Essay 2

Essay 2

Id: 620103469

Course: Gender Sex and Society

Course code: GEND3010

Lecturer : Carla Moore

Essay 2

Meghan Trainor in her 2015 song and music video “Dear future husband” explored

the realms of gender socialization and patriarchy which are two topics discussed in this

course. Gender socialization is the means by which men and women are told what exactly

what is expected of them and also what they can do and what they cannot do. Patriarchy on

the other hand is political belief that men are superior to women and that they must dominate

(Hook 2010). Through gender socialization and patriarchal ideologies both women and men

are taught their place in the society, i.e women belong inside the home, serving men and men

dominate all sphere of society including the home. This was demonstrated through out the

music video as the whole video was done inside the home in various room but mostly in the

kitchen and bedroom. This symbolized that this was the woman’s domain and as a potential

wife it would be her main area of focus. I think this was an excellent way of portraying what

an ideal wife is suppose to be doing according to society i.e , cooking, cleaning and caring for

the children It also reiterated that based on patriarchal ideologies this was suppose to be the

ideal place for a woman ( Lindsey 2016).

She also highlighted the fact that though men and women may have the same paid

job, women are still expected to do more use work which is a result of gender socialization

stemming from patriarchal beliefs. In the lyric of the song while whisking what it looked like

cake batter, she said you have a nine to five but so do I, so don’t expect me to be home

cooking apple pie”. This demonstrated the above mentioned ideology which is still an issue

today as women and men though they are equally qualified are still not paid the same. In the

early onset , this was a way of keeping women out of the work force and into the home

(Walby 1989).
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Additionally in her video there was two scenes of young children on a “ date”, the

young girl was pouring the young man’s in the first scene and in the next he was giving her a

flower. This could be used to demonstrate that gender roles and expectation are instilled in

individuals a tender age. Girls are taught that their proper place was serving the man ( Blank

2013). The little girl serving the tea demonstrated that idea as we are often taught in the

Caribbean that you share the man’s food first before your own. On the flip side the little boy

giving the little girl the flower, in my opinion was more than a jester of affection but a

reminder that just as the flower women were delicate and weak which again is how women

are suppose to be, obedient, pretty, weak and nurturing . Bell (2010) explained that as a child

living in a patriarchal home, she was taught to just be pretty, weaker than her brother by not

showing any forms of rage- as this a sign of strength that only boys are allowed to show and

nurture those around her. This goes to show that such beliefs are still widely enforced even in

a subtle and so what unconscious way.

Another music video that portrayed the two topics of this paper is Farmer Nappy “

Hookin Me 2019). In starts of with the singer in the studio with two other men when he got

from his lover that she has prepared a meal and that they need to talk. This again showed the

gender difference in socialization as men are taught that it was acceptable for them to be

everywhere but for women they were restricted to the home. In Chevannes 1999 Grace

Kenndy Lecture series supported this notion as he said: “A girl's life, for as long as she

remains dependent, is surrounded by a protective ring, which starts at home, encompasses the

school and ends at home. Her whereabouts are known-home, school or on an errand. Even the

time it takes to get home from school is sometimes known and monitored by parents, or must

be accounted for. By contrast, as soon as a boy approaches pre-pubescent years and the peer

group begins to exercise its magnetic pull, he is allowed to socialize outside the home, that is

"out a' street", or "outa' road" - out of the direct control and supervision of parents”
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( Chevannes 1999). The music video the lady( his lover) wanted to end the relationship but

she did it without aggression and very subtle all the while serving the him. This emphasized

the point that though women may feel strong negative emotions such as rage it was deemed

in appropriate to act on such emotions as women are suppose to be seen as weak. There was a

however a contrast to this as she forcefully threw his belonging out of the house, which again

goes against patriarchal believes as men are suppose to be dominate and strong and a such

should not be undermined in the way he was in the video. The idea of finding the perfect

women – beautiful, able to care for the children was evident as the artiste continued to

emphasized on her ideal traits, cooking, caring for the children and home as well as being

responsible for financial upkeep as reasons why he will not allow her to end the relationship.

This showed that again women are just for man’s gratification whether sexually or otherwise

(These are all attributes that girls are strictly groomed to be able to do.
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References

Blank, S. (2013). An historical and contemporary overview of gendered Caribbean

relations. Journal of Arts and Humanities, 2(4), 1-10.

Rawat, P. S. (2014). Patriarchal beliefs, women's empowerment, and general well-

being. Vikalpa, 39(2), 43-56.

Hooks, B. (2010). Understanding patriarchy. Louisville Anarchist

Federation Federation.
Lindsey, L. L. (2013). Gender roles. Pearson.

Chicago
Walby, S. (1990). Theorizing patriarchy (Vol. 138). Oxford: Basil Blackwell.