Traditional/neg Representations Of Femininit

Question 1

Tuchman

Answer 1

• narrow range of roles for women lead to their symbolic annihilation in the media referring to the phenomenon where the mass media omit, trivialise or condemn certain groups that are not socially valued such as women
• depicts traditional ideals of femininity as mothers, housewives and sex objects due to consumer demand
  Eg. Desperate housewives (rich, wealthy mothers in competition with each other to be the best, they betray each other and have affairs displaying women as sex objects whose main focus is to keep up the appearances of their household)

Question 2

Ferguson

Answer 2

• cult of femininity promotes the idea that excellence is achieved through caring for others, family, marriage and appearance
  Eg. Cosmopolitan magazine (front cover has the headline “50 ways to get sexy hair” , sexualising women’s features and placing importance on their appearance)

Question 3

Glasscock

Answer 3

• males were more physically aggressive whereas females were more verbally aggressive
  Eg. Friends (characters Monica and Rachel fight with words whereas males such as joey and chandler fight with physical aggression)