1. Mainstream media is hypersexualized and in all of the sexiness, sex education on marriage, pregnancy, and sexual orientation is rarely mentioned. We see lots of sex but we don't talk about it in an educational manner.
- What can we do to combat this?
- In this same discourse, what is sexual liberation?
- Can you think of anything that makes the male Asian American character less of an object to be desired and more of a subject to be addressed?
- Why is the Asian "servant/house boy" such a popular fantasy? How does this factor in with the notion of Asians as foreign? How might we combat this?
- What are your reactions to the magazine picture?
5. Reflect on Morohoshi's definition of empowerment - to be in a place of power, where you have access to produce your own work and tell your own story.
- Think also about the responsibility that comes with that power: "We had to get the word out ourselves and conduct our own preview screenings and curatorial process. If we didn't have the time, [the] energy, or the interest, that queer girls shorts program would have never happened" (85). What are the pros and cons of being placed in this kind of position?
Mainstream media is definitely often hypersexualized. And I agree--sex education on marriage, pregnancy, and sexual orientation is rarely mentioned. I think combating this really depends on who you mean by "We" in the statement "We see lots of sex but we don't talk about it in an educational manner." On the contrary, I think the topic IS discussed in academia, in setting or environments such as our classroom. In this sense, our class is really not that unique--there are many classes at the Claremont Colleges where this topic could easily come up. But in everyday life, on a general note, I'm not sure that this problem could really be fixed. It is sort of the dominant ideology that people don't normally discuss these "things". And if we focus on Asian Americans, it is even harder. In Asian cultures, it is even more so this way. One just does not talk about sex education or pregnancy in public. They are meant to be at home topics that should stay within the family. Though the Asian American culture has since adapted to being more... open (I guess this is a good word?), the culture is still far from being able to put these issues out. Though dominant ideology can be swayed through forms of entertainment, we still know that the bottom line is, entertainment is entertainment and is meant to entertain. If it sells, then it goes. The Juno movie I guess could be an example of a film that kind of attempts to start breaking down the barriers to discourse on these issues. I know that when the movie first came out, it really did get teens to think about teen pregnancy, and it really did open up the doors to a discussion about such issues in everyday life--just from people talking about and giving their opinions about the movie. The media is definitely one efficient method of starting the discourse.
ReplyDeleteThe second question looks at the submissive portrayal of Asian men. As we talked about last week, where stereotypes come from, I still agree with the fact that although media plays highly on these stereotypes and probably encourage them, the images themselves were not created by filmmakers. Rather, the images can come from current events, politics, and just what is going on in society in general. We had WWII and the Vietnam War for example, which could easily place Asian men as less "macho" than white American men. Or for example, when you look at history, there are many theories and research that show a reversal of gender roles when Asians immigrated to the US. Many men took sewing or cooking jobs for example, and women ended up working on farms.
The Gay or Asian picture is such a popular picture in ASAM classes--I think I've seen in 4 different classes already. And it really always has a large impact on Asian American males. First of all, I don't think it's really Asian = white-gay. It's implying that society believes Asian MALE = white-gay. I definitely do not think this stereotype is evident in females. Though there is some obvious discrimination going on here, I cannot help but to think that this image and this discrimination is soooo very hugely due to different cultures, and just differing fashion senses! I'm not sure that everyone will agree with this, but I personally almost think that it is just a coincidence, that some white gay men will dress with this stereotype. This style of fashion is popular in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China just as Ugg boots and skinny jeans are popular in the US. If you saw this guy walking around in Hong Kong dressed like this, he would be totally normal. Whereas, he stands out in the US--even in California. When I see stereotypes like the one from details magazine, I just go straight to thinking about how ignorant society can be about foreign cultures...
The pros of Morohoshi's definition of empowerment are almost self explanatory. The ability to tell one's own story and to develop a voice. The cons are maybe less evident. Cons can arise when one tries to tell a story, send a message, and the wrong message is taken away.
Empowerment is extremely important, if you are an "othered" individual: a woman, Asian American, gay/lesbian, etc. Morohoshi talks about validation, as in empowerment can emerge from finally being validated, or your work finally being validated or recognized as being good and worthy.
ReplyDeleteI think it is important to note the difference between feeling empowered and what Morohoshi talks about as "being in a place of power" (83). Because although feeling empowered and inspired is extremely important, it doesn't mean that the film or teh festival is going to be made. You have take the needed steps to find yourself in positions of power.
In terms of the Details article, I have never seen this article. I googled the article and read that there was a big (negative) backlash about it. I know that Shara will have more info about the article, but this article was interesting (it is basically GLAAD's response to the Details article), I liked their notion that the article rejected that people could not be both Asian or gay, thay had to be one or the other, they had to choose. It also discusses what GLAAD did to organize against the ad.
http://www.glaad.org/publications/op-ed_detail.php?id=3666
The hyper sexualized images in mainstream media are that way, in part, because the rawness of those images makes them exciting and dangerous. If steps were taken to promote safe sex while still showing these images it would, most likely, make them less desirable. But at the same time I’m sure we have all seen Trojan condom adds and these maintain the hyper sexuality while promoting safe sex.
ReplyDeleteOn the thought of making an Asian American male in gay porn less of an object to be desired I think that this just takes time and a slow progression of a change of focus. It is hard to get rid of stereotypes and as long as people, like Richard Fung, continue to point them our and work against them the stereotype will slowly diminish.
In the picture from the satirical magazine I think that they were just trying to very obviously point out a prominent stereotype that plagues Asian American men. I think that this image connects with our discussion of comedy last class. About whether it is ok to use stereotypes for humor. While this image may be trying to take a more political view it is still reaffirming a stereotype that many people cannot see past.
I tried very hard to think of the gay Asian in "Milk." If I am not mistaken, he is portrayed as the nerdy gay man who does not do much in the movie. I think gay Asian men are portrayed as the submissive Asian women who do not have much to say. I think gay Asian men are almost in the same category as Asian women who lack power and resources in modern society. However, just to be fair, since the film is based on a true story and real people, maybe the gay Asian community was not as active and outspoken as the gay White community at the time. As such, the portrayal of gay Asian men in "Milk" might not be emphasized as much (remember this is a movie written by a gay White man for and about gay White community.)
ReplyDeleteIn terms of question 5, Morohoshi's definition of empowerment seems to be more of an empowerment to an individual's level. I am not sure because it is an interview and she does not have much time to clarify or elaborate but what she says sounds like only matters to her. It seems to me that as long as she has made a video and gotten it out there, she feels empowered. Okay then. But, what about the community? Do the lesbians in the community feel empowered by her films? I believe empowerment is not about one's power. Empowerment is related to activism and it has to be on a societal level in which it makes some sort of change.
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ReplyDeleteI see educational elements more and more in mainstream media. For example, condoms have become the go-to visual for sex (e.g. in music videos) when they can’t show the actual act. There are also more and more media sources that casually include accurate educational information (e.g. TV shows). If there is anything educational included in these media sources, I have rarely encountered anything that’s particularly misleading. The only misleading information has been suggestions, implications, and assumptions, but I think that is more the issue of culture and ‘acceptable’ expectations.
ReplyDeleteSexual liberation is a more difficult topic, because it means something (at least slightly) different in many contexts, and between different people. Similarly, though, I think TV at least has started to show more possibilities and alternative forms of sexual liberation, and sometimes even (through characters) debates the ideas around sexual liberation.
The Asian “servant/house boy” is such a popular fantasy because it plays off of stereotypes, making the character easy for people to buy into immediately. If you were to have a “servant/house boy” fantasy, as soon as the character is Asian, stereotypes immediately make them more submissive and even have an assumption against agency. Asians as ‘foreign’ makes the fantasy-stereotype combination ‘okay’. Somehow in the mainstream it’s more okay to objectify people as long as ‘they’re not one of us’ because identification with other people (on the basis of “we’re both people”) seems to rapidly disappear as soon as they become ‘other’. That classification, the lack of identification, immediately dehumanizes them (albeit to different extents in different situations). Asians speaking up and having a visible voice, especially in media is probably the best way to combat this. With the technology, it’s possible for Asian Americans to produce more media than before, and give more of a voice to Asians and Asian Americans in the United States. With more of a visible voice, gradually, it becomes more difficult for mainstream society to overlook the stereotypes.
As for the magazine picture, honestly, I just don’t understand it.
For Morohoshi's definition of empowerment, being in that position is difficult, but it can be powerful. Producing and distributing your own media means you have control over it, but it's all the more difficult to distribute it widely, it can be extremely difficult to even find the resources for it, and it may not be well-received because it doesn't conform to mainstream expectations. Once the media is produced, though, it is very powerful to have that for the community it targets and addresses, and the voice it provides can be very important, influential, and empowering.
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