ONCE- an amazing movie

Ok so I want to start off by saying if you haven't already seen the movie Once, you definitely need to. It is just amazing. A beautiful piece of art with sweet music. If you watched the Oscars you may have noticed that Once won Best Original Song. The film's stars (who are actually musicians) Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova got up to accept their award. Glen gave a quick, humble thank you (definitely within the limit that most winners get before the music comes in) and then Marketa moved up to the mic to speak BUT SHE GOT CUT OFF! She didn't get to say a word. The music came in and so she and Glen walked off stage. When I saw this occur I was so pissed. I went all feminist- oh my gosh! I can't believe that just happened! They cut her off! That is ridiculous! What a display of masculinity and power! Yadda yadda. I think I was doubly pissed because it wasn't just any woman that got cut off, it was Marketa Irglova- star of my current favorite film. BUT the Oscars saved themselves because guess what? They let her come back and give her acceptance speech. Which was beautiful and made me cry. You can check out how it all went down for yourself. Check it out here on YouTube. (Sorry I can't post the actual video here.)

Ok so yes, I realize I can't really say Marketa got cut off because she was a woman. But I have to wonder, if she was the first to speak would Glen have gotten cut off???

The Oscars

So, I like many other millions of Americans watched the Oscar awards. And well, a few things stood out to me. Both have to do with how women were portrayed. During the red carpet special (you know the coverage of all the celebs arriving) I noticed something. It seems like so much emphasis is placed on what the women are wearing. The hosts always asked the women what designer they were wearing and the interview almost always included the host dishing out a compliment regarding their appearance. Yes, the men were also asked what designer they were wearing, but not all the time and it didn't seem to be as important. Also, the hosts did not make a point to compliment the men.

This emphasis on the appearance of the women vs. the men proved to be true when looking in an issue of People (the special double issue March 10, 2008). There was a large section of Oscar coverage and in a part titled "Fashion" I noticed there were 11 pages featuring women- what dresses they wore, what accessories they carried, what type of hairstyles they had and only one page of men! This one page had 5 pictures and had the title of "Well Suited"- discussing the suits the 5 actors wore. Interestingly enough, there were two comments that mentioned how little time men need to get ready for the awards show. Heidi Klum is quoted saying about husband, Seal, "It takes him about five minutes [to get ready]". George Clooney said that although "a whole crew showed up" to help his girlfriend get ready, "I took like 15 minutes- I'm a guy!". The green text is from the People issue I mentioned p. 90. The picture is of George Clooney and his girlfriend Sarah Larson from people.com.

Yes, it may be true that people may be more interested in what the women wear because quite frankly, dresses and jewels and make-up and shoes are much more exciting than suits. But I just found it interesting that for an actress attending the Oscars what she wears, etc. seems like a huge deal, whereas for an actor it doesn't seem like such a big deal. Of course, this is merely my impression. What do you think?

I noticed something else during the actual awards show, but I will save that for later.

Who am I?- A Reflection on Identity

So we've been talking in class about identity. What is it? How do we attain our identities? Is who I am something I learn or is it something I am born with? We tried to define identity and it was harder than I expected! Here were some of the answers: sense of self, outward appearance and inward appearance, personality, biological traits and learned traits, character. Basically there are two ways to view gender identity- 1) biological determinism- you are born a certain way 2) social construction- your environment affects who you are. I, personally, subscribe to the view of the social constructivists. It is obvious to me that we are who we are because of how we are raised, the people we meet and interact with, the culture and social norms we observe, etc.

Ok so I started thinking about myself. And my identity and I had to ask the question- what role has the media played in the construction of my identity? I want to say none, but we all know that is a lie! I played with Barbies as a little girl, did that make me girly? I also took dance lessons. I remember getting a plastic Fisher- Price kitchen for Christmas one year- did that teach me that women are supposed to be nurturers and take care of people by cooking for them? As a teen I had a subscription to Seventeen and a couple other magazines. Did reading them affect my idea of what a teenage girl should be? Obviously, there are no certain answers for these questions. And don't worry, I am not going to go all media effects on you and say oh my gosh the media has totally shaped my identity. BUT I do think the media I've experienced has shaped how I see myself and it has definitely helped to teach me the expectations of society. For example, I remember being in middle school and watching Dawson's Creek. I loved that show because it featured characters a little older than myself. Approaching high school, I was fascinated by it and wanted to see how high school kids acted. But I also remember I eventually stopped watching it because a lot of the characters started having sex and as a new Christian I knew that didn't go in line with what I was learning at youth group.

So, no big conclusions. Just some thoughts regarding my life and the media I experienced growing up. Do you need help finding out who you are? Maybe these quizzes from Teen magazine's website can help you. Hahaha

Are You a Flirt?

What's Your Career Destiny?

Do You Love Your Body?

Here are my results (if you were wondering):
Are You a Flirt? -Just Enough Flirt "you've got the ammunition it takes to be a flirt but you're responsible with your weapon. You're good like that."

What's Your Career Destiny?- Mostly Bs "You'd do well in jobs that require active 'doing' and offer immediate, tangible awards. Think about jobs in medicine, engineering, choreography, or law enforcement."

Do You Love Your Body?- Mostly As "There's an old song 'I Enjoy Being a Girl,' and it looks like you certainly do. Tall, short, small-boobed, or big-hipped, you enjoy (and flaunt) what Mother Nature gave you. Be careful not to strive for ultimate perfection, though. Those picture-perfect celebs have stylists and big-time plastic surgery, and are airbrushed to the max. Make sure your goals are realistic and let it all hang out!" Wow. I could say so much about that little blurb. Does anyone else find it ironic that a magazine that constantly features celebs that have achieved ultimate perfection is telling its readers not to try to attain it!?

And here I thought Disney movies were a good thing...

So I grew up watching Disney movies. You know, the usual- Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast. I wasn't a crazy fan or anything, but I watched them sometimes. I've always liked Disney- their movies are entertaining and good for kids OR SO I THOUGHT!

My view of Disney has been forever changed. Let me explain... we read two articles for class that put Disney movies in a totally different light. Basically, the articles explored the ideas presented in the movies and how they reinforce a lot of stereotypes particularly female stereotypes. For example, women are almost always shown as princesses who are ultra feminine and beautiful and need to be rescued by a man- usually a handsome prince. Think about this- Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty. Even Belle in Beauty and the Beast plays the role of being super feminine and takes on the role of taming the wild beast- teaching him how to be a gentleman and have manners. Marcia K. Lieberman discusses the role of women in fairy tales in the article "'Some Day My Prince Will Come': Female Acculturation through the Fairy Tale". She writes, "Girls win the prize if they are the fairest of them all; boys win if they are bold, active, and lucky... The immediate and predictable result of being beautiful is being chosen... Since the heroines are chosen for their beauty, not for anything they do, they seem to exist passively until they are seen by the hero, or described to him. They wait, are chosen, and are rewarded" (188, 189). Hmmmm. I think Lieberman has a really good point. Most fairy tales follow this pattern and so do Disney movies.

Now, you may be thinking of one particular movie that broke this norm (I know I thought of it when I first began pondering this)- Mulan. Ah ha! Look a movie with a strong woman! Maybe Disney isn't so bad afterall....

But wait. Mulan is the story of a woman who joins the military and in order to be part of it has to pretend she's a man. Wait a minute... so really she is just conforming to gender norms. Oh man. (Ha. No pun intended.)

Here is a quote from an article about Mulan by Katherine E. Bartnett "Although Mulan is a tale about a woman who risks her life for her family and her country, her actions originate from the predicaments of men." Since she doesn't have any brothers and her father is ill, she takes her father's place in the army. "Rather than acting out her own dreams and ambitions, therefore, she is reacting to a situation that revolved around a man" (187, 188). My personal opinion is that Bartnett is a little extreme in this article and at times is grasping at straws, but she makes some good points mentioning that in many Disney movies much value is placed on a woman's appearance and if she is physically attractive.


In no way am I trying to bash all Disney movies. I just think this critique of the representations in their movies is a good thing since I think that Disney is usually portrayed in a positive light. Since most parents are ok with their kids watching Disney movies, I think this is a good idea to ponder. What are you teaching your kids? This just goes to show that we as consumers and parents as well, (not that I am a parent, but I probably will be someday) need to be critical of the media we consume and show our children. We can't just blindly trust a company. Even Disney.

Hey- Welcome to my blog!

Hi. Welcome to my blog. I am a Communication Studies student and this semester I'm in a class called Images in Media: Representations of Gender, Race, and Class. This blog is a place for me to
discuss and criticize media focusing particularly on ideas and concepts we cover in class. It's a place for intelligent discussion (well, at least I hope what I have to say is intelligent) so feel free to leave comments. I'd love to hear what you have to say and hope you find my posts interesting! :)