The media today portrays the ideal woman everywhere. Big bust and slim bodies seem to be the ideal physique in many eyes. From models, celebrities, daily advertisements and even down to video games, women are being molded and shaped to the way people would prefer them to be. Women in turn, are constantly compared to other women and/or fictional characters.
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| Chun Li (top) and Cammy (bottom) are Street Fighter characters) |
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| Man upset over housework |
In our day -to-day advertisements, women are often seen cleaning, taking care of kids and doing house chores, generally being a housewife. Some of you might even agree that this is true, but there are men who do what women “should” be doing, even better. The media today suggests that women are sex objects, dependent on men, incompetent and even stupid. This portrayal of women by the media is not entirely false but it certainly is not true for all women. See AD 2 for further understanding. In the ad, you can see that the men are complaining about just what every woman would complain about. The men were complaining about what a female did. Shortly after, they contradict themselves by licking a plate instead of cleaning it to show how “real men” do housework. This raises the question, is housework so terrible and tedious that people will reuse a plate that has been licked instead of cleaned with soap and water?
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER:
1. Do you think it’s fair for women to be objected to stereotypes because of how the media portrays women?
2. How can gamers and video game companies prevent future acts of discrimination amongst women
3. Have you've ever been objected to stereotypes because something you like to do wasn't "girly" or "manly" for you?
http://www.theesa.com/facts/gameplayer.asp
http://www.acrwebsite.org/search/view-conference-proceedings.aspx?Id=9532
http://artasgames.wordpress.com/2013/08/19/52/
Sources:
http://www.theesa.com/facts/gameplayer.asp
http://www.acrwebsite.org/search/view-conference-proceedings.aspx?Id=9532
http://artasgames.wordpress.com/2013/08/19/52/
I'm actually quite lenient and quite open to female gamers, as there isn't actually that many of them around me. But that's just how I was put in this environment. I want to disagree just a little, how men shun female gamers and how they're frowned upon solely due to skills and the dominant discourse of having them remain in the kitchen. As contradicting as men can be, we grow stubborn and ignorant (insert rage gamer here) from the amount of gaming we do, and it's so bad that we become awkward in presence of female gamers.
ReplyDeleteTo start off with question 2, I think video game companies can just do whatever they're already doing. It's the same thing when it comes to men - how they're portrayed in games. Buff, good-looking, cool, etc, and it's kind of rare that you would see people bashing male characters because of the way they're portrayed. In games like Tomb Raider or Mirror's Edge, the protagonists are female and as degrading as the developers put them as, it's still considered "normal". Maybe, by introducing more games featuring female protagonists, or games that target female gamers, would discrimination actually decline.
I can definitely see why many guys are fond of women playing games. Many of my guy friends do, too. Something I would like to ask you is that, do you think it's okay for female protagonists to be exploited in such a way? People are easily influenced by the media and many women face hardships because of how the media portrays them. Your answer to my second question seem to be agreeing with the sexual content of the female characters. I do agree with you that male characters are portrayed as buff, cool and whatnot, but men don't get discriminated over that.
DeleteI think you have no insight to what video games have become, online shooters have a general audiance of teenage males which makes sense because those games are targetted towards males. Games series such as Bioshock Infinite, Deus Ex and Perfect do not use grotesque sexuality or any other dominant discourses to sell their games. Those games are a means of engaging the player into the world like a well written book. I think instead of focusing on whether or not a game is too feminist or too misogynistic they should focus on the level design and story. Perfect Dark is the follow up to the greatest shooter of all time, Rare chose to have a female character who had more depth than James Bond and now everyone knows Perfect Dark as the game that outdid the greatest shooter of all time. The game worked because of the character of Joanna Dark, it could not have worked if the lead was someone like Duke Nukem. If a character fits the role they should put them in there instead of worrying about the audience and the critics that is the only way masterpieces like Thief 2, Buldur's Gate, and Conker's bad fur day can be crafted.
ReplyDeleteInteresting post Shelly. To start off, i would like to say that in the first ad you presented, it had a couple of females present. While you say that Zelda is present, she is from Nintendo and would not be present in the ad. Some of the females shown are Chell (portal 2), Athena (God of War) and Little Sister (Bioshock). Moving on to your question 1, i do not think it is fair, but this is what many companies use to make money. It is a tactic that they use to increase their sales. Sadly, unless a change resonates throughout the gaming community, companies will not change their ways. In reference to question two, the simplest way to go about this is to make female protagonist have more realistic features and personalities. While this may divert some gamers, others will find it quite enjoyable. On a side note, the sex of the gamer makes no difference to me, it's all about skill.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the clarification! I have updated my post. I definitely see why they use this as a tactic to gain money and interest of gamers. I would like to point out that there are many fan bases for fictional characters online and by creating or changing a character to have a much more realistic personality people might enjoy them even more. Thanks for commenting!
DeleteNo problem. You have understood what i was trying to say. Beta testing is one of the best way to get a feel for a game and see if it's right for you. This also applies to demos.
DeleteGreat post Shelly. I like to answer your first question by saying, no its not fair for women to be objected to stereotypes because of what the media tells them. There might be some women who fall into the stereotypes but everyone is different and they shouldn't be judge from one ideal female the media portrays them to be. It is really not fair to anyone. We should allow them to be who they want to be
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. Not only do women face stereotypes but men do too. Speaking particularly about games and ads, females seem to be objected to much more gender discrimination than men. Thank you for your comment!
DeleteGreat post Shelly! I strongly agree with you and feel that females in video games are being stereotyped and being portrayed as attractive for male gamer's. I think it is really unfair to female gamer's out there and I feel that female gamer's deserve much better. I'd like to relate to your post and add that I have seen many anime female character's in some video games portrayed as "dumb" it is really sexist and something should be done about it. Also to reply to your third question personally I can say that there were times where I have been objected to stereotypes that portrayed me as less manly such as when a man cries. Men don't cry is a common stereotype for guys. However we are human too and have feelings as well. Therefore it can be said that we should let people be what they want to be and not stereotype them and criticize them for who they are.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, many anime characters are seen as dumb, clumsy and even helpless. Sexism is something we need to point out to others and it's not okay. I do often hear that men who cry are weak. We all have emotions and can definitely express ourselves. To be judged on something that we do that is deemed masculine or feminine is ridiculous! Thanks for your comment, Ajmal.
DeleteGreat post Shelly! I strongly agree with you and feel that females in video games are being stereotyped and being portrayed as attractive for male gamer's. I think it is really unfair to female gamer's out there and I feel that female gamer's deserve much better. I'd like to relate to your post and add that I have seen many anime female character's in some video games portrayed as "dumb" it is really sexist and something should be done about it. Also to reply to your third question personally I can say that there were times where I have been objected to stereotypes that portrayed me as less manly such as when a man cries. Men don't cry is a common stereotype for guys. However we are human too and have feelings as well. Therefore it can be said that we should let people be what they want to be and not stereotype them and criticize them for who they are.
ReplyDeletei would like to start off by saying, this is a great post shelly. NO, i for one do not think it is fair for women to be objected to do what they like because of how the media portrays them. it is not fair for women we are all people and we should all be able to do as we please, without being judged. one way video game companies can prevent future acts of discrimination amongst women is by adding more women roles in video games additionally, they can advertise with women playing video games, not just men.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment, Belal! Do you think by creating more female characters with less sexuality in videogames can help? There are also men who do enjoy house work and keeping things organized that the media portrays as just a women thing to do. We can't help but be judged for basically everything that we do.
DeleteNice post Shelly! I want to start off by saying that it isn't fair that women are objected to these stereotypes. Why is it that women are in almost all advertisements when it comes to cleaning products but when it comes to videos games, women are rarely shown unless its a simple, universal game like Mario? I think these companies can add more women into their advertisements and videos games and not by adding slim, impossibly attractive women, something more realistic.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you! Sexualizing female characters are just getting out of hand. I think in an old fashioned household, many would agree that women should do the house work and not men. There are men who would stay rather organized more than a female would. Indeed, by adding more female characters that are more realistic to features, it would help! Thanks for commenting!
DeleteIn response to question 3, I am a girl that is highly involved in sports within and out of school. I come home with bruises and scrapes everyday and to me, I feel proud of them because it shows how hard and determinate I am towards sports. My dad on the other hand has always told me that sports are not feminine activates and I should stop. This stereotype about how athletic females are manly, has been constantly repeated around me. Just because a female wants to play sports or do other "male like" activities, doesn't mean she is not feminine enough or considered a women.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with you! Indeed you are one of the most athletic girls I know! Many parents are old fashioned and do still think this way. My parents have told me the same thing. I personally think that generalizing what is feminine and masculine has decreased but there are other issues which still face gender discrimination. Thanks for commenting!
DeleteNice post shelly! I will start off by saying that I completely agree with you.I do believe that the media today portrays the ideal woman everywhere, and that is to have a slim waist and a big bust. I don't think this is fair towards women because people come in different shape and size. However, men are also wrongly portrayed in the media. In most games, You will notice that most of the men are muscular, good looking, and tall. stereotyping men and women is a tactic that most companies use to attract a bigger audience, thus making more sales. ITS ALL ABOUT DAT DOLLAR DOLAR BILL YALL.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ramoos! Are you upset with the portrayal of men in videogames? I feel like the female characters in games are portrayed in a much sexual manner which gives off a negative impact towards women of today's society. Indeed it is a marketing tactic, but are there any other methods to draw customers another way? Thanks for commenting!
DeleteI agree with Waleed and Fawad, you are misinformed about video games. Although it is true for some extremely popular games, women are over sexualized, for many games this is not the case but for a series like Mass Effect you are given the choice to be male or female and the only difference that makes to the overall story is the voice of the character. Mass Effect has a general audience, male and female and if the industry keeps putting games like that out, i think there will be less discrimination.
ReplyDeleteThere are games out there where female and male players can enjoy the game without being gender discriminated. My post was more focused on more popular games, like Street Fighter (females who are scantily dressed) and Call of Duty (a male dominated game). If the industry continue to put games like Mass Effect in the market, that would help inspire other companies to do the same, leading to less discrimination as you said.
DeleteObviously not! Unfortunately the media has a stereotype for everything and they push them hard. Simple, they include more females that are less sexualized and objectified. But will they? considering gamers are dominantly male and hot female characters are a selling point. Yes i have!
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree that characters, male or female, need to be less sexualized and objectified. It would be great if you could elaborate on what you have been judged for that was seen as feminine. Thanks for your comment, Akber!
DeleteStereotypes have cause this problem. Whenever a female tries to take part in a mainly "male" dominated activity, they are not taken seriously. One of which is a gaming, which is a huge industry to begin with. How the whole stereotype started that only males play video games started I will never know, but there is some truth behind it. There are vastly more male gamers than female gamers, so I guess it's just ignorance when encountering a female gamer, you'd think they aren't really serious about it since you wouldn't see very many of them in comparison.
ReplyDelete