The music industry is a major media institution that is widely influential in the way that people perceive their surroundings and how they experience discrimination and oppression within society. Popular media, such as music, acts as a catalyst for social construction (Glantz 3). Whether by way of radio, MP3 downloads, or music videos, people throughout the country, and all over the world are exposed to dominant ideologies through music that shape their thoughts and behaviors. One specific genre of music that is guilty of discriminatory and oppressive messages, yet might be slightly unexpected, is country music. “Country music is often labeled conservative, which makes it seem innocent and wholesome” (Rogers). The major perpetuators of oppression
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This remark exemplifies the sexist theme of depicting women in traditional gender roles. By saying that God only made girls to cry, it sends a message that boys are not able to be emotional as well. Rather than be emotional, this song calls for boys to demonstrate only masculine behaviors by completely rejecting anything that is feminine, such as crying, which is perceived as “sissy stuff” (Shaw 126). Remarks such as this heavily affect gender acquisition, which is how people in society learn the “appropriate” thinking and behaviors associated with their gender assignments as boys or girls (Shaw 119). This is harmful to society because emphasizing traditional gender roles hardwires into people’s brains that in order to be powerful, which essentially in today’s society means being like a man, one must be strong, independent, and emotionally out-of-touch. “God Made Girls” perpetuates systems of oppression due to its recurring sexist remarks, as seen in this …show more content…
This remark primarily exemplifies the sexist theme of attributing a woman’s worth strictly on the basis of her physical appearance, but it also touches on the theme of depicting women in traditional gender roles. Saying that God made girls because he needed something beautiful tells society that it is acceptable for popular media to hypersexualize women (Glantz 3). This is harmful to society in many ways. One way that it is potentially harmful to society is that it encourages women to “exploit their bodies as a means of capital exchange” (Glantz 8). The hypersexualization of women also teaches women that they are “only a pretty face” and that their beauty is all that they are good for. Even the idea of beauty itself is harmful because women work hard to achieve it, yet it can never really be attained since beauty is an ever-changing and fluid standard. Another way that it is harmful to society is because women are represented as the objects of men’s desires (Glantz 9). Representing women as objects of desire increases pornography consumption by men, and also effectively aids rape culture. By basing the worth of women only on their beauty, it downgrades the fact that women can be other things as well, such as intelligent and powerful. Overall, equating a woman’s worth to her physical appearance teaches society to only look
This remark exemplifies the sexist theme of depicting women in traditional gender roles. By saying that God only made girls to cry, it sends a message that boys are not able to be emotional as well. Rather than be emotional, this song calls for boys to demonstrate only masculine behaviors by completely rejecting anything that is feminine, such as crying, which is perceived as “sissy stuff” (Shaw 126). Remarks such as this heavily affect gender acquisition, which is how people in society learn the “appropriate” thinking and behaviors associated with their gender assignments as boys or girls (Shaw 119). This is harmful to society because emphasizing traditional gender roles hardwires into people’s brains that in order to be powerful, which essentially in today’s society means being like a man, one must be strong, independent, and emotionally out-of-touch. “God Made Girls” perpetuates systems of oppression due to its recurring sexist remarks, as seen in this …show more content…
This remark primarily exemplifies the sexist theme of attributing a woman’s worth strictly on the basis of her physical appearance, but it also touches on the theme of depicting women in traditional gender roles. Saying that God made girls because he needed something beautiful tells society that it is acceptable for popular media to hypersexualize women (Glantz 3). This is harmful to society in many ways. One way that it is potentially harmful to society is that it encourages women to “exploit their bodies as a means of capital exchange” (Glantz 8). The hypersexualization of women also teaches women that they are “only a pretty face” and that their beauty is all that they are good for. Even the idea of beauty itself is harmful because women work hard to achieve it, yet it can never really be attained since beauty is an ever-changing and fluid standard. Another way that it is harmful to society is because women are represented as the objects of men’s desires (Glantz 9). Representing women as objects of desire increases pornography consumption by men, and also effectively aids rape culture. By basing the worth of women only on their beauty, it downgrades the fact that women can be other things as well, such as intelligent and powerful. Overall, equating a woman’s worth to her physical appearance teaches society to only look