Analysis Of Judith Lorber´s The Social Construction Of Gender

Introduction
In our daily basis we are bombarded with millions of images, but we rarely stop to think about what those images mean and what they are persuading us to do. Images can be found in many forms, newspapers, magazines, internet, radio, television, smart phones, and billboards, amongst other forms. Modern day technology has forever revolutionized the form people receive media. It has become an easier form to access information and messages through a high speed connection. As technology expands and becomes the prime form of communication, individuals need to understand the messages being sent to them.
Mass media is an important part in our daily lives because it provides us with information and entertainment. Many people may believe
Various commercials from the Fox channel depict the ideal family, 1 or 2 children with a mother and father, purchasing or driving a luxurious vehicle, Lexus. Regardless of a men or women’s appearance they too can have an ideal family if they buy the product. Just about everyone wants to be successful, physically attractive and even have power and prestige in society. In the article “The Social Construction of Gender” by Judith Lorber examines gender as a process of creating a distinguishable social status in our institutions. The author believes that gender is learned through social interaction and then is acted and reacted, when she states, “Every day gendered interaction build gender into the family, the work process, and other organizations and institutions, which in turn reinforces gender expectations for individuals. (114).” This demonstrates that through interaction, gender and meaning are created through commercials, language, symbols and rules. Commercials similar to Lexus usually emphasize and promote the “ideal family”, which in most cases are white and, since Lexus is a luxurious brand making it exclusively for wealthy individuals. The constant depiction of the “ideal family” in the media, then leads viewers to idealize and reinforce that
In my recent sampling, I discovered that 61.40 percent of men are portrayed in day time commercials compared to 38.59 percent of women, thus targeting and appealing to the male audience. In recent years the media, more specifically television, has constructed the identities of masculinity and femininity in society. Through the course of time minorities and specifically women have been oppressed and degraded. Television usually depicts women as thin and attractive. This may affect the way women viewing these images perceive their own body, since women are more likely to watch television. In many Carl’s Jr. Commercials blonde women are displayed as a sex symbol wearing “sexy” clothes appealing to the male gaze using double meaning comments, such as, “nice package”. This commercial is not only demeaning to women, but also creates self-esteem issues for women who do not fill this ill image. The depiction of women in a negative and sexist form may nevertheless be accepted by the audience as reality. Thus, creating false expectations and standards for women. With regards to the treatment of women, commercials are guilty of symbolically ignoring individuals in the media. Men have been exploiting and degrading women by the way they are