Blaise, 14, is excited to attend her first homecoming. She woke up early, fixed her bed and put all the things she needed to look good for tonight’s event, plus her to do list to make sure that she has not forgotten anything to look perfect. She spent three weeks finding the perfect red dress and consulted several friends for approval after finally asked her parents to order the dream dress. She is going to reuse her beloved three-inch black two-strapped heels and in addition, she bought gold hoop earrings, cosmetics, fake nails, and got a bottle of perfume from mom to complete her attire. Two days before the homecoming, she put her fake nails to make sure that she will get used to it. Three hours before the party she styled her hair and applied her own make-up (she taught herself by watching an online tutorials). Today, Blaise will ditch her black backpack in exchange for small sling purse that will fit her precious cellphone, school I.D., and ticket. She looks beautiful, radiant, and transformed into a gorgeous young lady. Her dad will drive her to her friend’s house for a get together, take photos, and ride the limousine, which her friend’s parents paid for, to take them to the venue.
Lauren Greenfield’s book, Girl Culture, highlighted the world of girls who suffer and struggle from the pressures of popular culture. Magazines, ads, movies, web sites, and today’s social media put teens under pressure to be thin and beautiful. Many teens crave for validation from peers and social media gives a quick satisfying answer to gain feedbacks. And surely, Blaise was among those girls who were influenced by this by the way she prepared, dressed, and carried herself today. Alas, Blaise’s exercise mat tucked beside her bed indicates that she feels the need to maintain her body weight as well.
The “Two Cultures” of Childhood talks about the psychological effects of gender segregation and gendering of toys and activities. Boys and girls developed gender schemas that were associated with “masculine” and “feminine” which served us guide for them to act and behave certain ways to be accepted and considered “normal” by the society’s standard. Boys often play trucks, plastic guns or anything associated with sharp and tough toys whereas, girls play dolls, kitchen’s play or anything soft and smooth. Blaise just like any other girls probably been exposed to this kind of teaching as she keeps her teddy bears with her. Her skate boards on the other hand, indicated that she does not mind playing a “boy” game.
Blaise got home happy and content because she felt accepted by friends and peers. She cleaned herself and put on her pajamas. Her big and small teddies will hug her tight tonight and her skate board to play in the morning... back to being a girl again.
Works Cited
Greenfield, Lauren. “Girl Culture” Chronicles Books, CA, 1 Sept. 2002
Rudman, Laurie A., et al. “The Two Cultures of Childhood.” The Social Psychology of Gender:
1 comment:
From: Sean
This photo very clearly depicts expectations for girls/women. Little girls are always pictured or thought of to be having stuffed animals, and some women keep them on their bed, so the 2 stuffed animals are front and center on her pillow. The patterned wall hanger in the background is also something many women have in their room. The main focal point of the image is all of the pieces of a females outfit that are laid out on the bed, presumably for her trying to dress up or go out somewhere. Instead of something casual (such as the backpack and yoga mat in the background laying against the bed) everything is relating to image. This is making a statement about how women are expected to make themselves fit into different defined aspects of beauty. As described in the original description the girl spent “three weeks finding the perfect red dress and consulted several friends for approval”. Instead of picking out a dress she liked because she liked it, the worthiness of the dress alone had to be judged by a group of her peers before she deemed herself as this being what she wanted. A 14 year old girl is already trying to get used to fake nails, feeling like she needs makeup and dress confirmation, and is using her moms perfume to seal a trap that she has been lead to fall into. Sadly, young girls are being funneled by media and the beauty industry to fit into pre-defined beauty molds, and that’s exactly what this image depicts.
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