After discussing various issues in class and throughout readings, one of the main issues I struggle to deal with is gender stereotyping. There are so many things we learn growing up about how girls and boys should "act" if they want to maintain their image. Boys are not supposed to wear dresses, play with dolls, or have long hair. Girls are supposed to wear dresses, cross their legs, and speak politely. The question is why do we live by those rules?
Sure we are told these rules by adults and peers growing up, but do we really need to live by them. Another problem is, why are women allowed to get away with so much more when it comes to breaking norms. Immediately after you see a man wearing high heels or a skirt, you instantly think he has to be trans-gender, yet when you see a girl wearing jeans and a pair of Jordans, she is just trying to be in style. While I do not believe men should be walking around like this, I still want to know why the two comparisons should be so much different.
Women have always been told how they should act in public and what they should wear. The media along with others have created this whole idea of how the perfect woman and man are supposed to look which in turn leads society to take on these norms. Twenty years ago, wearing a pink shirt would make you gay if you were a man, yet today, the slogan is "Real Men Wear Pink". It seems that there are so many different stereotypes that exist for each gender and they evolve every year. The main issue I would like to find out is if media creates these stereotypes and we buy into them, or does society create these stereotypes and the media just plays along to keep programs trendy?
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