A Child’s Construction of Social Reality
The media has been influencing us since before we could even speak. By the time children start preschool, they have already learned thousands of stereotypes that could quite possibly lead them straight to their lifelong career.
For example, a four year old walks into his first day of preschool. By this time, he has probably already watched nearly all of the Disney movies of his generation and the one before. He has probably even seen most the classics. Because of this, the four year old has already seen thousands of stereotypes in action. He has seen gender roles and knows what is expected of him as a male in this world. He knows all about princes and princesses and that his masculinity gives him power. He has seen the sexualization of Disney princesses and therefore knows how women are expected to look. He has seen the way that different races are portrayed in different movies and therefore has seen the preference for fair-skinned people.
If one were to watch pretty much any Disney movie with wide-open eyes, he/she might see dozens of stereotypes portrayed in the short 90-minute film. Take Beauty and the Beast for example. Belle, the main character, is a young girl whose purpose is to take care of the house chores and make sure her father is well-taken care of. The male characters in this movie, take on very masculine behaviors. Gaston, for example, hunts, fights and spends the movie looking for a contestable wife. The gender roles in this movie are made very clear and can be easily interpreted by young children. Mulan is another great example. The difference in this movie, however, is that Mulan fights against the stereotypical gender roles and goes to fight in the army in place of her father. At first, Mulan is punished for this. But then she is rewarded when she saves China. Though Mulan broke away from the gender roles, children could still easily interpret the gender norms shown throughout this entire movie (i.e. men being the fighters, more masculine and capable of handling the war).
Children’s Health Council published an article about stereotypes in the media and how they can impact a child’s development and their construction of social reality. This article is based off the research found on Common Sense Media’s report. This article talked about the influence that the media can have on a child’s gender, relationship and appearance expectations. The article refers to ways that one could counteract these stereotypes and prevent them from affecting a child’s future. The stereotypes in the media can be so subtle that one may not catch them upon first viewing. However, these subtle assumptions can have a big impact on a child’s understanding of the world.
*It is important to note, however, that today’s cartoons have started including more modern ideas that may assist in combating the original stereotypes.
