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.