Portrayals of Female Docility in Popular vs. Critical Media

A Correlation to Female Docility in Higher Education

Presentation Outline Overview of Thesis

Summary of Part 1› Variables and Authors› Framework › Main findings

Part 2› Introduction of Popular and Critical Media› Integration of Media into Framework› Theoretical analysis using course-kit themes throughout › Opposing Argument and Response

Concluding Thoughts

Discussion Questions

Thesis I argue that women in natural/physical sciences and graduate studies are

turned into Foucault’s “docile bodies” (Discipline and Punish, 1995) through ‘disciplinary power’. The body is normalized, individuated, surveilled and objectified through social power that disciplines and

controls it.

Literature regarding the experiences of university women in natural/physical sciences and graduate studies, show that the women in

these fields endure gender inequities.

In my analysis, I will explore female representations of popular vs. critical media to examine the influence of media as the apparatus of the

disciplinary power.

Persuasive and pleasurable representations of women’s ‘normalized’ behaviour and obligatory docility in popular media subjectivize and

discipline the female body.

In contrast, critical media expose the disciplinary inscription on the female body caught in the power matrix of these masculine fields.

Part 1: Variables and Authors

Stereotypes about female abilities› (Eschholz, et al., 2002; Lauzen & Dozier, 2005; Long et al., 2001)

Female enrollment/achievement in higher education and sciences

› (Blackhurst & Auger, 2008; Cho, 2007)

Experiences of women in natural/physical sciences and graduate

programs› (Barata et al., 2005; Herring & Marken, 2008; Herzig, 2004; McKinley, 2005; Morrison

et al., 2005; Mottarella et al., 2009; Oswald, 2008; Steele et al., 2002; Wall, 2008)

Part 1: Framework Creating the gendered body as a docile

body through:

1. Normalization and Individuation

2. Surveillance and Objectification

3. Control and Disciplining

Part 1: FindingsNORMALIZATION AND INDIVIDUATION

• Media presenting gender stereotypes (Eschholz et al., 2002; Lauzen & Dozier, 2005; Long et al., 2001)

• Males as socially dominant (Eschholz et al., 2002, p. 322 )

• Females as outsiders in fields of higher education (Herzig, 2004, p. 392)

• Primacy of male knowledge and ability (Hart, 2006, p. 56; McKinley 2005, pp. 488-489; Wall, 2008, p. 220

Part 1: Findings Cont’dSURVEILLANCE AND OBJECTIFICATION

• Gender discrimination (Morrison et al,. 2005, p. 158; Steele et al., 2002, p. 49)

• Judgment about mothering (Mottarella et al., 2009, p.

230)“Good mother stereotype”

• Surveillance: seen/judged in terms of gender (Morrison et al., 2005; Steele et al., 2002)

• Objectified: abilities/character linked to gendered bodies (Morrison et al,. 2005; Mottarella et al., 2009)

Part 1: Findings Cont’dCONTROL AND DISCIPLINING

• Control: face challenges and experience discouragement (Morrison et al., 2005, p. 158; Mottarella et al., 2009, p. 230, Steele et al., 2002, p. 49)

• Disciplining: Do not want to acknowledge gender discrimination, lose self-belief, leave studies (Barata et al., 2005, p. 239; Herzig, 2004, p. 392; Middleton, 2005, p. 522; Morrison et al., 2005, p. 150)

• Despite increasing enrollment still education and workplace inequities (Bradley, 2000, p. 1)

• Inconclusive re: solutions

Overview of MediaPOPULAR MEDIA Film: The Proposal and TV Series: Nurse

Jackie› Processes of

Obligatory Docility

Television Advertisement

Song Lyrics: “Just a Girl” by No Doubt

CRITICAL MEDIA Cartoons:

› www.cartoonstock.com

Synopsis: The Proposal

Margaret: high powered, cruel Book Editor in NYC

Andrew: Margaret’s assistant Margaret discovers she will be

deported to Canada due to expired visa

Bribes Andrew to marry her as solution

Focus on Margaret’s work life vs. personal life

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPgZcW8MCaA

Synopsis: Nurse Jackie

Married with children

Hides this at work work affair

Battling addiction to prescription

drugs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EivnE-Qy8w

NORMALIZATION AND

INDIVIDUATION

Popular Media:The Proposal

Comedic portrayals of Andrew as a female’s assistant

Uncritical portrayals of Margaret’s male bosses

› Normalizes male work hierarchy

Margaret isolated – no relationships› Individuated as an outsider

Popular Media:Nurse Jackie

Females as nurses – males as doctors› Normalizes male hierarchy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5W8rKYP9wY

Individuation: Public sphere vs. private sphere

› Keep lives separate

Critical Media: Cartoons

www.cartoonstock.com

Critical Media: Cartoons

www.cartoonstock.com

Course Themes and Analysis

Eschholz et al. (2002):› Normalizing male dominance (p. 322)

Stern (2005): › Media framework impacting views and behaviours

(p. 23)  

Giroux (2002): › Critical thought vs. consumption (p. 15)

POPULAR MEDIA NORMALIZING MALE DOMINANCE AND SUBJECTIVIZING FEMALE BODIES VS. CRITICAL MEDIA

ENCOURAGING ONE TO RECOGNIZE AND QUESTION SUCH REPRESENTATIONS

SURVEILLANCE AND

OBJECTIFICATION

Popular Media: The Proposal

Margaret’s Job in danger: watched by officials

Margaret seen in terms of gendered body

“IT” “The witch”

“Satan’s mistress”

Popular Media: Nurse Jackie

Surveilled at work and at home› Religious presence

› Daughter

Abilities linked to body › Comments about caring/feminine nature

Popular Media:Television Advertisement

How are female students represented?Advertisemen

t

Critical Media: Cartoons

www.cartoonstock.com

Critical Media: Cartoons

www.cartoonstock.com

Course Themes and Analysis

Leone et al. (2006):› People assume they are less influenced by media than others

(p. 265)

Freedman (2003):› Preservice teachers uncritical of dominant representations (p.

93)› Media as shaping values (p. 94)

Morrison (2000):› Recognizing “values” and “ideologies” (p. 3)

POPULAR MEDIA MESSAGES INFLUENCING VIEWS AND TREATMENT OF WOMEN VS. CRITICAL MEDIA MAKING

VIEWS/TREATMENT EXPLICIT THROUGH HUMOUR

CONTROLAND

DISCIPLINING

Popular Media: The Proposal

Margaret has no personal life› No relationships with coworkers Challenges/controls

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ig6uQWjkYLo&feature=related

Involvement with Andrew symbolically relents to male hierarchy

“Show her who’s boss Andrew!”

Popular Media: Nurse Jackie

Working mother = extreme challenges› Cannot blend lives

› Child difficulty coping

Jackie turns to drugs› Disciplining body

› Artificial escape from reality

Critical Media: Cartoons

www.cartoonstock.com

Course Themes and Analysis

Stern et al. (2005):› “Parasocial attachment” (p. 223)

Freedman (2003): › “Critical Pedagogy” (p. 94)

POPULAR MEDIA PRESENTING PERSUASIVE REPRESENTATIONS OF OBLIGATORY FEMALE DOCILITY VS. CRITICAL MEDIA EXPOSING

DISCIPLINARY INSCRIPTION AND OPENING UP SPACE FOR ANALYTICAL THOUGHT

Opposing Argument and Response

OPPOSITION

• Counter-stereotypes in television challenging

dominant image of male scientist (Long et al.,

2001, p. 264)

• Popular media not necessarily subjectivizing

and disciplining the female body

RESPONSE

• Counter-stereotypes = popular media

“sanctioned” criticism (Bishop, 2000, p. 10)

• Popular media dictates media criticism (Bishop,

2000, p. 7)

• Strengthens power of popular media controls

criticism and reduces individuals’ incentives to criticize (Bishop, 2000, p.

6)

Example of Popular Media Controlling Criticism: “Just a Girl”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHzOOQfhPFg

Cause I'm just a girl, little ol' me Don't let me out of your sight

I'm just a girl, all pretty and petite So don't let me have any rights

Oh. . . I've had it up to here!  

The moment that I step outside So many reasons for me to run and hide

I can't do the little things I hold so dear

'Cause it's all those little things That I fear

 'Cause I'm just a girl,

I'd rather not be

Concluding Thoughts Literature review females subjected to disciplinary

powers in higher education Popular media = apparatus of disciplinary power› Messages are in public sphere but are too ‘thin’– not open to

scrunity (Gerstl Pepin, 1998 as cited in Gerstl – Pepin, 2002, p. 39)

› Media messages presented as pleasurable, humourous, and unsubvertable representations

Critical media exposes process of disciplining the female body

Hope: enhance reflexive abilities of students and citizens resistance

Discussion Questions

① What are some other examples of popular media (i.e. films, television, magazines,

etc) that promote anti-intellectual portrayals of obligatory female docility?

② Why are these anti-intellectual portrayals problematic?

③ How might the disciplinary power of popular media be challenged?

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