As a young woman the main form of stereotyping that I have experienced in media is through sexism and how female characters are often represented as one dimensional. As we learned in this week’s modules, there are numerous racial stereotypes that underrepresented communities are often depicted as. Similarly, women frequently fall into archetypes that often differ from their male counterparts when portrayed in media, especially within film and television. There are 7 dominant female archetypes that are consistent in media: The Lover, The Huntress, The Maiden, The Mother, The Queen, The Mystic, and The Sage. Though there are a wide range of archetypes, they often are surface level with one character only falling into one archetype.
From my observations, when a female character starts to bleed into multiple categories, her character suddenly becomes stifled rather than progressive. An example of this is the iconic Princess Leia of the Star Wars franchise. While she is introduced as a “damsel in distress” she quickly refutes this generalization by proving to be quick witted and feisty. Her character expands into multiple archetypal pipelines, something which many people are a fan of. However, after the first movie, A New Hope, her character is more limited. While the storyline continues to revolve around the male lead, Luke, and explores his journey, growth, and temptations, her character becomes more dependent on the male characters around her. Her personality is more so based on the “Will they? Won’t they?” relationship with Hans Solo and the way the other male characters view her. By the time the last film of the trilogy is made, her screen time primarily takes place while she’s in a highly sexualized bikini. Though she still maintains her head strong qualities from the first movie, her sexuality and love life becomes the highlight of her character.
Another example of female characters subjected to one dimensional personalities can be seen through the hit show Modern Family. Though I myself am a fan, and do think that the female characters are strong and funny, it is clear that their personalities often revolve around the male characters. The female characters are primarily seen through their gender roles as “the nagging mother” or the “hot wife”. One of the main characters, Claire Dunphy is seen as high stress, type-A, and overlooked by her children. These attributes are emphasized by her male counterpart and husband, Phil Dunphy, who is seen as the “cool dad” and easy going. The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media states that men are less likely to be depicted as competent parents yet more likely depicted to have a strong career. This can be seen in Claire and Phil’s relationship. Claire is primarily a stay at home mom, constantly helping with the kids’ school and extracurriculars, and keeping the house organized and running. Phil has a career as a real estate agent and though he does interact with the kids, he doesn’t necessarily parent them. Gloria Pritchet, another prominent female character, is often the butt of the joke as a result of her sexuality. Her entire personality can be pinned as the “feisty hot latina”. Again, her personality is influenced by how she mirrors her very masculine traditional husband. She is made to seem loud and fiery, “the trophy wife”, and the caring mother of her son. While the attributes of these women are not necessarily negative, they do not create well rounded characters.
Claire vs Gloria
Gender roles in media are incredibly influential. The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media explores how gender depictions influence young children’s idea of where they fit in society. Though women are no longer solely expected to be delicate housewives, the media needs to represent a variety of women to the public. Male characters are often created to be complex characters with different views and personalities. While the same can be said for women, it is not to the same extent. Often when women are presented as strong and authoritative, the media removes their femininity. When female characters are presented as popular and pretty, the audience immediately thinks “ditzy”. It’s important to represent women as complex characters that fill various roles. Perpetuating gender stereotypes can be avoided by creating characters from a female’s perspective rather than the preconceived female archetypes.