Kristen Fisher
Ally Bank, formerly GMAC, is in the process of rebranding itself. Its new name means that of supporter, assistant, or helper. When reading “Bye Bye, GMAC: Will ‘Ally Bank’ Work or Not?”, Jodi Xu states that in the past Ally Bank has not necessarily followed up to this new name they have. “On a day-to-day level, customers have grown fed up with hidden checking-account fees and elaborate mortgage fine print. That doesn’t even begin to reflect anger over the huge bank bailout and financial crisis.” According to their mission statement they are “A bank that values integrity as much as deposits.” Their advertising campaign is part of this newly packaged company.
Many of the comments from YouTube focus on this Ally commercial’s humor. One viewer comments, “I laugh every time I see this commercial on TV. ‘You did not say that I could have a real one’ oooh, the look in that girl’s eye! She looked like she could have torn that man apart. LMAO!” These viewers comment how funny it is when the first little girl doesn’t get the real pony and then seems extremely angry at the salesman.
In this commercial the first young girl that is asked if she would like a pony is clearly of a different background other than white. She seems as though she might have some Hispanic, or Middle Eastern descant. When she later says to the salesman “you didn’t tell me I could have a real pony,” one can hear a slight accent, signifying “foreignness”. On the other hand, the second girl that is asked if she would like a pony is given a real, live pony. This second girl is a blonde white child and clearly, she represents a higher socioeconomic class; her hair is combed, and she is dressed up in a nicer dress shirt. The man offering these girls a pony is a middle-aged white man that clearly favors the child that is seemingly wealthier and white. He has a much nicer tone with her and is actually a little rude in responding to the first girls comment when he replies “well you didn’t ask.”
This commercial frames our understanding of the children, inviting us to, ultimately, devaluing nonwhites. The irony in this commercial is that one of the last lines in it says “even kids know it’s wrong to hold out on somebody.” On one hand, the advertisement’s message is that of egalitarianism. Everyone should be treated equally. However, at the same time, it relies on naturalized assumptions about worth and ethnicity. In this case, the non-white child is given less. This line is further ironic because now even kids know it’s wrong to treat people differently and hold out on somebody based on their background.
The problem with this commercial is that it reiterates an acculturated schema. It is a representation of how we commonly see different ethnicities represented. This commercial helps categorize people into different groups by showing us the basic characteristics of these two girls, which allows us to assume that everyone with those characteristics are alike without really having to expend upon that or make much of a mental effort.
Showing posts with label Schema. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Schema. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
Who are the Acceptable Targets in the Media and Why?
Donikea Austin
In today’s media there are a few unwritten rules in regards to who can be acceptably exploited, who can be made fun of and who can be stereotyped. As seen in the snickers commercial gay people are one of these groups. In the video we see two greasy mechanics that accidentally kiss and afterwards need to prove their manliness to one another. Gays are not the only group that is still an acceptable target, we still see advertisers using people of Irish, Arabic and Asian decent how they see fit, usually without any consequences.
Why are they allowed to do this? Historically gays and lesbians have been a minority group in American society. This is the same problem we have with other minority groups that are represented in the media. The media believes that there is simply not enough people in that group to cause a problem or the people in that group do not have enough power to enforce a change. Gays in America are in a special category, they are a smaller minority of the population however they have a large non gay alliance. So together, gays and their alliances make up a larger more recognizable percentage of media consumers. Another reason that gays are allowed to be so commonly misrepresented or stereotyped is the fact that the people who are against homosexuals as a whole are usually larger, louder and newsmakers.
The commercial plays off of the schemas we have for mechanics as well as the schemas we have for homosexuals. When people think of greasy men in jumpsuits fixing a car the schema for mechanic is activated, however when you see all of these things preceding two of the men kissing there is no schema for this. On one level we can think about how this commercial shows us how we view the homosexuality as wrong and it also shows us all of the stereotypes associated with it. Gay men are thought to be more feminine than straight men, therefore when we see two mechanics kiss our schema for what it means to be a mechanic is challenged. As people we do not like change, we would rather have things remain constant than to always change. This idea can be applied to the commercials schemas of mechanics because instead of changing the schema to accept that mechanics can be gay, we would rather assume that the gay people in the commercial are doing something wrong and it was an accident, so that we can continue to use these restricting schemas and stereotypes.
Some people may see this as another part of society that simply cannot or will not be changed so why focus on it. Actually advertising has changed greatly over the years and we can see that in how other groups are portrayed today in relation to how they used to be portrayed. For example many years ago you could see an advertisement for something like watermelon with stereotypic images of black people plastered across it, however now in society if an ad or even a television show negatively portrays or serotypes African Americans it is likely to be pulled from the public and scar the company from whom the ad was created. Because of the evolution of African Americans as a more powerful force in American culture there had to be a change in the way they were going to allow themselves to be portrayed. We see this same trend happening in Hispanic culture, as they are growing in population, they are also growing in power. We see fewer Hispanic stereotypes in media today than we have in the past, because advertisers and media people know that if you cross the line of any accepted group in America you will automatically be blacklisted.
In today’s media there are a few unwritten rules in regards to who can be acceptably exploited, who can be made fun of and who can be stereotyped. As seen in the snickers commercial gay people are one of these groups. In the video we see two greasy mechanics that accidentally kiss and afterwards need to prove their manliness to one another. Gays are not the only group that is still an acceptable target, we still see advertisers using people of Irish, Arabic and Asian decent how they see fit, usually without any consequences.
Why are they allowed to do this? Historically gays and lesbians have been a minority group in American society. This is the same problem we have with other minority groups that are represented in the media. The media believes that there is simply not enough people in that group to cause a problem or the people in that group do not have enough power to enforce a change. Gays in America are in a special category, they are a smaller minority of the population however they have a large non gay alliance. So together, gays and their alliances make up a larger more recognizable percentage of media consumers. Another reason that gays are allowed to be so commonly misrepresented or stereotyped is the fact that the people who are against homosexuals as a whole are usually larger, louder and newsmakers.
The commercial plays off of the schemas we have for mechanics as well as the schemas we have for homosexuals. When people think of greasy men in jumpsuits fixing a car the schema for mechanic is activated, however when you see all of these things preceding two of the men kissing there is no schema for this. On one level we can think about how this commercial shows us how we view the homosexuality as wrong and it also shows us all of the stereotypes associated with it. Gay men are thought to be more feminine than straight men, therefore when we see two mechanics kiss our schema for what it means to be a mechanic is challenged. As people we do not like change, we would rather have things remain constant than to always change. This idea can be applied to the commercials schemas of mechanics because instead of changing the schema to accept that mechanics can be gay, we would rather assume that the gay people in the commercial are doing something wrong and it was an accident, so that we can continue to use these restricting schemas and stereotypes.
Some people may see this as another part of society that simply cannot or will not be changed so why focus on it. Actually advertising has changed greatly over the years and we can see that in how other groups are portrayed today in relation to how they used to be portrayed. For example many years ago you could see an advertisement for something like watermelon with stereotypic images of black people plastered across it, however now in society if an ad or even a television show negatively portrays or serotypes African Americans it is likely to be pulled from the public and scar the company from whom the ad was created. Because of the evolution of African Americans as a more powerful force in American culture there had to be a change in the way they were going to allow themselves to be portrayed. We see this same trend happening in Hispanic culture, as they are growing in population, they are also growing in power. We see fewer Hispanic stereotypes in media today than we have in the past, because advertisers and media people know that if you cross the line of any accepted group in America you will automatically be blacklisted.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
A Beauty or a Beast? Textual analysis of stereotypes and discrimination in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast
Sam Guenther
“It is not right for a woman to read. Soon she starts getting ideas and thinking…”
This statement is spoken by Gaston, the “ultimate” male specimen in Disney’s 1991 film, Beauty and the Beast.
A schema is a cognitive framework or concept that helps organize and interpret information. Though useful in allowing us to take shortcuts in interpreting vast amounts of information, these mental frameworks cause us to exclude important information in favor of the information that confirms our pre-existing beliefs or ideas. These schemas give rise to stereotypes by making it difficult to retain new information that does not conform to our already established schemas. The schemas most children have of gender stereotypes and discrimination are reinforced continuously by Disney films. The Disney empire, long beloved by parents and children alike, has recently been confronted about the stereotypical messages within their material. With such a powerful influence over the public, especially children, many contend it should be Disney’s responsibility to censure their media outlets and work to eliminate evidence of stereotypes and discrimination within their products. Scholars and parents alike are becoming concerned with the portrayal of women and other questionable behavior in Disney’s films.
In particular, Beauty and the Beast portrays severe gender stereotypes. Using a textual analysis, one can discover the use of these stereotypes in the main characters of Belle and Gaston, and indication of discrimination towards the Beast. The opening song in Beauty and the Beast summarizes the schemas of Belle and Gaston. As the whole town sings about Belle, the main character, they introduce her as beautiful, but “odd”, “peculiar”, and a “funny girl.” Why? Because she reads. The only town seems to be baffled because there is really no need for a girl to read, especially if she has beauty. The text of this film immediately displays Belle as the town spectacle because of this trait. Rather than encouraging Belle’s fancy for reading, the film isolates it as an “odd” and ridiculous trait. Although Disney does allow their female main character to be seen with some brains, she never ends up needing them. Just as the towns people suggested in the beginning. In Belle’s book she reads, she describes her favorite chapter as the one where the girl finds her prince charming. The film suggests that the only purpose a woman like Belle has, is to find a man. However, Belle does sing of her desire to find “more than this provincial life.” Yet, her idea of “more” still revolves around finding a man and no more.
In addition to Belle, other stereotypical females are shown in the film. While Gaston sings of his perfection, three girls swoon around him and sing the chorus. These three girls are either triplets or heavily stereotyped. All blonde, skinny, and with tiny waists, the only difference of them is the color of their revealing dresses. They are portrayed as the town’s “regular” women. In other words, the construction of femininity as portrayed by the three girl/women is normalized within the film’s narrative. They are completely infatuated with Gaston and the idea of marrying. They are sexy and ditzy. Clearly, their most valued commodity is their body.
This leads us into Gaston; he is a typical Disney male. In the film, Gaston sings of how “lucky” Belle is that he picked her as his bride. He continues to say that Belle must be the best there is because Gaston only deserves the best. This reinforces the idea of male domination and that a man comes first and deserves more than a woman, or will attain the best at a woman’s expense. The character of Gaston is illustrated to have a plethora of muscles with “biceps to spare!” This body image along with his uncanny physical abilities, like the female characters, puts emphasis on the body-as-commodity. In another musical number, Gaston’s minion replies that Gaston thinking is “dangerous” after Gaston announces he thought of a plan. The idea of Gaston’s lack of need for intelligence is also reinforced through the identical swooning girls. They only focus on his sculpted face and hairy muscles, as well as his abilities to shoot and drink. This represents the stereotypical “jock” as the main male character. While both male and female characters are valued only for their outer appearance, the difference here is that Gaston has the power to chose; the women in the film do not. Instead, the women are chosen, and chosen based only on how they look.
The other main male protagonist in the film is the Beast, and it is here that we find some potentially destructive ideology. Firstly, the idea of the Beast as an abuser becomes prevalent the instant he comes into contact with the other characters. The Beast is shown as a violent, angry creature, incapable of mercy. When Belle’s father stumbles into the Beast’s castle looking for help, the Beast immediately locks him away in a dungeon. To get her father released, Belle imprisons herself to the Beast, taking her father’s place. As the Beast’s prisoner, Belle is screamed at and threatened. At one point, the Beast’s temper boils over and he screams, “If she doesn’t eat with me, then she doesn’t eat at all!” Yet, after all this emotional abuse, Belle continues to hope that there is something human inside him, which is capable of love. Against the odds, Belle falls in love with him and “tames” the Beast. Belle’s actions tell children that it is okay to be abused by a man, because you can change him and he actually loves you. This is probably the most dangerous message in the film.
In addition to the Beast being seen as an abuser, he also represents the idea of discrimination. Cursed into the form of an ugly monster, the Beast’s life is threatened because of his difference. Discrimination or the unfair treatment of a person or group on the basis of prejudice is illustrated perfectly by the Beast. When the town learns that the Beast is real, they immediately form a prejudice against him based simply on the fact that he is not one of them. They carry this prejudice further through discrimination when they venture to his castle to “kill the Beast.” It is disturbing that prejudice and discrimination are prevalent in a child’s movie and more so, that these actions are never shown as wrong. Rather, the occupants of the house and the Beast’s servants (who happen to be thinking house-hold objects) defeat the town’s people and send them running. The film reinforces ideas of prejudice without reinforcing them as wrong, only defeatable.
It is important that Disney movies be analyzed and questioned by parents. Katherine E. Barnett (10/8/09) states that, “gender is a social construct, meaning that what we think males and females should do or how we think males and females should behave is not based on one’s biological sex” (185). In other words, Barnett is insisting that gender roles are learned and taught by one’s society. In a time of critical learning, a child begins to understand what is considered male and what is considered female. Therefore it is very important what he/she is being exposed to. Children have been, and continue to be, influenced by the overly stereotyped Disney frames of gender.
This statement is spoken by Gaston, the “ultimate” male specimen in Disney’s 1991 film, Beauty and the Beast.
A schema is a cognitive framework or concept that helps organize and interpret information. Though useful in allowing us to take shortcuts in interpreting vast amounts of information, these mental frameworks cause us to exclude important information in favor of the information that confirms our pre-existing beliefs or ideas. These schemas give rise to stereotypes by making it difficult to retain new information that does not conform to our already established schemas. The schemas most children have of gender stereotypes and discrimination are reinforced continuously by Disney films. The Disney empire, long beloved by parents and children alike, has recently been confronted about the stereotypical messages within their material. With such a powerful influence over the public, especially children, many contend it should be Disney’s responsibility to censure their media outlets and work to eliminate evidence of stereotypes and discrimination within their products. Scholars and parents alike are becoming concerned with the portrayal of women and other questionable behavior in Disney’s films.
In particular, Beauty and the Beast portrays severe gender stereotypes. Using a textual analysis, one can discover the use of these stereotypes in the main characters of Belle and Gaston, and indication of discrimination towards the Beast. The opening song in Beauty and the Beast summarizes the schemas of Belle and Gaston. As the whole town sings about Belle, the main character, they introduce her as beautiful, but “odd”, “peculiar”, and a “funny girl.” Why? Because she reads. The only town seems to be baffled because there is really no need for a girl to read, especially if she has beauty. The text of this film immediately displays Belle as the town spectacle because of this trait. Rather than encouraging Belle’s fancy for reading, the film isolates it as an “odd” and ridiculous trait. Although Disney does allow their female main character to be seen with some brains, she never ends up needing them. Just as the towns people suggested in the beginning. In Belle’s book she reads, she describes her favorite chapter as the one where the girl finds her prince charming. The film suggests that the only purpose a woman like Belle has, is to find a man. However, Belle does sing of her desire to find “more than this provincial life.” Yet, her idea of “more” still revolves around finding a man and no more.
In addition to Belle, other stereotypical females are shown in the film. While Gaston sings of his perfection, three girls swoon around him and sing the chorus. These three girls are either triplets or heavily stereotyped. All blonde, skinny, and with tiny waists, the only difference of them is the color of their revealing dresses. They are portrayed as the town’s “regular” women. In other words, the construction of femininity as portrayed by the three girl/women is normalized within the film’s narrative. They are completely infatuated with Gaston and the idea of marrying. They are sexy and ditzy. Clearly, their most valued commodity is their body.
This leads us into Gaston; he is a typical Disney male. In the film, Gaston sings of how “lucky” Belle is that he picked her as his bride. He continues to say that Belle must be the best there is because Gaston only deserves the best. This reinforces the idea of male domination and that a man comes first and deserves more than a woman, or will attain the best at a woman’s expense. The character of Gaston is illustrated to have a plethora of muscles with “biceps to spare!” This body image along with his uncanny physical abilities, like the female characters, puts emphasis on the body-as-commodity. In another musical number, Gaston’s minion replies that Gaston thinking is “dangerous” after Gaston announces he thought of a plan. The idea of Gaston’s lack of need for intelligence is also reinforced through the identical swooning girls. They only focus on his sculpted face and hairy muscles, as well as his abilities to shoot and drink. This represents the stereotypical “jock” as the main male character. While both male and female characters are valued only for their outer appearance, the difference here is that Gaston has the power to chose; the women in the film do not. Instead, the women are chosen, and chosen based only on how they look.
The other main male protagonist in the film is the Beast, and it is here that we find some potentially destructive ideology. Firstly, the idea of the Beast as an abuser becomes prevalent the instant he comes into contact with the other characters. The Beast is shown as a violent, angry creature, incapable of mercy. When Belle’s father stumbles into the Beast’s castle looking for help, the Beast immediately locks him away in a dungeon. To get her father released, Belle imprisons herself to the Beast, taking her father’s place. As the Beast’s prisoner, Belle is screamed at and threatened. At one point, the Beast’s temper boils over and he screams, “If she doesn’t eat with me, then she doesn’t eat at all!” Yet, after all this emotional abuse, Belle continues to hope that there is something human inside him, which is capable of love. Against the odds, Belle falls in love with him and “tames” the Beast. Belle’s actions tell children that it is okay to be abused by a man, because you can change him and he actually loves you. This is probably the most dangerous message in the film.
In addition to the Beast being seen as an abuser, he also represents the idea of discrimination. Cursed into the form of an ugly monster, the Beast’s life is threatened because of his difference. Discrimination or the unfair treatment of a person or group on the basis of prejudice is illustrated perfectly by the Beast. When the town learns that the Beast is real, they immediately form a prejudice against him based simply on the fact that he is not one of them. They carry this prejudice further through discrimination when they venture to his castle to “kill the Beast.” It is disturbing that prejudice and discrimination are prevalent in a child’s movie and more so, that these actions are never shown as wrong. Rather, the occupants of the house and the Beast’s servants (who happen to be thinking house-hold objects) defeat the town’s people and send them running. The film reinforces ideas of prejudice without reinforcing them as wrong, only defeatable.
It is important that Disney movies be analyzed and questioned by parents. Katherine E. Barnett (10/8/09) states that, “gender is a social construct, meaning that what we think males and females should do or how we think males and females should behave is not based on one’s biological sex” (185). In other words, Barnett is insisting that gender roles are learned and taught by one’s society. In a time of critical learning, a child begins to understand what is considered male and what is considered female. Therefore it is very important what he/she is being exposed to. Children have been, and continue to be, influenced by the overly stereotyped Disney frames of gender.
Works Cited
Barnett, Katherine E. "Destructive and Constructive Characterizations of Women in Disney's Mulan." Race/Gender/Media :Considering Diversity Across Audiences, Content, and Producers. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon, 2004. 184-90. Print.
Beauty and the Beast. Dir. Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise. Perf. Paige O'Hara and Robby Benson. Walt Disney Pictures, 1991. Videocassette.
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