Examples Of Objectification Of Women

If you turn on the television or flip through a fashion magazine, it is very likely you will presented with many displays of hypersexualization of girls and women in advertising images and in media. There are many components to sexualization. It occurs, according to the American Psychological Association, when “a person’s value comes only from his or her sexual appeal or behavior, to the exclusion of other characteristics.” This person is held to a standard that equates physical attractiveness with being sexy. “Sexualization” happens when a person is sexually objectified- that is, made into a thing for others’ sexual use, rather than being seen as a person with their own independent actions and abilities to make decisions. Oftentimes, sexuality is inappropriately imposed upon a person without their knowing it or consent. Sometimes, researchers use the word “hypersexualization” to describe roughly the same idea. In the article, “Media’s Growing Sexualization of Women”, hypersexualization is defined as, “The act of making something extremely sexual and erotic.”

Sexual objection and non-sexual objectification were mainly measured in body exposure and body movements. The different areas of a woman’s body being displayed were used to operationalize the idea of sexual objectification. Similarly, camera angles such as panning down bodies and shots down shirts were tallied to create a solid definition of “sexualizing” for the purpose of this research. (see Appendix A and B)

Fredrickson and Roberts, 1997 postulated that self-objectification can have different effects on a woman which can harm them. “Self-objectification can increase women’s anxiety about physical appearance (i.e., fear about when and how one’s body will be looked at and evaluated); reduce opportunities for peak motivational states or flow; diminish awareness of internal bodily sensations (e.g., hunger, sexual arousal, stomach contractions); increase women’s opportunities for body shame (i.e., the emotion that results

in Szymanski, Moffitt and Carr). This leads to the belief that women are sexually objectified, seeing as they are only seen as mere parts that are to be of use to men and their sexual desires.

The documentaries Dream World 3 and Killing Us Softly 4 examine the exploitation of women within the media. The media, such as advertisement and the music video industry, relies heavily on the seductive image of female sexuality. Evident in not only every genre of music, but also every form of advertisement, the videos and advertisements expose and, subsequently sexualize the female body. Such sexualization inevitable leads to

Tiggemann, M., & Boundy, M. (2008). Effect of environment and appearance compliment on college women’s self-objectification, mood, body shame, and cognitive performance. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 32, 399–405.

Despite the fact that many men continue to deny that women are objectified, being viewed as an object created solely as a means of pleasure for men is a reality for anyone who was born biologically female. Proving that women are considered less valuable than men is the statistic that women make only 70% of what men in a similar career earns (Ravelli & Webber 214). The sexaul double standard contributes to this idea as well which means that women who engage in sexual activities are “promiscuous” (Ravelli & Webber 237) or “whores” (Ravelli & Webber 237) while men who behave similarly are “Studs” (Ravelli & Webber 237) and women who do not engage in sexual activities are “virgins” (Ravelli & Webber 237) or “Madonna’s” (Ravelli & Webber 237). There are only two portrayals of women and both of these refer to her sexual activities. There are also outrageous definitions of beauty portrayed in the media to

Magazines, Internet, radio, music videos, music lyrics, and other types of mainstream media relentlessly portray sexualized images of women that not only promote narrow and unrealistic ‘standards’ of physical beauty, but seem to endorse, glorify and encourage them. We are almost back to the 1950’s, where women were seen merely as a sex object. Horrifyingly the media is now broadening their attacks and promotions of sex to teenagers and young girls. A report created by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), attest that there are many short term and long term physical, emotional and psychological effects of the premature sexualisation of teenagers and young girls.

Professor Gail Dine’s teaches women studies and female images of sexuality in pop culture at Wheelock College in Boston, MA. In addition to her work, she is a founding member of Stop Porn Culture (SPC). The goal of the group is to raise awareness of the hyper sexualization of women in Society. This is a selection from her book, Pornland (2010). “Visible or Invisible: Growing Up Female in Porn Culture” illustrates how mainstream pornographic images have become so prevalent in Western Culture Society. It also shows us examples of what is perceived to be the female beauty standard via Hollywood and pop music stars. There is the real danger that children and adolescents will perceive “the pop culture gone porn culture” (dines pg) to be normal and conform to these set standards. Dines goes on about where these images are present and how widely they are in the media. She implies the need to stop these accelerated images of female porn industry and Consumerism culture conformity. In addition, how if we do not bring these matters to attention soon, before the western culture society will lead generations to achieve a beauty standard that is not real or genuinely.

Sexualization has occurred in the past, is occurring today, and will, more than likely, continue to occur in the future. The society we live in today characterizes women as sexual objects. It’s everywhere you look. For example, look at the media. Reality TV, romance movies, fashion magazines, and advertising all portray women to look a certain way; slim, young, and attractive. These images of women are etched into our brains, and it’s normal to look at these media and think that those women are what society calls “beautiful.” A contributor to

The sexualization of young girls and women in society is a prevalent theme in mass media. Presently, the sexualization of females is commonly seen in various consumer items like clothes, dolls, and even in Disney movies, according to “The Sexualization of Girls Is Harmful” article. The author says that sexualization occurs when “a person’s value comes only from his or her sexual appeal or behavior; a person is held to a standard that equates physical attractiveness with being sexy; a person is sexually objectified- made into a thing for others’ sexual use; and sexuality is inappropriately imposed upon a person (AboutKidsHealth).” Furthermore, the author provides statistics on how girls are being sexualized by the products they see and use

Sometimes it also all over the internet, T.V shows, music lyrics,etc. Renee, a new teen blogger talks about how media has degraded women, and how much it has changed from old hits. Renee states “The media, both print and electronic, plays a significant role in the negative portrayal of women, through the exploitation of women’s sexuality in music videos, magazines and movies, solely to promote and sell products in order to make money by the expense of these women, who are consequently transformed by the media into sex objects, which also influences how these women are portrayed and how they depict themselves”. Not only does America promote businesses and men to see women as simple sex objects, but also to make women feel that they ARE only sex objects, and that is all they can

Objectification is when a person is treated and thought of as an object instead of a human being. The process of objectification can be seen in the first half of the video when she is wearing Western style clothing, and numerous of men tires talking to and catcalling her. Some of the men call her beautiful and sexy which might seem like a compliment to some, but to others it might not see it the same way. But the truth is that these men does not think about how she might feel by being called out in the middle of the street. They treat her like an object instead of a person. Similarly, in Katz “Guilty Pleasure”, he describes that through porn one can become desensitized towards women and objectified them. Which can be one possible explanation as to why these men objectify her.

Everywhere you turn, there are magazine covers, movies, reality TV shows that portray woman in a sexual light. When was the last time that we as a society sat down and realized the effect that this is having on young girls, teens and even grown women. The portrayal of women as sexual objects in these and many other types of media have greatly affected the mindset of society. What affects has this had you ask? There are there main effects that we will explore. First, is the effect it has on their self-image. Second, is the effect on how they portray themselves in their relationships. Third is the effect it has on their mental state.

On all platforms of media, women and even young girls are oversexualized; thus leading to men viewing women as no more than breasts, vaginas, legs, or any other body part they prefer. Even in current television shows, movies, comic books, and advertisements, women are still depicted as sexual objects, which can damage a woman’s confidence. The oversexualization of women 's bodies can degrade a young woman’s confidence, and when girls try to boost confidence by dressing or acting like the women they see in the media, they are reprimanded for it. Girls cannot be blamed for their sexualization; they are just emulating what they see in the media.