Men and women today are bombarded with messages from the media concerning their gender roles. The stereotypes it portrays of men: masculinity and women: femininity can cause a great discomfort to both groups. With the media perpetuating these stereotypes, it becomes more of a problem as men and women are put down and have to face the obligations to conform to them. The gender roles that our society create put unnecessary pressure on young men to express male roles and force young women to embody feminine roles. These gender roles put pressure on men to be masculine: strong, aggressive and dominant. Alexie reveals how professional athletes or " physically gifted men" as "warrior soldiers, as dangerous demigods"(Source
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In the essay “Putting down the Guns” (2004), Rebecca Walker convey that the societal expectations of boys in middle school: “Fight actually in sport, or fight virtually on the computer”(Source E) puts pressures on boys to worry more about what’s socially acceptable and popular instead of staying true to who they are. Walker’s story of her son wanting to join a sport because “Maybe girls would like him” can show the danger of these expectations if her son ended up with a gun. Furthermore being perceived as dangerous is a hazard itself. For example, when Staples, a journalist at the time, try to turn in a deadline story for a magazine, he was mistaken for a burglar(Source O). In this instance, Stapes was stereotyped as a dangerous black man. The images and expectations that society placed on black men: threatening and dangerous is really ironic since black men are the ones that are perceived differently and is targetted by society. In addition, the way ads portray women often leads to violence. In Jean Kilbourne's presentation, she used a photo of a woman being sexually assaulted by men(source U). This, as a result, trivialize the importance of the female body which Kilbourne emphasizes can cause real harm to
In the essay “Putting down the Guns” (2004), Rebecca Walker convey that the societal expectations of boys in middle school: “Fight actually in sport, or fight virtually on the computer”(Source E) puts pressures on boys to worry more about what’s socially acceptable and popular instead of staying true to who they are. Walker’s story of her son wanting to join a sport because “Maybe girls would like him” can show the danger of these expectations if her son ended up with a gun. Furthermore being perceived as dangerous is a hazard itself. For example, when Staples, a journalist at the time, try to turn in a deadline story for a magazine, he was mistaken for a burglar(Source O). In this instance, Stapes was stereotyped as a dangerous black man. The images and expectations that society placed on black men: threatening and dangerous is really ironic since black men are the ones that are perceived differently and is targetted by society. In addition, the way ads portray women often leads to violence. In Jean Kilbourne's presentation, she used a photo of a woman being sexually assaulted by men(source U). This, as a result, trivialize the importance of the female body which Kilbourne emphasizes can cause real harm to