Movie/ TV & Music Video Clips showing how men receive praise when conforming to the traditional male stereotype of being sexually active and dominant
Family Guy:
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If you have ever seen family guy, I think you can agree that Quagmire is one of the most stereotypical men on TV. He sleeps with literally every woman and because of this Quagmire is portrayed as the ultimate male and there are certain characters in this T.V. show that praise him for this. Quagmire reinforces the predominately male view of what it means to be the ultimate man; especially because of the amount of women he has had sexual relations with and not seen any social consequences from being a "player" |
Sorority Boys:
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In this clip, we watch as a girl leaves a fraternity boys bedroom the morning after they have had sex. When she exits the bedroom, she is greeted by a row of fraternity boys cheering while she takes the walk of shame. The boys even take a picture of her and add it to their walk of shame wall. The fraternity boy is regarded with respect and admiration while she is given the ultimate dis-respect from the fraternity brothers. The key is that we only see females doing this walk of shame. And why does it have to be called the walk of "SHAME".... this completely reinforces that women should feel shameful when engaging in sexual acts while men are praised and glorified for the same act. |
Two and a Half Men:
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Charlie Sheen in Two and a Half men was a character infamous for sleeping around as he is portrayed in nearly every episode as a "badass" because he has more casual sex then any of the other characters. Even the theme song, "men, men, manly men" foreshadows the overall theme of the traditional male stereotype: Charlie is seen as a "manly man" because he sleeps with countless women on the show. Charlie is idealized not only by men in this show but also by the women. |
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50 Cent's music video for the song "Candy Shop" confirms the sexual double standard between men and women. 50 Cent uses this music video to assert his masculinity by adhering to the main stereotype that men use sex to promote masculinity and dominance and are praised and looked up to when they have multiple sexual partners. In this video, we can see 50 Cent having sexual relations with almost every women in this video and therefore society views him as having a high status; thus encouraging his actions and the views of men who watch this music video.
The fact that 50 Cent is a highly influential rapper allows him not only to be praised for these actions but receive awards for them: The Awards 50 Cent has received from this music video and song |
How I Met Your Mother:
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Barney is the "Casanova" and the "player" in this T.V. series. Barney not only manipulates woman and has countless of sexual encounters but considers his success and manliness in terms of his sexuality and how many girls he gets.
There are several episodes where Barney is teaching other guys how to do "what he does", he shows his male viewers how to get girls and be the ultimate ladies man. Barney's character shows how men are praised in the sexual double standard especially when other characters often applaud him his for his "accomplishments" |
James Bond:
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James Bond films completely buy into the sexual double standard that men who are sexually dominant are masculine and powerful. The plot of many Bond films center around the fact that he sleeps with 6 or 7 different women throughout the film and of course he is rewarded not punished. Not only is James Bond never punished or ridiculed for his promiscuity but he is deemed by many all over the world as a hero and a man with powers no other man could ever achieve. This subconsciously ties being overtly sexually active and being a hero together. |
Californication:
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Hank is portrayed as the sexually compulsive womanizer and the show revolves around him as he has multiple sexual encounters with women, men and sometimes both together. But who doesn't love Hank Moody?.....,
The show portrays him as this complete womanizer who has sexual relations with at least 1 women (usually 2 or 3) per episode but his character is developed in such a way that the audience falls in love with him. This would not be the case if it was "Heather" Moody. The double standard of men being praised as seen as dominant and successful figures when having high numbers of sexual partners is more then obvious in this show. |
American Pie
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This film follows a group of high school boys nearing the end of their senior year. They make a pact amongst themselves that each of them will loose their virginity by the end of their senior year. The basis of the whole story essentially revolves around the idea that these boys are constantly obsessed with sex and willing to go to ridiculous lengths to have it. It also shows that if they don't lose their virginity by the end of their senior year they will be portrayed as "weird" and "losers". For the most part, all sexual situations in the movie feature men as the sexual initiators and their attitudes often reflect a lack of emotional attachment regarding sex. Praise of women who conform to traditional gender roles: We see the female characters reinforcing the traditional attitudes that they require the intense devotion and monogamy that they aspire for in a relationship |
Originally I was going to post examples from pop culture that showed women being praised when they are adhering to their traditional stereotype of being "virginal"; however, I had a very difficult time finding clips from the past 5-10 years that showed women being praised for this.
Why do you think society reinforces this sexual double standard that women should be virginal and in monogamous relationships, but the media rarely praises this in movies, t.v. shows and music videos? This seems like a double standard in and of itself.