Circuit Of Cultural Analysis
...Representations of gender are portrayed as essential norms in today's culture, creating standardized myths and sexism within society through the media. The normative portrayals of gender in society consist of stereotypical roles and images that are created through media devices such as, film, television, popular fiction, music and advertisements. Judith Butler draws on the idea of gender performativity and explains how each person, regardless of their sex acts out their gender role, due to the norms created by the hegemonic ideas (CS 203 course pack). During every moment of everyday we express our gender and perform our given roles expected by the media. We act out our genders every time we go out into the public, without even knowing it, we dress up in our costumes (women in dresses/skirts, men in suit and tie) and we put on our faces or our "drag" (women apply makeup and men shave their facial hair). We perform our roles repeatedly, without questioning, through our everyday actions and also through our interactions with others. If we don't conform to our designated gender roles or go against the norms by acting abnormal or differently then the majority we are rejected by society. Essentialism causes us to believe that we are fixed in natural differences when the real truth is that difference is created by our culture which implements the process of gender role signification. As a society we must be aware of the effects our culture is having on us in order to gain back control and individuality. A possibility comes with the rise of alternative forms of portrayals of gender in media culture. Currently, stereotypes and gender inequality are being reduced and new forms of culture are being created in an equal dimension. With the destruction of normative, stereotypical roles, and with the rise of alternative positions, gender should become more positively...
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