How Mass Media Created the Transgender Movement Part 4: The Fickle Shifts of Gender Ideals
Mass Media in the 20th Century kept shifting what was "ideal" and further destabilized views of men a
This series has been looking at how the rise of mass media dramatically changed the way people learn about what it means to be a man or a woman and thus led to the rise of transgenderism. The first post looked at the world before mass media, when what it meant to be a man or a woman was learned firsthand from family and neighbors. The second post looked at how the shakeup of the Industrial Revolution and the rise of advertising and prosperity in the Victorian Era changed where people looked for examples of women and men. The most recent post looked at how Hollywood accelerated this process.
The 20th Century and the Ever-changing Depictions of Men and Women
In the 20th Century, the need for advertisers to constantly create markets for their new products and the entertainment industry’s search for novelty combined to create a constant churn of depictions of what the ideal man or woman would be.
The Roaring 20s
The Roaring 20s, which some have called “the First Sexual Revolution,” was a time in which popular culture depicted men and women as pursuing hedonism, including sexually. This marked a change in fashion, with an emphasis on the latest fashions. Curiously, while sexual libertinism was the push, the ideal woman was the “flapper,” and advertising and style emphasized a very tall, thin figure with the woman’s curves being downplayed or hidden. Men, likewise, were depicted as thin, well-dressed gentlemen. An emphasis was placed on fun and doing what one pleased.
The Great Depression put much of this on hold as people focused on just getting by.
This series has been looking at how the rise of mass media dramatically changed the way people learn about what it means to be a man or a woman and thus led to the rise of transgenderism. The first post looked at the world before mass media, when what it meant to be a man or a woman was learned firsthand from family and neighbors. The second post looked at how the shakeup of the Industrial Revolution and the rise of advertising and prosperity in the Victorian Era changed where people looked for examples of women and men. The most recent post looked at how Hollywood accelerated this process.
The 20th Century and the Ever-changing Depictions of Men and Women
In the 20th Century, the need for advertisers to constantly create markets for their new products and the entertainment industry’s search for novelty combined to create a constant churn of depictions of what the ideal man or woman would be.
The Roaring 20s
The Roaring 20s, which some have called “the First Sexual Revolution,” was a time in which popular culture depicted men and women as pursuing hedonism, including sexually. This marked a change in fashion, with an emphasis on the latest fashions. Curiously, while sexual libertinism was the push, the ideal woman was the “flapper,” and advertising and style emphasized a very tall, thin figure with the woman’s curves being downplayed or hidden. Men, likewise, were depicted as thin, well-dressed gentlemen. An emphasis was placed on fun and doing what one pleased.
The Great Depression put much of this on hold as people focused on just getting by.
World War II
The Second World War noted a strong shift in how men and women were depicted. For men, suddenly the soldier, sailor, or Marine was now the ideal. This marked a shift into a more physical and tough image of the man.
For women, the images shifted in two different directions. With many men being off at war, women needed to fill in for the work that men had done. As a result, on the home front, Rosie the Riveter was now heralded, depicting a woman who was larger boned and stronger - a vastly different frame than the flapper girl.
The other direction for women was the obvious sex symbol of the pin-up girl. Here a curvy figure was depicted. There is little question that war tends to loosen morals, and in an effort to keep up morale for the military men, the pin-up girl was put forward to inspire them to fight to defend and return to their “dream” girl.
The Postwar Era
As the world attempted to recover from WWII, the push in NA was to return to domestic life (hence the Baby Boom). The US and Canada also enjoyed incredible prosperity during this era since they provided materials to the other Allied powers but were spared the destruction of war. As a result, the image, particularly for women, seemed to try to take some of the sexiness of the pin-up and depict that as the ideal wife. This was both to normalize women returning to a domestic focus and away from Rosie the Riveter yet seizing the more curvy pin-up image the men had dreamed about while at war.
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With this move, the ideal woman was portrayed as not needing to be too strong because household gadgets are now doing the real work, so the woman is depicted as more girlish.
At the same time, the preferred image for men was still that of a well-dressed man in a suit, but the image often had stronger shoulders and was very much the boss, as would appeal to the former soldiers and sailors. At this point, the emphasis is now on being younger and family oriented.
The 1960s
The 1960s and 70s saw shifts in the way that men and women were depicted. As they went on, images of the Sexual Revolution took over. Likewise, Playboy magazine started in 1953 but really reached its zenith in the 60s and 70s. For many, women were now being treated as sex objects and, in this way, were being demeaned. At the same time, when the Vietnam War dropped in popularity, the muscular, military-type man dropped out of popularity. In its place we find thinner men who are depicted as not being a threat to anyone.
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At this time, a growing emphasis was placed on the ideal woman being very thin - most obviously illustrated by the supermodel Dame Lesley “Twiggy” Lawson.
Gone, it seems, are the strong shoulders of Rosie the Riveter as well as the pin-up girl’s curves.
The 1980s and 90s
The 1980s and 90s saw the presented ideals shift once more. Now female models were once again curvier. Likewise, the ideal man was depicted as a rugged, outdoorsy, or even military type. This was the heyday of the Marlboro Man and top actors included Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, and cowboy/martial artist Chuck Norris.
What is the Right Idea of a Man and Woman?
As can be seen in this brief history of the 20th Century, the images of the ideal man and woman were constantly changing. Not only were young people not encouraged to look to their parents and other family members for examples, but the constant changes also meant it was emphasized that your elders were out of date and, by implication, a poor image of what you should be. Another issue is, as time passed, the image became narrower and narrower. The reality is that almost no women could look like the Kardashians, no matter how hard they try, and very few men could have the physique of Arnold Schwarzenegger.
It is important to remember that advertising is aimed at making us unhappy with what we have or who we are in order to get us to buy what they are selling. From a theological standpoint, this is a direct attack on the contentment we are to have according to the 9th and 10th Commandments. In the same way, entertainment has shifted to showing us examples of what we wish we could be or else mocking people who look and/or act like us. To this extent, we need to remember that entertainment and advertising are totally enmeshed; many movies and TV shows include products because the manufacturer of the product paid them to include it.
The flip side of this, which we will explore next, is that those who do not fit the perceived mold can then begin to think they are not really a man or woman after all.
The final installment of this series will look at how mass media normalized the idea that everything is really just playing a role.