I believe it is essential to keep in mind the importance of averting
gender essentialism while referring to situations involving gendered
assumptions while reading this post. In my personal experience, avoiding gender
essentialism, there have been stereotypes involved within my own personal
romantic relationships. Male identified persons within my own relationships have felt as
if they do not have to put in the same emotional involvement as their women
identified partners (me) in their heterosexual relationships. The male
identified persons in my own experience have talked about how they believe that
women are the “emotional” partners. Stating that since they are men, they do
not need to verbalize their emotions within the relationship, implying that
is strictly the woman’s job. These ideals within my past experiences have
created strains within my relationships due to a result of a lack of two-way
communication. In my own personal encounters, I have heard multiple comments
about how women’s emotions are viewed as “crazy” or “unjustified”. As a
consequence of these stereotypical views about women in relationships, it can
becomes impossible for women’s emotions to be viewed as rational at all.
#emotionscount
Socialized From The Beginning
I consider the role
of socialization as prevalent in portraying these stereotypical thoughts that my male
counterparts have expressed. Throughout the years many, but not all, women have
been depicted as emotional driven beings. These depictions have been expressed
throughout social interactions, the media and other forms of communication. From the moment individuals are born they are exposed to these views.
Widespread Representations Through The Media
I believe the role of the media has been a producer of the
ideas of gender difference. This has created the false image of the ways women
behave within relationships. There are many videos on the internet portraying
women as emotional and crazy within relationships while males are viewed as the
stable, sane counterparts.
It is incredibly easy to find videos on social media that
portray women in a way that can make them seem in-superior. Simply by typing “crazy
girlfriend” into search engines many results pop up.
The video 5 Tips for
Overcoming Crazy Girl Emotions by Girl Defined, is a video made by two women
giving tips to other women about 5 techniques that will help women control
their crazy “girl” emotions. Throughout the video the women express the need to
advert the emotions women feel as they are unnecessary. Find the link for the
video here:
The media is also filled with pictures or memes depicting women as
irrational beings in relationships incapable of controlling their emotions.
Intersectional Understanding
Intersectionality is viewed as, “rooted in Black feminism and
Critical Race Theory, intersectionality is a method and a disposition, a
heuristic and analytic tool,” (Carbado, D., Crenshaw, K., Mays, V., &
Tomlinson, B., 2013, pg. 303). I believe intersectionality can be used to view
how multiple forms of oppression have played a drastic position in the way
women identified persons are viewed and treated within heterosexual
relationships. In many aspects of life, some women are portrayed in a
stereotypical way. I believe intersectionality can be used to critically
examine the role of the media, stereotypes, and gendered perceptions in the way
women are viewed within heterosexual relationships as being crazy and
emotional. #multiplecauses #donotjudgeabookbyitscover
Reference
Carbado, D.,
Crenshaw, K., Mays, V., & Tomlinson, B. (2013). INTERSECTIONALITY: Mapping
the Movements of a Theory. Du Bois Review: Social Science Research on Race,
10(2), 303-312. doi:10.1017/S1742058X13000349
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