Heteronormativity in Commercials Unit 2

In their article, Sex, Power and Intimacy, Shaw and Lee define heteronormativity as the assumption of heterosexuality as the norm or normative behavior in any given setting.  Heteronormativity is seen in all different types of social settings.  One of the most prevalent places we experience this concept on a daily basis is in the media.   The media perpetuates all of the norms based on sexuality.  Shaw and Lee also define these norms to be followed as sexual scripts.  These sexual scripts are guidelines for how we are supposed to feel and act as sexual persons.  Many different media outlets create these sexual scripts and reinforce heteronormativity.  One example is within TV commercials.  This toothpaste commercial creates a very heteronormativity view on relationships.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-anmVGZv2c&list=UUIj3qdm8ZUQIcQKFTXq3PwA&index=3

The commercial creates a very heteronormative view on how couples are supposed to be.  This is a way that is socially constructing views on what couple are supposed to look like, and how they are supposed to live.  It talks about a man and a woman, and it even talks about their future children.  The commercial is creating a sexual script that tells the viewers that they are supposed to marry the opposite sex, and have children.  It romanticizes this particular couple as well, even though they are advertising toothpaste.  

Even children's networks have commercials that advertise heteronormative views.  Children learn so many of their social norms from the media, and these commercials create the heteronormative views.  Many of the shows on these networks advertise in their commercials about the crushes that the main characters have (on the opposite sex).  The article Elementary School Girls and Heteronormativity  by Myers and Raymond talks a lot about young girls crushes.  They discuss how these young girls have crushes and they are only reinforced by their peers if they are heteronormative ideas.  Many of Disney channel shows are based on plots about girls having crushes on boys.  This is a way that the TV is creating these sexual scripts for young kids. The article discusses how young girls only have crushes on boys, and these shows are just reinforcing and affirming those ideas.

Austin & Ally Commercial-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMP4Zy-xUyw This is a commercial for one of Disney's newer shows.  It's plot is very much based on a girl/boy relationship.  Also, the following picture is from the Disney Channel Show, Good Luck Charlie.  These shows and images are reinforcing the idea that all couples are heteronormative, and young kids, especially young girls learn a lot of their social scripts from shows like this.

From commercials directed towards young children to advertising to adults, heteronormativity is seen in every way.  Thinking about the bigger picture, I don't think I have ever seen a commercial advertising for a product, or kid shows that have a same-sex couple in it.  Almost all commercials advertise with heteronormative views.  Is this something new that will change as more and more states allow same-sex marriage, and it becomes more of a social norm to be all inclusive? We have started to see some shows that highlight same-sex couples, but they are not family-directed shows.  I think all children's shows have heterosexual couples.  Do you think there will be a time when we will see heteronormativity in children's shows? Are there ways that children can be shown other sexual scripts that are not all heteronormative?

Sex As A Double Standard

I’m sure we have all heard sayings about how “boys will be boys”, “men will be men”, or “men only want one thing”, and I’m sure that we’ve heard it from multiple sources; from our peers, from strangers as they pass by, the media, and even from family members.  I still remember when my mom sat me down when I was about sixteen and told me “women have to be the smart ones because men think with a whole other brain”.   

I’ve talked to my fiancé and some other male friends of mine about what their parents told them during “the talk” and all the men I talked to, said it was their dad giving them “the talk” and they were told to “be safe and don’t get into too much trouble”.  Really? How is it that women are told to protect themselves and that they have to be the ones using their head in these intimate situations but men are told to have fun and be safe?  This is a part of the double standard that we’ve addressed in class as well as in many of our readings. 

VERSES

In Jessica Valenti’s The Cult of Virginity reading, she discusses the double standard that is created with virginity as her main topic.   She discusses that virginity for women is seen as what makes a woman pure and “good” whereas for men to be masculine he can’t be a virgin, and in fact she’s found that there is no definition for a male virgin.  When I was talking to my fiancé he said that something that he has heard a lot is that if you are a man and you’re with a woman her “number” is three more than she says, because otherwise she could be seen as a slut, and for men their “number” should be divided by three, because they want to prove their masculinity.   Yikes!  IF this were true it would seem as if everyone has something to hide, but why?  Because this is how we’ve been taught to think.  The picture below is of a woman justifying that being a slut is okay because she acts like a man.  Therefore it is okay for men to have lots of sex.    

 

        The double standard was also addressed in the lecture I attended by Dr. Jackson Katz, who is a very well known anti-sexist male activist.  Although a lot of his talk was about gender violence and men's violence towards women it made me think about the double standard of sex.  In Dr. Katz's analogy he used a pyramid to describe men.  At the top are the men who perform acts of violence against women and at the bottom are the men who could recognize the violent behavior and  who could do something about it by educating other men.  This made me think about the double standard of sex because for men it is seen as a way to have power and to show masculinity but for women it isn't about power or femininity, but instead it is about staying as pure and "innocent" as possible because it is desirable.  

        So who needs to be more educated? Do you think men need to be educated to protect themselves as much as women are?  How do we change the mentality that sex isn't about masculinity and power and do we need to?  Or should we take a different approach and teach women that it is okay to have sex, that it doesn't take away from their "purity"?  Do you think that sex should have different associations and connotations that come along with it?  My mom always told me (in conversations I was slightly uncomfortable with at the time, but now appreciate) that it should be something a lot more special than dating a few weeks or months.  How are those kinds of associations different than what we see in society and do they need to change? If so then how? What are your thoughts?

Jason Collins and Sexuality In Sports

       On April 29th, 2013 Jason Collins publicly came out as gay in a cover story for Sport Illustrated. This feat marked him as the first male athlete from one of the four major sports leagues in the US to publicly announce a homosexual identity. Jason received wide-spread support not only from the basketball community, but from almost everybody. The only backlash he encountered was critique on Christian lifestyle from a few high profile conservative people.

          Why did it take this long for a sports player to come out? Will this inspire others follow in his footsteps?

         Men's and women's sports have always been highly homosocial settings. While more same-sex intimacies are accepted in these settings (such as patting each other on the butt, hugging), homosocial settings strive to reinforce homonormative values. These "gay" actions are ok as long as it is assumed that no one actually IS gay. Sports are also highly competitive and "masculine". Players are constantly competing to be the strongest, most "manliest" player. Michael Kimmel, in his artile "Masculinity as Homophobia" would argue that being gay in the sports world is looked down upon because stereotypical gay traits are "feminine" and un-manly. Thus the players constantly police each other to reinforce their own sexuality as well the other players. Michael Messner experienced this policing as a kid and discusses it in his "100% Straight" article. Messner found himself attracted to his friend Timmy on the basketball team, but felt as though he had to prove his masculinity by being physical with Timmy. Like Michael, most male athletes probably feel some level of attraction or bond to the men around them even though they identify as straight. Considering Messner's definition that masculinity is policed as the absence of femininity, If an athlete were to show any signs of these "gay" feelings, they would be less of a man considering Messner's definition that masculinity is policed as the absence of femininity. Thus, these relationships are more of a "bromance"in the New Homosocial setting like that which Romesburg argues in "Holy Fratrimony"


         This sexuality policing exists in many other homosocial spaces. One such space is the hip/hop industry. The rap scene is one that pushes away homosexuality and causes men to secure their sexuality by demonizing women. Only last year has the industry begun to show signs of acceptance with artists like Frank Ocean publicly coming out. Do you think it is more difficult to navigate the rap industry as a gay male?

        Back to Jason Collins. Jason stated that one of the major reasons he decided to come forward with his sexuality was the emotional toll he faced after the Boston Marathon bombing. If the bombing had not occurred, would Jason have come out? Possibly not and the NBA would remain without a gay leader. Thankfully due to his courage and leadership, future athletes will feel less threatened by these heteronormative policing in homosocial structures.

     Ladies, due to sports being a typically "masculine" activity, how do you feel these policing effects differ in female homosocial settings. Additionally, there have been prominent female athletes who have come out as lesbian, yet they have received less media attention. Do you think this is a factor of women's homosexuality being less "important" or is it a intersectional issue in which gay men get more attention because they are gay?

Bisexuality and the media.

My question is ‘why are bisexuals seen as unstable?’ According to Freud bisexuality is innate and we repress homosexual desires. Freud can sometimes be an unreliable source as much of his work lacks scientific evidence, but I agree with him on this front. If everybody was brought up to think that being gay was ‘the norm’ then straight people would be looked upon as ‘weird’ or ‘abnormal’, my belief is that society shapes our sexuality. This is exhibited through the portrayal of celebrities in modern day American media.

American media depicts bisexuality as extremely deviant and attention-seeking behavior. Popular celebrity figures are often criticized for bisexual behavior as it is seen as ‘slutty’ and as it correctly says in the article “Sex, Power, and Intimacy” people have the impression that bisexuals have sex all of the time and that they’re doing it with both men and women.

 Lindsey Lohan is a celebrity who has been slated for being bisexual, I have seen article after article headlined something like “Psychotic Lindsey ” or “Two toxic people can’t be together” referring to her and Samantha Ronson’s relationship. Funnily enough, the majority of the time this coincides with her bisexual ‘phases’. This directly relates to Jennifer Baumgardner’s article “What is Bisexuality?” because the media correlates bisexual bouts of behavior with unstable and deviant episodes of celebrities lives.

The media loves to play on this idea that bisexuals are crazy and too often they put up a picture of say, Lindsey Lohan for example, walking home from a night out drunk with a cigarette in hand stumbling around headlined “Lindsey Wasted Again.” the majority of the time the media portray this 'deviant' behavior as behavior which correlates with times when she is dating a girl. This implies that she is getting ‘wasted’ and looking so unstable because she is bisexual.

Magazines and newspapers have a habit of portraying bisexuality in this way and they never leave it out. Jessie J illustrates this point when she tweeted “Really annoys me when newspapers put 'Jessie J the bisexual singer' would they put 'Beyonce the straight singer'?? #sortitout." And she has a valid point. The identity of these bisexual celebrities is defined by their sexual orientation instead of their careers or talents.

The media labels celebrities and makes connections between unrelated things such as deviant behavior and sexuality and hopefully one-day sexuality will be viewed in a different light. In the large scale of things, why does it matter who is gay, straight or bisexual? 

Is Virginity Part of the Business Plan?

             Celebrities are constantly being put under the spotlight for just about everything. When a celebrity first hits fame, is virginity part of the business plan? It seems that most of the celebrities during my childhood came out and said, “I’m a virgin!” I think the reason why each of these stars made this statement is because their managers felt that it would make them come across as innocent, desirable and pure. When a star is labeled as a “virgin” they are looked at as sexy but not sexual, and their morality is held at a high standard.

For instance let’s look at Jessica Simpson.

            First of all, is that a cross around her neck in that sexy picture with the low cut top? Jessica Simpson, daughter of a Baptist minister, started her singing career touring Christian youth festivals and True Love Waits events. In Jessica Valenti’s article, The Cult of Virginity, she states, “Even when she went mainstream, she publicly declared her virginity—stating that her father had given her a promise ring when she was twelve years old—and spoke of her intention to wait to have sex until marriage.” In some cases religion can be a factor for some of these celebrities, however; I am starting to think that the reason these stars publicly announce their virginity is to become a desired sex symbol and “pure” young women which is extremely desirable to men. I have noticed that more women than men publicly announce their virginity because of the double standard; if men are out having sex it is considered a good thing. If women are out having tons of sex they are just looked at as “damaged goods.” As soon as a star announces his or her virginity the tabloids blow up, the press is writing articles left and right, interviewing the star etc. All this attention seems like it is good for business, no?

             By making this business decision, Jessica Simpson is not only gaining the attention of older men, she grabs the attention of parents who have young girls. Parents think, “As a singer, who is a virgin, her music must be appropriate to listen to.” Jessica Simpson became a young woman that young girls could look up to. Parents are able to use her as an example—“abstain from sex until marriage!” In Kristen Myers and Laura Raymond’s article, Elementary School Girls and Heteronormativity, they observed young girls talking about television, books, music, crushes, sex and dating all through a heteronormative lens. In this article, Myers and Raymond state, “Sex—‘kissing in bed’—was gross yet provocative. Despite its allure, these girls implied that sex was inappropriate for them. They also declared it inappropriate for the teenage celebrities who they believed were actually having sex.”

            I thought it was interesting that these young girls knew sex was not right for them at a young age. I wonder if the media has a role in all of this. Besides Jessica Simpson, Brittney Spears, Miley Cyrus, Hilary Duff, Taylor Swift, Joe Jonas, Tim Tebow all declared that they were virgins at one point. All these stars have a huge following of young girls especially. Does their virgin status make them more appealing to parents and their children? I think it’s all part of the business plan.

          Check out these links:

http://www.cosmopolitan.com/celebrity/exclusive/celebrity-virgins#slide-1

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/04/celebrity-virgins-stars-who-spoke-about-being-virgin_n_2239884.html#slide=more267654

Bromance on the Shore.

Just another Saturday morning with nothing to do. I flip through the channels and settle on the Jersey Shore marathon on MTV. Images and images of episodes I have already seen about a million times flash on the screen. I laugh out loud when Snooki is so wasted that she can't even see the beach in front of her and I shake my head when Ronny and Sam have another one of their famous fights. While all this happening, two roommates, Pauly and Vinny, cuddle in bed. 

We are all familiar with the word "bromance." But just in case you aren't, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a bromance is "a close nonsexual friendship between men." One of the earliest bromances we were introduced to was between roommates, Paul "Pauly D" DelVecchio and Vincent "Vinny" Guadagnino of the famous MTV series, Jersey Shore. The pair shared a bedroom, played pranks on the other unsuspecting roommates, partied together, met each others' families, rubbed sunscreen on each others' backs, and even helped each other shave. It's clear that Pauly and Vinny developed a close relationship; the epitome of a bromance. 

Pauly and Vinny's bromance is only one of several instances we have seen in the media within the last few years. According to Don Romesburg's "Holy Fratrimony: Male Bonding and the New Homosociality," we have reached a point where close relationships between two heterosexual men is becoming widely accepted. When you think about it, we have come a long way from the homophobic jokes on men who are good friends with other men. With more shows and movies like The Hangover, there is more acceptance and less ridicule on this type of friendship. Of course, this acceptance comes with knowing that these men are not having an kind of sexual interactions. So have we really progressed and entered into the "New Homosociality" or have we simply accepted a strictly heterosexual friendship among men? 

However, Romesburg brings up a great point when he says that these bromances also have an effect on women. Women have been "pushed to the margins of these apparently progressive male relationships, find themselves represented in predictably boring ways--nag, supporter, sexy sidekick, mother, wife." With these bromances, men have created a new find a friendship that does not include women.

Like I mentioned earlier, we reached a point where we are okay with these types of relationships, but have we truly changed the way our society sees homosexuality? Could two gay men have a bromance? What is new homosociality and what makes it so different from the old homosociality?

Lauren Rosenthal-On Behalf of Kate Middleton...

I have always been overweight. When I was little, size did not matter. All that mattered was that I was well fed and ate healthily. As I grew up, my weight did matter. People looked at me differently because of my weight. I heard many murmurings about my size and how ugly I was.  Whenever I talked to boys I would always be weary of my appearance and feel self-conscious.

In ninth grade, my doctor told me that I needed to lose weight for the health. I did not complain. Although I knew that I needed to lose weight for health reasons, part of me was excited to get that extra push to lose the weight. If I lost all of the weight, I could be pretty and people would not call me fat behind my back. I was ready to gain that self-confidence and change my appearance.

I decided to go on weight watchers because I did not want to lose the weight artificially. Let me tell you, it was not easy to lose the weight. I had to watch what I ate and work out most days. It was all worth it. Losing the weight allowed me to gain the self-confidence that I did not have before. People stopped talking about my appearance behind my back and told me upfront that I looked good.

   

I am not the only girl that has struggled with her weight image. Based on Shaw and Lee, 95 percent of women overestimate their body image (235). Media enforces these images of the “perfect” woman. They are usually skinny, beautiful, and the object of man’s desire (Miss Representation). These are not healthy images of women.  Girls in high school look at these images and want to be just as skinny and just as beautiful as these women. From a very early age, girls dress in provocative clothing and spend money to look like their favorite celebrity. This is atrocious that some young girls are being unhealthy because of their role models.

But then I start to reflect on my own role models. One celebrity comes to mind, Kate Middleton. In the past, Kate Middleton has been bashed because of her body weight. Many people think that she is too skinny. Now, Kate Middleton is pregnant and her weight is a big part of the tabloids.  So it makes me wonder, should Kate Middleton really be my role model?

I have to think, why did I like Kate Middleton in the first place? Was it her body weight or was it her story? Although I do like her style and sometimes try to mimic her clothes, her image is not the only reason I like her. Although I originally liked her because of her connection to Prince William, I call her my role model because of the kind of person she is.  I am appreciative of her “working class background” and her charity efforts. Even though some people might question her true nature, she seems like a kind person that cares about people. Doesn’t that sound like a good role model? Some people might think of her as a passive woman but I think of her as a strong woman that will make a difference in the world. After all, if she ends up having a girl, her daughter will be next in line to the throne, after Prince William. What a great accomplishment for feminism!

I struggle with making sense of my position in the media. I do not like that young girls are trying to make themselves look like skeleton models. I would hate to hear that these girl’s role models make them concerned about their image. However, I would never give up Kate Middleton as my role model just because of her weight. That is the problem with young girls; they are not looking at the person behind the body. Young girls look up to actresses like Selena Gomez and Blake Lively without really knowing what that celebrity stands for. If girls were conscious about who their role models are, maybe the world would be a better place.

Who are your role models? Why do you like them?  Does their style affect your identity?

A few more of my strong women role models

On Gilmore Girls, the main character (Lorelei) started her own business.

Parks and Recreation: Leslie Knope ran for city council, and won.

13 Going on 30: Jenna Rink realized that image is not everything and that everyday life should be celebrated