McKinley 1 Andrea McKinley Instructor: Malcolm Campbell English 1102 5 September 201 A Cultures Ignorance to Everyday Sexism !

he topic I "ill be researching and discussing this semester "ill be a patriarchal culture#s common stereotypes and preconceptions o$ "omen% I "ill e&plore ho" these ideas ha'e been so deeply embedded into our society $or so long that they are o$ten not considered se&ist% I "ill be addressing the unrealistic standards that "omen are held to( "hy they are held to these standards( and the con$using messages that "omen are constantly being sent about their place in our society% !hese roles are associated "ith the )common stereotypes* and contribute to a "oman#s sense o$ sel$+"orth and con$idence in her abilities% !he purpose o$ my pro,ect "ill be to pro'e that there are many misconceptions o$ $eminism( and by ob,ecti'ely obser'ing our culture#s mindset( one might see that $eminism is not as silly as it is o$ten ta-en as% !his topic is a 'ery complicated one% !here are many di$$erent "omen#s rights issues that "e see today% And people#s $eelings and opinions about it are spread throughout a "ide spectrum% It is challenging to narro" the topic o$ )$eminism and "omen#s rights* do"n( but still portray the larger picture% In this case I $eel li-e the )bigger picture* is signi$icant% !o me I see the stereotypical role o$ "oman and body image 'ery strongly related to one another e'en though they may seem li-e t"o separate sub,ect matters% !he main .uestion I "ill be as-ing throughout my research this semester is )/hat are common ideas and preconceptions that are se&ist+but are o$ten not seen as se&ist+and ho" do they a$$ect "omen and their sel$+"orth0*

McKinley 2 !he $ollo"ing .uote is something I read about a "ee- ago online% I thin- it gi'es a good idea o$ "hat the primary $ocus o$ my in.uiry pro,ect is: It is disgusting. We are told to love sex but never masturbate or fool around. To love our bodies but we have to be hairless, thin, have boobs, and to never wear make up to cover our flaws. We can like sports and watch them but we cant play them unless they are toned down and pretty enough to be oggled at. We can be nerds but we cant be T smart or we forget our

place. We are told we need a prince charming and to seek him out by constantly changing ourselves and being perfect for him. We are given the message that outside beauty is what matters the most but if we have it and get successful it was because we have a pretty face. We are told we exaggerate and should !ust go with it when we complain of being ob!ects and property. We are taught that being a woman is worthy of an insult" W# have to fear walking at night. W# have to go in a group if we need to use the bathroom in a strange place. W# have to be cautious of where we are and who we are with. That we are told to hush and get over it if we are assaulted because real life isnt like the crime shows and it is harder to convict the assaulter. That female artists are degraded and yelled at in artist alleys. That you are !udged !ust by how you wear a t$shirt.% 1author un-no"n2 &http'((house)**.wordpress.com(*+,*(,*(I chose this topic because I constantly $eel our culture reminding me o$ the role I need to $ul$ill as a "oman+"hat I need to loo- li-e( "hat I can succeed in( "hy I need to accept the )per-s* o$ being ob,ecti$ied( but also ta-e the necessary precautions( and "hat can I do to be physically and socially appealing to"ards men% I $inally decided on this sub,ect because I "as actually a$raid to do it at $irst% I thought about the ,udgments I might recei'e $rom classmates+any o$ the common criticisms o$ $eminists e'ery"here% !his occurred to me because o$ ho" I o$ten $ear being labeled as a )cra3y b4444(* because that is the stereotype o$ten associated "ith

McKinley $eminism% 5o"e'er( the sub,ect matter is important to me because I ha'e su$$ered through a lot o$ sel$+esteem issues the past $e" years% !hese problems that I ha'e had are 'ery much related to ho" society pressures "omen to be se&ually appealing to men( to al"ays loo- per$ect+because that#s ho" you succeed in li$e( and achie'e happiness% I o$ten associate these issues "ith constantly being com$orted by $riends that I )don#t need to "ear ma-e+up(* and that I )don#t need to lose "eight(* etc% 5o"e'er( such sentiments are nice until you o'erhear a con'ersation o$ a group o$ people harshly criti.uing a girl#s appearance( or commenting about ho" attracti'e a celebrity is "hile I picture an airbrushed( photo shopped image o$ them% My o$ten obsession "ith physical per$ection 1shared "ith many other $emales2 is due to my constantly being told that a male only tal-s to me or does me a $a'or because he e&pects something in return( or because I ha'e a pretty $ace and a slimmer $igure% In conclusion( $eminism is a ma,or part o$ my li$e( and I $eel passionate enough to mo'e $or"ard "ith my topic $or the rest o$ the semester% Some methods o$ research I plan to use are de$initely the Internet because it is the root o$ my interest in $eminism and "omen#s rights% Most o$ "hat .uali$ies as )pre'ious -no"ledge* o$ my topic stem $rom the Internet 1blogging( social media( 6ou!ube( and articles2% Some sites that I li-e are hu$$intonpost%com( $reethoughtblogs%com( and !E7!al-s% I personally pre$er more in$ormal styles o$ "riting( such as blogs( but still include a $actual base o$ course% I am also considering consulting my /estern Cultures 189S!2 pro$essor because she#s mentioned be$ore that one o$ her degrees is in "omen#s studies% !he type o$ in$ormation I "ill be loo-ing $or "ould be statistical e'idence o$ the psychological e$$ects o$ our culture#s de$inition o$ the role o$ "omen% I "ill also loo-ing $or good e&amples o$ unrealistic standards o$ a "oman#s appearance( and ho" the se&uali3ation and ob,ecti$ication o$ "omen can be $ound in many di$$erent conte&ts%