Feminism in 2017

The media portrays women as being very feminine and men being very masculine. Women can either be very sexy like a seductress or a housewife. Men are the ones that are seen working to provide for their family and being very muscular and tough. Women in the media are held to impossible standards. To be a man in the media you have to be very manly and tough and be the one to provide for your family. Only very few shows challenge these stereotypes of women.

One show that does not stereotype men or women is Modern Family. In the show Modern Family the family is all mixed. One of the main characters Phil, is not your average dad he is very silly and his wife Claire is very serious and smarter than Phil. The dads in media are always seen as very manly but Phil does not seem that manly at all. Both Claire and Phil work to provide money for their family. This is breaking a stereotype because men are usually the ones providing for their family. Cam and Mitch are a couple who are married. There aren't many other shows that have gay couples especially as main characters. Cam and Mitch are portrayed in a way that challenges the gay stereotype of being feminine and gamophobic. They are just regular guys.

A show that promotes stereotypes is Ugly Betty. We watched one episode in class and from what I can tell it promotes stereotypes for women because the main character, Betty is not the prettiest person in the world. She wants to go into the fashion world, but has gotten shut down by the way she looks. Which is unfair because they judged her ability by her looks. At one part of the show her boss thought she was a nobody because she was ugly, he then he realized she was very talented and started to treat her better.

Lastly, another example of a show that presents stereotypes is I Love Lucy. Lucy is a very bright character. When she suspects her husband of cheating, she does not hold back her anger, she makes sure to see and to stop her husband in the act. In one scene Lucy dresses up as another woman to make sure that her husband is not cheating on her. Lucy is a housewife but she also does what she wants to. She is silly and funny. This show was filmed a lot earlier than other shows, So it stereotypes men and women a lot more.

Now the media portrays men and women differently than they did before. Shows now don't stereotype men and woman as much as they used to. In reality women are successful and can be the breadwinner for their family and they don't have to be housewives. Men I now don't have to be tough.