Wednesday, September 15, 2010

How To Shower: Men vs Women

I posted the course recommended shower video on Facebook, eager to see what some of my friends had to say.


I received a few responses back from seven males and one female. Here are a few responses:

"I love how frantic she gets!"
"Haha it's true...at least on the man side."
"Wow, the mohawk! It really happens!"
"Mairin, as a mass media professional, do you think the creators of this film purposely chose the screenshot of a nearly nude large breasted woman as the thumbnail of their video to increase views?"
"Can't forget to leave your 'coarse butt hair' on the soap and then pee. Man Law."

The female wrote, "LOL."

I enjoyed this video because it's funny and for the most part it's true. Women use beauty products like fancy facewash and shampoo for various reasons. Personally, I am attracted to a product that promises smooth skin and less blemishes, and has hight consumer ratings. If I receive positive results I will use it again and praise its powers to others. I'll admit that I have been caught in the mad web of consumer product production and advertising.

Women are expected to smell pretty, look pretty, have clear skin, have smooth legs and shiny hair. In order to live up to these expectations that society and media have created, we use beauty products day and night. In the shower, after the shower, getting dressed, during the day, after work and before bed. Just think how much money we spend on those items?

Men on the other hand are supposed to smell fairly good most of the time. Their hygiene is not deemed as important as women's hygiene. Men are usually excused for their lack of cleanliness and conservativeness regarding bodily functions. Haven't you heard, "women don't sweat, they glow" or "women don't poop." However, men have hour long conversations about their duties in the restroom. It's socially acceptable for a man to be in a public setting that is hot in temperature with underarm sweat marks and slight body odor; yet a woman in the same situation would be frowned upon.

Women aren't supposed to age. In our society, women don't look as pretty when they age. Men are more attractive as they grow older. Those crows feet wrinkles are sexy. Women's eye wrinkles should be shot with Botox. Men look handsome with specs of gray in their hair. Women, don't show those roots. Go die the gray out, at least until you reach an age where it's acceptable to have gray hair. As seen in the comment above, there is this idea of a "Man Law" that is understood by both sexes.

Ok, women aren't the only ones harped on by societal expectations. Men are supposed to have six-pack stomach's and defined arms. Men are supposed to be tall and strong. It goes both ways. We are not happy with what we have, so we use products to try and get close to that image we want for ourselves and what others expect to see.

And yes, I do think the still image of the woman grabbing her breasts was chosen to catch the attention of viewers.

Monday, September 13, 2010

Pass Over

This summer I visited my friend Jonathan who recently moved to New York. He lives in Harlem and each day we took the train to Manhattan to sight see and check out the city. I have never been to New York or seen been to a city as fast-paced and crowded. I tried to fit in as smoothly as possible so I dressed a little edgier than usual, wore my camera slung around my side rather than around my neck, researched my directions prior to hitting the streets and tried not to drop my jaw at the sight of breathtaking sky scrapers.


I tried to pass as a native New Yorker. I attempted to swim in the sea of business commuters and fashion forward individuals who filled the underground train system and swept the busy streets.


The class discussion that compared passing and covering made me immediately think of my New York trip and my attempt as passing as a local. I was constantly reminded that I was hiding my slight Texan accent and my excited physical reactions.

People do it every day: hide a stigmatized trait in order to pass as something they are not. A pale black woman passing as white. A deaf man reading lips and nodding along in order to pass as being able to hear. A lesbian passing as straight in a room of conservative people. A born and raised Texas passing as a New York native.

Passing can occur anywhere. If you walk into a high-end department store looking for an expensive item, you don't usually wear old flip flips and a torn-up shirt. If you go to a rock concert you probably won't wear a cowboy hat and wranglers. If you are going to a football game you won't wear the business suit you wore to work. You want to be treated as you belong there so you dress, act and talk like you do. You are passing as a buyer, a rocker, a fan, even though you may not be.

These are just simple examples, but passing occurs in more serious situations dealing with race, sexuality, religion and so on. Due to the limits and standards that our society has created over time we create an outer image that we want others to read, even if it doesn't match up internally.