The documentary “the codes of gender” applies Erving Goffman’s analysis of advertising through striking visual details, the documentary explores some of Goffman’s central idea that gender ideals emerge from ritualized cultural performance, as a result, it uncovers a remarkable pattern of not only feminine but also masculine displays and poses (The Codes of Gender, n.d.). I was surprised by Jhally’s analysis of the human body particularly in modern-day print advertising, as he uncovered a somewhat astonishing pattern of both destructive and regressive gender codes. As a result, I felt great concern over the negative implications of how femininity, as well as masculinity, are displayed, thus, within the Western media, this is because gender expressions in the media are skillfully manipulated in order to reflect the identity of individuals not as they actually are, but rather how they should be in accordance to the societal norms.
How do genders displays affect communication and perception process?
According to the film, gender display is termed as the ability of individuals to perform roles that are generally expected by one’s social convention. The film points out that the ability to recognize another individual as either a male or female is very fundamental to one’s ability to interact or communicate with them (The Codes of Gender, n.d.). To a great extent, there is nothing natural about that recognition, as it highly dependent upon specific signals being communicated, as such these signals allow people to categorize others as either males or males. If one can’t properly read or comprehend these signals or if the signals are sent in ways one can’t understand, this it makes it extremely hard to continue taking part in social interactions. Such is in the case of people that tend to represent themselves as androgynous; hence, do not fall into the typical feminine and masculine gender roles established by the society, as a result, they usually pose as a challenge to a cultural system that is grounded in these categories begin clear, in the event such clarity is not achieved things such as social interactions tend to fall apart.
Reference
The Codes of Gender, (n.d.). Documentary Heaven. Retrieved From: http://documentaryheaven.com/codes-of-gender/
