Thursday, March 4, 2010
Ch. 13: Film and Television
Please respond to question number 1 under "Questions for Discussion" on page 357 of the textbook-- it's an excellent question! Please use an example or two from a film or TV show you've watched-- if you haven't watched any LGBT visible film and TV, you may use an example from the textbook.
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I believe that visibility of the LGBT community is a good start to equality, but I do not think it is as direct as we would like it to be. If someone is disgusted by or hateful towards the LGBT community, more visibility of that community would not necessarily make them change their feelings. If anything, they would probably just ignore or refuse to watch the shows that feature LGBT characters exclusively. I think the equality is geared more towards gays and lesbians because of shows like The L Word and Queer as Folk. Television focuses generally on those two categories. Bisexuals (except in the cases of drunken college girls) are rarely seen on television, and if they are, they are not taken in a serious light. Transgender people are also rarely on television, and I think the reason behind this is that people still do not understand these two groups entirely. It is easier to categorize someone as gay or lesbian than to try and comprehend something even more complex. I suppose gays and lesbians on television are generally seen as well dressed and wealthy people, so I would say the focus is mainly white, upper middle class gays and lesbians, rather than people of color or of a lower income. I think the LGBT community is looking for equality in reference to things like job and housing discrimination, as well as marriage, AIDS funding, and getting rid of that fear and hate that so many people harbor towards the LGBT community. Equality is an attainable goal for everyone in my opinion. No one deserves to have their rights taken away because of something about themselves that they did not choose to be born with. The amount of time it takes for society to accept you and embrace that equality, however, is an entirely different matter.
ReplyDeleteI think the road to equality definatly starts with visibility, but it is definatly not direct. I agree with Brittany, if someone is set in their ways, they will just choose not to watch the show. But open minded people, like myself, would watch the show and maybe get a better view about the life of the LGBT community portrayed on these shows. I don't watch too much television. The one show I do watch is Grey's Anatomy. In season four and five, this show portrays Callie, a latino orthopedic surgeon struggles with coming out as a lesbian when she begins having feelings towards a white cardiac surgeon, Erica. There is a great scene where after her first sexual experience with a woman, Erica realizes that she is lesbian and compares Callie to glasses. (I'll show you the scene during my DD). Callie father also "cuts her off" because she is lesbian. This show portrays both Callie and Erica to be moderately rich surgeons. I think that through shows such as this featuring LGBT issues is reaching for equality for all. But I think transgendered people are the least featured on television and movies. The only MtF I can think of was Isis on America's Next Top Model. So I think that the lack of exposure in the media makes it harder for people to understand. I think if there was more exporsure of LGBT issues of popular tv and movies, people may understand a little better, especially issues of intersectionality.
ReplyDeleteI think there is definitely a relationship between visibility and movement towards equality. It is much harder to accept a subject that you have absolutely no real knowledge over than it is to come to terms with one you understand. I agree with both Brittany and Sam that if someone’s mind were very much made up against the LGBT community then TV exposure probably wouldn’t do anything- in fact they’d probably change the channel. The majority of people, though, have not dug in their heels yet against LGBT groups; they are just following the masses. I don’t think that the media does a good job of exposing and explaining members of LGBT at all, although I think some of this comes from TV marketing in itself- middle-class, well dressed people are usually on shows because everyone wants a break from the reality of how small their own bank account may be and everyone is kinder to pretty people. However, race exposure and a little more reality in fantasy worlds wouldn’t be that much of a stretch and could be fairly easily incorporated if show writers would take the effort. I remember watching the OC a few years ago when one of the main, wealthy, white female characters was experimenting with her sexuality (it was later called a phase), and I think these kind of bisexual storylines really hurt the LGBT community subconsciously by demeaning what sexual orientation is. If you have only seen TV shows or movies about a subject, then a romanticized idea of the topic is probably what you walked away with. That is one of the reasons why I personally feel that legalization of gay marriage is so important: not because it is the most important issue or wanted by all, but it is an “infiltration” so to speak of society that shows those who don’t really know anything about the LGBT community that those with a different sexual orientation are just as important as they are. I think it is very easy for people to write off another person’s suffering because they aren’t personally in turmoil. Underground shows do a much better job of exposing the LGBT community for what it is, but these ideals need to be incorporated into mainstream media for mass public consumption and distribution.
ReplyDeleteI definitely believe that pop culture strongly influences and affects how we view homosexuality, as well as other minority groups. Visibility is very important to the LGBT community, and I think having gay, lesbian, bi, transgender, etc. characters is essential to gaining acceptance.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I do believe visibility can have its negative effects on the LGBT community. If all your life you've been seeing gay men in TV or movies as being flamboyant, rich, white, and hilarious, that is going to be your take on them. Although I don't think there is anything wrong with these traits, I really don't think the LGBT community can stand too much of a certain stereotype. That "type" of gay becomes a representative of the gay community, which can become really problematic for the ones that don't fit into it. However, having the overly-gay stereotype in TV and movies is definitely a start, and we can only improve from there.
For me personally, I believe equality means not just having the same rights as straights, but gaining acceptance. Not being considered a big joke, the token gay friend, or someone who's "going through a stage." And like I mentioned earlier, I believe one of the best ways to gain equality and acceptance is through pop culture.
I don’t know if the path to visibility is perfectly clear-cut through television and film. The particular kind of visibility that the GLBT community receives– being portrayed mostly as either people born with freakishly accurate senses of coordination in fashion or interior design, sex workers with drug addictions, rape victims, simpering limp-wristed guys, hardcore girls who spit a lot, depressed or suicidal people, etc. isn’t really a kind of visibility that I think I personally would want, and it’s not really the kind of visibility that would further acceptance of GLBT people. I know I personally am highly annoyed by the fact that so many gay guys on television are these catty, fashion-forward, hip-swinging lisping divas who gossip while doing hair or what have you. That’s what’s visible on television. People like the guy on The Real Housewives of whatevercountyisthecurrentfamousone (it’s either Orange County or Atlanta, I can never remember and I don’t really watch television, especially not that kind of show) who coordinates parties, loud flamboyant guys like Jack from Will and Grace (no one ever really pays attention to Will. It’s all about Jack and Karen, man.)– that is what people think of when they think of gay guys.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone even remember Kuramo from The Real World? He was gay, but he was totally different from the stereotypical gay guy– and because of that he was totally invisible. He didn’t lisp, he didn’t call everybody “girlfriend” or “honey”, he didn’t care a whit about interior design (so far as we could tell), and he sure didn’t go hitting around on guys or talking about how fine anybody was. Naturally everyone paid attention to Danny instead, who had sex in the shower with whoever it was he had brought home. Kuramo was pretty much ignored. So even if television is the way to gain visibility for GLBT individuals it’s definitely not gaining everybody visibility– just the feminine white guys who wear satin shirts and like to play in everyone’s hair.
I don’t know how I define equality except as something I don’t honestly strive for. Equality seems to most people to mean everybody fading into the crowd, not being singled out for who they are or what they do– and to me that’s just as bad as being constantly called out for being who you are. Being one of the crowd is just as bad, if not worse, than sticking out like a sore thumb. Sore thumbs can be healed, after all (if you want to be all metaphorical about it).
I have to say this one more time: I really, really, really hate the way gay men tend to be represented on television. Lesbians, not so much,-- although I find myself wondering if any lesbians aren’t all butch with short hair and lots of piercings and weird dress habits… I’m sure there are, but since I don’t personally know any lesbians except a few of my mother’s friends (all of whom are butch), I can’t really say.
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ReplyDeleteLike the others, I think visibility or TV exposure would be a great start or movement towards equality because people then may better understand therefore accept the people of LGBT if not completely, more than they have before. The accepters would most likely watch the TV show. Personally, I would watch to learn more about them and basically because I find some people of the LGBT community, especially the flamboyant ones, to be very hilarious.
ReplyDeleteVisibility can aslo have a negative effect on equality because people of the LGBT could possibly take it too far, leading people to dislike it even more. As a result these non-accepting people would just ignore the tv show or possibly take it even further by trying to get it removed from television.
Then again, I think just by making gays more visible by sticking them in a tv show won't make anyone accept them more or less. But by having them explaining their way of life and things like that maybe in a documentary could possibly change a person's veiw of the LGBT community.
There isn’t any gay TV on TV. There is, but do the gay people like it. On TV today there is mostly reality TV which is scripted. So even when they put gay people on TV it’s a script. Because in America we don’t see gay as normal so they won’t put it on TV to expose it to our children. No matter how any gay person feels about the matter, they can’t change the fact that children are developed from learned behavior and they don’t want to teach homosexuality on TV. On Will & Grace when you saw Will you saw Grace. It’s not right but everyone isn’t accepting of gay people. Most people tolerate gay people when they have to but don’t understand or approve of it. And that’s what the straight people I have asked since I started the class have said. Even with a transgender person in sherk 2, they made it funny to children and only the adults got the real meaning. Also in the color purple which according to my knowledge every black women loves this movie and if they would have produced the version with the lesbian romance would that feeling be the same. I think not. In the black community when it comes to LGBT either you are part of it or you’re not. This is not something that blacks agree on. This information that I’m stating is only based on people I know so I can’t really speak for all black people. Typically when they have a gay person in a movie or show they are there for humor. Think of sex in the city, I’m not good with the characters names but the gay man that was their entire friend ended up turn straight and marring one of the lead for girls and getting her pregnant and starting a traditional family. All and all traditional values are important to America so gay people on TV can’t be showed the way they would want to. Sorry one day it may change.
ReplyDeleteI think the media definitely could play a key rold in shaping society's views of the LGBT community; for better or for worse. I agree with what most people have posted so far in that shows like Will and Grace and Queer Eye for the Straight guy, especially Carson Kressley, portray only a small portion of the many personalities of gay and lesbian individuals. Just like gay and lesbians, there are PLENTY of flamboyant straight people; just look at Dennis Rodman and Madonna! People who are known and somewhat praised for their unique and crazy statements and actions! Double standards we have for the LGBT community are definitely influenced by the narrow array of characters network television depicts, and I think honestly if there were sitcoms about average succesful gay families living with the humors of day to day life just like beloved shows such as Seinfeld and Everybody Loves Raymond, society would grow accustomed to the idea of gays and lesbians assimilating into society and would in time learn to see that it is no big deal and no harm to anyone to be different from the "norm".
ReplyDeleteThe relationship of visibility and acceptance holds a close correlation; society must have an essence of acceptance for producers and such to even risk the money to create a show about the LGBT community. At the same time, visibility of the LGBT community must be present to have the idea of acceptance, and also for the creators of the show to know that they will have an audience to direct their ideas to. However, the lack of diversity in shows about the LGBT community can also empower certain stereotypes and perfect ideals in people’s head. Much of the portrayal of homosexuals that can be seen in popular mass media television shows seem to show no significant signs of homophobia, the idea can almost be seen that it has simply gone away. That the area they live in is simply a utopia for the LGBT community. Shows such as Will and Grace also seem to point into the direction of the ability of homosexuals to fit into heterosexual society. Throughout the show the fact of Will’s sexuality seems to be primarily secondary, while the only person whose sexuality seems to be always on the spot light is Jack who fits into the gay stereotype and is also used primarily for comedic relief. This could be seen in relation to society’s view that “straight acting” homosexuals are above those who are “flaming”, and that those who would be considered “flaming” should be laughed at. The show also primarily tells the story of the successful white homosexual, throughout the show there is very little portrayal of the downcasted or of minorities. This could also be used to strengthen the stereotypes of society that much of those who identify themselves as part of the subgroup composing of homosexuals are in fact, doing quite well for themselves.
ReplyDeleteVisibility of the LGBT community may be a good start to equality but does what television shows correctly portray the variety of the LGBT community accurately? I personally feel as though a lot is missing in the television industry when it comes to this, at least not on mainstream television. I think that there are some shows that are attempting to give a voice to those of the queer community that are kind of shoved to the side because of their “controversial” lifestyle. However most of these shows or movies are shown on channels like “Logo” which could easily be considered the queer channel. But nonetheless the message is still being heard. I have actually found that I’ve learned a lot more about the Drag Queen community thanks to shows like Rupaul’s Drag Race. Even though it seems like its all light and fluffy on the outside, if you really watch the show, you start to understand drag queens in a different light. I feel like what I’ve learned from this show has also helped me understand the rest of the transgender community. Although it is a “reality” TV show, a lot of controversial topics have occurred such as living with HIV and what it feels like to be a drag queen. I feel like there are a lot of people who just don’t understand the transgender community, and that a lot of their questions may inadvertently be answered if they just watch the show. Something I think that the television industry has never really attempted to portray whether its Logo or Spike TV is the relationship between straight man and a gay man. My best friend is a heterosexual male and I know that the relationship that we have has never been accurately portrayed in any kind of cinema. Having seen my fair share of gay films, I feel like any time this is introduced, it’s always this homosexual fantasy of attaining what they can’t have: a straight man. And I feel like we could be missing a huge opportunity because if some main stream television show found a way to accurately portray this relationship, it could help improve the relationship between homosexual and heterosexual men, which I feel is one of the tensest among the pack.
ReplyDeleteI definitely think that visibility is essential in the queer quest for equality. I do agree with some posts above though; most homophobic people will avoid seeing homosexuals in any situation, even just on television. Intolerant people are hard to convince, and I doubt they will be swayed by a gay character on television.
ReplyDeleteGays and lesbians are fairly well represented on television. With shows like Will and Grace, Queer Eye, and the L Word, you see a few different personalities within the queer community. You also see a fair amount of drag queens (ANTM, etc.), but you rarely encounter bisexual or trans individuals. I think these groups deserve more and better representation in the mainstream media.
I agree with Taylor that there should be more average gay couples and families on television. I think if people could see that queers don't fit into the stereotypical "box" that society has created they would be more willing to expand their tolerance and even acceptance of the LGBT community.
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ReplyDeleteI believe in order to have equality, everyone must be visible for who they are, so I believe that visibility to equality is very direct. Some shows are a little bit of a better example to demonstrate the LGBTQ community. A good example to me is Will and Grace because the show demonstrates the lives of not only gay people, but also straight people. In the show, Will is an upper-class, straight acting (more or less) lawyer and Grace is a straight, middle-class interior designer. The two are best friends and the show is about their lives. Other characters include the flamboyant gay flamer Jack, and his alcoholic infused blood friend Karen. The show is a comedy and is very light in my opinion on content that many people can handle, where not only does the show discuss some issues and relationship status, but it also shows how gay people are not as stereotypical as many people think they are and that gay people are human beings, and be treated as such. I would say that T.V. and film focuses more on the White LGBTQ community. Of all of the T.V. and films that I have seen, it seems there is a lack of LGTBQ people of color. We define equality as every human being has the same rights as another human being. We assume that equal is a laudable goal because it is worth fighting for. It is a goal that many have died over, and it that doesn’t make it a laudable goal, then many have died in vain.
ReplyDeleteI don't think that visibility in film means equality. I agree with most people above who said its a great start. I'm not really familiar with most of the films or tv shows mentioned in the book except "The Color Purple", that is probable the only one I can speak on because I read the book and watched the movie. I don't understand why they said many people were upset at what the movie portrayed because its things that did happen or still happen. Every time they show a movie or something about homosexuals it cant always be positive because the community is not one big happy perfect community and neither is the Heterosexual community not all of our movies portray big happy families. I've seen movies like "A Girl Like Me: The Gwen Araujo Story" which showed on Lifetime depicted the life of a middle class transgender. And there's "The Color Purple which depicts two lower class women who partake in lesbian acts. And then there's the ABC television show that depicts a, upper middle class, gay male couple who hopes to adopt. And on "Greys Anatomy", Dr. Torres is a bisexual doctor, so I do feel like all of the LGBT community is represented on television in some way. I'm sure there are may other programs or movies that I have not seen that depict different class levels and representations of the LGBT community but the media is getting there. I think the discussion question goes back to the topic of oppression in a sense and yes gays are oppressed slightly in the media but so are blacks and Catholics and many other types of people.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the bulk of the class that there is some sort of connection between equality and visibility; however, they are not directly correlated. I too agree with most posts that it is solely up to viewers whether or not they are willing to see homosexuals on television. Most homophobes are set in their ways and don’t care of the circumstances of the LGBT community. I agree with Sam, that open-minded people could very well get a better understanding of the adversity that members of the LGBT community go through. I actually like watching shows that feature homosexuals, especially the various fashion shows with the overly flamboyant stylists and assistants, and those drag queen series that seem to frequent cable today; nonetheless, I agree with Kell that visibility can also put homosexuals in a very negative light.
ReplyDeleteI agree with most that usually when gay people are presented on television it is for humor and comical entertainment. I love Shrek 2, but for some reason I don’t look at a Disney animated cartoon and think: “It is really amazing how those LGBT members finagled their issues in this movie,” nor did I connect Fiona’s “coming out” with a homosexuals’ “coming out.” To me it was just a cartoon to be seen, not analyzed, flipped over, watched backwards, and analyzed again. John I love, love, love The Color Purple. (You know Oprah’s my god mama?!) I don’t know how much differently I would have viewed the movie if it were produced with a lesbian romance. Thinking back and trying to truly analyze the movie, did not Suge and Celia have some sort of lesbian-like relationship? I feel like this is one of those examples where producers subliminally incorporated homosexuality on screen.
Equality can be defined as: “the state or quality of being equal; correspondence in quantity, degree, value, rank, or ability.” I found this to mean everyone, no one specific group, ethnicity, sexual preference, etc. Heterosexuals, gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgendered, white, black, purple, poor, middle-class, or filthy rich, it shouldn’t matter. Equality for one should be equality for all.