
I believe that feminism and patriarchy are two extremely large issues in America. Although women have gained many rights and become more equally treated to our male counterparts throughout the years, there is still a lot of inequality and double standards that women face on a daily basis. Many people will argue that women are treated equally to men, however this is simply not true. There may not be written laws to prove the inequality, however it is a cultural norm. It is evident in the way women are portrayed in movies/advertisements, common lack of power and respect in the workforce, the lesser pay many of them face, and the standard of beauty women are held to. I am not taking away from the many accomplishments women have made, however it is clear that there is a widening gap between the equality of the men and women. Furthermore, men are believed to be stronger, more intelligent, and better leaders simply because they are men. In many countries, including the United States, sex trafficking of women and young girls is a current issue. In addition, rape culture against women is so commonly seen on a day-to-day basis it is truly sickening. It is an unspoken truth that these stereotypes and gender inequality are alive and kicking today. There are multiple factors to consider about these issues: what gender inequality is, why it exists, and what can be done to narrow this gap of unequal treatment. 

Americans today tend to believe that men and women are finally treated as equal to one another. This is untrue and statistically proven to be incorrect. According to Player, “People view men as more capable leaders, men are rewarded more highly than women – just having a male name is more likely to get you the job. If you are a mother, your chances of getting the job are reduced by 70%” (Gender Inequality 2013). In other words, if you have male genitalia, you are most likely going to receive a job over a woman solely because she is…well, a woman. If that doesn’t scream inequality to you, then here’s another point Player makes regarding gender biases: “Unconscious bias is particularly important as it arises from the implicit assumptions and unspoken attitudes, beliefs and expectations that we all have about others” (Gender Inequality 2013). Essentially, these gender roles we have engraved in our mind are what’s driving the unequal treatment of men and women. We subconsciously and been conditioned to make judgments and form opinions on someone based on stereotypes we’ve grown to accept. Not only are gender roles tricky to combat on their own, but given the fact that it is something we naturally do without even noticing it makes it even more of a challenge to eliminate. In order to break this chain, a conscious effort must be made to stop associating males with dominance or strength, and on the other hand, to stop associating women with being feeble and helpless. A huge portion of these gender roles we associate with is due to media portrayal of man and woman, which is the next topic that needs to be addressed. 

Media distortion is a huge component of the perpetuation of gender roles and inequality we see throughout our culture today. Not only is social media and television affecting the way adults behave and think, but more importantly, it’s laying down the foundation for the children that will become the future of our country. It is critical to teach the youth positive characteristics and what is acceptable in our society. Popular reality TV shows these days are terrible representations of gender roles. Many of the stars on these shows display trashy behavior, constantly having their hair and makeup done, lots of drinking, and having multiple sexual partners. None of these behaviors are positive or beneficial traits to show young girls. What you see all over TV, Instagram, magazines, and so on eventually gets inside of your head. Encouraging those kinds of behaviors is exactly what is taking our sex a step back in gender equality. As Dr. Smith puts it, “One study has found that viewing reality dating shows significantly and positively predicts endorsing attitudes that regard women as sex objects and men as sex driven” (Gender and The Media). Basically, many television shows are portraying women as a sex object used for men’s pleasure. The girl youth in our country should not feel that they need to seek men’s approval to find their worth. It is truly concerning the way that the media labels us as desperately needing the approval or validation from a man. 

In addition to the pressure to appeal sexually to men, women also are held to unrealistic expectations of their body types. Dr. Smith also found that “when looking closely at G-rated movies, animated gals are more likely than live action ones to be shown with an hourglass figure (unrealistically small waist, large chest) – the ideal body of the Disney Princess posse” (Gender and The Media). Young girls may body shame themselves for not looking a certain way. It is especially disturbing that men are not held to this standard of an impractical body type, yet discriminate women for not looking a certain way. If advertisements and super models included more ‘regular’ body types, including curvy and plus size rather than ultra-thin, I believe there would be much less self-esteem issues among girls. Overall, the media absolutely needs to expand its narrow-minded portrayal of unrealistic body types and behaviors of women. 

As you can see, gender inequality is a critical issue that affects both genders’ everyday lives. While it is unfortunately a common issue, it is possible to progress towards a gender bias-free world. First, we must make a conscious effort realize that male and female are just what your anatomy is. It does not define your intelligence, your strength, or your capabilities. There should be no such thing as a ‘woman’s job’ or ‘man’s work’. Both genders should be able to do either one without judgement or complication. In fact, White insists that “Promoting that equality is not difficult, but it does take the commitment of management to take the necessary actions, establish guidelines and enforce them” (How to Promote Gender Equality). Essentially, White is saying that this is a task that can certainly be done, however, it will take lots of effort and participation in order for anything to be impacted. Gender should not determine whether or not someone is fit for a certain job, or the amount of money they get paid. Credentials and/or that person’s quality of work is what should be the determining factor- not gender. In order to eliminate gender roles altogether, the media needs to stop perpetuating these stereotypes, and we as a country need to stop feeding into them as well. In conclusion, it is absolutely possible for us to diminish the inequality gap between the men and women of this country.

The power of expression found in literature regarding the unfair treatment of women is a fantastic way to bring awareness to the problem at hand. Instead of fighting a silent war with men and hoping that things will change, it is absolutely necessary to have female writers produce work that speaks up for women and breaks the silence. If men were able to read individuals stories about gender oppression and the staggering statistics of our pay and employment rate, perhaps they would be more willing to offer change in the right direction. I absolutely believe that producing more literature about women and the struggles we face as a gender could promote a more equal balance between men and women. More specifically, there are a couple of specific literary pieces I would like to analyze to help reinforce the impact of these pieces and how they demonstrate the gender inequality so many of us women face on a day to day basis. 

First up is Kelly Sue Deconnick’s Bitch Planet. This particular piece is a comic in which the main character, Penelope, is an African American woman who is rejected from the norms of society and relocated to Bitch Planet- a planet where all women who do not meet society’s standards of what a woman should be are sent in exile (Deconnick). A panel of creepy white men get to call the shots on what is considered ‘beautiful’, and work towards the goal of getting these women to conform to these standards. Specifically, Penelope is stubborn and refuses this idea of changing herself to fit other people’s desires. How dare she, right? She should have to lose weight and color her skin white and change who she is to fit others expectations, right? Wrong. It is no one’s decision but each individual on their own to choose what they look like, how they act, or what their beliefs are.

 When working as a lunch lady in the cafeteria, Penelope overhears two men talking about her: “No wonder she’s state-sponsored, Christ. Who wants to come home to that?” (Deconnick 194). In response to his friend, the other man replies, “It’s in their animal nature—big asses, big lips. You ever fuck a skin? Wild.” (Deconnick 194). And that right there is precisely why we have gender issues. I honestly do not know where to even begin on that quote. I suppose I’ll first start with the ‘state-sponsored’ remark. The fact that she is even working and trying to make an effort in her job completely justifies the fact that she may be getting financial assistance from the government. People in poverty or in need of financial help from others should never be a target to make fun of. Next, the man is insinuating that the reason she is state-sponsored is because no man would want to come home to her strictly based on her outward appearance. Not that this is technically a valid point, but how many times do women marry obese or unattractive men?  The answer is frequently. It is a double standard for women to have to be beautiful, and have thin bodies, but also have curves, and speak their mind, but only to a certain point or else she is posing a threat to his ‘manliness’, and oh heavens, we just can’t have that happening. If a man wants to be blunt and speak his mind, he has balls. If a woman wants to be blunt and speak her mind, she is a bitch. Isn’t it funny how that works? 

Anyway, apart from the horrifyingly offensive language these men use to speak of Penelope, they get even more lovely and begin targeting her race. Referring to a black woman as having an ‘animal nature’ which is just as appropriate of a statement as it is intelligent, is a prime example of Kimberle Crenshaw’s intersectionalism. The idea of intersectionalism is that women’s oppression+ black oppression= the ultimate oppression for black women. Not only are these men being sexist, but they put a cherry on top of that and added some racism too. Unfortunately, this intersectionalism is a reality for millions of black women in our country and prevents them from many opportunities that other white women or black men are able to obtain. Finally, I would just like to cover the use of the casualty of the conversation these two men use to discuss sex. “You ever fuck a skin? Wild.” It’s truly quite sickening how women are just referred to as sex objects. As if our only purpose is to please a male. It truly blows my mind how often I hear men on a daily basis talk about women this way in real life. Rap artists are making millions of dollars off of songs that literally just degrade women. Songs that call women bitches, talking about having multiple ‘hoes’, cheating on women, and glorifying women as pieces of meat that are disposable after a one night stand. And the sad part is, women are singing along to these songs and allowing it to happen. That is two steps in the wrong direction for gender equality, ladies.  It is truly more sickening that women are buying these songs, supporting these artists that publicize their blatant disrespect for our gender, than it is that males are writing the lyrics. Anyways, Bitch Planet although it is a fictional comic, the accuracy of the treatment towards women, and even more specifically black women, is extremely on point. Kelly Sue Deconnick really illustrated in this story how hell-bent our society is on body-shaming and trying to get women to meet its standard of beauty. 

Finally, we have Lily Myer’s “The Shrinking Woman”. This spoken word poem is an intense, passionate, and emotional journey of living in a world in which women are required to take a gendered approach to food. This means that the way men view eating and the way women view eating are two completely different things. Men do not have to worry about reaching for seconds, eating unhealthily, or people judging them for the amount of food they are consuming. Women, however, are more self-conscious about how they are viewed when it comes to food. We want to be skinny, because that’s what society has told us is beautiful. We don’t want to look like we’re ‘pigging out’ by taking seconds at the dinner table, because we are ashamed of eating too much. We constantly weigh ourselves, seeking approval from the scale. We feel guilty about that midnight snack and we are always told to watch our calories. Myers states that, “As my grandmother became frail and angular her husband swelled to red round cheeks, round stomachand I wonder if my lineage is one of women shrinking making space for the entrance of men into their lives” (Myers 15-18). This statement is especially powerful because it highlights exactly how these gendered food approaches affect us in the long run; the woman becomes weak and deprived, the man continues to gain weight and flourish- both of which are accepted as our norms. As we shrink, we are hoping for a man to fill the space we provided, rather than filling it ourselves. Any weight or shape is a beautiful one; a woman should not feel she has to fit a cookie cutter idea of one specific body type to feel beautiful or loved. Myers goes on to express the gendered differences between her and her brother: “I have been taught accommodation.My brother never thinks before he speaks. I have been taught to filter. “How can anyone have a relationship to food?” He asks, laughing, as I eat the black bean soup I chose for its lack of carbs.I want to tell say: we come from difference, Jonas, you have been taught to grow out I have been taught to grow in you learned from our father how to emit, how to produce, to roll each thought off your tongue with confidence, you used to lose your voice every other week from shouting so much I learned to absorb” (Myers 19-31). Here, Myers really emphasizes the behavioral differences standards of both genders. The brother seems oblivious to these differences and scoffs at her when she mentions the gendered approach women take to food. The ignorance takes an unspoken stab at Myers; we as women are expected to look and act a certain way, and it goes unnoticed when we do what we’re ‘supposed to do’, but are immediately called out when begin to stray from these roles. Also, as she states, women are taught to absorb their feelings, to accommodate to men, and to allow men to be the confident, outspoken figure. Lily Myers did a beautiful job of exposing the truth on the emotional inequalities and struggles that women face with men, and hopefully, women will continue to create literary pieces like this to help men understand where we’re coming from. 

In conclusion, one can see the immense inequality and large gap in gender inequality we see in our world today. Women have been treated unequally throughout almost all of time, and though things have certainly improved for us, we are still far from standing equal with men. To combat this gender superiority, women must make their voices heard and continue to produce literature speaking out for our rights and fair treatment. The more noise we make, the harder it is for them to ignore or silence us any further. In addition, men can help with this movement as well by speaking up for us too, which would be quite a powerful tool to have. Gender equality is not a far-fetched fantasy; it is an attainable goal that must be fulfilled. 
