From: Margaret
When
I asked these two high school students, Finn- my brother and Jade- his
girlfriend, to model for this assignment, they immediately started goofing off
in the way that any 15 and 16-year-old couple could be expected to. Finn began
imitating his idea of female models, turning his back and looking over his
shoulder, hiking his jeans up and standing with his hips at an angle- at which
his girlfriend laughed and called him “fruity.” He then laughed and picked her
up, hoisting her onto his back. Here, he stands to the left of the composition,
chest puffed, wide stance, showing off his women’s Michael Kors sandals, and
looking confidently into the camera. Jade is on his back, laughing and looking
toward the camera from behind his shoulder. When I mentioned the women’s
sandals to him before the photoshoot he said “I’m not gay though- Young Thug
wears women’s shoes sometimes!” I found it odd that he felt the need to assert
his heterosexuality when he was standing right next to his girlfriend. I think
it’s amazing that just from this short interaction you can tell just how much
he feels pressured to preform masculinity. A pressure not just coming from
society at large but also himself, his family, and his girlfriend. He is
obviously a person who cares very much about physical appearance (he jumped at
the chance to model for anything) but at the same time feels the need to assert
his masculinity and assure everyone- and himself- that he isn’t gay for caring about this! This social
pressure to be manly is represented by the American flag to the right of them:
he is expected to live up to the ideal of the all American man and be
physically strong, emotionally stoic, and be conventionally attractive, but not
in a gay way.
2 comments:
From: Danielle
Looking at this photo, I see a traditional heterosexual couple. It is encouraged even as a young age such as theirs, the male is strong and the female is giving. Culturally it is expected that the man will carry the woman. Part of the American dream is to provide for your family and providing is expressed in the separate sphere ideology as a male trait. If the female were carrying the man it would completely change the expression of this photo. The man may be seen as less of a man and not a provider. That would not be expressing the American dream.
From: Hope
I love this photograph. This photo just at a glimpse means something. When I originally saw this photograph I saw the traditional man caring for his girlfriend and "always having her back". Men were taught to go out and "fight for their women". This photo does say a lot about sexual preferences. However I also see the reality that men are expected to live up to. In this photo, the woman looks weak and cowardly. While the man looks strong and ready to take on anything. Beautiful photograph.
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