The Office Stereotypes

How many female stereotypes have you heard of? How about their role in the workplace? The Office, an American sitcom, has a few. There’s the extremely driven woman in authority with a heart of ice and no personal life; everyone fears her, but in reality, she is an emotional mess. Or the passive, kind, maternal, reliable worker who everyone loves and never challenges authority to success. What about the career ambitious, hard-working, spirited and compassionate woman in leadership? If you’re not familiar with it, meet Leslie Knope from Parks and Rec: a progressive and caring independent woman whose setting new standards for women in the American workplace. The Office relates to a large audience in America: the working class and everyone who has some connection to it. The show relies on “audiences’ familiarity with the realities of office culture to sell the joke”(Martin, 2013). However, the sitcom also offers comedic relief by exaggerating everyday stressful and unpleasant workplace situations through its characters. A large target is the female characters who …show more content…
It takes someone to question or challenge them either in real life or through art (Gregori-Signes, 2017). The office allows the audience to question gender roles through their extremity and obvious violations to morale in the show. However, the show’s gender stereotypes are not addressed as an issue in the show. Parks and Rec, on the other hand, clearly brings in feminism and questions gender roles in the workplace. The show shines a powerful light on Leslie as a strong driven individual who overcomes the workplace struggles women—across our country and the globe—face: lower expectations, sexual harassment, bias treatment, and disapproval of career ambition. Leslie establishes a place for feminism and strong female leadership in her workspace, community, and