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Feminist Critical Thinking, Representation

Judith Butler and Harry Styles

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Judith Butler

Judith Butler is a philosopher and gender theorist whose work has influenced political philosophy, ethics, and the fields of third-wave feminism, queer theory, and literary theory. She is best known for her book “Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity. ”   In this book she explores and challenges the existing “feminist model” and how it has defined the female gender. Butler says that historically we have viewed gender in a binary fashion. Meaning that men and women are divided into distinct categories that are fixed and cannot be changed. She argues against this and says that “gender should be seen as a human attribute that shifts and changes”. She believes that by categorising ourselves in this way limits our ability to choose our own identities. Her views are complimentary to modern identities such as non-binary (you don’t identify yourself as neither male or female) and gender fluid (you change your identity to either male or female but it is not fixed) and states that gender is a “performative social construct.” She believes that gender categorises ourselves to a stereotype which can have negative connotations, limiting our own unique identity where we feel more insecure about the characteristics of our personality. She also expresses the idea that gender identity is changeable and fluid a we ‘perform’ and display different elements of our gender identity at different times, in differing situations and around different people. Her theories also link to David Gauntlet’s theory about identities who says that we construct our own identities by being influenced by different people/experiences/interests which may not be the “traditional cultural norm.” Butler mentions that by believing gender is binary promotes patriarchy and the negative dominant ideology of women by separating them into distinct categories and constantly comparing them to each other, continuing with this old fashioned “gender battle.” Contrasting to common knowledge, it limits both genders and forces a toxic stereotype of what masculine and feminine means and what being a man or a woman means.

Harry Styles and his Brand ‘Pleasing’

Pop sensation Harry Styles has set up his own brand called ‘Pleasing’ which concludes of a range of beauty products including nail polish and other cosmetics. With him being an influential opinion leader, his counteracting opinions of masculinity and femininity helps people to become confident about who they are and what they like. He is representing masculinity in a radical way as he shows himself as a feminine man whilst also identifying himself as heterosexual. This also supports Butlers theory of gender being performative. Styles claims that he aims to “blur the boundaries” of the gender binary and show that regardless of what you identify yourself as, beauty cosmetics is for everyone, not just women.

Feminist Critical Thinking, Notes, Representation, Theory

BUTLER

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KEY IDEAS

  • Judith Butler is an ‘influential philosopher’ born in 1956, best known for her 1990 novel ‘Gender Trouble’ which looks at feminism and “gender as performance”. She describes gender as “an identity instituted through a stylized repetition of acts.”
  • Butler believes that gender is fluid, meaning that things should not be categorised, we should be able to choose our gender based on how we choose to express ourselves
  • This juxtaposes the fluidity of gender expression in the human nature. She also expresses the idea that gender identity is volatile and changeable: we ‘perform’ and display different elements of our gender identity at different times, in differing situations and around different people. We also react to how other people express their own gender identity, making us feel more comfortable or less comfortable to express traits that contrast our ‘labelled gender’.
  • Butler’s theories link to David Gauntlet and his ideologies on identity.
  • According to Butler, the archaic, binary categories of gender (male and female) counteracts feminism and only promotes patriarchy because these movements completely separate these distinctions and put them up against each other, which does not do anything for the progression gender equality. Stereotypical representation of gender and sexuality for example, expression of femininity in men automatically equates to being homosexual.
  • Counteracts Sigmund Freud’s ideas that “same-sex affection” is a “form of melancholia”.

QUOTES

”Gender does not exist inside the body” – Sex is biological whereas gender is a form of identity and self expression. The definitions of the both have been blurred through societies expectations.

“Our gender identities are not a fixed object” – Gender is fluid, almost a spectrum. Our gender identity can change how ever often we want it too. Different elements of our personality relate to different gender even though we may identify ourselves as one.

“Media presentations of homosexuality often use exaggerate masculine or feminine behaviours in a comedic way” – Linking to Maybelline advert, Manny’s homosexuality is stereotyped and majorly over-exaggerated, this could be the brand’s way of making this representation outwardly known.

“Constructed through repeated actions” – Stereotypical gender traits constructed such as connected the clothes we wear to the binary: male or female, creates the impression that we should have a “seamless and permanent” gender identity. These “rituals” linked to different gender’s display our identity to ourselves and society.

“Non-heterosexual identities are socially suppressed in favour of heteronormativity” – Non-straight identities or couples are seldom displayed in the media, especially unless it is in connection with a pride campaign, for example. This is due to the fact that society assumes that people are automatically straight and have the ability to choose their sexuality from birth, whereas this is clearly not the case.

HARRY STYLES ARTICLE (GUARDIAN MAG):

  • Harry Styles has recently set up a ‘life brand’ called ‘Pleasing’. He has released a range of beauty products including nail polishes. With him being a influential opinion leader, him counteracting gender normality allows people to see themselves represented and allows them to validate their own expression of gender, sexuality and personality as a whole.
  • “There is a sense that this brand is about celebrating what is already there and encouraging customers to be themselves.”
  • Styles echoes Butler’s theories that we can celebrate the differing elements of our gender identity regardless of societies expectations.
  • Through Styles’ “unique aesthetic” he aims to “blur the boundaries” of the traditional gender binary and project the idea that anyone, regardless of their gender, can wear beauty products, can dress how they choose to and can act how they want to.
  • The article also makes reference to money, which could be interpreted as Styles going against the male stereotype and using this ‘alternative’, unique gender expression as a way of regaining fame and making money. “In July, the global beauty industry was valued at $511bn”

EXAM STYLE PARAGRAPHS:

SCORE:

The male character is at a higher physical position to the female characters looking up at him. This could connote to the patriarchal, superior, dominating and more powerful position he holds, reflecting the views that men were of a higher position, men were meant to be earning money whilst their wife would stay at home, during the late 1960’s. The female characters are over-sexualised through their clothing and body language/position. This reflects the gender stereotype that women were objects of male pleasure linking to Laura Mulvey and The Male Gaze. Butler’s theories suggest that this representation of contrast between gender expression only promoted patriarchy and women being used only for sexualisation. This representation of over-emphasised femininity is unnecessary and has no link to the product being advertised. This also links to the theory of voyeurism – “One of the most obvious persuaders in advertising is sex”

MAYBELLINE:

This production is a counter-typical representation of gender and truly encapsulates Judith Butler’s ideas that gender is fluid, it is not fixed and set in place. Gender is changeable and can be expressed differently during different situations. The Maybelline advertisement also has links to sexuality and how sexuality is often attached to stereotypes as well as gender. Manny (MUA), featured in the video advert, is a gay male and the first male make up artist to be the face of the brand and be featured in a advert. Immediately, he creates a new representation of what ‘being a man’ looks like. His portrayal completely de-constructs the traditional binary that suggests that men should be overly masculine, heterosexual and should only be interested in playing sports, for example. His representation is quite feminine and the fact that he wears makeup and is connected to a makeup brand juxtaposes the archaic idea that only girls can use makeup.

JUDITH BUTLER:

Judith Butler’s ideas counteract Laura Mulvey’s ideas that gender is fixed as male and female which are seen as completely separate and different from each other. Her views complement modern identities such as non-binary and gender fluid, where people don’t feel represented as one, set gender, they see themselves as having elements of different genders and don’t stay in line with the ‘traditional’ binary. Butler says that gender is a social construct which categorises everyone into a stereotype. She emphasises the difference between sex and gender. Sex being the biological category assigned at birth (male or female), whereas gender being a social construct which encapsulates the idea that almost everything, from careers and clothing fit into a feminine or masculine category, either (boy or girl).

Exam Prep, Representation

Essay Prep

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Fluidity of Identity – The idea that identity can change over time due to changes in circumstances. For example, you may develop different ideas about your identity as you grow older and become more mature, or you could even experience it when something as simple as just moving house or country occurs.

Constructed Identity – The process of people developing certain ideas about themselves and their identity based on their experiences. – follow opinion leaders – two step flow

Negotiated Identity – The idea that many people can discuss and have different views about someone’s identity, and communicate this to change views. This can lead to changes in identity based on the input of other people.

Collective Identity – The idea that people are grouped into certain stereotypes. This may be for many different reasons, such as physical features, where someone is from or how someone acts. This often may not be positive, as countertypes ar very common in society, sometimes even more so than stereotypes.

Styles Notes

“The mission of this venture is to bring joyful experiences and products that excite the senses and blur the boundaries” – I think this is disingenuous because due to the idea of negotiated identity as described by David Gauntlett, the experiences that Styles describes as “joyful” may not always be such. because the opinions and viewpoints of others may affect the user of the counter typical make up’s experiences and thus change their identity.

Judith Butler describes gender as “an identity instituted through a stylized repetition of acts”. In other words, it is something learnt through repeated performance. This means that gender is not fixed, and is rather achieved by things you do and the ways in which you do them. This makes you find your gender in yourself, and also prove to others that your gender is what you say it is. For example, girls are allowed to be more fun and silly, compared to boys being more serious and mature, with boys partaking in more strenuous activities and girls appearing more “soft” and more caring.

Advertising, Exam Prep, Notes, Representation

Judith Butler – Gender

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  • Certain acts and ideas depict your gender.
  • The idea of what you do, what you drink, how you talk and how you stand decides who you are, what you are and how you act all the time. It also can put you into one of society’s many groups, where people are all the same or act similarly.
  • However Judith is implying that there is no “repetitive” acts that can depict who you are, its all a false idea created by humanity because that’s what is normal, however as we move and and as me mature we realise everyone does what they want and people don’t live by what others think or depict of them. Some people are born a gender but then change because they feel that isn’t who they are, and as the days go on, that is more and more publicly accepted by humanity and people will not need to put on a façade to be a certain way to fit in.

Harry styles article: Quotes

“Styles announced that he hoped to “dispel the myth of a binary existence”” – This displays how Styles see’s the current state of society as not correct and that it needs to change, however I feel as if he has gone the wrong way around it.

“Styles’s first business venture includes a range of nail polishes, an illuminating primer serum, and a dual-purpose eye and lip oil.” – The reason I state I believe that Styles has gone the wrong way around this is because instead of maybe doing a show or charity event to raise money to donate to charities such as Human Rights Campaign Foundation or The Trevor Project he made a company he could profit off of.

“Undoubtedly, there is serious value in beauty now. In July, the global beauty industry was valued at $511bn” – This quote proves to me that Styles see’s this as a money grab more than anything else, with his large following he could amass an incredible amount of money and a big business, one like Lada gaga or Beyoncé.

Notes, Representation, Theory

Judith Butler – Gender Performativity

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Judith Butler describes gender as “an identity instituted through a stylized repetition of acts”. In other words, it is something learnt through repeated performance.

Butler is illustrating that our gender identities are constructed by the institutions we have been brought up with and exposed to and are often presented to us as objective – for example boys must play football and girls must wear dresses. However, by saying this she implies that this is the opposite of what gender is and in reality we are just made to believe gender is objective when in actual fact it is completely subjective – for example girls can also play football.

She theorises that it is your behaviour that fabricate your gender, most significantly your repeated behaviour, and in saying that, she highlights that no one is just born with an identity but as people grow up, as people are exposed to new knowledge and experiences and hardships; that is when one’s identity evolves and is created. This links to not only the idea of fluid identity, but also constructed identity, for example one may construct their identity based on their experiences throughout childhood, however as one becomes older and is exposed to more knowledge and experiences their gender/identity evolves and becomes more fluid.

‘rituals and performative actions constantly reinforce our identities’

She highlights that through repeating certain practices which may be unique to one’s chosen gender, whatever gender that may be, we are able to present to other people our identity and gender. This is also subjective as just because a certain practice may be typically performed by a girl, such as painting your nails, does not mean that it cannot be performed by a male or any other gender.

‘Biological anatomies do not determine our gender’

Butler stresses the importance of understanding that just because someone is born with a certain body part, does not mean that that corresponds to their gender identity meaning that more than anything, gender is a mentality rather than a physical state.

‘to maintain an identity that falls outside of heterosexual norm in our society is , she suggests, a subversive act that takes a great deal of effort to maintain.’

Because being anything other than heterosexual is not as common and sometimes not widely accepted, it is difficult for people to fully express themselves.

Feminist Critical Thinking, Representation, Uncategorized

DAVID GAUNTLETT

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Fluidity of identity– Gauntlet comments on how someone’s identity can change because of how men and woman are being represented in the media. Identity is always changing and people are adapting to new cultural normality’s. Gautlett states we have a “greater diversity of identities”. Fluidity of identity means that a persons identity is always changing, and they don’t have to specifically stick to one personality trait and that to wholy represent you as a person.

Constructed identity– This is when a person builds up their identity and it slightly changes, depending on their peers/audiences. Men and women are becoming more equal and there is also no longer a specific gender to belong too, people classify themselves as ‘they’ or ‘them’ and that is the identity our generation has allowed people to do (more or less) . Magazines, Movies or the opinion leaders who dominate our society (influencers, celebs) all help us to “construct” this identity for ourselves suggesting ways of living in todays society.

Negotiated identity– A negotiated identity is a direct balance between our own desires and wants and meeting the expectations of others and what they desire.

Collective identity– Means that we refer to our sense of belonging to group, This could be out of a shared interest/experience or even something in common. Our desire to be with others and “fit in”. These groups could be social, religious, occupational or gendered.

Representation

David Gauntlet: Identity

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Fluidity of identity– Gauntlet comments on how someone’s identity can change because of how men and woman are being represented in media. Showing how our identity is not always fixed because we are constantly adapting to new cultural norms. He now says we have a “greater diversity of identities”.

Constructed identity– Even though the representation between men and women are becoming more balanced, there are still a variety of cues we use to construct our identities. Magazines, Movies or the opinion leaders who dominate our society (influencers, celebs) all help us to “construct” this identity for ourselves suggesting ways of living by acting on their advice or recognising ourselves in a character of a film.

Negotiated identity– A negotiated identity is a balance between our own desires and meeting the expectations of others. Showing how we want a balance of being with others and retaining our own strong identity.

Collective identity– This refers to our sense of belonging to group, weather that be out of a shared interest/experience or even something in common. Our desire to engage with others and “fit in”.

Notes, Representation, Theory

GAUNTLETT

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Identity is ‘the distinguishing character or personality of an individual’.

Gauntlet’s theories on identity look at how identity is personal to an individual being, it is also a way of grouping and identifying similar people together, forming a stereotypical identity, and it is something that is constructed as we grow, learn and develop.

Fluidity of Identity encompasses the idea that identity is everchanging, (and can even change on a daily basis), especially as we are influenced, as we adapt and experience new things.

Constructed identity is the idea that the public is passive and don’t think for themselves, they are influenced by powerful opinion leaders (such as the Media, and social influencers who people trust the opinions of). Constructed identity follows along with archaic stereotypical binary. For example, the constructed belief that heterosexuality is the ‘perfect’ sexuality.

Negotiated identity is the ‘middle ground’, in which we (as people with personal identities and self-expression) can decide how we present ourselves whilst also being influenced by the identities projected by the media, meeting the expectations of societal norms and those around us.

Collective identity is the theory that groups of people who share a similar interest or personality are often stereotyped together and are categorized and defined by this shared identity. As an example, football fans are grouped together as supporters of their team and given a typecast identity.

DAVID GAUNTLET: QUOTES

“Gauntlett suggests that marketing and advertising agencies construct multiple possibilities of who we might be.” – The media often present the most ‘idealistic’ or ‘perfect’ identity which is true to societies expectations and traditional binary representations.

“We now live in a post-traditional society” – Society is slowly moving away from archaic ideologies and celebrating diversity that contrasts to societies ‘norm’

“Contemporary mass media has helped to mainstream non-heteronormativity” – New, contemporary and diverse media has impacted the views of society as a whole. Not only has the mass media normalised diversity through gender identity, self-expression and allowed non-traditional identity to be accepted more freely, it has also helped society to move away from the stereotypical heterosexual lifestyle which is often presented as the ‘perfect’ way to live.

“Audiences are active, they control the representations they want to engage with” – Even though audiences are passive in a sense and are manipulated by opinion leaders who project representations which are made out to be ‘right’. Audiences are also active and can decide which of these representations they are influenced by, often the one that relates to themselves the most suitably.

“The positive thing we have now is the online culture made by everybody” – Everybody who uses social media has their own control over what they post and choose to put out to be seen. This modern type of media is a way of showcasing diversity as reality, in which all types of representations are collated together in one place, reflective of contemporary society.

Advertising, Exam Prep, NEA, Representation

statement of intent – advert.

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for my ad I am going to use CeraVe as my product, I am going to create two different ads, one will be a modern it will consist of a teenage female model who will be photographed using the product as it is advertised towards teens who are wanting a relatively cheap and effective skin care it will also be and add targeted at both genders as the modern media is getting used to males being in the cosmetic ads which are now being produced by many major an very well known brands as a way to stray away from the idea that men should adhere to hyper masculinity. the brand who will be making my ad are. there will also be a fluidity of identity in the ad. even though it is a female on the ad, there Is nothing to indicate that it is a product is advertised towards just one gender or specific age range as it is more socially acceptable now for people of all genders and ages to use such a product.

the second ad will be one similar to that from the 1970’s however it will be a radical representation as the female will nit be oversexualised and no male will be present in the ad as it would have been very uncommon for men to appear or use such products as it could be seen as not masculine. this kind of product would have been advertised towards woman and so the male would be unnecessary as this is not using the ideology that ‘sex sells’. this ad will also be radicle as the female will not be viewed as below a male but as the main model as a way to showcase the product and not the female. this ad will be very much trying avoid the male gaze as a way to move away from the patriarchal society which was present in the 1970’s as there was a collective identity that only females used skin care and make up and that males don’t. this is why i would need to use a female to make it seem more realistic as males would have got a negative stereotype due to the abnormality of them using such a product.

Advertising, Audience, NEA, Representation, Semiotics

CERAVE ADVERT: STATEMENT OF INTENT

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My intention for this product is to represent the CeraVe moisturiser as an amazing brand which will sort out any dry. acne-prone skin within days. I want it to look very appealing to a youngish audience (eg. teenagers/ early 20’s) so it will have to look trendy and have a modern style to it. I am basing it off the Maybelline lipstick advert and some other adverts I have looked at which are for moisturisers. I will incorporate some of the features from these adverts such as the smooth textured waves going across the page and luxuriousness which would be great for someone seeking an escape. I will create a syntagm by combining a zoom in of my models face (dominant signifier) and a shot of my product with a headline and text to create meaning.

The elements I will include the brands famous tagline (“Developed by dermatologists”) at the bottom of the advert with a main headliner at the top saying “CeraVe: long lasting moisturiser, instantly transforming your skin!” Also i will have a close up of my model applying the moisturiser to her face and the outstanding results. There will not be too much writing and mainly use images to convince the audience that it will be worth them switching to this product. There will be some texture added to the modern day advert by using glitter like splashes to convey the excitement and miracle transformation when you use the product. The signified will be the white twirl coming of the bottle which is going to represent the moisturiser.

The advert will represent the dominant ideology that females should always do their best to keep their skin looking beautiful such as having a good skin care routine (wanting to have a moisturiser that is approved by others). It is a constructed reality which will influence many teens/ young adults. In some ways it could be seen as a negative stereotype because having perfect skin can be an unrealistic expectation. In the classic advert the model will be

I will be making two adverts one classic and one contemporary advert. The contemporary advert will consist of a reactionary stereotype of a teenage girl using the product but with a genuine smile not a fake staged one which is usually portrayed in modern day media. The type of audience that would consume it would be the mainstreamer or the succeeder because it is a product with a price range that is affordable for most people and those who want to seek control of how they look by making their skin smoother and performing to dominant ideologies about how a female should care about their appearance, based on Young and Rubicam’s physcographic descriptors

The kind of company that would make my product would be a popular magazine featuring celebrities or recent news that would interest those of a younger generation. I believe it could also be featured outside shops such as Boots or Superdrug which are places that the advert would be seen.

syntagym (Roland Barthes)

Index

Ferdinand De Sassaure

Conotation

Denotation

Radical

Reactionary

Symbol

Icon

David Guantlett – Constructed identity, collected idenity (only for females)

Male gaze, audience positoning, positive and negeative steroetypes, dominant ideology, hegemony

Two step flow of communication- Lazarsfeld

Uses and gratifications model- Katz and Blumler