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Topic: Stereotyping
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So I was thinking recently about stereotypes. It seems like gay males in every book and TV show are written stereotypically. That includes most pro-gay media that are designed to make gay people feel normal. A good example is the show Glee.
Also, males in these are always gay and never bisexual.
Thoughts?
"The sad thing is that we hate based on who they love." -Dr. John Corvino
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Post: #661362  , Fri 29 Jun 12, 3:30AM |
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:: Volke
:: QA2 Settling in | |
honestly the stereo types really bother me. I dislike how people want to say i immediately have gained some power to be fashionable, i hated shoe shopping before i came out of the closet and i hate it now. I dislike how every gay person i meet is the same, meaning they all add this thing to their voice and i dont know (and im not like trying to hate or anything, i understand that its your thing i just dont like to personally have to make impressions on people based off of my peers). i dont dislike it, i just think its very stereo typical and i wish it didnt make people think that i am personally like that. i dont care enough to do anything with fashion or hair or whatever else and gays who are like that honestly do not bother me or anything (im trying to stress the fact that im not ashamed of them or annoyed by them because im not) i just wish that could be one gay guy and not all of them. i just hate how being gay suddenly means i have to like act a certain way now, i wish people would realize i am the same person i was before i told them i was gay.
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Post: #661373 , Fri 29 Jun 12, 4:04AM |
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I don't mind having some stereotypical gay guys in the media, but it does seem sometimes that they are all like that. Even worse is the way they're portrayed on The Simpsons. Don't get me wrong, I love the show and I understand that it's just a cartoon that's supposed to be funny, but almost every gay character on that show has been portrayed at some point as wanting a sex change, just furthering the idea that gay men are "wannabe women". That's probably my least favorite stereotype, that we all should just get a sex change...
OMNIA SUNT INGRATA |
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Post: #661378 , Fri 29 Jun 12, 4:09AM |
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I noticed this as well, and it does annoy me because I would have loved to have a character in a show that I could actually relate to, one that doesn't define their existence based on their sexuality.
although I can relate to some aspects of the stereotypical gay characters, It's mostly the emotional side of things and the rest of their personalities I have absolutely nothing in common with.
Stereotypes are just a generalisaton and are there to make it easy for people to understand a character. but I think its about time writers make some more in depth well rounded gay character instead of the stereotypes we see today.
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Post: #661420 , Fri 29 Jun 12, 12:29PM |
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I hate stereotypes as well, but I disagree with The Simpsons. The show is 100% a satire. It's making fun of the way gays are portrayed in the media.
Believe in the you that believes in you.
No, I don't know what that means.
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Post: #661437 , Fri 29 Jun 12, 3:50PM |
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yes, I've seen shows where the gays are very stereotypical, but I've seen shows where they aren't too. Degrassi, for example. one of the gay guys is a jock, the other is pretty stereotypcial, and then the lesbian girl is a girly fashionista girl. but some gay people ARE stereotypical, so you can't be totally against them.
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Post: #661490 , Fri 29 Jun 12, 8:31PM |
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^Exactly what sammy said. I've met a LOT of stereotypical gays... not 100% the stereotype, but, some part of them fits it. That's where stereotypes came from, after all.
Imagine if all the TV shows with gay characters had masculine, rough gay men and feminine, girly lesbians. Would you all like it then?
I wouldn't, because that'd be some weird alternate reality... people aren't like that.
If you do want that, then let's make all the pedophiles on the crime investigation dramas to be 20-year-old Playboy model girls, make all the "gangsta" characters be Asian or white, make all the parent-in-laws be extremely lovable and get along with their child's spouse perfectly... you see where I'm going with this.
If TV was all some weird unreal fantasy-type thing, would it be any entertaining? Would you still watch it?
TV shows become successful because they are exaggerated truths! If it was 100% daily life, it'd be boring. You throw some spice into it or some hypothetical situations that probably wouldn't happen, that gets viewers.
People think stereotypes are funny. When a pretty blond girl says something stupid, people think it's funny because she's a "dumb blonde". You can't deny that people love and buy into this shit.
So, yeah. That's why the gay characters are like that.
HOWEVER, I do agree with you guys as well. Perhaps if there was an equal mix of stereotype and non-stereotype gay characters, we'd like it more. That's the thing, WE would. Non-LGBT people wouldn't. They love to laugh at the flambouyant gay guy. TV networks want viewers. Non-LGBT is the majority. So yeah. That's that.
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Post: #661498 , Fri 29 Jun 12, 8:55PM |
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But all the characters on the show can't be fulfilling stereotypes or be there polar opposites. There are all sorts of LGBT people: gamers, bookworms, party-lovers, musicians, chess kids, hip hop fans- it can't all be black and white.
"The sad thing is that we hate based on who they love." -Dr. John Corvino
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Post: #664539 , Mon 9 Jul 12, 8:59PM |
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:: Inch
:: QA6 Livin' it up! | |
Mm, Idunno. I feel like the media is starting to move away from the "LOL make all the gay guys flamboyant cuz its funneh!!!1one" mentality.
Personally, I'm working on an LGBT-centric project right now.
One of the main characters is just an average Joe, not uber-masculine or feminine. I'm fairly sure he's 100% gay.
The other one leans towards gay male stereotypes, but he's either bi or pan. (I haven't quite finished working the details out.)
There's also a somewhat butch bi girl, an ace girl who subverts most stereotypes she crosses paths with, and and elderly lady who's both straight and very open-minded.
And all that's only the main five. There'll be other characters from across the spectrum. I hope to publish it as a webcomic once it's off the ground.
Really, in entertainment, stereotypes only go so far. Once they've been done nearly to death (and lets be honest, that doesn't take much), it actually becomes more fun and interesting to subvert them. I think we're starting to reach that point with LGBT stereotypes in the media.
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Post: #664543 , Mon 9 Jul 12, 9:17PM |
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