Blair West Response to Children's Television

I was quite impressed by the presentations last week and likewise interested to compare them to my own. While I was the only student to watch 'the Fairly Oddparents,' many others discussed Arthur, Go Diego Go, and Backyardigans. There were many commonalities among the presentations that I found intriguing; I had never noticed these similarities in the gender and societal roles and, interestingly enough, everyone did. The lack of representation and credit due for female characters was astounding. Many other students noted the costumes of all the animated characters, for it was rare to see a girl wearing something other than a dress, and, if so, she was regarded as a tomboy--an exception to the norm, although the clothing on Arthur and the Fairly Oddparents was quite outdated and stereotypical. Even the two girls in Super Why had a princess dress and a leotard, respectively. I wondered how funny it was that the two female prototypes set forth for women are a girly princess who's body is covered by a frilly party dress, or a girl who exposes her body without shame. Many other student noticed this female stereotype as well. I was impressed by Jae's point the that Dora the Explorer was originally enjoyed by boys and girls, until Go Diego Go was presented and boys were more drawn to a dominant, active, and powerful male character.

Another thing I noticed in the presentations was the nature of the advertisements that came hand in hand with the children's television program. I saw ads for several boy's toys on Nick Jr., and every single one involved an active, aggressive, or even violent simulation. The trucks, motorcycles, and action figures featured reminded me of the movie we watched entitled 'Tough Guise' in which the narrator took us through the transformation of G.I Joe from a normally muscular doll to a grossly exaggerated body builder. One other student noticed a commercial for Secret, a woman's deodorant. Upon taking a sociological perspective, I noticed how blatant the title was in perpetuating submissive female stereotypes. For women, their deodorant is a secret, and they are meant to keep the the personal aspects of their life private from men. Men, on the other hand, are open and showy about such things.