This document discusses representations of gender and stereotypes in media. It examines how music videos typically portray men and women according to cultural norms of masculinity and femininity. It also defines and discusses the concepts of misogyny and how misogynistic lyrics are present in some hip hop music. Different perspectives are presented on whether certain music videos and lyrics empower women or are degrading towards them. The document concludes by defining stereotypes and examining their role in representation, as well as introducing the related concept of the "countertype".

1. Representation of gender
& Stereotypes

4. Media representations of gender
• Music video
As you watch think about the following:
• What does this music video suggest it means
to have a good time: as a man? As a woman?
• How are the male characters represented?
• How are the female characters represented?
• Do these representations draw on any cultural
norms about gender?

5. Misogyny
Misogyny, as defined by the Blackwell Dictionary of
Sociology,:
“is a cultural attitude of hatred for females
simply because they are female. It is a central part
of sexist prejudice and ideology and, as such, is an
important basis for the oppression of females in
male-dominated societies. Misogyny is manifested
in many different ways from jokes to pornography
to violence to the self-contempt women may be
taught to feel toward their own bodies.”

6. Misogyny and Hip-Hop

7. Lyrics
• Bizarre (originally from D12): “My little sister’s birthday /
She’ll remember me / For a gift I had ten of my boys take
her virginity.” Bizarre
• Eminem: “Snatch the bitch out her car through the window,
she screamin’ / I body slam her onto the cement, until the
concrete gave and created a sinkhole / Bury this stink ho in
it, then paid to have the street re-paved.”
• Eminem (again)“I got 99 problems and the bitch ain't one /
She's all 99 of them I need a machine gun / I take ‘em all
out I hope you hear this song / And go into a cardiac arrest,
have a heart attack / And just drop dead and I'mma throw
a fucking party after this”.

8. Media representations of gender
• Consider the views put forward in these
videos. Do you agree?
• Media Ed
• Feminist Frequency

9. Misogynistic? Female empowerment?

10. Diana Martel - Director
• “I wanted to deal with the misogynist, funny lyrics in a
way where the girls were going to overpower the men.
Look at Emily Ratajkowski’s performance; it’s very, very
funny and subtly ridiculing. That’s what is fresh to me.
It also forces the men to feel playful and not at all like
predators. I directed the girls to look into the camera,
this is very intentional and they do it most of the time;
they are in the power position. I don’t think the video
is sexist. The lyrics are ridiculous, the guys are silly as
f**k. That said, I respect women who are watching out
for negative images in pop culture and who find the
nudity offensive, but I find [the video] meta and
playful.”

11. Robin Thicke
• We tried to do everything that was taboo. Bestiality,
drug injections, and everything that is completely
derogatory towards women. Because all three of us are
happily married with children, we were like, "We're the
perfect guys to make fun of this."
• People say, "Hey, do you think this is degrading to
women?" I'm like, "Of course it is. What a pleasure it is
to degrade a woman. I've never gotten to do that
before. I've always respected women." So we just
wanted to turn it over on its head and make people go,
"Women and their bodies are beautiful. Men are
always gonna want to follow them around."

12. 10 minute presentation

13. It is useful at this point to consider Stereotypes
in more detail...

14. Stereotypes
Assumptions that are held about a social group.
They are often used in a negative or prejudicial
sense and are frequently used to justify certain
discriminatory behaviours.
Stereotyping is an important concept in terms
of representation.

15. Stereotype production is based on…
• Simplification
• Exaggeration or distortion
• Generalisation
• Presentation of cultural attributes as being
'natural'.
Does it matter?

16. Stereotypes
• If you look at TV shows, movies, adverts etc
from the past it is strange to see how
inappropriately some demographics (gender,
GLBT, ethnic minorities) were depicted or
represented.
• As a result stereotypes need to change…

17. The Countertype
• A positive stereotype.
• Focuses on positive elements of a group traditionally
represented as bad.
• Still an oversimplification of the enormous diversity
featured with the group.

19. Task
• Can you think of any character (TV or Film) who is
portrayed as a stereotype? Can you think of a
countertype?
• What is the significance of the representations? (If it
presents either a stereotype or countertype – ask why?
Consider masculinity/femininity. Is this a common
representation? Is it a positive or negative
representation?)
• Be prepared to share your examples with the class.

20. Homework
Create a collage (can be done in Word or Powerpoint) of
celebrities or characters who you think are stereotypes and
countertypes.
Explain how they:
1. reinforce gender stereotypes
2. challenge gender stereotypes
Try to explain the effects of the countertypes.
Use key terms if you can, such as: stereotypes, countertypes, feminism,
misogyny.
Due in next week.
My email address: LSullivan@qe.dorset.sch.uk