2008 Woodie Awards
Society's obsession for perfection
By: Ally Blankartz
Issue date: 4/18/08 Section: Forum
A symbol of ideal female perfection; poised, docile and successful, Barbie is the ideal woman. A 360 degree representation of a utopian female gender role effortlessly accomplished.
Buff, handsome and kind, Ken is her ideal companion. With their garish painted smiles, the couple provides a paramount example of "The American Dream Couple."
But this plastic fantasy is no where near the reality of gender role fulfillment.
Women are no longer expected to remain confined to an oppressive drill of cooking, cleaning and child-rearing.
Men are also free from the constraints of being the sole bread-winner with the expectation that they will frequently entertain affluent guests and beautiful young ladies.
These roles are frequently being interchanged in increasing numbers and instances across the globe.
The problem that lies within is that the media haven't quite caught up to these new definitions of appropriate gender roles.
Advertisement agencies are overly entangled in utilizing sexist gender roles as a means to create sleazy marketing strategies.
These gender roles pigeonhole individuals into categories which are too narrow to accommodate the rapidly diversifying population.
A beautiful woman enters your eye range on the television; dancing around in a racy dress, the mood is sensual and intriguing.
Your eyes follow her sways, back and forth, and suddenly you feel compelled to buy the over-priced luxury SUV that has just replaced the hypnotic woman.
The car industry has been shamelessly using women as objects to sell their gas-guzzlers for years.
Car buying and selling has been transformed into an international game of chess, where the women are simply lowly rooks, expendable pawns carelessly disregarded by the car moguls, the kings of the chess board.
The market can be broken down into a facile trade-network of sexual exchanges; where women have the commodities and men are eager to buy.
Buff, handsome and kind, Ken is her ideal companion. With their garish painted smiles, the couple provides a paramount example of "The American Dream Couple."
But this plastic fantasy is no where near the reality of gender role fulfillment.
Women are no longer expected to remain confined to an oppressive drill of cooking, cleaning and child-rearing.
Men are also free from the constraints of being the sole bread-winner with the expectation that they will frequently entertain affluent guests and beautiful young ladies.
These roles are frequently being interchanged in increasing numbers and instances across the globe.
The problem that lies within is that the media haven't quite caught up to these new definitions of appropriate gender roles.
Advertisement agencies are overly entangled in utilizing sexist gender roles as a means to create sleazy marketing strategies.
These gender roles pigeonhole individuals into categories which are too narrow to accommodate the rapidly diversifying population.
A beautiful woman enters your eye range on the television; dancing around in a racy dress, the mood is sensual and intriguing.
Your eyes follow her sways, back and forth, and suddenly you feel compelled to buy the over-priced luxury SUV that has just replaced the hypnotic woman.
The car industry has been shamelessly using women as objects to sell their gas-guzzlers for years.
Car buying and selling has been transformed into an international game of chess, where the women are simply lowly rooks, expendable pawns carelessly disregarded by the car moguls, the kings of the chess board.
The market can be broken down into a facile trade-network of sexual exchanges; where women have the commodities and men are eager to buy.
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