5.Media representations of gender-Women

Question 1

Outline 4 media representations of women

Answer 1

• Symbolic annihlation
• The culture of femininity
• Sex objects
• Conflicting working class mothers

Question 2

Outline symbolic annihilation

Tuchman

Answer 2

Symbolic annihilation- Tuchman uses this term to describe the way women are left out of media discource: their achievements are ignored & minimised; their interests & pursuits are devalued.
Newsbold-researched sports reporting & found womens sports was marginalised & SEXUALISED

Question 3

Outline culture of femininity

Ferguson

Answer 3

Media presents an ideal of womanhood that woman were encouraged to aspire to “ the domestic goddess”

Ferguson found women were encouraged through magazines to focus on appearance, their marriage, domestic role & rasing children

Question 4

Outline women as sex objects

Wolf

Answer 4

Wolf-media represents women as sex objects for male gratification. Particular body image is presented as ideal & other body types were considered a ‘work in progress’-Beauty myth

Beauty myth suggests that women are used in the media for male gaze which led to issues of body image & eating disorders

Question 5

Outline confliciting working mothers

Answer 5

media presents women in domestic & marginal roles, women as working mothers represented as highly conflicted , worrying about not fulffiling their domestic role

Question 6

Outline 3 ways media representations of women empowered by media

Answer 6

• Transgressive roles
• Sexually powerful
• Independent

Question 7

Outline womens transgressive roles

Answer 7

media represenations reflect the ways society has changed for women , since 1970s women are likely to be focused on careers & career women are now featured more centrally & positively in the media

Question 8

Outline women as sexually powerful

Gill

Answer 8

Sexually powerful- the idea of women as passive sex objects in the media has changed.

Gill suggests that women are likely to be shown as powerful, using their sexuality to get what they want

radical feminsist argue that patriarchy has convinced women that they are in control, but in reality men are getting what they want - sexualised images of women

Question 9

Outline women as independent

McRobbie

Answer 9

Independent-There is a lot of focus in the media on independence & aspiration for women & girls. i.g pop music is a source of this,with singers like beyonce, taylor swift singing about womens independence & control

McRobbie argues a new form of popular feminism in a postmodern society has emerged, and is shown in females magazines. It promotes female assertiveness, being in control and independent.