From Brynn:
All throughout our lives, we are taught to conform to what society expects of us. Girls begin to learn these societal expectations from a young age as they see actresses and models on TV and learn what men and the media find attractive. In our reading “The Two Cultures of Childhood” we learn that from a young age, children begin to learn gender schemas that help them determine how to appropriately act (Rudman). They learn these schemas by observing the behavior of those around them. This could be when young girls watch their older sisters wear sparkly dresses to go to parties or watch models and actresses with large amounts of makeup on in movies. This eventually teaches girls that they need to wear extremely feminine clothes and lots of makeup to be popular and get the boys to like you, which is very important when you’re in high school.
As girls get older they will subconsciously “test” these societal expectations. This idea is supported by the social learning theory as stated in our Unit 5 PowerPoint, “The Socialization of Gender in Children. This theory states that punishments and rewards will influence gender-typed behavior. This allows girls to see firsthand that when they act feminine and conform to the societal gender roles they will be rewarded by things like compliments and getting more male attention, but if you do not conform you will be punished by things like people giving you rude stares.
The specific subtopic I chose is the consequences of unrealistic beauty standards on teenage girls. The idea behind my photo is that the teenage girl is getting ready for a party, and the stress of conforming to this girl's culture all becomes too much. The girl in the photo is my 14-year-old sister and at this age, girls are encouraged to start wearing makeup and dressing older, which is what I wanted to showcase with her outfit and makeup. She is surrounded by her makeup, shoes, and clothes, all things that are commonly associated with femininity. I decided to take this photo in the closet to symbolize that all of the superficial objects and girl culture is making her feel suffocated and trapped. I chose to have a pink overlay in this photo because this is a color that is commonly associated with femininity and I wanted her gaze to be directed at the camera in almost a pleading way, asking for help to get out of these restrictions that society has put on her. She is also slouched over and only taking up a relatively small amount of space in the photograph to show that she feels unimportant and powerless. Lastly, I wanted to have the camera angle at the same level as where the girl is sitting to show that the photographer and the audience are trying to be understanding of what she is going through. I didn’t want the angle to come from above the photo or it may have come off as judging the girl and looking down on her.
Rellihan, Heather. “The Socialization of Gender in Children.” Womens Studies, 23 October 2020, Anne Arundel Community College. Microsoft Powerpoint presentation.
Rudman, Laurie A., et al. “The Two Cultures of Childhood,” The Social Psychology of Gender: How Power and Intimacy Shape Gender Relations. The Guilford Press, 2015, 59-63.
2 comments:
From Gary:
"I wanted her gaze to be directed at the camera in almost a pleading way, asking for help to get out of these restrictions that society has put on her."
Seriously this statement is truly amazing in how you describe the culture that is putting unnecessary pressure on the girls and women. I think you nailed a whole concept because I never understood why they have this need to apply make up and look older in order to receive rewards from people when they, themselves, are beautiful in their own true skin. I don't think that picture is about judging the girl and looking down on her. I think it's the reality and it's unfair on them to live up to unrealistic beauty expectation when they could enjoy themselves without pressure in the first place.
This picture really speaks volumes. Girls at such a young age fall into pressure of being and looking good enough. The emotion in this picture says a lot and so does the background. The makeup all over the floor, just showing that she's tired of putting on this mask. The color also speaks to me. Its a pint but also sort of red which tells me she's done, and needs help. This picture shows the reality of what girls struggle with at such a young age. Awareness should be brought to this and these standards need to be stopped
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