Santoro

Giovanni Santoro
Professor Beadle
English 115
31 October 2016
Gender Stereotypes Through the Media
Throughout the world we can see that the media is depicting how women are viewed in
society, like how Burger King has used attractive females and celebrities as a way to promote
their business. Females are trying to stop these stereotypical assumptions on how their
characteristics are suppose to portray a weaker individual then males. Most of the characteristics
that women are stereotyped as are quiet and pretty. There are many examples of women in
society, that are seen through media, as reasons why feminines are stereotyped in such ways like
the Burger King commercial. In the commercial we see how a pretty female is praised by guys
around her because she looks really sexy while eating a salad. Many women today are trying to
change these descriptions by becoming either celebrities, actors, speakers, or even teachers so
that they can explain and show to society what women can really do. This idea of womens
gender equality can be backed by many resources such as how arguments are began from visuals
of women in society. The Burger King commercial can be seen as sexist because it shows how
the female image is seen more as an object rather than an actual human being.
Gender equality is a major issue today that needs to be discussed especially since there
are females being judged based on the characteristics that society gives women. The Burger King
commercial can cause females to feel that they have to look and feel a certain way because that is
all that society shows us. With these stereotypes, girls have felt as if they are not good enough.
There have been many ways that females have been affected by these criticisms, but some of the

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worst ones caused girls to take their own life. It is an actual fact that about most females attempt
suicide 3 times as often as males do (teenhelp.com). A way to stop these judgements could be to
have society understand the effects that most commercials have on female lives. The media could
sometimes be sending the wrong message in society but not know that their biased images are
messing with the stereotypes on females.
The media, through television, the internet, and even the newspaper, shows societys
perception of gender. One of Burger Kings commercials shows a very famous female actor in
their advertisements to attract more people. Sofia Vergara plays a role in which she is wearing a
very tight and sexy Burger King uniform. She is getting all of the mens attention, but she also
shows how eating salads is a way to be hot and beautiful like her. The audience sees how her
beauty appeals to a variety of people. This is why most people see the media as stereotyping the
female gender and its characteristics; this commercial is an example of how society has been
using the media to show how humans are shaped, and it shows the way people have been
learning about their own genders. The writers of the commercial need to try and understand that
if an insecure female were to see this commercial, she may feel that she is not as good, and is not
as beautiful, as the actor Sofia Vergara. This can explain why there are females attempting to
harm themselves or even trying to end their lives for the sake that they do not want to be judged
or pushed to be something they are not.
The media uses these commercials for advertising, so that it can help their businesses
grow in wealth. If men were to watch the Burger King commercial of Sofia Vergara, then they
might be persuaded into buying the salad or burger since such a beautiful female told them to.
The media should not use such provocative images, however they could be thinking that by using
these commercials, they can try to help females to look up to celebrities like Sofia Vergara, as a

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way to change their lives into more of a healthier and happier lifestyle. If this is true, the media
needs to fairly portray females so that women understand that they need to be healthier in order
to live a longer and better life; being beautiful/thin is not the only thing that matters.
The book Composing Gender by Rachael Groner and John F. OHara includes an
understanding to why there are people with disagreements towards the way that society is
portraying female characteristics. The different articles and writers in the book explain different
situations how gender is described and shaped through society. One of the articles that can
support the idea of society giving stereotypes for female characteristics is Rethinking Womens
Biology by Ruth Hubbard. Hubbard explains that there are different ways on how women are
described through biological terms. She really gets into detail when explaining that genders have
different roles shaped through how society sees it. There is an explanation of how females are
expected to participate much less than boys are when talking about sports and/or anything that
can be categorized as physical (Hubbard 49). This criticism shows that females are suppose to be
seen as weak and more of an object rather then how the male body is more stronger and
intelligent. The reading shows that the hierarchy in and between genders is the male figure,
because men are known to be more strong and independent. This description does not really help
make women feel better about themselves because they see that they are ranked lower than men
since men are considered as more of the leader type. Like the opinion for the Burger King
commercial, the female figure is just seen as the object for the mens pleasure.
There are many examples of what society portrays women as in the media. The Burger
King commercial goes to show that women are stereotyped, and also what causes other women
to feel the need to change who they are and what they look like in order to fit into society. Two
writers from my Composing Gender book described how their views are similar. The idea that

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boys are expected to be more active than girls goes to show how there is a separation between
what one gender can do and what the other cant (Renzetti and Curran 77). Renzetti and Curran
explain that parents treat their kids differently mostly based on their kid's sex, and because that's
how society tries to separate the male characteristics from the female characteristics. The
commercial shows this type of issue because Sofia Vergara was seen just holding the salad, but
then her male coworkers around her were cooking and actually working. There are people that
feel and understand how gender equality in the world needs to be discussed more so that there
will be a change in gender stereotypes.
There are two other books that show how women are affected by these different gender
stereotypes. The two books help to find out more on how society is shaping the idea of gender
equality. Jivka Marinovas main argument, in her book Gender Stereotypes and the
Socialization Process, is that she explains how society shapes females gender. She makes it
clear that women are struggling for gender equality, because women are being criticized in
society, and she tries to encourage female equality (Marinova 2). There is a big explanation
throughout her book on how the female gender is described and compared with males gender
characteristics. Also, how Judith Butler's main argument, in her book Gender Trouble:
Feminism and the Subversion of Identity, is that the word gender is explained in many ways,
but it is mainly judged by the way society shapes females gender roles. There is a similar idea
how women are seen as just an object, but instead Butler uses the phrase women are sex(Butler
10). This idea shows how the only thing that women are seen as is just for pleasure for men, and
for making babies but nothing more. Like how in the Burger King commercial Sofia Vergara was
used as a sexual object to attract men for advertisement in order to have a wealthier business.

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This idea that women are objects and that they are degrading is what needs to be changed in
society.
Females need to be given more respect, because they are more than just an object. They
should have a say on how society has been trying to shape the way that they should be living in
the world. The Burger King commercial can be used as a way to show how society is wrong for
criticizing women, and for giving gender stereotypes. These judgements can, and are, being
changed to this day. More and more females are taking charge in their community so that there is
change because they are becoming teachers, celebrities, actresses, or even becoming the
president; like how Hillary Clinton might become the first female President of the United States
of America. Society needs to appreciate each and every person for who they are and what they
can become.

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Work Cited
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4CEr1RwKMk

Hubbard, Ruth. Rethinking Womens Biology. Composing Gender, Edited by Rachel Groner
and John F. OHara, Bedford/St. Martins, 2014, pp. 46-52.

Renzetti, Claire. Curran, Daniel. From Women, Men, and Society. Composing Gender, Edited
by Rachel Groner and John F. OHara, Bedford/St. Martins, 2014, pp. 76-87.

http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/egm/men-boys2003/EP3-Marinova.pdf

http://lauragonzalez.com/TC/BUTLER_gender_trouble.pdf