October 2 nd Sign in, deposit participation cards Pick up midterm exam #1 Discuss research papers Lecture 4: Gender Socialization Film: Killing us Softly Homework:  Read: Chapter 10 in Gendered Society  “Slut! Insult of Insults” Tanenbaum, Leora (CR)

Lecture 4 Gender Socialization: Learning Masculinity and Femininity

Socialization Gender Socialization: the lifelong process of social interaction through which individuals acquire a gendered self identity and the rules, roles, and social relationships of the social world Androcentric society  Masculine traits are valued more highly  Women are judged at how they conform to a male standard Double-standard

What would you do if your child was gender variant? Knowing that gender-variant adolescents are two to three times more likely to attempt suicide than other teens, would you choose to provide your child with hormone treatments that delay physical maturity?  Why or why not? Explain How do you think your choice will affect your child’s adult life?

Agents of Socialization Family  Roles, emotion, sexuality Education  Hidden Curriculum: unstated lessons that we learn at school from peers and teachers Work  Clerical work vs. managerial work  Walmart class-action lawsuit Mass Media  Vast cultural space in our society

Toys and Gender Socialization Toys and Play  Children separate themselves into same-sex groups for play  Toys foster specific traits and abilities Girls -Creativity, nurturing, attractiveness  Barbie dolls, Cinderella, Easy Bake Oven Boys – exploration, construction, competition  Action figures, Legos, Organized Sprots

Gender Socialization in the Mass Media How much influence does Mass Media have?  Adults see an average of 2000 advertisements a day  Children see an average of 40,000 commercials a year  We use 6.5 hours of mass media a day Mass media reinforces gender roles/norms  Television and movies  Video Games  Magazines, books, etc. We live in an “advertising environment”  Ads occupy a vast cultural space

TV Ads and Gender Coors “Wingman”  Burger King “Manthem”  Heineken Keg 

“Killing Us Softly” 1. Jean Kilbourne comments that the impossible, ideal image presented by advertisers "wouldn’t matter so much if it didn’t connect with the core belief of American culture that such transformation is possible; that we can look like this if we just try hard enough, buy the right products. If we’re not beautiful, or thin, or rich, or successful, it’s because we’re just not trying hard enough."

As you watch the film consider the following questions… How does Kilbourne say that advertising and violence against women are linked? Do you feel that the media reflects or creates the ideal image of beauty in our society or both? Why? Why do you think gender & sexuality play such as significant role in modern advertising?