Rebecca Levy
Stereotypes Are Hard To Change: The Slowly Evolving View of Women
This research paper incorporates my Communication major, with my Women's Studies minor, and the fascination that I have of how women are portrayed in the mass media. Stemming from my Gender, Communication, and Culture class to my Psychology of Women class, I have explored in depth how American culture, with the enormous aid of the advertising industry, stereotypes people on the basis of their biological make-up (male versus female). The message that is being sent about women is that despite their advancements in the worlds of business, politics and sports, they remain sexual "objects" to be ogled at. Yet, an analysis of recent advertisements depicting male and female athletes indicates that this message, although still quite palpable, is gradually receding in the face of recent strides in achieving legal, if not as yet practical, equality between the sexes. Researching this topic has taught me the simple fact that change is slow, especially when it involves sexual stereotypes and cultural mores.
