“Sugar, spice, and everything nice.” This is the beginning of the theme song of the old Cartoon Network show, The Powerpuff Girls. The show was lauded because it broke many of the stereotypes that are usually associated with female superheroes. Unfortunately, there are a scarce amount of images in mass media today that allow people to view women in a positive light; in fact, most of the time it is quite the opposite. The image of a woman in the modern world is negatively influenced by advertisements, the music industry, and reality shows.
Advertisements give society a negative perception of women. Ewen and Ewen, in their essay, “In the Shadow of the Image,” describe a boy named Elijah reading the directions of his shampoo bottle. The instructions …show more content…
For instance, the hip-hop and pop genres can be analyzed. The visual essay “Reading Labels, Selling Water” displays many different brands of water bottles, and it is stated that they appeal to certain audiences. Rappers are like these water bottles in the sense that they are trying to sell an image, and they use females as a means to assist in endorsing it. In “Ways of Seeing,” Berger explains that “Every one of [a female’s] actions – whatever its direct purpose or motivation -- is also read as an indication of how she would like to be treated” (Berger 194). Generally, women in hip-hop videos are seen as an object of rappers’ success. When females are seen in these videos dancing sexually, society falsely comes to the conclusion that they desire to be treated like prostitutes and talked down to. Because pop is female driven, their actions displayed through their performances can cause people to perceive a negative image of all women. In “Ways of Seeing,” Berger also states that “nakedness reveals itself,” and “nudity is placed on display” (Berger 196). To illustrate, one can consider the idea of a woman in the pop world beginning their career singing bubblegum pop songs, and then a few years later, she decides to write songs with more sexual content. The minute they alter their sound, she is then perceived as a tramp. In reality, she is simply stating that they she is comfortable with …show more content…
Berger’s essay, “Ways of Seeing,” emphasizes that “To be born a woman, has been to be born, within an allotted and confined space, into the keeping of men” (Berger 193). For many years, women have been seen as subordinate to men. They are expected to stay at home while the husband goes out and earns a living. Furthermore, it has long been perceived that the woman is the object of the husband, and the husband’s job is to make her comfortable. This concept of women being the possession of men is seen in many reality shows. A handful of these reality television shows focus on the females, and they show them wearing the finest clothes, going to the fanciest restaurants, and taking extravagant vacations. Many times, the husband rarely makes an appearance. When people are watching these programs, they fall under the assumption that women are the men’s possession, and that all the man owes to her is a lavish lifestyle. Additionally, reality shows frequently convey the women engaging in gossip. Eventually, all of the backstabbing comes out into the open, and they start fights with each other. This drama gives off a negative image of women because people believe that all females are catty and do not act their age. These types of shows are wildly popular, but they evoke a false image of women to viewers, thus negatively contributing to how females are seen in the eyes of
Advertisements give society a negative perception of women. Ewen and Ewen, in their essay, “In the Shadow of the Image,” describe a boy named Elijah reading the directions of his shampoo bottle. The instructions …show more content…
For instance, the hip-hop and pop genres can be analyzed. The visual essay “Reading Labels, Selling Water” displays many different brands of water bottles, and it is stated that they appeal to certain audiences. Rappers are like these water bottles in the sense that they are trying to sell an image, and they use females as a means to assist in endorsing it. In “Ways of Seeing,” Berger explains that “Every one of [a female’s] actions – whatever its direct purpose or motivation -- is also read as an indication of how she would like to be treated” (Berger 194). Generally, women in hip-hop videos are seen as an object of rappers’ success. When females are seen in these videos dancing sexually, society falsely comes to the conclusion that they desire to be treated like prostitutes and talked down to. Because pop is female driven, their actions displayed through their performances can cause people to perceive a negative image of all women. In “Ways of Seeing,” Berger also states that “nakedness reveals itself,” and “nudity is placed on display” (Berger 196). To illustrate, one can consider the idea of a woman in the pop world beginning their career singing bubblegum pop songs, and then a few years later, she decides to write songs with more sexual content. The minute they alter their sound, she is then perceived as a tramp. In reality, she is simply stating that they she is comfortable with …show more content…
Berger’s essay, “Ways of Seeing,” emphasizes that “To be born a woman, has been to be born, within an allotted and confined space, into the keeping of men” (Berger 193). For many years, women have been seen as subordinate to men. They are expected to stay at home while the husband goes out and earns a living. Furthermore, it has long been perceived that the woman is the object of the husband, and the husband’s job is to make her comfortable. This concept of women being the possession of men is seen in many reality shows. A handful of these reality television shows focus on the females, and they show them wearing the finest clothes, going to the fanciest restaurants, and taking extravagant vacations. Many times, the husband rarely makes an appearance. When people are watching these programs, they fall under the assumption that women are the men’s possession, and that all the man owes to her is a lavish lifestyle. Additionally, reality shows frequently convey the women engaging in gossip. Eventually, all of the backstabbing comes out into the open, and they start fights with each other. This drama gives off a negative image of women because people believe that all females are catty and do not act their age. These types of shows are wildly popular, but they evoke a false image of women to viewers, thus negatively contributing to how females are seen in the eyes of