Blog #6

            The Bush and Cheney responses to 9/11 discuss the stereotype of the terrorist as a Muslim male. This deals with the facet of gender. Terrorists are never considered to be female because women in Middle Eastern countries do not have the freedoms American women have and as Bush stated in his speech, “women are not allowed to attend school.”

The terrorists that attacked our country on September 11, 2001 were part of a terrorist organization known as al Qaeda which is Arabic for “The Base”. The goal of al Qaeda is not to make money, but to remake the world and impose its radical beliefs on everyone. These terrorists "practice a fringe form of Islamic extremism that has been rejected by Muslim scholars and the vast majority of Muslim clerics, a fringe movement that perverts the peaceful teachings of Islam."

Terrorists are also described to be haters of America. Cheney says that Osama bin Laden is filled with hate for the United States and for everything we stand for because we are freedom and democracy. The stereotype of the terrorist also creates the men to be masculine because they are directed to kill Christians, Jews and all Americans, even the women and children. The terrorists plan and train for years for these operations. They even commit themselves to die in the process. Those who took over the U.S. aircrafts came to America to train. They got visas, entered the U.S., enrolled in aviation schools and learned to fly. To later execute the plan, they needed to be on the airplane, have correct timing to attack and also have weapons such as knifes, razor blades or cardboard cutters. They then were able to take over the aircraft. 

              A 100 minute long training video was released by Osama bin laden. In the video, according to Tim Russert, bin Laden says, "We have to practice the way of the suicidal commandos of faith and the heroism of the resistance fighter and we refuse their culture and we will take advantage of their misfortunes and the blood of their wounded." Bin Laden later says, "With small capabilities, and with our faith, we can defeat the greatest military power of modern times," and that “America is much weaker than it appears." This shows how al Qaeda believes they are superior and should spread their beliefs. 

     

Blog #5

The Feminist Frequency web series discusses negative portrayals of women in pop culture. One trope talked about in the video is the Magical Pregnancy. This is when women’s ability to get pregnant is taken advantage of to create a more dramatic story. It makes pregnancy seem disgusting, terrifying and nightmarish. An example of the Mystical Pregnancy trope is Bella Swan’s pregnancy in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1.

            When Bella and Edward go on their honeymoon, Bella seduces Edward and finds herself pregnant two weeks later. Although she has only been pregnant for a few days, the baby has grown very quickly and Bella has a large baby bump. Bella becomes weak and thin because the human-vampire hybrid child takes away all of her strength, nearly killing Bella. When others hear of this event, they begin to believe that Bella’s baby is a demon, and they threaten to kill the child. Bella becomes so weak that she has to drink human blood out of a sippy cup to satisfy the fetus’ vampiric thirst and regain strength.

            Bella goes into a painful labor involving an emergency C-Section where Edward’s adopted sister cuts Bella open with a knife. Bella is so sickly thin and bruised that Edward has to bite and inject his venom into her heart to save her life and transform her into a vampire. Bella appears to be dead but at the end of the movie, her heart finally stops, the venom heals her wounds, and she awakens as a vampire.

Blog #4

In Naomi Wolf’s novel, The Beauty Myth, she discusses how images of beauty in the media are used against women. Through the media, the beauty myth enforces the idea that to achieve “flawless beauty,” is to have a thin physique. Wolf also talks about how the modern woman has more freedom and power than ever before and that this successful woman has put fear into male-dominated institutions. After the Industrial Revolution, technology improved and advertisements were able to be mass-produced. The media has created a false image of what they believe women are to look like.

Wolf discusses the differences between a female model and an average American woman. The article states, “the weight of fashion models plummeted to 23 percent below that of ordinary women,” which has led to a rise in eating disorders. The average American woman weighs about 160 pounds and stands at about 5’4” tall. The average model in fashion advertisements weights about 130 pounds and stands at about 5’10” tall.

The female models in fashion advertising are usually seen as sex objects. They use their bodies to attract attention and tend to make the female reader feel bad about themselves. After seeing these perfect, but usually photo shopped or airbrushed advertisements, women become self-conscious. Introduction to the beauty myth begins at a young age. Barbie is an example of this myth because young girls grow up playing with Barbie dolls and they become acquainted with this ideal tall, thin and blonde image. A beautiful, plus-sized model, that many women look up to and idolize, modeled in a photo shoot to argue the beauty myth. She is seen with plastic surgeon’s dotted lines all over her body to show what would need to be cut away to have the body of a Barbie doll.

Victoria’s Secret models are another obvious example of how the media displays this myth. Victoria’s Secret has become a major fashion industry that now appeals to girls of younger ages. The models are called “Angels,” and the models have a very similar image to that of a Barbie doll. The models are shown as confident, tall, thin and feminine women. The text on one Victoria’s Secret advertisement says, “No one’s perfect. Until now.” The brand is creating the idea that women who wear their new “Perfect One” bra are perfect.

Another advertisement has text in small print that says, “nothing to hide.” Six models are lined up wearing only stiletto heels and black gloves. They are also covered in diamond necklaces, rings, earrings and bracelets. Each of their hair is the same length and looks as if it is blowing in the wind. Most of the models have very seductive facial expressions. The women are nude, but covering themselves with their arms and legs. This shows how female models can be used as sex objects.

Fashion advertisement portrays images of what they believe to be the ideal woman. Of course most women would love to look like these models, and although these advertisements make women self-conscious and can lead to self-hate, but I believe they can also give women hope and determination.