Pop Culture and Gender Identity, Writing Analytically

“Venus Envy,” “What’s Wrong with Cinderella,” and “The Eye of the

Beholder”

Some definitions of “Identity”

• “The distinguishing character or personality of an individual” (merriam-webster online dictionary)– In other words, identity is the thing that sets an

individual apart and makes it distinguishable from other individuals. However, identity can also be bound up in our membership in a group…

• “Social identity is a person’s sense of who they are based on their group membership(s)” (McLeod).

Group Memberships

• What are some things that determine “groups” people can be members of? – Gender– Religion– Race/ethnicity– Subculture– Profession– Can you think of any more?

• What are some things that people do in order to identify themselves as members of a certain group? What happens when a member of a certain group doesn’t act the way a member of that group is “supposed to” act?

Gender and Identity: Some Basic Assumptions

• There is a difference between gender and sex. – Sex is biological. (It’s about parts.)– Gender is socially constructed. This means that

society has created ideas about what is “masculine” or what is “feminine” that have nothing to do with biology.

• Advertisements and pop culture take part in the construction of gender and use it to sell products. Let’s think of some examples.

“What’s Wrong with Cinderella?”

• This essay is written by a mother who is consciously trying to avoid having gender norms she sees as harmful forced onto her daughter.

• Why is this mother, Peggy Orenstein, concerned about her daughter’s interest in princesses (and the trend overall)? What reasons does she give for this concern?

• What is the debate about the princess trend? How does Orenstein place herself in relationship to other voices in the discussion?

“What’s Wrong with Cinderella?”

• Notice how Orenstein has a complicated stance here. – She concedes that the princess trend might be a “sign of progress,” – She mentions that little girls haven’t “drunk the Kool-Aid” and play

basketball in their fancy dresses. – She struggles with whether she is sending her daughter a message

that being a girl is bad by being anti-princess. • Notice that she also interviews several people who are

knowledgeable about various areas that relate to her topic and then responds to her sources with her own ideas.

• What conclusions does Orenstein eventually come to? How does she stake out her stance in this complex debate? Where do you stand?

“The Eye of the Beholder” p. 187

• This essay uses the form of a narrative, or a story, to get its point across. Using narratives in your essays can be an effective way of engaging your audience. Narratives introduce them to the story of one individual is dealing with the issues you are writing about, making the issues more immediate and more human.

• Why does this author decide that she is “ugly”?

“Eye of the Beholder”

• Describe the author’s transformation at the department store.

• What is her attitude about the women in the photographs at the beauty counter? About the woman who helps her with her makeover? (These don’t stay consistent throughout the essay because the author’s attitude changes as the story progresses.)

• Why do you think that the author makes the choice she does at the end?

Pop Culture and Identity

• How does this essay comment on the influence of pop culture on identity? Would you say that pop culture has had a positive/constructive influence, or a negative/destructive influence?

• What do you think this essay is saying about how all of these advertisements have influenced Suh to think of herself as a woman?

• Is it just the advertisements, or are they working together with other forces in Suh’s life?

Effects of Ads on Identity

• There has been a lot of talk about how ads with unrealistic beauty standards affect women, but not as much has been written about how ads about how to “be a man” affect men.

“Venus Envy” p. 168

• According to the author, how have men’s expectations of themselves in regards to appearance changed recently? Why? Point to places in the article that support your answer.

• What do you think of this issue? Is this a case of men and women being on a more “equal” playing field now (because both “have to” be more concerned about appearance)? Or is this a case of a trend that has historically damaged women also beginning to have negative effects on men?

Connections Between the Essays

• What connections do you see between Orenstein’s concerns in “What’s Wrong With Cinderella?” and the issues raised in the other two essays?

• Having read about Suh’s experiences in “Eye of the Beholder,” what connections can you make between her day at the beauty counter and what McLaughlin describes in “Venus Envy”?

What does it mean to “write analytically”?

• “When you analyze something, you break it down into its component parts and think about those parts methodically in order to understand it in some way” (137). – What are “component parts”? – What does it mean to think about them

“methodically”?

Writing analytically for Essay #1• Let’s apply each of the characteristics of analytical writing to the essay that

you are writing right now. • Characteristic 1: A Question that asks you to take a closer look.

– Analysis is usually prompted by curiosity. How does something work? What are the connections between two events or trends? Etc.

– Identify the specific question(s) YOU are taking a closer look at. – Examples from the readings: Aydrea Walden, in “TV Diversity: Whose Job is it

Anyway?” is exploring two question at once: 1.) Who is responsible for a lack of diversity on a TV show, 2.) What are the reasons that more black actors are not cast on TV?

– Examples for this essay: 1. How does the genre of science fiction portray diversity and tolerance in the future? Why is that portrayal significant to a modern audience? 2. How are gay and lesbian characters portrayed in TV dramas aimed at teens like Glee and Gossip Girl? Is this portrayal accurate? What are the consequences of this portrayal, for better or worse?

Effectiveness Check:• If you were able to easily identify the question your essay will

explore more deeply, ask yourself if your essay actually answers that question in a reasoned, logical way that lays out your support for your answer. If not, how could you improve? Are there any paragraphs that aren’t about this question you’ve identified? If so, get rid of them.

• If you weren’t able to easily identify the specific question, your essay does not have a narrow enough focus. You need to narrow your topic until you can form it into a question as specific as the ones on the previous slide.

• Finally, the result of your analysis should be an answer to the question you asked. That answer would work well as a thesis statement.

Writing analytically for Essay #1• Characteristic 2: Some description of the subject you are analyzing.

– Assume that your readers know what pop culture is, and they know what diversity means, but they may not know about the specific issue you are going to discuss.

– Your introduction and your first paragraph are a good place for a brief introduction to the piece of media you will discuss and an overview of the issues with diversity that you will bring up. However, you may find yourself describing individual episodes/songs/scenes in the middle of your essay so your readers will understand your points.

– Find balance here. You don’t need to give a long, exhaustive (extremely complete) history of your show/film/etc. You don’t need to give the entire history of the representation of minorities on TV and in film. You do, though, need to give your audience enough background that they can follow your argument if they’ve seen the show/film/etc that you’re talking about, or if they’ve never considered the issues facing the minority communities you’re talking about before.

Effectiveness Check:

• Do you give your readers a brief description of the bit of pop culture you’ll be analyzing? How long is it? Does it tell someone who is unfamiliar with it what they need to know in order to understand the rest of your argument?

• When I give the signal, find someone in the class who hasn’t seen/heard/read your piece of pop culture before. Let them read your description of your piece of pop culture. Do they feel like they know enough to continue with the essay now? Do they feel like you gave them too much information?

Writing analytically for Essay #1

• Let’s apply each of the characteristics of analytical writing to the essay that you are writing right now.

• Characteristic 3: Evidence drawn from close examination of the subject. In your case, close examination of the subject means that you have taken a careful, analytical look at the show/film/music/genre, noted patterns, and considered how this piece of media is handling the particular issue about diversity that you chose. – It also means that you have read, understood, and formed responses to

others who have asked questions similar to yours. – Your job in your essay is to present this evidence, both from your own

observations and from your sources, to your readers, along with your own explanations of the significance of what you and your sources noticed.

Effectiveness Check:

• Does your essay contain a close examination of the subject? – Are you points about the media general, or are they

grounded in specific examples, specific characters, songs, etc.?

– Does your essay contain quotes or ideas from sources that get at specific issues rather than general ones? And are your responses to those sources complex? (Remember what you did yesterday with agreeing/disagreeing/doing both?)

– What can you do to take a closer look at the bit of pop culture you are examining? How could you dig more deeply into it?

Writing analytically for Essay #1• Let’s apply each of the characteristics of analytical writing to the essay that you

are writing right now. • Characteristic 4: Insight gained from your analysis.

– This is your answer to the question you asked at the beginning. It is your main point, and it should be the central part of your thesis.

– What realizations did you make because of all of this close attention you paid to your topic? What conclusions have you come to?

• Characteristic 5: Clear, precise language. – Define terms and explain ideas that may be unfamiliar to your audience. (Remember, your

audience already knows what “pop culture” means and what “diversity” means.) – Be as precise as possible. For example, the word “influence” means almost nothing unless

you define how the influence is working. For example, to say “The portrayal of women influences people” is vague.• HOW does the influence work? What does it influence people to do? • What ABOUT the portrayal of women are you most interested in? • Who do you mean by “people”?

Effectiveness Check:

• In your draft, find and mark any places where you offer your reader insight gained from your analysis. Do you explain the significance of the patterns you and your sources have noticed? Do you respond to a source with ideas and connections of your own?

• If you can’t fine any places where you’ve done this, you need to add them in. Sharing your insights with your readers is one of the central purposes of this essay. Where might you do that?

• Is your language, especially your thesis, clear and precise? What can you do to increase the precision of your word choice?