Masculinity and Teen Violence Post # 8

Kimmel makes really good points on trying to explain why  men in “general” are more aggressive and I have to agree that it’s not biology (testosterone)  to blame is the environment boys are raised and how can really shaped their lives. One of his quotes is “There is no question that there’s a boy crisis. Virtually all the books cite the same statistics: boys are four to five times likely to kill themselves than girls, four times more likely to be diagnose as emotionally disturbed, three times more likely to be diagnosed with attention deficit disorder, and 15 times more likely to be victims of violent crimes”. (pg. 1).But why is this happening? It is alarming seeing that all these characteristics are applied to boys because as we all know that each person is different regardless of their gender or beliefs. It’s all about social construction boys unfortunately are thought not to show or express their feelings and emotions “that is a sign of weakness”, the famous phrase “boys don’t cry”. This horrible thing to do to a child everyone should be able get their feeling out; it’s the best way to take care of oneself and your overall wellbeing. Girls are socialized to be less aggressive than boys are. In connection girls are supervised more closely than boys are. Males are more likely to display physical aggression, while females display relational aggression.

Females fear that anger will harm relationships, and males are encouraged to react to anger with moral outrage; in addition to blaming other's for their discomforts. Females are also more likely than a male to be targets of sexual abuse and physical abuse.

The "boys" part has a kind of a sexist connotation, it implies that boys will be mischievous, childish, and wild and there's no use trying to change or deny this innate tendency. (“Boys will be boys”) as if they can't control their actions. So, not only should we accept their negative behavior, we should sigh & smile knowingly & appreciate that their misbehavior is actually part of their charming "male" personality.

We as society are ok with this concept. Kimmel makes the reference of some books written by Gurian and Biddulph that are blaming “feminist” for the “boy crisis”. Kimmel concludes that they are “the real male bashers”. “Feminists imagine, and demand, that men (and boys) can do better. Feminism offers the possibility of a new boyhood and a new masculinity bases on a passion for justice, a love of equality, and the expression of full range of feelings”. (pg. 3.).  This great way to see feminism, it’s all about individuality and equality.

Cinderella Ate My Daughter & Brave

                                                     

I will start with Orestein’s statements on how Disney Princesses influence little girls. She explains even though she tried not to expose her daughter to this “ideology”, somehow it was almost impossible to avoid it because she will be taught by her school friends, or other girls of her age just by playing.  But who doesn’t know about Snow White, Cinderella, Bella, ect?, it is part of our “culture” a secret education. Orenstein states that “Princess has not only become the fastest-growing brand the company has ever created, it is the largest franchise on the planet for girls ages two to six”. (Page 14).  She points out how gender roles are portrait by these princess characters such as the need for girls to look pretty and focus on their appearance over their overall potential as human beings; meaning that girls expectations or ultimate goal of life is to be beautiful, feminine, passive and wait for the prince charming who is going to take care of her forever after.  Julie mother of one of Daisy’s classmates was one among the moms that joined Orestein’s chat about princess culture she said “I want my daughter to have a strong identity as a girl, as a woman, as a female. And being pretty in our culture is very important” (page 19). Furthermore she stated that she had a son too and that he embraces him differently “encourage his intelligence” and on the other hand her daughter gets rewarded by telling her she is “pretty”. Orestein’s main point is gender role is such an important concept not just on Disney’s princesses but our overall “society” these include all media, merchandise (clothes, toys etc.). She just wants her daughter to be a unique individual and reach her potential not to do what it is expected from our society.

Brave: It was the first time seeing this movie and I loved it, you can see how Disney is trying to have a different approach of what “beautiful” means.  Merida was not the stereotypical “princess” she was tomb shish, was an expert on archery. She didn’t want to be like her mother; she wants to be in charge of her own life and not follow their tradition of marrying one of her father’s allies’ sons. This movie does not focus on looks but rather the inner strength of a woman.

Final Project Ideas

Like everyone is saying this semester is flying... well I don't have a group yet so I have basically no idea how this final project is going to turn out but I think I can still make the effort on researching some interesting topics. I read some of my classmates post and I like Celine's and her group’s topic (BODY IMAGE). Furthermore I've been thinking about doing my final on BULLYING why? I think it would be interesting digging a little more about this delicate subject and maybe been able to find some explanation on what is causing this epidemic.
What makes a Bully is it media? I guess I will find out.

Another topic I found interesting is parenting meaning how today's parents deal with teenagers "Nowadays" has it changed from the previous generations? Or parents have to cope with teenagers hectic lives?

Mid-Term Post

I'm working in a group with Eian, Tyne, Missy we decided to do #3 from the project prompts. I will be working on Teenagers are Not Some Alien Life Form one of the course themes with Missy but unfortunately Missy is a little sick. !!Hope she gets better!!!. So far we had a plan on posting videos or use material from our blogs but it's till debatable. See you Tuesday