Gender Roles in today's TV and Movies

Gender Roles are a big part of every movie and every television show. Even in the modern world, women are often expected to be wives, keep the house, and raise the children. On countless shows, this type of gender roles is used. While the roles might be reversed at times, it is usually the male going to work and the female staying home. I sometimes watch the show Parenthood, which is about the trials and tribulations of the large and outgoing Braverman Family. This family, while very dysfunctional, is also very loving and close-nit. The parents, Zeek and Camille have four kids, Adam, Sarah, Julia, and Crosby. Adam is married with two kids, Sarah is single with two, Julia is married with one, and Crosby is engaged with one kid. This family dynamic is unordinary and definitely not the “typical family”. While they might not be completely normal, their show still has gender roles. Adam and his wife, Kristina, have two kids and their family has typical gender roles. Adam goes to work everyday, while Kristina stays home to take care of the kids and tend to the house. Julia and her husband, Joel, do not follow typical gender roles. Joel is a stay-at-home father, while Julia is out earning the money as a corporate attorney. As the show develops, the viewers see that this arrangement is not working out for Joel. He is becoming restless not working because of the recession and wants to go back to work. Even though the world is changing and women are becoming more independent and working more, men are still expected to work and earn the living. Joel, like many men, feel like they are the “MEN” and should be earning the money in the family. Many are taught as children to earn the money and not be home doing “women’s work” at home with the kids. This is what society teaches us. In every television show, every movie, has these gender roles, whether intentional or not. Normally, the action heroes in the movies are men with a woman as a partner. Rarely do you see a woman as the hero. Now I am not saying that this does not exist, because it does. Women are sometimes the hero or the business person, but more often than not, men take that role. People look and see women as being the nurturers, while the men should go get the “bad guys” or whatever. Now, these roles have changed over the years, but I do not see in the near future people viewing gender roles differently. Women will most likely always be the “homemakers” and men will be the big earners. Whether this is good or bad, is up to you.

Music

I think everyone expresses themselves through music. Whether you are feeling happy or sad, you can express yourself through music. If you are feeling down, you might try to motivate yourself with upbeat music so you can pick yourself up and keep going. If you are happy or excited, you might listen to your favorite music to keep your spirits up. And for me when I work out, I need music! I always chose some upbeat, loud songs that keep me going and take my focus off of how tired I might be. I know this is what I do at least…

          I also believe that artists express themselves through music. Whatever they might be going through most often base what lyrics we hear. For example, the song we looked at in class, Love the Way You Lie by Eminem and Rihanna, expresses something they both went through, domestic violence. They could express themselves through their song, and put a lot of emotion in it. I know artists like Taylor Swift puts her personal life in her lyrics. If she just went through a bad break up, you pretty much know what her song will be about.

 I like how artists tell a story through their music. I know I can always relate so much more when I hear a story. These people are famous, and odds are that you will never meet them in person, but through their songs, you feel like you know them, that you have talked to them. Music can be pretty powerful.

Panopticism and Education

Jeremy Bentham’s proposed system called the Panopticon is evident in most schools. In most of the schools, there are always teachers, faculty, and staff milling around. Students are watched closely by all faculty through both direct observation and through video surveillance. Students tend to fear getting in trouble from school administration so students tend be on good behavior. This idea of fear of punishment comes from Panopticon. The prisoners do not know when they are being watched, and who is watching them, so they behave like they are being constantly watched. In schools, the prisoners are the students and the guards are the faculty and staff. The Panopticon is applied to schools because, like prisons, the students need to be kept under control.

In schools, ideas associated with the Panopticon are evident. I know that in my school we had one particular religion teacher who was older and very strict in her ways. She is a nun and seemed to always be yelling at someone at some point. Most people feared her because of how strict she is. If she was having a bad day, you should know enough to avoid her at all costs. She would yell at you from down the hall to help her or to discipline you. She seemed to be everywhere at once and sometimes, you could never get away. One time at school, I was walking down the hallway with a classmate and she called me, by my sister’s name of course, and asked me, no told me, to help her. I hadn’t even seen her come out of her room! As a student, you cannot always be aware of who is watching. Another example in school is at assemblies. Everyone is filed into bleachers, with teachers scattered around. Most of these assemblies get pretty boring, so you tend to talk to one another, etc. Once, one of the students was talking to another and a teacher from across the gym came over to yell at her. These both apply to the Panopticon because it enforces the idea that you are constantly watched, even if you don’t know it. This nun and teachers were, in essence, the guards, and we were all prisoners. You did not always see them, but they seemed to always be able to see you or at least tract you down. Panopticon’s idea of fear and punishment is also seen in schools. In the Panopticon, the prisoners behaved because they feared retribution. The students fear getting in trouble, so most behave while in school. I believe that the Panopticon is seen throughout schools because people believe students can be controlled by using these ideas. The ideas of constant surveillance and fear of punishment lead students to behave since they never know who is watching.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5a6RdHBLV4o

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zYKHLitkuI&feature=related