Gender Stereotypes in Friends TV Show
Discuss about the Representation Gender Inequality and Friends.
Gender inequality is indicative of the perception that women along with men are not treated on equal terms in the society. It is indicative of the unequal treatment that the individuals in the society have to face owing to gender. Gender inequality rises on account of distinctions which can be empirically grounded or they may be socially constructed. The relationship between that of the gender stereotypes can be seen on media like that of television. The television series “Friends” helps in portraying gender stereotypes as it lays emphasis on interaction between that of three female characters along with that of the three male characters. It helps in depicting the manner of living of the twenty year old people and how they lived during that time. Plot pertaining to the sitcoms can help in the re-definition of the normal and typical life of that of the Americans (Haines, Deaux&Lofaro, 2016)It can prove to be an interesting study as a broad time can be analysed because the show aired over television over a period of ten years. Interpretative method has been made use of in order to arrive at the conclusion regarding whether “ Friends” depicts gender inequality. The episodes spanning over ten seasons have been analysed in the course of our report that bear evidence of gender discrimination (Lindsey, 2015)Gender Inequality can be perceived in the show “ Friends” and the girls have been portrayed as being the objects of male desire and the three male characters view the woman like that of sex objects. The men in the sitcom are shown to be sexually driven as was the notion regarding masculine gender at that point of time.There was a notion that men are free to express their inner urges and they can do whatever they want in the society. This has been expressed in the drama with the help of the three male characters.The primary purpose of this report is to discuss about the concept of general male along with that of female stereotypes. Man is shown to be practical who does not listen to that of the female gender. The organisational structure is dominated by that of the masculine principles and “Friends” acts as a microcosm to that of the broader organisational structure. Hierarchical organization bears witness to that of male dominance and the organisational roles perpetrated on that of the men and the female is indicative of the differences existing in the society.The report focusses on gender inequality in the television program “Friends” and the way gender stereotypes have been portrayed in different episodes of the program. It expounds on how the women are thought of to be like objects and the trends in relation to portraying of gender in “Friends”. It also throws light on the link of the television program with that of workplace and highlights their career wise progression.
Negative Stereotypes about Men
Studies have shown that men along with women behave in a similar manner most of the time but there are differences in the mental set up of people that helps the stereotypes to grow. The stereotypes are emphasized with the help of media specially with the help of television. Society plays a dominant role in picking up the trends prevailing in society and thus a cycle is created (Bian, Leslie &Cimpian, 2017).The organisations provide different opportunity to different members so that they can move into desirable roles. The organisational structure affects the personal fortunes in relations to the members of the society. The gender differences that exist within organizational behaviour is on account of the structure as compared to the characteristics of men and that of women.It helps in the process of consolidating the stereotypes of men and that of women. According to Goodall, images of men along with women helps in advancing the ideals regarding what is desirable in that of men along with women. Sitcoms like that of Friends helps in portraying everyday life in relation to the typical Americans and causes the ideal image to change the reality of the viewers. The stereotypes in relation to men and women have been emphasized with the help of normal life experiences (Koch, D’Mello&Sackett, 2015).
The gender stereotypes have been analysed in that of different television shows. One traditional stereotype in relation to men is that they are sexual pursuers along with adventurers. The men act in a manner that is sexually motivated and the friendly behaviour in relation to women is perceived as being sexual in nature. The men become willing to deceive the women for matters of sex. Media helps in the promotion of this kind of this kind of stereotype and society has allowed this kind of stereotype to grow. Men are conceived to be hypo emotional which suggests that they do not express emotion.The ability of men to control their emotions lends them a superior place in that of the workforce and it is assumed that they will be able to perform effectively owing to their nature.The hierarchical organizations stands as great testimony pertaining to male dominance.The men are incapable of expressing feelings and it seems as if they are not emotionally alive. Men have a tendency of feeling masculine because they want to hold on to their emotions on account of the fact that stereotype has been placed on them (Brescoll, 2016) Men are often stereotyped to be dominant while on the other hand the women are held to be passive. The men are perceived to be intelligent ones and they have high-paying job. The men are higher in terms of status and they are thought to be more important than that of women. Another stereotype that exists in society is the idea that the male gender never grows up. He is thought of to be an anti-adult and is like an overgrown child. It is often held that he has many sexual partners and is irresponsible (Coyne et al., 2016) In the event of men exhibiting feminine attributes they are held to be gay. These attributes are inclusive of the manner of their talking, walking and talking (Fuller & Driscoll, 2015)
Negative Stereotypes about Women
The men stereotypes are held to be negative in nature. Negative stereotypes bear a negative impact on that of the society and a positive stereotype on the other hand has positive impact on that of the society. Negative stereotype in relation to women is that the women are thought of to be sex objects.The women are thought of to be submissive. Women are perceived to be “below” women and they are often describes as being weak and quiet. Complete reversal of the latter stereotype are the women who conceive of themselves to be independent (Capuzza& Spencer, 2017). They act like that of the stereotypical matriarch who act as women head of the house. These women either have got the jobs with the help of which they can sustain their own living or they take up the position of that of the head of house. Another stereotype in relation to women is that of negative stereotype in which women are portrayed to be extremely emotional.The portrayal of women as extremely emotional people suggests that they would not be able to perform well within the parameter of organisational culture. An organisation acts in a gendered manner and the idealized worker is thought of to be a man. Paid work is subsumed to be in the image of that of the ideal worker.The hyperemotional women involve themselves in the act of crying and laughing in a hysterical manner. These kinds of women show all kinds of feeling like that of sadness, annoyance and being upset.It thus shows that they would not be able to create a proper position for themselves in that of the organization.They are the opposite to that of stereotypical hypoemotional man (Behm-Morawitz, Lewallen& Miller, 2016)The positive stereotype shows that women have an affective orientation. The women value the communication skills which shows that they make a genuine effort so that they can listen. They strive for that of the element of intimacy along with that of connectedness with that of the society. The women act as a caregiver and they nurture people which shows that they care for other people (Bednarek, 2015).
Sitcom is a medium with the help of which the reality of the viewer is changed as it helps in the depiction of the average life pertaining to the Americans.It helps in portraying the power roles that exist within that of the society.The plot in relation to sitcoms helps in the re-definition of that of normal life. Dialogue in relation to the characters helps in capturing linguistic characteristics in relation to natural conversations. The writers of scripts create conversations that can occur within that of particular circumstances in relation to the everyday life. The words that are thought of to be “smart” are not made use of unless for that of the storytelling purpose. The dialogue of “Friends” comprises of informal language like that of slang. The dialogue helps in presenting the main traits in relation to the characters. The manner in which feelings are conveyed varies for every character (Rey, 2014). On comparison of the dialogue of Friends with that of real conversation, researchers deduce that sitcoms and that of real life bears similarity to that of each other. Gender is a crucial factor pertaining to the sitcoms. Before the advent of feminism in that of 1970, most of the sitcoms that were successful showcased male characters in the leading role and the women featured in that of ensemble casts (Acker, 1990) The television series portray the female characters interacting with others in that of familial roles.The male gender in the society were perceived to be dominating whereas the female gender was thought of to be submissive and lacking the element of responsibility.The gender differences are manifested in that of organizational behaviour on account of the structure as compared to the characteristics in relation to that of men and women.The masculine principles dominate that of the authority structure within that of the organization. Friends shows the male members exhibiting authoritarian behaviours as if they had a control on the life of the female members. The idealized worker was thought of to be a man and Joey dating almost every girl shows the power that the male members had in the society.The male characters of television series are involved in that of work role and they are shown to exhibit agentic goals like that of ambition and success. Portraying the women in this manner is thus a distinct aspect in relation to patriarchy and it has an effect on that of the beliefs of the viewers.
Positive Stereotypes about Women
The masculine nature in relation to men are often portrayed in the television series. Masculinity comes in that of different forms. Most forms that are common in relation to men are that of anger and of high status. A man becoming angry first or who has a high status on account of wealth is thought of to be masculine. A different kind of masculinity that is shown in the sitcoms is that of anti-adult role in which the man behaves like that of an overgrown child (Rumens&Kerfoot, 2009) The sitcoms often portray the husbands as being hen-pecked who respect the wife and is afraid of her and that of the caring father. Masculinity can be said to be the main broad stereotype. There are some men in that of the sitcoms who are pronounced to be homosexual characters and there are others that portray attributes that causes the viewer to brand them as homosexuals (Rickett& Roman, 2013). These men has a tendency of being less masculine in terms of appearance and that of occupations. They are thus perceived to be feminine.Chandler has been shown saving money from that of his job in the past six years. He has thus been portrayed as a sensible person who knows how to handle money. Chandler becomes angry on the event of Monica asking him to spend the savings on that of their dream wedding. Chandler convinces her by saying that they should be saving the money for the life after that of wedding. This shows the practical man who is not willing to bow down to the dictates of the female gender. The masculine principles dominate that of the authority structure in the organization in the same manner. According to Joan Acker, the hierarchical organisation is an important location in relation to male dominance and the work structure is reflective of the social structure of the society. The interacting process of Acker suggests that the interactions between that of men and women helps in enacting roles of dominance and that of submission.
Friends has reached many people across that of America because of the typical relationship between that of men and women. The dynamics in relation to the six friends have been made use of I order to provide even ratio in relation to the depiction of that of men and women. With the growing popularity of the show, the focus shifted from that of friends to lovers who have to suffer the misunderstandings together.Monica becomes sad on the event of her mother telling her that she will never get married and she is utterly shaken on the account of a drunken man mistaking her for that of Ross’s mother. This helps in exhibiting the extreme importance that was laid on the appearance of women within that of the social structure. There are many countries within that of the world that has made progress in relation to gender equality. Women however earn less than that of men within that of the society and they are less prone to making advancements in relation to the career. The devaluation in relation to the feminine gender is evident in that of the media that stress on the importance laied to the appearance of the women in that of the society. It has been seen that the men move quickly even within that of the women dominated jobs.Togetherness acts an important theme in relation to the friends and it is achieved with the help of interaction in between the six characters. Joey is a male character who shows masculine characteristics. Joey makes sexual advances towards that of women that helps in highlighting the male role as being authoritarian.It thus shows that the women are at the mercy of the men in their life and as if the men can do whatever they want with the women.The masculine gender is thus perceive to be strong and controlling the other sex.Gender Equality has thus been shown by projecting the masculine gender as dominating and the women as submissive.The feminine gender on the other hand is emotional along with being nurturing.The emotional along with nurturing role that has been attributed to the women shows that they would not be able to make progress in their professional path and would not be able to advance in their career.
Gender Stereotype and Organizational Behaviour
Gender stereotypes are associated with women and men are often found in the television programs and in this regard, it can be said that due to the content of the television programs the society somehow acquires trends where cycle-strengthening becomes mandatory while stereotyping men versus women (Holm, 2017). Sitcoms like friends project the day to day life of the Americans that engraves an image in the minds of the viewers and can effectively manipulate their perceptions and thought process regarding gender equality. The American serial “Friends” shows stereotyping of men and women which are focused through the normal life experiences and gender equality is clearly evident in the television program “Friends”(Ward et al., 2016).
In this section of this report it is analyzed how gender equality is shown and gender roles are stereotyped in a famous sitcom Friends.In this regard, it can be said that majority of the sitcoms portray gender stereotypes in their content but the directors of Friends cleverly split those traits and spread those traits across the major characters of the sitcom (Holm, 2017). It is seen that among the girl characters one is a compulsive cleaner, on is a cook, a housewife, one highly emotional character and one promiscuous ditzy blonde character. Among the boys, it can be seen there is one misogynistic and lazy character, a funny character who is prone to use humour as a shield and one nerdy character whose passion is science. In this situation a question arises and that is does this stereotyping make up the ultimate stereotyping for each gender. In this regard, it can be said that there is a lot to speak about gender and how it has been and how it could have been portrayed in the sitcom friends (Ward et al., 2016). The characters lead bohemian lives and they are not focussed on their careers. The way they lead their lives shows that they would not be able to make a proper place in the professional path.
Gender Equality is evident in the television show “Friends” and the women are treated like that of objects.It is seen that in the popular sitcom Friends the directors have objectified women characters as cook, as hyperemotional female and many more which can be seen somewhat degrading to them.Monica behaves like that of a typical housewife half the time and it shows the social position given to women as if they should be confined within the domestic sector. Rachel on the other hand plays the part of an hyperemotional individual that shows that she will not be able to rise in her career.This shows that these women would not be able to rise ahead in their professional path on account of their feminine habits and mannerisms. It can be said that in the popular sitcom the male characters are often womanizers and they woo women in a desperate manner. It can be said that the portrayal of the male characters projected that the only motto of their lives are to get a spouse and that is somewhat derogatory to both men and women (Bazzan, 2018). It is seen that the way directors portrayed the women characters in the plot, though the female characters are seen to be independent, but somehow the interdependence among the characters does not allow them to get rid of the tag of dependent and pressurized under a male dominating society (Pons, 2014). Monica’s behavior like a typical housewife, Rachel’s emotional turbulence, Phoebe’s ditzy behavior makes them stooped down under the authority of the males. All these highlights the issue of gender equality in the sitcom “Friends” and the female characters are shown to act in an irresponsible manner. The organisations bear testimony to the unequal wage between that of the men and the women and the irresponsible way of acting of the female characters as if justify the differences that exist within that of the organisational structure.On the other hand, the directors did not glorify the act of the male characters as they are also stereotyped in the tv show and that may be looked at as an effort to be politically correct. In the Sitcom friends it is seen that there are a lot of changes in stereotyping presentation over the 10 years back when friends was aired. It can be said that the result of the stereotypical Representation inform society how they can look at and show reactions to of gender stereotypes that they look at in the television program friends (Dore, 2015).
Sitcoms and Gender Stereotypes
It can be said that in the television show it is seen that Monica cooks for all the friends and Rachel is seen as an episode of hyper emotional person.The household nature of Monica as has been shown in the television series” Friends” bear testimony of gender discrimination and shows the gulf that was existed between that of the male along with that of the female gender.Joey and Chandler both are same as childish men in most of the episodes and that’s it can be said that the director of the sitcom intentionally stereotypes all the characters so that the target audience can relate to the plot of the sitcom (Bazzan, 2018). It is seen that in most cases the results of the stereotype male characters portrayed better than the stereotype characters of the females (Moreira, 2015). It can be said that 1 major type of masculinity is inherent in the sitcom and that is anti adult role. It is worthwhile to mention that in this anti adult rule the male characters act like overgrown child and a scene of any natural single and do not have a steady income. The stereotypes where backed up by the results of the analysis of the characters which where stereotype in the plot (Ward et al., 2016). The homosexuality stereotype was least seen in the plot of friends and it was only seen 8 times in the plot of the sitcom. Penis daddy performed on women characters in the seat covers it was seen that the characters of friends were able to backup the idea and it was seen that the character of the woman portrait in French are independent and matriarchal but at times the portrayal of the characters differ from the statement. It is seen that the female characters are stereotyped in a way so that the target viewers thought process when manipulated to look at them as inferior characters besides male characters. In a study related to the portrayal of characters in friends it was seen that the stereotype that main aa gay got in hands through the Seasons and the season 9 of the sitcom content the highest number of gay stereotypes with 17 significant citations (Routman, 2016).The television series sends a strong message to that of the viewers that the unserious manner of acting can cause an individual to suffer on the professional path.
It is seen that in the episodes of Friends stereotyping the characters is inherent and it can be said that the attitudes of the characters rightly portray the career wise progression of them. It is vividly described in some of the episodes how the characters deal with their professional lives. It is seen that Rachel being hyper emotional managed to earn a bad reputation in the workplace after getting victimized in the office herself (Gregori-Signes, 2017). The massive stereotyping of the characters leads the viewers to believe that, the characters apart from Chandler are not at all focused in their careers. and the other characters do not show resilience against this allegation. The portrayal of the characters in the sitcom made the viewers to relate with typical youth society of America of that time. It has been deliberately portrayed that the characters of the sitcom are reluctant to stress on their careers and their approach towards life is very lightheaded (Rhodes &Ellithorpe, 2016). It can be perceived from the portrayal of the characters that the basic depth in the characters are missing and that leads them to live a happy go lucky lifestyle when they were in their mid twenties also. The twenties is the most crucial time of an individual as in that stage of the life in general people gets serious in their lives and they start to get independent and eventually gets settled (McLaughlin & Rodriguez, 2017). On the other hand, the characters of Friends do not show such traits, rather they prefer to live all together and the six friends are significantly interdependent. Thus it can be said that with the workplace ethics the traits of the characters cannot be aligned. It is a matter of fact that the characterization of the sitcom shows the typical mentality of the rich Americans who do not worry about life and can live an urban bohemian life. Thus, it can be said that the portrayal of the characters show that the six friends are not actually inclined towards building careers; rather they are more focused on improving their social life (Gregori-Signes, 2017). This portrayal actually makes it easy for the viewers to come to a conclusion that the women characters along with male characters of the popular sitcom are not at all career oriented and that can potentially give a strong negative message to the future generation of the country. When the directors initiated projecting the female characters as objects, that has made the viewers to look at them with a bit of sympathy as the characters are somewhat reluctant towards life and for that they had to face serious consequences at times (Wünsch, 2016). This can also give a strong message to the viewers and that is, one should behave properly in the workplace and the matters of workplace should be taken seriously.
Conclusion
Conclusion:
Men and women behave in a particular manner but there are certain differences in relation to mental set up that helps in the growth of that of the stereotypes. The friendly behaviour on the part of the women like Phoebe and Rachel is thought of to be derogatory and of a sexual nature. This helps in highlighting the gender bias in the popular show “Friends”. There is a saying that the men do not express the emotions and this has been portrayed with the help of the male characters of the television show “Friends”. The men control their emotions to a great extent as has been shown with the help of the male characters in Friends. The women are shown to be passive by nature and doing household chores like the character of Phoebe in Friends. They are thus given an inferior position in the serial as in that of the wider structure.This also reflects itself in that of the wider organizational structure where the men are relegated a superior position as compared to that of the women. It is held that men are able to control the emotions and they would be able to exhibit superior performance within the organization.The women in the serial is thought to be sex objects and the women are labelled on the basis of their bodies. The women are marked on the basis of sex and not in relation to capabilities. Monica behaves like that of a typical housewife and they were shown to be pressurized under that of a misogynistic society. Joey and Chandler behave like that of a child and they act like overgrown children. The characters do not want to face stress in relation to their career and their perspective in relation to life can be said to be light-headed. The women are demoted from any kind of major position in life and they are thought of to be powerless. Man is shown to possess more amount of wealth which is held to be a masculine trait. The character of Ross often exhibits anti-adult role and the characters behave like a child who is over-grown.
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