Directed, produced and written by Jennifer Siebel Newsom, 'Miss Representation' is an American Documentary film that brings out the farcical reality of women empowerment with only 17% women as elected officials in Congress and 7% as directors in Hollywood movies. The mainstream media projects women as a showpiece who needs to fit into certain parameters to look beautiful and sexy and the image of women thus created breeds an overpowering notion in the minds of young women and men that the value and power of a woman lay in her sensuality, youth and beauty and not in her ability to be a leader. It is no wonder why in the history of the USA, there is still no woman ever elected as the President. While women all over the world have acquired great achievement over the last few decades in leadership, the US still is far behind than other countries in terms of women participation in politics. Many programs featured on television like American Next Top Model and some other Reality shows all stress on the importance of women's youth and beauty. The frenzy for achieving beauty has triggered eating disorders in the young women. It is reported that 65% of American women and girls suffer from disordered eating behaviors with 10% of them afflicted with the eating disorder syndromes of bulimia and anorexia. Miss Representation through its showcase of sensational interviews with a wide-ranging group of women including politicians, entertainers, journalists, academicians and activists such as Katie Couric, Condoleezza Rice, Rachel Maddow, Nancy Pelosi, Jane Fonda, Geena Davis, Gloria Steinem, Rosario Dawson, Margaret Cho and Lisa Ling brings out the truth of how women in different professions still need to fight the glass ceiling and the overwhelming pressure of beautiful appearance and personality.
Tough Guise, the video made in 1999 features Jackson Katz who explores how the image of men is defined by the mainstream media. Our society equates masculinity with violence and feminism with sexual gratification. We often use the maxim ‘men are from Mars, women are from Venus.’ Mars, the Roman god of war represents brawn, aggressiveness, courage, and masculine power whereas Venus, the goddess of beauty represents sex, youth, fertility and prosperity. The male action heroes of the Hollywood movies are all well-built with huge muscles. The brawny muscular identity of man is created by the media and the common men try to fit themselves into the image by copying their on-screen idols. For instance, Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of the popular role models for men and there are many men who inspired by Arnold's physique train in gym for several hours to grow the same amount of muscles. Our society and culture are overwhelmingly influenced by such stereotypical genderization. Gender roles are inculcated in children from the time they are born. Parents' treatment of their son and daughter differently just reflects that mindset. Boys are meant to be tough, emotionless and insensitive. They are not allowed to cry. Male sports players are often made fun of for shedding tears and are called weaklings or sissies, but women players' shedding tears is acceptable and no news is flashed over that. We as a society are responsible for allowing this stereotyping of gender take over our culture in which men are expected to behave in the manner of societal conception of masculinity and women are expected to perform the feminine duties expected of them.
Work Cited
Miss Representation: About the film, Retrieved on 1st June 2013 from <http://www.missrepresentation.org/the-film/>
Straut, Rainbow. (2013). Miss Representation & Tough Guise: A Reflection, Retrieved on 1st June 2013 from <http://rainbowstraut.blogspot.com/2013/04/miss-representation-tough-guise.html>
