The Construction of Gender in Orange is the New Black

Applying Lauretis’s Technology of Gender to Mainstream Media

The News
The News
Aug 23, 2017 · 4 min read

Teresa de Lauretis wrote an article entitled The Technology of Gender in which she highlights four points that make up gender. With society playing a major role in the shaping of such points, Lauretis addresses its impact on gender. However, despite there being four points, I will be mainly focusing on her final point, in light of its paradoxical nature. Lauretis’s paradox lies within her second and fourth point, with her second point addressing gender as being a construct of society. Society’s responsibility for the perception of gender is then contradicted by the idea that gender’s construction is seen through its deconstruction, thereby creating the idea that society also deconstructs gender. Because gender is seen through construction and deconstruction, society both creates and breaks gender, even though both states are present.

However, in order to understand gender’s representation through deconstruction, its paradox must first be understood, and the best way to understand this concept is by understanding society’s depiction of gender. Easiest to identify through the various types of media that consume our everyday life, various representations of gender have circulated it, therefore creating a societal view of how gender is “supposed to be”. Specific characteristics and expectations are assigned to men and women, as seen with this video here. Double standards in society creates the idea that women who take charge are considered bossy, whereas a man is considered a leader. Society imposes the domestic roles upon women, whereas men are assigned a more career and work oriented role. Men would work to provide for their family while women deal with the maintenance of it. As society has created the idea of how men and women should be, gender’s construction begins to be illustrated through its representation in society. As a role is created for each gender, society becomes responsible for the differences between how men and women “should act”.

Netflix’s series Orange is the New Black however, contradicts society’s views of gender, as women take on not only the roles society already imposes on them, but the roles of men as well. Red’s job as a chef within Litchfield Penitentiary falls into society’s roles imposed on women, reinforcing the idea of gender’s construction, however Piper’s job as a repair-person would normally be attributed to a male, thereby contradicting society’s construction. Orange is the New Black takes the roles of gender and assimilates them into female positions because, being in a women-only prison, they are the only positions available. Using this to its advantage, the show illustrates the deconstruction of gender by going against society’s perceived norms. Although women are still seen performing the domestic, the show eliminates the need for male roles despite their inclusion. If the faculty that runs the prison is ignored, and the mindset of a regular community is entered, Litchfield Penitentiary is illustrated as a community that is sustained through the work of the female inmates. Therefore, the jobs attributed to males must instead be carried out by females.

Occupations and characteristics are not the only issues the show contradicts, as the characters themselves embody such contradictions. The most notable character that conveys the idea of gender deconstruction is Laverne Cox’s character, Sophia Burset. Being a Trans-woman, she becomes the physical embodiment of gender deconstruction, thereby showing gender as interchangeable, and resulting in a divergence from society’s perceived norms. By keeping in mind that she was originally a man, all her actions become inherently contradictory to society’s views. Her job as a hair dresser, use of makeup, and being a woman in and of itself begins to depict gender’s deconstruction. The show takes the idea a step further with her son’s refusal to accept Sophia’s new life, as it symbolically depicts the deconstruction by comparing it to its construction. Michael’s character becomes a physical representation of society and works to highlight Sophia’s divergence.

Lauretis’s fourth point now becomes easier to understand through the use of television. By seeing an illustration of how gender roles are manipulated within the show, the viewer compares what is being seen, to what is already known. Because gender roles are imposed upon people at a young age and constantly reinforced throughout their lifetime, the viewer understands that roles such as mechanics and electricians are attributed to men. However, the show illustrates these and other male dominated occupations and positions being carried out by women. By creating a contradiction to a perceived norm, the viewer must then acknowledge that the roles being shown are not the same as those society has assigned to that specific gender. The viewer then becomes aware of society’s gender roles by seeing women that are not following them. By realizing something is different, the viewer attempts to determine the differences by comparing it to what was thought to be normal. In doing so, the construction of gender is seen by viewing its opposite. As a result, the viewer understands how the show has taken the roles of gender, and presented them as interchangeable.

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