Take from the article, here are some facts that may leave you dumbfounded from a study done in 1975 from the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare. 134 text were looked at by "sixteen different publishers, looking at the pictures, stories, and language used to describe male and female characters". The results were
- "Boy-centered" stories outnumbered "girl-centered" stories by a five to two ration
- 3 times as many adult male characters
- 6 times as many biographies about men
- 4 times as many male fairy tales
Although things have changed today in literature and women and girls are seen more as the main character than in the past but "gender stereotypes still prevail: girls are still depicted as more interested in domestic life than boys are". Even though female characters roles in stories have changed, there has been no significant change in the role of males becoming more domestic, nurturing or caring.
After reading this article I seem to have a better eye when reading and looking over literature. I am interested in the main characters and the roles of males and females and I believe this is another issue that should be represented fairly in the classroom. Girls should have the chance to relate with the main character and not just because they are doing domestic or stereotypical "girly" things. While reading Project Mulberry it was brought to my attention that while working on the project that the roles are split in a peculiar way. Julia is in charge of the sewing and entering her work in the Domestic Arts/Needlework category while Patrick was in charge of the book work and research end of the Ecotherm Farming or before it was changed Animal Husbandry project. Julia also took on the nurturing role and cared for the worms while Patrick had nothing to do with because of his phobia. Do you believe this as anything to do with the stereotypical roles that have been attributed to males and females over time?
1 comment:
I think you bring up a lot of interesting points about the role of gender in literature. I think you are right in challenging the idea that only female characters need to change in the face of multicultural literature. There are a greater number of strong female characters than ever before, but like you mentioned, where are the changes in the depiction of male characters? Why is it still insulting and so rare to see male characters carrying out domestic tasks? Even if a male character takes part in a more traditionally feminine role, they are almost never depicted as enjoying it or even proud to be taking on such roles. The responsibility of change should not solely fall on the female character. The depiction of male characters needs to change in order to reflect the equality that multicultural literature strives to obtain. It is just as important to "update" and modernize the typical male character as it is to empower and strengthen the female character. All too often male characters who don't fall into the typical macho-male role are seen as weak or lacking. This needs to change.
As I read your post, I too kept thinking about the gender roles presented in Project Mulberry. Although this piece of literature does positively portray one young girl's experience growing up Asian-American, I think it does harm in the way it portrays typical gender roles. Both Julia and Patrick follow the stereotypical boy/girl roles without question. Julia embroiders and Patrick takes charge of the project. With as progressive as other aspects of this novel are, I was surprised and disappointed to find such typical gender portrayals. If Julia did not want to do the silkworm project, why couldn't she tell Patrick? Some may argue that is was an issue of friendship, but I see it more as the weaker female didn't want to upset the leading male. Maybe this is a pessimistic view of the issue, but this is my gut-reaction and I think that says something about the portrayal of the characters throughout the rest of the book.
Overall, I think discussing gender roles in any piece of literature is an important part of becoming a more critical reader. Even if the piece of literature focuses on other issues such as race or culture, gender roles will always play a part in the overall message of the text.
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