...The television series Modern Family attempts to portray a more contemporary view of American families being that the traditional image of a nuclear family is fading out. However, despite the show’s aim at presenting the image of modern families in America today, the show still emphasizes stereotypes and outdated patriarchal ideologies. All three of the families on the show Modern Family are in the upper middle class. The first family is the Dunphys—the husband is Phil Dunphy who is a the breadwinner that works as a real estate agent while his wife Claire Dunphy is a stay-at-home mother. The two of them have three kids; a daughter named Haley who is attractive but known as the “dumb blonde” (but is in fact not actually blonde), a daughter named...
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...The good news is you’ve won a lifetime supply of razor blades. The bad news is you’re going to die. This is the dilemma that Phil Dunphy faces in sitcom Modern Family’s episode, ‘Lifetime Supply.’ For Those new to the series, Modern Family follows the lives of three very different families; 21 century gay couple with an adopted daughter, older man with glamorous young wife and the tradition yet dysfunctional nuclear family. The audience finds comedy in the unique stereotypes each character plays on and the relationship they share with each other, and through the episodes discover each character’s qualities, which makes them such memorable TV icons. Phil’s end of his lifetime supply of razor blades isn’t his greatest problem though. Gloria’s dreams are plagued by black rats, and after consulting her Columbian traditions, believes that something bad is going to happen to someone close to her. What makes this scene so memorable is how absurd this belief seems to be. This is emphasised in Jay’s response, clearly not understanding Gloria’s cultural beliefs, saying, “well I dreamt of a lucky blue cow, were good to go.” This is just one example of the suburb stereotypes displayed by Gloria and Javier, focusing on spiritual and cultural stereotypes of Columbian people....
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...STEREOTYPING OF SEX ROLES IN THREE MODERN ART FORMS In this paper, I will argue that the arts and the media as a whole project demeaning sex roles for women through the process of stereotyping, in which traditionally feminine characteristics are exaggerated and categorized in order to simplify the interpretation of female characters. These stereotypes fall into three broad categories, those of the Good Housewife, the Scarlet Woman, and the Career Woman, none of which represent a fully mature, fully human form of personality development. In describing these basic categories of women found in the media, researchers have found them to be based on a classic opposition of types. For example, the housewife is characterized as being conservative, loyal, and cooperative, if somewhat out of place in the real world: In addition to the traditionally found housewife stereotype, there exists a strong and quite distinctive stereotype of woman as bunny. Bunny is described as glamorous, good-looking, pleasure-loving, romantic, excitable, passionate, frivolous and sensual... a third stereotype is reserved for women who choose activities which carry them beyond the traditional roles which serve men. These women lose their femininity... (Clifton, McGrath, Wick, l976: 144) In this study, we will compare the treatment of these demeaning stereotypes in several of the media that are not usually considered in sex role studies: contemporary works of art, contemporary popular music, and situation-based...
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...Name Instructor Course Date Stereotypes in Mass Media Mass media has become a main source of popular culture in modern society. The media does not only entertain or feed information to the audience, but also transfers the beliefs, values and stereotypes of the society resulting to a change in the order of life in society (Wells 514). According to Althusser, families, schools and religions play a crucial role of ideological state apparatuses. Such institutions indoctrinate and transfer the ideologies of society into the minds of people in the society in order to control them. However, in modern society, the media is turning out to be yet another apparatus for controlling the minds of people. To most people, the pieces of art such as movies, magazines, documentaries and music in the media seem unique. However, all these products are no different from each other. The content in the media reflects the life of people in such a way that people would comprehend. Such a reflection occurs through reproduction of stereotypes which impacts profoundly on life in society (Wells 514). This paper examines the stereotypes mass media in more detail by considering the works of Betye Saar, the use of the concept in advertising and images in popular culture such as Aunt Jemima among others. The Liberation of Aunt Jemima Betye Saar is one of the few women who challenged the male artists’ dominance in the museum and gallery spaces in the 1970s. Some organizations such...
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...Stereotypes "Blondes are not smart"; "All Muslims are terrorists"; "In Russia, people live with bears and only drink vodka." Everyone probably heard these sentences and in our society they are known as stereotypes. The concept of "stereotype" was born in the 20s of last century. It was introduced into the scientific literature by the American scientist W. Lippmann, who characterized the stereotype as a small "picture of the world" that a person stores in the brain in order to save the effort that is required to perceive more complex situations. What are the stereotypes based on? In order not to do “ unnecessary” thinking process, people use well-known stereotypes. Sometimes they find their confirmation in the observation of people and then...
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...In a time when foreign accents are heard nearly daily, it seems as though stereotypes related to the accents have not disappeared. The accent stereotypes are not only related to the geographical location of the accent but about the person regardless of where they may come from. A foreign accent may make someone believe they lack intelligence or competence in communication or other areas. The differences in stereotypes for accents get much more nuanced. For example, the stereotypes formed after an American hearing an accent from Georgia in the United States of America would be much different than the stereotypes formed from an accent of a foreign country. Stereotypes such as a lack of ability to communicate well, lack of intelligence or collectivizing...
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...Stereotyping and prejudice, or evaluation, are ever present in modern society, therefore it is not surprising that researchers found an interest in these constructs and in trying to explain how and why they arise. Prejudice can be defined as a negative affective response towards members of an outgroup; whilst stereotype refers to the cultural beliefs which form a representation about outgroup members (Amodio &Devine, 2006). This essay examines the hypothesis that implicit stereotypes and evaluations are dependent constructs which necessitate each other to activate, by considering past literature on the subject. Gawronski, Deutsch, Mbirkou, Seibt and Strack (2008) studied the dependency hypothesis by measuring the effect of the reduction of automatic stereotyping on automatic evaluations. They found that when automatic stereotyping was reduced due to training in the affirmation of positive counterstereotypes, automatic negative evaluations were subsequently reduced as well. Furthermore, training in the negation of negative stereotypes, led to an increase in automatic stereotype activation and a subsequent increase in negative evaluations. Gawronski et...
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...of their skin. Today, the severity of the racism is not as brutal, but it still exists. Where do these stereotypes start? Television plays a significant part in giving stereotypes to different races. Children’s networks have references to racism, which plants the seed of negativity to another race which will grow throughout the lifetime of a human being. To name a few; Disney Channel, ABC, and movies allude to some type of racism in their television programs. Early 2000’s children are familiar with the Disney Channel comedy, The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. The setting is The Tipton Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts owned by one of the richest men in the world, Mr. Tipton. One of the first characters introduced is Estaban; a struggling...
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...William Ryals December 3, 2013 Black Identity and Culture Prof. W. P. Holbrook S116 Exploring the Views of Marriage and Family in African American Films, Stereotypes and TV Shows Good Times. The Jeffersons. The Cosby Show. Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The list goes on; all of these shows are viewed as classics and are some of the most highest-rated television programs of all-time. Another commonality amongst these shows is that they all center around African American main characters and or families. Many of these shows dealt with the many problems the African American community faces. While African Americans are viewed in a mostly positive light, throughout television history many stereotypes were reoccurring on popular TV shows, movies and in the media. Although improved, the idea of stereotypical characters is still prevalent in modern society. One character that comes to mind immediately is Sheneneh from the hit TV show Martin. She was a loud-mouthed hair stylist, who was the stereotypical face of a ghetto woman in Detroit. In an episode that aired in 1997 titled, “Martin: Power to the People’s Court”, Sheneneh gets into a car accident and she makes the comment “I don’t [have any car insurance], Tommy, and now I ain’t goin’ to be able to get none is what I’m tryna tell you!” This reinforced the stereotype that African American women drive around without car insurance. Sheneneh isn’t alone when it comes to these types of characters; in the Barbershop film series there...
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...Adrianne Council Dr. Harkins-Pierre Introduction to Humanities 115 October 24, 2011 Journal #Contemporary Stereotypes Contemporary Stereotypes: Three Play Summaries Thesis: Engaging in this journal assignment enabled the steadfast dedication of creative efforts to be geared toward creating three play summaries based on contemporary stereotypes that exist. I. Introduction: Stereotypes and comedy A. Historical comedy B. Stereotypes as a tradition C. Stereotypes and the Shakespearean Experience II. Body: Three Play Summaries A. “Marriage, Rings, and Things” B. “Run the World” C. “Dear Curl-ella” III. Conclusion: Stereotypes, roles, and Society A. Humor and the Audience B. Effects of Stereotypes C. Stereotypes Thrive Adrianne Council Dr. Harkins-Pierre Introduction to Humanities 115 October 24, 2011 Journal # Contemporary Stereotypes Contemporary Stereotypes: Three Play Summaries There is a trivial tradition in comedy which dates back to both Shakespearean plays and literature. This tradition involves the usage of a coined blend of comedy and stereotyped...
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...impressions are comparable to the idea of Stereotypes, or preconceived notion placed on a certain groups of people . In Celluloids Indians Jacquelyn Kilpatrick describes stereotypes as such, “‘ [s] tereotypes are evaluative concepts about status and roles and as such are central to interpreting and evaluating social groups including one’s own.”’ (xvi) Using this idea Kilpatrick explores “the social, ideological and political construction” (xvi) of stereotypes in literature, film and politics in accordance to different perspectives. In short we explore how the interpretation of film and literature relies on the perspective in which it is told, as different perspectives manifest different stereotypes. Prehaps some of the most prevalent examples are Literary works. These works often stem from stories of experience in encounters with Native Americans. Many of these literary...
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...Throughout the history of the human race, stereotypes have developed for quite literally every type of person in society: male, female, white, black, straight, and homosexual. These stereotypes are subtly shown, but noticeable nonetheless in the popular television show Modern Family. The sitcom documents the daily life of a fictitious “modern” family, consisting of a common Caucasian family, a gay couple, and a young-wife-older-husband couple, all of whom are related. The stereotypes of the Dunphy family, particularly Claire, stand out as she fulfills the expected stereotypical role of a stay-at-home mother, her family constantly teasing her and her consistent attempts to contain her family to be a normal family. Being a stay-at-home mother who doesn’t hold a job, Claire depends completely on her husband Phil in terms of income, which is identical to countless other TV shows. Claire’s character is based around this stereotypical image of women in television: no contribution to the household financially, and the classic characteristics of motherhood. In the episode “Phil’s New Car,” Claire tells Phil to go buy a car that is fit for the family, and gets upset with him when he returns with a sports car, clearly unsuitable for their family of five. Claire, completely concerned with Phil’s decision, berates him, showing her attribute for wanting the entire family to travel together. In response to Claire’s natural motherly character, the rest of her family makes fun of her, constantly...
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...Barbie Doll. Perhaps the real mark of "Barbie Doll's" welcome has been the numerous times it has been reprinted and analysed. Appearing in 1973, at the heart of feminism's second wave, "Barbie Doll" embodied the rage many women felt at being sexually objectified and treated as second-class citizens. The poem remains popular in large parts because it continues to represent women's experience. When you read the title of this poem, automatically you get a sense of something that is not real, a typical stereotype. This stereotype is seen through modern life today, through the media, celebrities, peer groups, or the obvious child’s toy. “Barbie Doll” symbolically describes the inherently destructive nature of patriarchy. A system of social organization in which the “male” is the ruling principle, patriarchy demands women’s obedience to men. Historically, this obedience has been externally manifest through law, for example, until the twentieth century women had been denied voting privileges in the United States. But patriarchy also exhibits its power through the shaping of mind and self-image. A “good” woman is one who conforms to patriarchal expectations: she is feminine, domestic, and will be a stereotypical housewife and leave the men to be the “breadwinner”. The “Barbie Doll” is known as “Satan’s plastic sister”. The intention of the doll was perfection, and when little girls are brought up playing with “Barbie & Ken” they expect reality to be very similar in later life, as...
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...to encounter the world’s greatest issue with prejudices, discrimination, stereotypes. Race, gender, age, ethnicity, and religion are prime examples of biases. As a reader, one may envision prejudice, discrimination, and stereotype are the same words just used in different context; however, the definitions illustrate the opposite. According to Fiske (2010), all facets of biases include category-based responses, which are directed towards other individuals (Fiske, 2010). Social biases can negatively affect an individual’s life, employment status, and outlook and quality of life. It is important to understand and research the many reasons why social biases are negative and how to conquer and modify one’s behavior to better prepare for the future. Define the concepts of prejudice, stereotyping, and discrimination According to Myers (2005), social biases are a typical occurrence in any type of group collaboration that involves negative evaluations of each group (Meyer, 2005). Many social psychologists frequently associate cognition to stereotype, affect to prejudice, and behavioral to discrimination. The first type of bias is stereotype, which is represented when an individual places personal beliefs on a particular group. Some examples of groups are whites, Muslims, homeless, and rich. Stereotypes are usually distorted and mislead information regarding certain types of groups. These stereotypes are based off of inaccurate and negative beliefs of how each group symbolize...
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...Prejudice and stereotypic thinking among the elderly The term stereotype is often connected with ignorant beliefs such as “racism”, “homophobia”, and “sexism”. Despite the overtly negative connotation, stereotypes are simply expectations we hold about groups of people (Moskowitz, 2005, p.440). However, stereotyping can lead to prejudice. Although everyone stereotypes, some people are more prone to being prejudice than others, especially older individuals (Radvansky et al., 2010). It is widely held that the link between age and prejudice is attributed to the fact that older people grew up in a more prejudiced era, and their attitudes are a reflection of a less tolerant time. However, recent studies suggest otherwise. Inspired by Devine’s influential 1989 study showing that prejudice is caused by a failure to inhibit stereotypic thoughts, modern researchers theorize that a decline in inhibitory function causes older people to be more likely to make and maintain stereotypes. For years, the dominant belief was that prejudice is inevitable as long as stereotypes exist because it was thought that stereotypes are automatically applied to a social group (Devine, 1989). However, this theory does not explain why knowledge of a stereotype is not correlated with prejudice. A study conducted by Devine in 1989 resolved the discrepancy by proposing that while stereotypes are automatically activated, prejudice is due to a failure to inhibit stereotypic thoughts. In the first experiment...
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