Women as Superheroes: Empowering or Stereotypical?
Summary
Popular media construct a culture wherein sexual objectification is existing and attaches a female’s worth to her appearance. The sexual portrayal of women represents their value, which should not be equivalent for a balanced representation of gender This analysis demonstrates through a content analysis the interaction between sexual objectification and disability regarding superheorines in TV series. In order to analyze this interaction, concepts such as the male gaze as defined by Laura Mulvey, bodynormativity as described by Denise Malmberg, and the sexual objectified environment as explained by Dawn Szymanski et al. are cited. Consequently, females that are sexually objectified and females that are asexually objectified are positioned in a power structure wherein the men possess dominance. The TV series Birds of Prey constructs a contrast between being sexually objectified by measuring up to the bodynormativity and being asexually objectified due to disability. This is resulted from their appearances, behavior and contact with others. The male gaze, bodynormativity and sexual objectified environment are confirmed within the series, which confirms the theories of Mulvey, Malmberg and Szymanski et al. It is however arguable to what extend the male gaze as described by Mulvey is present while there are visual characteristics, but the females are to acknowledging being men’s possession. The content analysis consists of analyzing the traditional gender roles and power hierarchy as presented by Szymanski et al, the degree of attention that is drawn to females body parts, the male gaze of Mulvey, the bodynormativity of Malmberg and Brown and the sexual objectification, it is made clear that there these females do participate in a sexual objectified environment. In conclusion, the outcomes of the analysis confirm the existing theories about sexual objectification and disability. Within the TV series, the contrast between the two protagonists are clear, but there is also a form of interaction present whereby the concepts of being sexualized and asexualized are being challenged.