What kind of media did you like as a child? In what ways do you think these media shaped your gendered self?
The main things I used to be into were Football, Wrestling, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Thunder Cats and Karate Kid. Other things I liked were Street Hawk, A-Team, Knight Rider and He-Man. But I’m not really a product of that media and nor are my views. Its more an indirect influence on my identity today. As I’ll try to explain:
When I was younger my behaviour and attitude to a degree did reflect those shows I watched. For example; Wrestling and the macho nature of Knight Rider, A-Team, Football, etc and the inferior one dimensional representation of women. But I think the media formed more off an outlet and a way to express myself, however right or wrong that was.
But looking back I wasn’t conscious of how I saw things, I just acted. But from the way I acted I clearly grew up thinking that men were strong and macho and women were passive and weak. Men were the heroes and women were the sexy sidekicks or romance interests, who would distract the hero from his duty. But that’s the media influence. However my home situation was led by a single mother. So I clearly had proof that women certainly weren’t weak or just sidekicks to some macho guy. And so through adolescence and being able to think for myself I realised that it’s the stereotypical view of gender and therefore a change occurred.
I like to consider myself a good person and I view everyone as equal. That may be to a degree a product of some of the media I consumed but its more my upbringing and self-development in countering my childhood prejudices and views on gender to reach an opposite and more balanced view.
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