Representation and Reality

Gender, Sexuality and the Media

In this course, Dr Helen Ringrow (University of Portsmouth) explores issues of gender and sexuality in media texts. In the first module, we provide a brief introduction to some of the issues we'll be discussing in the rest of the course, including what we mean when we talk about 'the media', and the fact that the media must always provide a 'biased' picture. In the second module, we think about cosmetics advertising, with a focus on the underlying assumptions around gender and bodies. In the third module, we think about the construction of identity in motherhood blogs and 'modest fashion' blogs within a particular community in the United States, before turning in the fourth module to the language of parenthood, in particular how fathers are represented in parenting magazines. Finally, in the fifth module, we think about the representation of gender in fictional media, with a focus on the evolution of the Disney Princess from Snow White (1937) to Frozen (2013).

Representation and Reality

In this module, we provide a broad introduction to some of the issues we'll be discussing in the rest of the course, focusing in particular on: (i) what we mean when we talk about 'the media' and 'the audience', and the concept of power; (ii) the extent to which the media can never offer a full and unbiased picture, but instead uses language and imagery to provide us with a certain representation of reality; (iii) the extent to which certain individuals and groups are unfairly represented in the media; (iv) the ways in which ideas around gender and sexuality are constructed in the media; and (v) the ways in which the representation of gender and sexuality in the media has changed over time.