Female Chauvinist Pigs By Ariel Levy

Throughout history, women have been regarded as of lesser value than men particularly in the public sphere. This is the result of gender stratification. Gender stratification refers to the issue of sexism, “or the belief that one sex is superior to the other” (Carl et al., 2012, p. 78). The theory that men are superior to women is essential to sexism. Sexism has always had negative consequences for women. It has caused some women to avoid pursuing successful careers typically described as “masculine”—perhaps to avoid the social impression that they are less desirable as spouses or mothers, or even less “feminine.”

The friendly, fuzzy feelings from benevolent sexism come at a cost, “[they]..aren't all sunshine and butterflies” (Tannenbaum, 2013). Even though they benefit women (compliments, perks), benevolent sexism often creates a damaging stereotype for women in male dominated fields. The motivation behind the chivalrous acts directed towards women comes from the traditional gender stereotyping of masculine dominance, thus proposing inequality based on gender.

In the business world, it’s all about being assertive. The people who get the highest ranks are the most assertive in their occupation, but for women there seems to be a “catch 22” in their assertiveness. Assertive women in the workplace are often viewed as rude or pushy, therefore making it harder for them to move up in the high ranks of the company. However, if a woman is not assertive enough then the business might think she is not committed to the job she is doing. There is also a “glass ceiling” put in place for many women. A “glass ceiling” is a goal that one would think can be achieved but really it is an unattainable goal due to policies or corporate culture. Many women feel the impact of the glass ceilings as they start climbing the business ladder.

This stereotype has definitely faded in the modern business world, but the modern woman still unjustly needs to "prove" herself to be an equal to her male counterparts. Gender differences can be rather large in today's workforce. From different pay scales to fewer opportunities for advancement, women can often find themselves getting the "short end of the stick". Women also have the unfortunate chore of dealing with sexual harassment. According to the U.S. EEOC, of the 12,679 sexual harassment charges filed in the U.S. during the fiscal year of 2005, 85.7% were filed by women. (http://www.eeoc.gov/types/sexual_harassment.html) Everyday countless instances of sexual harassment go without charges being filed.

Throughout history there has always been an enormous obstacle for women to overcome in the workplace. Occupational Segregation has continuously acted as a force that impedes on the daily lives of female workers across the world. It not only eliminates several chances for women to capitalize on opportunistic events, but has also denied them of the basic civil rights they are entitled to. Jobs ranging from the military, sports, and even the corporate world have long been dominated by an aura of masculine characteristics. Why is our society structured in such an uncivilized way? Some women may not possess the "supposed" masculine attributes that are sought for in numerous industries, but in all honestly just as many men fail to meet those

Women are considered minorities making it possible for discrimination and other oppressive factors to creep in. Personally, as an African American woman I have faced unfair treatment in the workplace. Seeing your coworker get prompted over myself just because he is a male. The article reference the fact that women will get looked over for a higher position simple for the fact that employers believe that women cannot be leaders. Men are often looked at as masculine and authoritative. Moreover, this universal idea that women are meant to being doing women’s work and not obtaining any kind of high position of prestige is unsettling. Jobs that are looked at as women occupations are teaching, nursing, social work, etc. Mostly because they always been predominately ran by women. In article, it states that men do not usually accept women into predominately male positions because they feel as if they will take over and switch the role of control. Especially in the economic aspect. Referencing back to the power point;

Women treat men with equal respect, whereas men do not. “Women tend to be receptive to both men and women in superior roles, found a 2014 study titled A Man’s (Precarious) Place. Men, on the other hand, were more likely to be threatened by women in superior positions and were more assertive with female leaders, according to the study.”(Kirkham 2015). Elyssa Kirkham states that women are more willing to receive input from men. This capability creates diversity within the workplace. Diversity leads to more talent within the workplace, an advantage for companies determined to strive. Pallab Dutta, of Demand Media, states, “Access to a larger talent pool is one of the biggest advantages of having an employment recruitment policy that values diversity.”(Dutta 1). This diverse environment leads to more talent, which results in “creative solutions for problems and better organizational productivity”(Dutta 1). Having employees that can endorse equality, accept both men and women’s input, is key to success within a business. Without it, a companies who do not support equality will not thrive. This acceptance towards both men and women creates a positive atmosphere within the workplace. This positive energy, that women acquire, inspires motivation within employees which results in an increase of business

First, “Raunch provides a special opportunity for a woman who wants to prove her mettle. It’s in fashion, and it is something that has traditionally appealed exclusively to men and actively offended woman, so producing it or participation in it is a way both to flaunt your coolness and to mark yourself as different, tougher, looser, funnier—a new sort of loophole woman who is ‘not like other woman,’ who is instead ‘like a man.’ Or, more precisely, like a Female Chauvinist Pig” (Levy 269). Raunchy culture can positively influence women however, there has to be a limit to engaging in this behavior. It is reasonable for a woman to enforce her beliefs and, even, protest for them but, it is all in the way she presents herself and approaches the situation. It is very apparent in today’s culture that women have made a powerful transition since the liberation of woman. This

In the article, “Is the Professor Bossy or Brilliant? Much depends on Gender.” written by Claire Cain Miller, it states that “A recent report on 248 tech company employee performance reviews found that women are much more likely to receive critical feedback than men, and women who are leaders are more likely to be described as abrasive, aggressive and emotional.” No matter what position of power a woman is in, she is seen the same way by nearly everyone. She is bossy, rude, or too emotional, despite the fact that she probably shares many characteristics with many men in her same position. Sexism is

In many ways today's society, even though women have come a long way, we still live in a patriarchal world. There are many examples of this in everyday life, whether it be that there aren't very many women CEO's or the mere fact that we've yet to have a woman president. No matter where you live, there is the presence of a male dominated world. It especially extends into the working fields. There are professions that are categorically ‘women's' jobs like nursing, school teacher, or secretarial jobs. The rest of the professional world is mainly male dominated, i.e. engineering, CEO's of major companies, and Law Firms. Which brings us to the movie I picked to watch, Legally Blonde?

fter reading “Female Chauvinist Pigs” by Ariel Levy, I have come to the epiphany that there is not just one or two types of women in this world. I was dumbfounded at how unaware I was of this new social change and “raunch culture”. Growing up as a young girl, I thought there was only two types of girls, and those types were tom-boys and girly-girls. You either hung out with the guys or you hung out with the girls. There was really no in-between in my mind. At no time, did I ever stop to think about the inequalities that surrounded us.

Throughout history, it is of no surprise that men dominate in a majority of environments. Though women made a movement to gain social and political rights during the nineteenth century, it was not entirely successful. Women have begun to gain a larger percentage of the workforce yet men continue to uphold dominance. In the short-story “The Catbird Seat”, James Thurber write about how men have a known superiority over women in the workplace by describing the relationship between Mr. Fitweiler and Mrs. Barrows.

When men claim the glass ceiling was shattered with Rosie the Riveter, I can’t help but laugh. The structure is transparent to them, by its very nature. They see women struggling beneath the barrier but attribute it to a lack of work ethic or skill set, instead of a societal ill. Qualified women are demeaned by men when they encounter roadblocks, ones they never had to face. Gender-based discrimination no longer prevents female suffrage, but norms and socialization encourage male superiority. It is the duty of women who succeed to cultivate future female success.

Ariel Levy explores a wide-spread set of unexamined ideas of the females of todays society, specifically the female chauvinist pigs. In order to analyze the female chauvinist pig Levy takes a look at several women of todays society and how these women live their lives and in particular, looking at how these women have succeeded in their lives and career paths by adjusting their appearances to basically come off to others as being a man trapped inside a woman’s body. Levy discusses how women have learned to embrace characteristics that would usually be stereotyped as male personality characteristics in order for them succeed in their life. She does so by taking real life examples from several types of pop culture, such as The Howard Stern Show, The Man Show, and Playboy, in which the female chauvinist pigs exist and how, within these structures, are gaining momentum and popularity.

“It’s not the profession that has the glass ceiling, someone has put it there” (Brower 162). Men need to change their attitudes and actions towards women in the workplace. They need to abandon believing that they are superior to women. Most men truly believe that a woman is simply not capable of doing as well of a job, or better, than a man can do. Therefore, they become extremely unsupportive of women and fail to recognize their accomplishments. They decline to give women raises, higher executive positions, more responsibility and overall respect. Many men have very subtle and low-key ways of showing their discrimination. These men know that it is unlawful to discriminate against women, so they do it ways that can have no reprimanding consequences. They will go out to lunch, dinner or drinks with the guys, claiming that it is just a time for male bonding. But the truth of the matter is that most business relationships develop over these “bonding times” therefore, leaving the female employees out of the equation (Brower 160). Other men are not so subtle. Male bosses often deliberately overlook a female employee for a promotion by making bogus credentials that only a male would be able to fulfill (Brower 162). Men aren’t planning to become pregnant and take maternity leave as often as a woman does. My mother has come into contact with both types of men. She has been scanned