Susan06's Blog

Course Blog Summary

susan06 — Mon, 04 May 2009 14:38:47 +0000

In summary, I used a variety of gender artifacts to connect gender concepts learned throughout the course. For my commercial advertisements, I touched upon a few course concepts. My commercial advertisements primarily focused on how women are portrayed in the media. Women are usually portrayed in different ways. One portrayal of women is the idea of the motherly role (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). Many women take on the role of the caregiver when they have children. Women can also be portrayed as superficial and only concerned with appearances (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). Women are concerned with keeping up with their appearances through makeup and other beauty products.

Through my use of song lyrics, my gender concepts focused on the differences between men and women when it comes to relationships. Women have the capabilities of being in control when it comes to ending a relationship (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). Women also have the desire to explore what it is like to be the man in the relationship and all of the rewards that come with it, such as autonomy and job success (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). When it comes to relationships, men tend to go for women that will suit their sexual needs and women that require less attention (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). However, men are also more likely to suffer more when a relationship with a women ends (Gamble and Gamble, 2003).

Through my use of movie trailers and music videos, more concepts about women were revealed, along with how same-sex and cross-sex friendships are formulated. Women continue to be heavily objectified in terms of sexuality (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). Women are usually seen as sexual objects for men’s pleasure rather than serving as an intellectual entity. Females who engage in same-sex friendships have the ability to maintain their friendship over a long period of time, even if obstacles such as distance prove to be possible obstacles (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). In cross-sex friendships, men usually dominate the dynamics of the relationship.

Through my use of cartoons and news articles I discussed a variety of topics including gender dynamics in the classroom, alternative lifestyles, and feminism movements. Research has shown that girls improve the grades of boys in the classroom. However, boys are usually paid more attention to in the classroom (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). Also, boys also dominate the fields of math and science (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). However, there are recent trends to encourage young girls to express an interests in these fields. Another gender concept that was explored in my artifacts was the idea of alternative lifestyles (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). Some alternative lifestyles include living as a trans-gendered or as a homosexual. The feminism movements were also discussed in my artifacts. The first-wave of feminism introduced the need for women’s suffrage (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). Some answers to feminism were pro-feminism and pro-masculine movements. The Pro-feminism movement advocated for women’s rights and supported men retreating away from traditional gender norms (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). Members of the Pro-masculine movement advocated for the reaffirmation of men’s superiority such as aggressiveness, claiming territory and loving women (Gamble and Gamble, 2003).

Through my artifacts, I was able to illustrate many concepts learned in this course.

Gamble, M.W., Gamble, T.K. (2003). The gender communication connection. Boston:

Houghton Mifflin Company

“Boys Become Men” Article

susan06 — Mon, 04 May 2009 13:43:59 +0000

In an article titled, ” Mentors Help Boys Become Men,” young boys are receiving help from older male mentors. Young males in high school are being tutored by college fraternity brothers to become better in school. The program is being done in order to encourage these young high schoolers to go to attend college.

A gender concept that is illustrated here is male-male friendships. Males engage in friendships with other males in order to benefit from something or to gain some sort of reward. In the article the older males engage in friendships with the younger males in order to gain the satisfaction of making a difference in their lives.

“Boys Become Men”

Gamble, M.W., Gamble, T.K. (2003). The gender communication connection. Boston:

Houghton Mifflin Company

Betton, M. ( 2007). Mentors help boys become men [Electronic version]. The Washington Post, T01

“Girls in Science” Article

susan06 — Mon, 04 May 2009 13:31:22 +0000

In an article titled, ” Club Expands Formula Getting Girls in Science,” there is a growing trend to get girls in more math and science-related programs. The purpose is to boost academic confidence among girls in these fields of study.

This article conveys the idea that men are more concentrated in math and science related areas of study (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). The article says that women in general and specifically women of color remain underrepresented in math and science-related studies.

“Girls in Science”

Gamble, M.W., Gamble, T.K. (2003). The gender communication connection. Boston:

Houghton Mifflin Company

O’Leary, J. ( 2007). Club expands formula getting girls in science [Electronic version]. The Boston Globe, 1-2

“Catching Up to the Boys” Article

susan06 — Mon, 04 May 2009 13:21:06 +0000

In an article titled, ” Catching Up to the Boys, in the Good and the Bad,” statistics show that women are outpacing men when it comes to drinking and smoking cigarettes.Teenage girls statistically now outpace teenage boys in alcohol and drug consumption and smoking, according to recent research.

In this article, the idea of gender roles is apparent. Gender roles are societal ways men and women enact their gender (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). Men are usually likely to drink and smoke more than women, but, according to this article, roles are switching and women are becoming the major drug and alcohol consumers.

“Catching Up to the Boys”

Gamble, M.W., Gamble, T.K. (2003). The gender communication connection. Boston:

Houghton Mifflin Company

Aratani, L. (2008). Catching Up to the Boys, in the Good and the Bad [Electronic format]. The Washington Post, CO1

“Boys and Girls In The Classroom” Article

susan06 — Mon, 04 May 2009 13:10:46 +0000

An article titled, “Keep Boys and Girls Together in the Classroom to Optimize Learning, Research Suggests,” boys and girls actually learn better when they are together in the classroom. Even though boys and girls learn differently, according to the article, research shows that girls improve the grades of girls. Mixed classrooms are better because having girls in the classroom allows boys to do better when it comes to learning.

This article conveys the idea between gender and learning in the classroom. This article suggests that girls are more capable in the classroom because they raise the grades of boys. However, the common accepted gender concept is that boys are paid more attention to in the classroom than girls are.

“Boys and Girls in the Classroom”

Gamble, M.W., Gamble, T.K. (2003). The gender communication connection. Boston:

Houghton Mifflin Company

(2008).Keep boys and girls together in the classroom to optimize learning, research suggests [Electronic version]. Science News, pg.1

“Gay Identity” Article

susan06 — Mon, 04 May 2009 12:57:06 +0000

In article titled, “Owning His Gay Identity–At 15 Years Old,” Saro Harvey and his friend Samantha Sachs are featured. They are openly gay teenagers in Arlington, Virginia. They express that they have many friends, but still face teasing because of their lifestyle choices.

This article conveys the idea about sexual orientation. Sexual orientation is how a person defines his or her sexuality (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). In the article, the two teenage boys convey that they are homosexuals.

“Gay Identity”

Gamble, M.W., Gamble, T.K. (2003). The gender communication connection. Boston:

Houghton Mifflin Company

Vargas, T. ( 2008). Owning his gay identity-at 15 years old [Electronic version]. Washington Post, A01.

“Anti-Suffrage” Cartoon

susan06 — Mon, 04 May 2009 12:39:58 +0000

In this cartoon, a depiction of anti-suffrage for women is depicted. It shows crying babies, dinner being unattended to, and cats running rampant.

In this cartoon, The first wave of feminism can be seen. The first wave of the feminist movement brought women’s suffrage for white women (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). However, in this cartoon, feminism is seen as a bad idea. It expresses the idea that natural gender roles shouldn’t be tampered with.

“Anti-Suffrage”

Gamble, M.W., Gamble, T.K. (2003). The gender communication connection. Boston:

Houghton Mifflin Company

Anti-suffrage cartoon. (n.d.). Retrieved from Google Images.

“Workplace” Cartoon

susan06 — Mon, 04 May 2009 12:18:27 +0000

In this cartoon, a man and a woman are sitting in an office. The man appears to be interviewing the woman for a job. However, he basically says that there are double standards in the office.

In this artifact that gender concept that is apparent here is job discrimination. Men are more likely to occupy high level positions than women are (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). In the cartoon, the man is sitting in the executive chair and the woman is being interviewed but is basically told that double standards exist in the office; this alludes to a general gender theme in our society.

“Workplace”

Gamble, M.W., Gamble, T.K. (2003). The gender communication connection. Boston:

Houghton Mifflin Company

Workplace cartoon. (n.d.). Retrieved from Google Images

“Cheerleading” Cartoon

susan06 — Mon, 04 May 2009 10:54:35 +0000

In this cartoon, a young man is seen with his arms crossed looking upset. He is holding a title IX sign in his hand. He is looking at girl cheerleaders who convey the idea he can’t tryout because he cannot fit into the outfit.

In this artifact, the idea of gender parity is displayed. Gender parity exists when there is inequity in the amount of boys or girls in a given sport or other setting. In this cartoon, gender parity exists because there are no male cheerleaders.

“Cheerleading”

Gamble, M.W., Gamble, T.K. (2003). The gender communication connection. Boston:

Houghton Mifflin Company

Cheerleading cartoon. (n.d.). Retrieved from Google Images

“Vladamir and Oestregen” Cartoon

susan06 — Mon, 04 May 2009 10:40:29 +0000

This cartoon shows a two men sitting on a bench in a park setting. One man is dressed in a trench coat. The other appears to be a trans-gendered man wearing a dress with hair and makeup. The man with the trench-coat is peering out of his peripheral vision at the trans-gendered man.

This artifact conveys the concept of alternative lifestyles. Not all males and females engage in stereotypical sex-role behavior (Gamble and Gamble, 2003). In the cartoon, the male in the dress seems comfortable living his life as a trans-gender person. The other man looking at him conveys the idea that not everyone is accepting of alternative lifestyles.

“Vladamir and Oestregen”

Gamble, M.W., Gamble, T.K. (2003). The gender communication connection. Boston:

Houghton Mifflin Company

Vladamir and oestregen. (n.d.). Retrieved from Google Images.