Gender stereotypes are an ongoing conflict in modern society today and both women and men attempt to escape the generalizations that surround their everyday lives. Unfortunately, media does not help people escape these gender stereotypes. That is why it is so important to recognize when something in the media attempts to break these stereotypes. A great example of this is the movie Million Dollar Baby that was directed by Clint Eastwood in 2004 and starred Hilary Swank. Million Dollar Baby tells the inspirational story of Maggie Fitzgerald, a hard working, dedicated, and inspired rookie boxer who will do whatever it takes to be the best. Maggie starts training in a gym and is immediately judged by others for being an older woman boxer. The
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Not only does Million Dollar Baby confront this; it also successfully tries to break the stereotype with the female protagonist, Maggie. In the beginning of the film, Maggie is not taken seriously around the gym she attended because no one believed that a woman like her could become a boxer. Not only that, but no one would train or box with her because she was a girl. For example, whenever Maggie came to work out she would always go to a corner by herself and ignore the other men as they made fun of her. The owner of the gym even told Maggie that she could never become a boxer. However, all this negativity did not stop Maggie. She kept training by herself and her dedication and persistence eventually lead her to be coached by a once famous boxer. At first he didn’t want to coach her because she was a girl, but when he saw the persistence and dedication that she had, he decided to change his mind. With the help of her new coach, she rises to the top of woman’s boxing and becomes a role model for woman everywhere. The movie shows that female athletes can be successful too and deserve as much airtime as male athletes. Not only that, but not once does the film focus on Maggie’s appearance. It only focuses on Maggie’s fighting style, techniques, and persistence in the …show more content…
This is often seen in media as the climax of films, plays, and television shows that are all about a male figure rescuing a woman who needs to be saved because she can’t save herself. Women are also normally portrayed as having personal conflict. According to Jenn Shreve, the only way that girls are able to overcome this personal conflict in media is by having a well-shaped and supporting environment. Shreve points out that women solve these problems in the media is by realizing that they need to conform with the normal gender roles. This is confronted in Million Dollar Baby and Maggie overcomes this stereotype. In the film, Maggie grew up in a poor neighborhood with an unstable family who tries to cheat the government into giving them money. Unlike other women in media, Maggie over comes her problems by breaking away from her environment. She does this by working all day as a waitress and saving up money so that she doesn’t have to cheat the government like her mother. She doesn’t conform to what people want her to do. An example of this is when Maggie’s mom says to her, “When people find out what you do they laugh.” Maggie doesn’t conform and continues to pursue her dreams and to not be the stereotypical woman that her family and childhood environment wanted her to
Not only does Million Dollar Baby confront this; it also successfully tries to break the stereotype with the female protagonist, Maggie. In the beginning of the film, Maggie is not taken seriously around the gym she attended because no one believed that a woman like her could become a boxer. Not only that, but no one would train or box with her because she was a girl. For example, whenever Maggie came to work out she would always go to a corner by herself and ignore the other men as they made fun of her. The owner of the gym even told Maggie that she could never become a boxer. However, all this negativity did not stop Maggie. She kept training by herself and her dedication and persistence eventually lead her to be coached by a once famous boxer. At first he didn’t want to coach her because she was a girl, but when he saw the persistence and dedication that she had, he decided to change his mind. With the help of her new coach, she rises to the top of woman’s boxing and becomes a role model for woman everywhere. The movie shows that female athletes can be successful too and deserve as much airtime as male athletes. Not only that, but not once does the film focus on Maggie’s appearance. It only focuses on Maggie’s fighting style, techniques, and persistence in the …show more content…
This is often seen in media as the climax of films, plays, and television shows that are all about a male figure rescuing a woman who needs to be saved because she can’t save herself. Women are also normally portrayed as having personal conflict. According to Jenn Shreve, the only way that girls are able to overcome this personal conflict in media is by having a well-shaped and supporting environment. Shreve points out that women solve these problems in the media is by realizing that they need to conform with the normal gender roles. This is confronted in Million Dollar Baby and Maggie overcomes this stereotype. In the film, Maggie grew up in a poor neighborhood with an unstable family who tries to cheat the government into giving them money. Unlike other women in media, Maggie over comes her problems by breaking away from her environment. She does this by working all day as a waitress and saving up money so that she doesn’t have to cheat the government like her mother. She doesn’t conform to what people want her to do. An example of this is when Maggie’s mom says to her, “When people find out what you do they laugh.” Maggie doesn’t conform and continues to pursue her dreams and to not be the stereotypical woman that her family and childhood environment wanted her to