Women in Television

Rachel Nee
4/3/15

 

 

Women in Television

            This week we discussed women in television, it’s interesting to see where we are with women in television today, what we see portrayed and what we don’t see portrayed. In the excerpt “Girls, Girls, Girls,” we learn about the television show produced by actress Lena Dunham. It portrays young women in their 20s living in New York, what’s unique about Dunham’s character is she doesn’t have this typical body we see portrayed on television. We see her eat, we see her have sex, and it’s the life of a real girl which is rarely something shown on television. Dunham, when writing this show, was going for an image that she knew was different and I like the fact that it’s more realistic than what we usually see. The excerpt also mentions the movie Bridesmaids which is a comedy with an all female cast. What people were worried about was whether or not these females were going to be able to pull through and be successful. The movie was a success, but why was there so much negativity surrounding it before it was even released? I think it was just a shock to people that indeed it was an all female cast, they were funny and in my opinion I think it displayed a powerful image as well to see an all female cast deal with another realistic situation when it comes to a wedding by adding a spin of comedy to it. I think that people were surprised that these women were actually funny and that the movie was actually successful. It just shows how these high standards are still set for women in movies and television, so what if there’s a different image shown, a more realistic image, it’s something that’s rarely shown. Television shows such as the Kardashians, Pretty Little Liars, show perfect looking girls in unrealistic situations, the Kardashians live this glamorous life many people don’t live, and Pretty Little Liars involves four girls dealing with their friend going missing and characters being killed off in almost every other episode. Compare this to shows such as Orange is the New Black and Girls which show more realistic situations, Orange is the New Black also includes women of different race, which is another thing you don’t see on television that often. Also women that are shown on television are rarely shown as having a tough image, shows such as Law and Order SVU include a female detective named Olivia Benson who deals with cases of all kinds, but she's a powerful figure for females, she is able to fight off men, she is able to have this intimidating image and I admire her for that. Rarely do you see a women shown in a tough position, it is always the male that is supposed to have the power, but females like detective Olivia Benson actually are able to kick some ass. It seems like the ideal pretty girl is always needed to be shown in a movie or show, so when a different image comes along, people react to it because it isn’t what has been set for society. If anything, I think this is something that should start growing, it’s important for us to have diversity in our television and movies, to include more women of different races, of different shapes and sizes. Shows such as Girls, Orange is the New Black, even Empire, include different races, include different story plots, and have set this revolution of more diversity being included, we can’t continuously have the stereotypical woman shown in a movie or show, I admire these shows that have started a revolution in order for us to see that women of different shapes and sizes and race are able to be included in pop culture, to set a new image up for society and prove that no matter what race you are or how you look you are able to prove others wrong and be successful.