Views on the video: Gender Roles - Male and Female

We think the video is a parody, as it shows exaggeration of the behaviour of the sexes, which translates to the stereotype the video, is trying to put across. In the video, men were portrayed to be purposeful, work-oriented and have a strong sense of direction; while women are portrayed to be indecisive, family-oriented and chatty.

However, things are not like that in today’s society. There are an increasing number of women who would choose to go out to work, deserting the traditional role of a housewife, caring for the children and working around the house. Women in these days would much prefer to be recognized in terms of their aptitude, and try to shrug off the stereotype that has been placed on them for the longest of time. Furthermore, there is also increasing incidence of men doing housework; the image of only the women staying home while men go out to work has been blurred.

One interesting observation that one of our group members made was the shapes of the characters used. A square, which is angular and has straight edges, was used to portray a male character. A circle which is rounded and has smooth edges was used to portray a female character. Both descriptions have implications of the stereotypical behaviours of men and women; that men are more decisive (e.g. the shopping incident), while women, who are deemed as more ‘roundabout’, simply just can’t make up their minds.

At the same time, the video portrays positive characteristics of men and women. The business trip example had the indication that women are very family-oriented, as they could not leave their homes to go on a business trip. Another example, which is the example of going on a date, shows that men have a good sense of time and are punctual.

On the whole, a large part of the video is exaggerated but still it portrays some of the mindsets that people today still have. The video is probably more suitable for entertainment purposes than for educational purposes.
Done by: Emily, Mansi, Ying Hin, Yihui and Evelyn 09So3K