant in our society's history. Boys were brought up to be the protectors, the providers, the person in charge, and to hide their emotions. Guys ask the girls out; guys pay for the date. There are too many double standards to even list today. And while gender roles have come a long way, they still exist today. Everyone has probably heard "It'll make him into a man" and "don't be girl, just do it" in their lifetime. These are very prominent in people growing up, trying to fit the mold that is deemed acceptable. A couple weeks ago, a girl mma fighter was beating every girl she fought. However, instead of being respected, a man said that she should fight a man mma fighter and see what happens. This is just one example of gender roles today. Girl usually aren't supposed to be fighters, they are supposed to be vulnerable and guys are supposed to come in and fight and save they day.

Blog #8

The main issue I saw in all these videos we watched in class is the stereotyping of gender roles. Men and women are always expected to be some certain way. Men as they grow up are always told not to be afraid of anything, and be a man! For women, its okay if they're sensitive and have emotions, but for men that's not acceptable. Growing up, little girls are expected to play with dolls, dress up, and have tea parties. Just like little boys are expected to play with action figures and race cars. These are all roles of gender that are expected of everyone, but no one realizes how much it can effect an individual. It's the way society portrays men and women to be to live up to that expectation. An example, is a video I watched called "Reinforcing Gender Stereotypes Through Advertising" which shows videos of advertisements of men and women and how they are expected to live up to in society. It's a common issue now of the way the media is portraying gender roles, because the whole point of being yourself as an individual is all taken back when you see certain commercials like that or even being raised to be that way. Growing up and being raised to be a certain way can definitely take a toll on that individual, and it's even harder to be yourself. The whole point is to stop making these gender roles make people believe they have to be that way. Everyone should be different and the person they want to be.


"Reinforcing Gender Stereotypes Through Advertising"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZIpifzykIg

Blog #8

An issue discussed in class was that of gender roles. In society there are many gender stereotypes that we are expected to follow. As a man you are often expected to be tough and strong and support women. As a woman you are often expected to be weak and let the man stand up for you instead of standing up for yourself. A huge issue today concerning gender roles is the transsexual community. These are people that feel they are a different gender than what they were born into. Many people feel they do not fit in to the typical role society expects a man or woman to follow.

This comic is about traditional gender rolls. The stereotype is that women stay home and do the cooking and cleaning while men go out and work. This comic shows that while the man is better at cooking, his wife cooks just because that is her expected role in society. This encourages us to try and forget about gender norms and instead embrace people for who they are, not just their sex.

Blog #8

The video of 'The 3 Most Damaging Words You can tell Your Son' impacted me the most with how boys are being raised and pressured into acting a certain way because of their gender.  They talked about how boys wear these "masks" because they are afraid of being judged.  This is a horrible thing  by showing society that these young adults are scared to be themselves because the world has a certain criteria for determining if you are manly enough.  Some of the things kids were saying that they can not cry or they have to act out and fight to show that they are men.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QthMrCqspww

The first half of this video talks about how FloTv uses the fear of being emasculated.  These types of ads are showing men that this is wrong when in reality it is not.  Those things don't determine whether you are a man or not.  Society has just brain washed everyone into thinking that these views on men are the correct ones.  This is getting men to be afraid of opening up and doing whatever they want because they will be judged.  Men are being stereotyped to being masculine and hold in their feminine side or they get called names and put down.

Blog #8

In the poem Penelope, written by Dorothy Parker, the subject of gender roles is addressed.  In the poem she makes the mans life sound exciting and full of glamour, while the woman's life consists of her staying at home and doing boring everyday duties.  Also, in her poem it is the man that gets praised.  A current life example of this is when the husband is the one that works and the wife stays home and takes care of the children and does things around the house.  Although this does not happen as often as it use to, it still happens in many homes today.  The man goes out and makes a living, while the woman stays at home doing things like cleaning, cooking, and taking care of the children.  A television  show that displays this theme is "I Love Lucy".  Lucy, the main character, stays at home all day doing common house hold chores such as cooking and cleaning.  In the mean time, her husband is hardly ever home, and is always out working.

Blog 8

While discussing gender roles in class, such as “Penelope” by Dorothy Parker, I kept thinking that what was talked about was purely heterosexual lives.  Although this is a problem and many stereotypes exist between LGBTQ+ relationships, a good majority of problems with masculinity and femininity exist mainly in heterosexual relationships.  There are numerous recent examples of men violating women because they said no to a date, sex, marriage, or any other type of communication.  There is this excuse going around that "not all men" are like this.  That is understandable and very true; however, the conversation isn't over just because you ensured people that you weren't like that.  Something needs to be done about the millions of women who get assaulted for refusing something.  We live in a world where 97% of rapists do not face any jail time for their actions.  How is that acceptable?  Of course, it’s not just women who get sexually assaulted.  Men do too.  An example would be Shia LaBeouf admitting that a woman had sexually assaulted him during his art exhibit.  Unfortunately, most of the men who say "not all men" are violent towards women are absolutely silent and do not support Labeouf and some have even said that he had to have enjoyed a woman lusting after him.  Men aren't sex maniacs.  Gender stereotypes are just harmful constraints that don’t allow people to express themselves.

Blog #8

The main topic that was shown throughout the videos we watched in class is the issue of gender roles and stereotypes. For our in class discussion we were asked if there was any movie that we knew passed the Bechdel test where the class was silent. Which is kinda shocking being that if we can't think of a movie that can pass such a simple test than something needs to change. In our society men are shown to be protectors, bread winners, and known to not share their emotions. While women in our society are shown to be caregivers, stay at home moms, who are very emotional. The video from class that I will focus on is the Colin Stokes' TedTalk: "How Movies Teach Manhood." In the video the speaker talks about how movies geared towards men/boys portray the leading protagonist as tough, loners, that often end up with the female lead who main role was to play the love interest. And he went on to discuss how he didn't want that for his son and daughter and would rather have them watch more movies based on teams and friendships such as the Wizard of Oz as his prime example. The media often continues the portrayal of gender stereotypes within our society from t.v. shows to movies, even for commercials. There are countless commercials I seen for food/cooking products where the woman is always at home cooking a delicious meal, where the man comes back from work to enjoy the home cooked meal. Or where they portray the man as comic relief where he is clumsy and incapable of solving his problem, until his wife comes in to save him from whatever crazy situation he has gotten himself into. Gender roles are deeply ingrained in our society for both men and women as shown through many movies even those geared towards children by Disney. Where the man is the savior to the leading women who is oftentimes portrayed as a damsel in distress seen in such classics as Cinderella and Snow White. Due to this, there has been a rise in movies that are now pushing to have strong female leads to empower young girls. Where they can stand up for themselves and won't have to wait to be saved. As seen in movies like Brave, The Hunger Games, and Divergent where the female protagonist greatly affects the outcome of the story due to their key roles. 

Blog #8

Gender roles are something that have a prominent influence in society. Dorothy Parker, a satiric poet, comments on gender role in her poem "Penelope." The allusion to the Odyssey creates a clear picture of how gender roles, even in ancient Greek mythology, was current in her own time, 1929, and is still a current issue. The perfect housewife that stays at home, takes care of the family and the house while her husband is out doing "heroic" is not recognized as heroic or brave but rather a woman's job without question. Penelope, Odysseus' wife, waits 20 years time for her husband's return fighting off suitors and keeping everything under control while her husband is sleeping around but is still recognized as the hero. Dorothy recognizes the unchanging gender roles and says that the man that goes out and does something is called brave. The movie Pleasantville is example of a housewife that stay home, cleans, cooks and takes care of the children. That is the only thing she knows how to do. The patriarchy controls everything in the movie and no one knows what happens outside of their black and white town. In today's society, gender roles are constantly be fought as there are many efforts to create equality and push for change. Free the Nipple is a movement that has become popular as women walk around topless to help raise awareness about inequality between men and women.

Blog 8

In one of the videos shown masculinity was talked about, the video was talking about how boys are always told not to show their feelings and when they do they are compared to being a girl. This is an on going issue day, fathers tell their sons to man up and that they shouldn't act like a female because they aren't one. Personally I see nothing wrong with acting like a "female" there are women like Oprah, Michelle Obama, and Ellen that are doing more than okay that are females so I don't think that it should be used as an insult. Because boys are told to be a man instead of crying about things when they get hurt they lash out and get into fights.

One text that can be connected to this is in the movie When The Game Stands tall based on a true story, these men were playing basketball and when a man on the losing team lost he was more than bitter about it. After losing when he saw the guy that beat him at an outing he shot him several times and killed him. If men were allowed to show sorrow from a young age I honestly believe that there would be less murders over things that aren't important.

Blog #8

The social issue of masculinity in our culture I think is a big deal and something that needs to be addressed. Men are portrayed as the "protectors" and also have a constant fear of being too feminine. From a young age boys are taught to be tough and not show their emotions so much because they afraid of being too girly. I have seen this first hand, I have a 10 year old brother and he plays with all of the other boys on our street who are all relatively in the same age group. If one of the boys falls and skins a knee or elbow he is usually told by the other boys to "shake it off" or "don't cry just get up and be a man". I think this is an issue because showing emotions doesn't constitute as being girly, it simply shows that they are human and have feeling no matter their gender.

http://www.healthguidance.org/entry/13971/1/Emotions--Differences-Between-Men-and-Women.html

Blog Post #8

"Slap Her- Kids Reaction"
http://youtu.be/b2OcKQ_mbiQ

SPOILER ALERT
WATCH VIDEO FIRST!!!

This video connects to today's lecture because it shows how there are kids out there who are learning to be a better man than the perceived definition of a man. Instead of being the kind of man who does whatever he wants and feels no guilt or emotion before hitting a woman, these children show they have been raised and will try to grow up being the kind of men who respect other females and treat them equally. The thing I really enjoy about this video is how each boy seems to be different than the rest. They all have different life goals and their personalities, to some extent, are shown when asked different questions. Some are more timid while the others look a bit more confident. However, when asked to slap the girl, they all have the same answer, but with different reasons. So whether it be religion, rules the mom and dad taught them, or just pure kindness, I like to believe that the kids of today will grow up to be better men.

Blog 8

Today in class we discussed the following text that speak to some of the social pressures surrounding the idea of gender:

Dorothy Parker's "Penelope": http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php?date=2012/08/15
Video: "3 Most Damaging Words You Can Tel Your Son": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2emEffoEc8

Desireé Dallagiacomo & Justin Lamb - "The Friend Zone": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xju7KjJbR0
Colin Stokes' TedTalk: "How Movies Teach Manhood": https://www.ted.com/talks/colin_stokes_how_movies_teach_manhood?language=en

In your blog, discuss on of the issues that arouse in the text and/or during discussion and tie it into a current issue within our culture. Then find an example of a text that touches on the issue.

Blog 8

When I think of gender roles the first thing that comes to mind as to how it is one sided is the dr pepper commercial where there is a man out in the middle of the forrest and he is supposed to symbolize manhood. This is depicted through his perfectly groomed, beard his six pack and my personal favorite, his tendency to eat tree bark. The commercial uses the idea that if you're a man youre going to drink dr pepper. One current event that follows this theme is the rise of feminism. Very much like how men are expected to be this unique individual who is self supporting, feminism actually teaches women to do this same thing. So instead of meeting men halfway they make the same mistake that men have been making for a long time. The world that the man from the ted talk proposed where men and women put their gender aside to build a team of strong people seems to be the middle ground between men and women and we should, as he said, use this as a model for our children.

Blog 8

The biggest issue I saw in the videos shown in class was the idea of gender-stereotyping. This is the root cause of many current issues like rape, the glass ceiling, and gender identity issues. Boys are taught from a young age to "be a man" and that "crying is for babies". These messages (usually from a parent or caregiver) really effect how the boy will see himself for the rest of his life. There will be times in everyone's life where you just need to cry it out or vent your emotions to a friend, but if a boy is taught that this is not "manly", then these emotions will be bottled up and could turn into anger or rage.
A current issue that relates to this would be the fact that one in five women admit to being sexually assaulted in some way in their life. Men are taught that women are a reward and that they are entitled to do whatever they want to a woman. If a woman says no to a man, it is almost considered not important to many people.
Photos like this one add fuel to the fire to the rape and gender stereotype issue. This photo shows men that they should be fit and have an attractive women hanging off of them at all times. Although this kind of thing rarely happens in real life, these images can be found everywhere in magazines and on the internet. This photo also shows the woman as an object or an accessory, which adds to the problem of men thinking that women are just a reward.

Blog 8

What Does It Mean to Do Something "Like a Girl"?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjJQBjWYDTs

An issue among our society that is demeaning to women is the definition we give to the phrase, "like a girl." Many times this phrase brings in many assumptions that it is something bad and if something is to be done right it has to be like a boy. The company Always is trying to create a new definition to this phrase and letting people know that doing things "like a girl" can also be good. They ask many people what is is like throw a ball like a girl and many times little kids and even adults pretend to throw a ball softly and with out any energy. And then they tell them about this issue and they ask them again to throw like a girl and the people start pretending to throw the ball normally.

Blog 7

In class we discussed a science fiction strip from Calvin and Hobbes, the main themes are blind obedience and corruption. I think that it's trying to say that the government has complete control over us and there really isn't anything we can do about. It shows that they don't really care about the public and would do anything to keep their position of their jobs, but we all go along with it and don't question it. A good text that relates to this theme is the Hunger Games because their society goes along with the government even though it is unfair to them all. Even when it is life and death to their children no one will speak up because they feel helpless. Katniss ends up standing up and changing the whole game and the government is concerned so they do everything in their power to try to get rid of her.

Blog 7

V for Vendetta is a very dark and explicit film that reveals the faults in a dystopian society.  The clip we viewed in class shows a masked man that is trying to start a new revolution by giving a disturbing speech that racks the mind of every citizen watching.  He begins to explain that the government is corrupted and is using everyone as their own puppets.  But instead of taking notice of the problem, they ignore it and let it happen.  A great example I can compare this to is from the book Anthem by Ayn Rand.  This book is about a society that is broken down into factions of workers (artists, scientists, street cleaners, etc.), until one brave street cleaner decided to explore the unknown of the community.  Now everyone in this society speaks in plural when they refer to themselves.  He found an underground tunnel that revealed inventions and new ideas that were kept from civilization.  He started a revolution and soon "we" turned into "I".

Blog Post #7

In the movie Wall-E, the use of a dystopian setting is clearly present. Humanity has forgotten about earth and found a new home in a spaceship outside of Earth's atmosphere. Sure, it is several thousands of years away from today, but the point of this exagerrated setting is to highlight our generation's dependence on technology. We use so much tech that we forget about things that are created naturally rather than by man's hand. In comparison with the Vendetta speech, Wall-E is the masked man who is trying to lead others to a life better than the one they are currently in. Wall-E wants to show people that life on Earth is beautiful and worth getting up and out of a chair that has been glued to their butts since they were born. They are the citizens of England that the masked man in Vendetta is speaking out to. Auto A113, the malicious robot who has gained a conscious of its own and understands that going back to Earth means the end of robot control, has people living life in those chairs and controls every bit of the spaceship. Auto is the government that Vendetta is trying to overthrow. I highly doubt "Wall-E" was made to send a bad message to any government, but instead was made to tell people that we sometimes need to take our hands off our technology and try to see where it is leading us to.

Blog 7

A theme that I noticed throughout the three pieces shown to us was the human thought that we need to have labels for everyone.  The idea that there needs to be rich people in charge, masses of poor, and just the thought that humans are the most intelligent species is a major issue.  For example, in the Calvin and Hobbes comic, the aliens come in and say that human death is needed for their survival.  Granted, we don't know if aliens are even real or not, but extinguishing even the thought of their existence is too much for the human species to decide.  We can talk, have opposable thumbs, and have the capacity to learn new things, but that should not make us think we're the indestructible species.  This is even seen when just looking at humans by themselves.  In the Handlebars song and V for Vendetta, the fact that corporations, governments, and the "important" people take others and their rights for granted is ridiculous.  All human beings are the same, obviously with some differences in DNA and cultures, but we are the same.  Why does there need to be this capitalistic climb to the top?  There are hundreds of different cases that revolve around this issue that range from the Ferguson shootings to white people making decisions for people of color to trying to be in control of other people’s decisions for life and even death.  Loopholes exist in the federal government of the U.S.  An example I recently learned was that the person(s) who are trying to get a certain bill passed can include other completely irrelevant, yet popular, laws to get people to vote in favor of the original bill.  A current form of media that represents all of this would definitely be The Hunger Games: Mockingjay.  District 13 rises up and plans an attack on the Capital.  With all of these recent discussions of dystopian worlds, it seems as if that is where the human race is headed.