In contrast to past gender stereotypes, they argue that girls should be strong, independent, and intelligent. Orenstein takes a second wave feminism approach, meaning females are just as capable as males. She references how she commonly writes about feminism and warning parents of a “preoccupation of body and beauty” in order to pull for a change in society (327). The beauty standards give women an impossible set of goals deterring their confidence. In addition to unrealistic standards, Orenstein is alarmed by the growing popularity of princesses because she views them as “retrograde role models” (329).
Furthermore, Orenstein continues to complain about how even in the shows where the girls are supposed to be more of a tomboy, they find ways to bring in the princess culture. She says that they undermine the girls and how they will grow up. Then Orenstein goes on to point out some other facts like how, “girls can embrace their predilection for pink without compromising strength or ambition.” (Orenstein 328). After this realization she begins to believe differently contradicting her former belief that pink and princess culture is all bad. Although she doesn’t confirm her change until the very end.
It may also lead to jealousy of one another or hatred from someone else, because they think of someone being “better than others.” For example, “…I worry these girls are just doing it because they are being ordered to do so…”, Nancy Irwain (Toddlers in Tiara, 493). Nancy is just stating what she thinks, this is the perfect example of stereotyping someone. Unfortunately, she is stereotyping little girls that play a role in pageants. Maybe the children actually enjoy doing the pageants and the parents do it because of that. That is the perfect way to explain how stereotyping works.
Today girls are more privileged than back years ago. Several women still expect that they are treated the same as women were back at that time, which causes several women believe that boys are still the dominate sex. Explained by a woman named, Christina Hoff Sommers, as she wrote “The War Against Boys,” who argues that girls have been increasing ahead of boys, which has resulted in boys languishing academically and socially. However argues that this statement is untrue. Beginning to build her credibility, Sommers states a few of the accomplishments of women and also saying that countless women complain about being the less dominant sex.
Also, it is interesting that women do not protest this perception. It is acknowledged by them and this circumstance is getting weirder nowadays. Lorella Zanardo's documentary introduces the idea of modern women presented as 'grotesque' or vulgar in the main stream media. Extreme level of obedience of women attracts most of us attention i believe. As for the book Penelopaid attributions are dissimilar, the terms which are grotesque or vulgar replaces with loyal and chaste like Penelopaid the Odysseus's wife.
Women have social pressures to conform to particular ways of behaving and looking. The pressures are so huge not all women are aware of such situations. The women are so use to living to conformed ways we label the ones who actually act normal as “weird and abnormal”. Piercy shows how we are unconscious of what’s happening, how a regular girl that is going through puberty judge so badly for being normal. Our social and cultural construct on women’s values society has created has only been about making a profit.
The media portrays these unrealistic standards to men and women of how women should look, which suggests that their natural face is not good enough. Unrealistic standards for beauty created by the media is detrimental to girls’ self-esteem because it makes women feel constant external pressure to achieve the “ideal look”, which indicates that their natural appearance is inadequate. There has been an increasing number of women that are dissatisfied with themselves due to constant external pressure to look perfect. YWCA’s “Beauty at Any Cost” discusses this in their article saying that, “The pressure to achieve unrealistic physical beauty is an undercurrent in the lives of virtually all women in the United States, and its steady drumbeat is wreaking havoc on women in ways that far exceed the bounds of their physical selves” (YWCA). Being surrounded by society’s definitions of beauty has definitely taken a toll on American women’s confidence.
(John Steptoe, 1987) This may seem like a “dream come true” for the daughters, but who gives context to a girl’s “worthiness.” With this opportunity in mind, “Manyara tried to convince their father that Nyasha was too frail for the journey.” (John Steptoe, 1987) Manyara attempts hurt Nyasha’s status by attributing gender based stereotypes onto her sister. Saying that Nyasha would be frail or fragile is a typical bias against women and is clearly gender discrimination. Furthermore, if Nyasha was not considered beautiful to the king the marriage may have never
It tends to upset the traditional power balance between the sexes and construct women as powerful and men as weak and threatened. The femme fatale was; a woman who seduces, exploits, and destroys her partners. O’Shaughnessy was deceitful and homicidal but also smart and ambitious. Their independence and power can be seen as a positive step in the representation of women. These women did not conform to the traditional role of the wife and mother.
This supports the argument because many girls often feel down about the way they look or feel. Though, it may be hard for some to understand, even if you might not think that what you said was hurtful, it still might have been to her. Additionally, depression, anxiety, self-loathing and anger may occur. Poor body images can also cause social avoidance and affect the development of healthy social and romantic relations. This proves even further that there can be such a big impact.