Gender Roles In The Film Cinderella

Gender is a socially constructed component that shapes the society that’s around us. From an early age, children are taught what a little boy is and what a little girl is and how each should act. Gender Identity is the knowledge that one knows if they are male or female. From an early age, children know many differences between themselves and their peers, although it might not be as defined in a way of actual biological differences. Mainly children see gender differences based on what roles they are exposed to. The book definition of gender role is a cluster of traits and behaviors that are considered stereotypical of males and females. Gender roles are very heavily constructed to the point that one person might not want to cross over the designated …show more content…
She is conventionally attractive: she is blonde and thin. She is described in the movie as having “charm and beauty” and is gentle and kind. Her daily responsibilities include chores that are considered the roles of women, which includes cooking, cleaning, sewing, and any other chore the Stepmother and two stepsisters wish. The Stepmother and stepsisters hold roles that are seen as negative qualities in a woman. The Stepmother is described as cold or cruel and jealous of Cinderella. The Stepmother even sabotages Cinderella and locks her away in a tower at the end of the movie to deny her to the ability to try on the glass slipper. The two stepsisters are seen as awkward, vain, selfish and demanding. The sisters have large noses and large feet to match. Cinderella has a beautiful singing voice which could be seen as a desirable quality, meanwhile, the stepsisters are tone deaf. Even Disney animated mice are very stereotyped. The female mice are shown in dresses with bows. In the song “Cinderella” where the mice help fix up Cinderella’s ball gown, there is a line that a female mouse states, “leave the sewing for the women”. This is teaching children what roles are “supposed” to be women’s work and that the way females must be is delicate and kind even when being pushed around. While there are mainly female gender roles, there are very few male characters in the movie that describe generally masculine …show more content…
They learn and pick up on these roles and they hold everyone to their idea of masculinity and femininity. This causes society to be stuck in a cycle of confinement to an assigned gender role. In society, it is shown that many males do not want to be associated with female characteristics because it is seen as degrading. Men are called “girls” in sports to make them be better. They always need to work harder to be a “man”. This is such a huge problem and can have such a negative effect on young women. Many women today say they “aren’t like other girls” to disassociate themselves from other women in hopes they are seen as potential girlfriend material. Males and Females are equal in their abilities, it is just how everyone tells them to act and the heavy gender roles set them apart from each