National Geographic articles about gender: “Bikinis Make Men…” & “Sex-Based Roles”

• Discuss/compare the précises you wrote: do you all agree on the main assertion, evidence/features, purpose, tone, intended audience, etc.?

• Discuss the credibility of the articles• Discuss the ways you see the

articles’ claims possibly reflected in media

• Determine if these articles aim to perpetuate gender stereotypes, challenge them, or simply explain them

Précis

• Sentence 1 = Name of author, genre, publication, and title of work, date in parentheses, an academic action verb (such as “claims,” “argues,” “asserts” ): and a THAT clause containing the major assertion of the thesis statement in the work.

• Sentence 2 = An explanation of HOW the author develops and supports the thesis, usually in chronological order, referencing use of applicable devices or features.

• Sentence 3 = A statement of the author’s apparent PURPOSE, followed by an “in order to” phrase.

• Sentence 4 = A description of the intended AUDIENCE and/or the relationship the author establishes with the audience (perhaps tone is relevant here).

In “Bikinis Make Men See Women as Objects, Scans Confirm” (2009) by Christine Dell’Amore of National Geographic News, the author asserts that evidence from brain scans confirms the male tendency to objectify and dehumanize sexualized images of women. Dell’Amore supports her claim by referencing various comments made by Susan Fiske, a psychologist at Princeton University, who was the lead researcher in this study where 21 heterosexual men “first [took] a test that scores people on different types of sexist attitudes” and “were then shown pictures of skimpily dressed and fully clothed men and women”. By referencing comments surrounding this study, the author seemingly intends to prove that sexualized images of women are the cause of their dehumanization, and therefore implies that these images cause violence against women, as men cannot help but see women in bikinis as tools for their use. This shocking claim is further supported by the fact that when a man sees an image of a woman in a bikini, there is “no activity in the part of the brain that usually responds when a person ponders another person’s intentions”, and that this lack of brain activity is also noted when people see “off-putting photographs of homeless people and drug addicts”. Dell’Amore establishes a fairly distant relationship between herself and her audience (which one can assume is interested in science and nature), as the article seems entirely devoted to reporting comments made by Susan Fiske, some speculative, on this matter.

Group mini-seminar Qs

• What is learned about the connection between gender and language in “He & She: What’s the Real Difference”? What do you think the purpose of the text is?

• Do you yourself notice gender-language differences? Do they matter, and if so, to what extent? Are there any implications?

• What is learned about direct v. indirect communication in “How to Give Orders Like a Man? Do these communication patterns come from gender differences or other sources? What do you think the purpose of the text is?

• What is learned about the use of gender stereotypes to sell products in “How to Advertise a Dangerous Product”? What do you think the purpose of the text is?

• This ad campaign for hair dye was one of the first to use gender stereotypes to sell a product, as well as one of the first to rely on “ambiguous advertising”. Do you think ambiguous advertising is effective in general (assuming men and women will interpret an ambiguous ad differently), or was it just particular to this product?

• Can you think of examples of other ads that would have these differing responses according to gender? (women knowing what’s going on and men just being confused?)

• How is feminism portrayed differently in “Feminism: 4th Down” & “The Feminine Mystique”? Why is this?

• How would you assess the credibility of all five of these texts? Go through each one, noting the text type and writing style, author credibility (if any info is given), number and variety of sources cited, etc.

The Bechdel Test The Bechdel test asks whether a work

of fiction features at least two women, who are named, and talk to each other about something other than a man.

Many contemporary works fail this test of gender bias, including an alarmingly long list of well-loved movies such as The Star Wars Trilogy, some Harry Potter movies, Avatar, etc.

The test is named after the American cartoonist Alison Bechdel and has existed since 1985.

Your task: Discuss with someone nearby and come up with two works (1 movie and 1 TV show) that PASS the Bechdel test. Make sure you can prove to us why.

Texts about male stereotypes: “The Gender Double Standard”, “Real Men Don’t: Anti-Male Bias in English”, “8 Studies that Debunk Male Gender Stereotypes”, “Alpha Beta Male Stereotypes”• Discuss/compare the précises you

wrote: do you all agree on the main assertion, evidence/features, purpose, tone, intended audience, etc.?

• Discuss the credibility of each of the texts

• What new info did you learn about male stereotypes in media?

• Do you agree or disagree that these stereotypes exist and can be harmful? To what extent?

• Can you think of examples of media that exploit male stereotypes?

• Why do you think media uses male stereotypes?

Précis

• Sentence 1 = Name of author, genre, publication, and title of work, date in parentheses, an academic action verb (such as “claims,” “argues,” “asserts” ): and a THAT clause containing the major assertion of the thesis statement in the work.

• Sentence 2 = An explanation of HOW the author develops and supports the thesis, usually in chronological order, referencing use of applicable devices or features.

• Sentence 3 = A statement of the author’s apparent PURPOSE, followed by an “in order to” phrase.

• Sentence 4 = A description of the intended AUDIENCE and/or the relationship the author establishes with the audience (perhaps tone is relevant here).

Texts about gender neutrality and transgender issues: “Sweden Goes Gender-Neutral”, “Can Kids Be Raised in a Gender-neutral Society? Sweden Thinks So”, “Yes Ma’am”, “Tranny Out, Trans In”• Discuss/compare the précises you wrote: do

you all agree on the main assertion, evidence/features, purpose, tone, intended audience, etc.?

• Discuss the credibility of the texts• What do you think of the gender neutrality

movement?• What new information did you learn about

gender and language based on the issues described in the texts about transgender identity?

• How do the gender neutrality movement and transgender identity relate? Are they complementary or at odds with one another?

Précis

• Sentence 1 = Name of author, genre, publication, and title of work, date in parentheses, an academic action verb (such as “claims,” “argues,” “asserts” ): and a THAT clause containing the major assertion of the thesis statement in the work.

• Sentence 2 = An explanation of HOW the author develops and supports the thesis, usually in chronological order, referencing use of applicable devices or features.

• Sentence 3 = A statement of the author’s apparent PURPOSE, followed by an “in order to” phrase.

• Sentence 4 = A description of the intended AUDIENCE and/or the relationship the author establishes with the audience (perhaps tone is relevant here).

Gender Unit topics for research

Female stereotypes in media

Male stereotypes in media

Female and male stereotypes in language (pronoun patterns, derogatory words, direct vs. indirect, etc.)

Use of gender stereotypes to sell products (Clairol hair dye, Carl’s Jr., Old Spice, Target groceries and clothing, etc.)

Body image/photo shopping

Feminism/gender equality

Gender neutrality

Transgender identity

Gender and movies

Gender and Disney movies

Gender and music

Rape culture

Gender and history

Gender and video games

Metrosexuality

Gender and security/crime

Masculinity and femininity

Double standards in gender

Gender and relationships

Gender and career/workforce

Gender and politics

Gender and children

Sexuality preferences and how that relates to gender

Gender and parenting/family

Gender and childhood toys

Gender and school policy

Gender and bullying

Gender and culture

Sex vs. gender

Gender and sports

Gender and fashion

Gender and the law

Gender and the military

Gender issues and education

Queer theory/theology

Literary works about gender: “The Story of An Hour” and “What Didn’t Happen in Arizona”

Do these pieces of literature perpetuate or challenge gender stereotypes? In what ways?

What motifs are common to them both even though they are about 90 years apart? What motifs are different? Consider their relationship to gender stereotypes, uses of language, cultural allusions, etc.

How does the particular text type influence the message?