Women+in+the+Media+(A)



__Women’s initial role in the media:__

 In the 1950’s after World War II, women became associated with the kitchen; their primary focus was to become the ultimate housewife and mother. The media during this time period concentrated on women, determining that a women's only job was to please her husband, raise her kids and keep a pristine house, while always looking made up and perfect at the same time. It was their job to maintain the perfect image of their homes and themselves for the eyes of their husbands. TV shows, commercials and ads portrayed women in beautiful dresses, pearls, makeup and always smiling while she cooks, cleans and cares for the dominant males in the house. From the work of the media, women were influenced to own the latest and greatest home appliances and technology. In movies and children's books, women needed a strong and stable man to care for them. The media placed women in inferior roles in society by portraying men as the dominant gender. By portraying women as the happy housewife in the 1950’s, it created stereotypes of women as inferior domestic beings. Women were unable to speak their minds and express themselves in the society in which the media had created. The portrayal of women as inferior and dainty, affected many women’s careers, forcing them to quit their jobs. Most women never knew what their full potential was outside of the role of a housewife because jobs were so limited for them. However, towards the late 1970’s, the media began to incorporate stronger and more independent female roles into ads and TV shows. As more and more women were seen as independent, women throughout the world started to speak out and decide their own role in society. The media still controlled women’s behavior, but as time passed, people are now more aware of the prejudice against women, and the medias role in shaping it. The media still affects the way women behave today, especially in the younger generations. Not only does the media affect the way women should act but also how men see them as inferior beings, as well as sex symbols.

 Even now, in the 21st century, gender equality is still an issue. However, women’s rights have come along way since the 1950’s. Today ,women have the right to express themselves, hold career positions equally important to men and be strong individuals. The media has shown how even single women can have a happy and successful life by including more strong independent women in TV shows, commercials, movies and literature.