I decided to watch Miss Representation for an assignment in my Women and Gender Studies course and the content that was within this film I believe is enough to get almost any young woman to stand up for what she believes in and take charge. Growing up, I have always had the woman empowerment that some may never be exposed to in their childhood and I am so grateful. Because of the way I was raised, as I watched some parts of this documentary I felt so much hurt. It hurts to see that women are discouraged from fulfilling their potential because of the fear that surrounds powerful positions. The stigma that is so powerful, girls and young women will change their dreams and goals because they feel that it exceeds the glass ceiling for women. That women who are more fit for the roles they are applying for are being denied because of the sex that they were born. I also feel hurt because I see the social pressure that surrounds the uphold of what women are supposed to be, and that hits me close to home.
I grew up in the kind of life where I was chubbier than my friends, and the boys I grew up with only associated weight with beauty, and it completely deteriorated my mental health and my self-esteem. Now I have a niece who is only five and I know she’s most likely already being exposed to the negativity of the social standard of beauty that is held for girls, and that breaks my heart in two.
For me the most important part of the documentary was when they completely exposed the patriarchy, and not only the patriarchy that many know is within politics but the media patriarchy: How all forms of major networks are completely dominated by males with none of the major networks exceeding three women of their entire board. How the news stations are male centered and the women are dressed in a sexualized manner and are basically just a sense of arm candy for the head anchor. Where Hollywood is a patriarchy in itself from the material that is written for the films, the roles given, down to who is behind the scenes directing. All of these positions revolve around males and their superiority because “they want a man to direct this film” because it’s a male centered film; as if the biological difference has anything to do with the quality that will be produced. It was stated in the documentary that men were not questioned for the directing roles for The Hannah Montana Movie, Sex in the City, or other female centered movies.
I am also glad that they touched on the harm of the patriarchy for males as well, even if it was only brief because it makes men really face the problem. If we only spoke about the harm it does for women, men will make all different remarks about it, but touching on the harm it does to them as well is a wake-up call. It makes them care about it more than they may because the patriarchy is no longer just “a woman’s problem” when we bring men into the conversation. I personally believe that’s how the change really will begin; when we get men to care about how destructive the patriarchy is to all.
Overall I was completely impressed with this documentary especially with the focus on powerful women who have been face-to-face with all of these struggles. They persevered and are now so very successful and are inspirations for young girls across the country to believe that they can do what they set their minds to.