SYD 4810 - Sociology of Women

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Final Project Assignment Options

Due: Monday, 12/3 Projects not turned in on or before Monday, 12/3 will be deducted points for being late.

Proposals: Due Fri. 10/12 Put your name & UF ID# in the top right hand corner, I prefer that you type (singlespaced, 10-12 pt font) your proposal, but it is not required.  This is not a formal assignment, if it is easier to provide the info in an outline format instead of complete sentences, that is ok with me. When in doubt, write more rather than less. Your grade is not based on "how good of an idea you have" but rather whether or not your thoroughly answer the questions below.
1. Which project option have you chosen? What is the "working title" of your project?
2. In about one paragraph or so, tell me about the program you plan to watch (for option 1) or people you plan to interview (for option 2 or 3) or other topic/issue you are considering (for option 4).
3. List 3 or more resources that you will use to get information about your topic. (Hint: Do not say, "the internet" or "academic journals" instead say (for example), "the Killing Us Softly website" or provide the name of a specific journal article or reading from the text.)
4. What problems do you anticipate? How do you think you will manage them?
5. Do you have any questions for me directly relating to your project? If so, list them here so that I can respond to them.

Options:
1. The Role of Media in Gender Socialization
Gender socialization is not something that stops when we reach adulthood. We are constantly surrounded by messages about what it means to be a woman or a man, what we have to do in order to "do gender" successfully, and consequences we might face if we fail. These messages come from many sources, including TV, movies, school, parents, peers, advertising, etc. Television is a particularly potent source of gender socialization. For this option, you are to choose one TV show. You may choose any type of show, including "reality" shows, sit-coms, drama, news, sports, soap opera, game show, cartoons, etc. You must carefully watch at least 5 episodes (varying in length from 30 min - 2hrs. each). Ideally, record the episodes and watch them several times. Analyze the gender messages present in the show. Your paper should contain the following elements:
    1) Describe the show. You should mention the channel, time, date(s) you analyzed, genre, intended audience, and basic plot.
    2) Describe the gender patterns on the show. How many women and men are there on the show? What roles do they play? How do they interact?
    3) Analyze the gender messages: How do various characters "do gender"? Are there multiple images of gender present? Do these images vary by race, class, sexual identity, age, or other statuses? Do any images of gender seem to be more valued than others? What are the consequences for failing to do gender appropriately?
    4) Don't forget to analyze the ads that occur during the program. What messages do they convey about gender? Based on the ads, who do you think is   the intended audience for this show?
    5) Your overall conclusions: What are the main gender messages on the show? How do these messages construct a notion about what it means to be a "woman" or a "man"? How might these messages affect viewers, both women & men... particularly, how do these messages affect adolescent girls and guys?
Evaluation Criteria: Your paper will be judged based on the following criteria:
  -Do you demonstrate that you have carefully observed the TV show?
  -Do you describe the show fully?
  -Do you analyze the gender messages (contained in both the show and the ads) insightfully?
  -Do your conclusions follow logically from the data you present?
  -Is your paper clearly written? Is it free of spelling and grammatical errors? Have you proofread it for typographical errors?

2. Interview two women who work in career fields that you are considering. Each interview should last no less than 30 minutes. You should turn in a transcript of your interview (your questions and the respondent's answers) in addition to your paper discussing the interview, your findings, and their relation to the materials we covered this semester.
Be careful to NOT just fire a bunch of questions at your respondent... instead, try to build rapport and then engage them in a conversation. 1-word or 1-sentence answers are nearly worthless.  If they give you short answers then rephrase the question to get more details out of them. Be persistent but respectful & friendly.
Here are some questions to include; it's not necessary to ask them all, but try to cover most of them.
 -where do you work?
 -what do you do there (what are your responsibilities)? what does your company do?
 -how did you get this job?
 -was this the job you expected to get after college? (if they went to college) what was your major/minors?
 -what are the advantages/best aspects of your job?
 -what are some of the challenges?
 -can you tell me about a few things that you wish you'd have known before you began working in this field?
 -is there a racial or gendered pattern of people in your place of work or field of work?
 -how and why do people get promoted at your job?
 -is there a racial or gendered pattern to who gets promoted?
 -do you think that you would have the same opportunities & challenges in your field of work if you were of a different gender or race? explain.
 -do you perceive that being a woman has impacted your work life? if so, how?
 -do you have any advice for me, as a student interested in working in this field someday?

3. Interview a girl under age 14 AND a woman over 40
Each interview should last no less than 30 minutes. You should turn in a transcript of your interview (your questions and the respondent's answers) in addition to your paper discussing the interview, your findings, and their relation to the materials we covered this semester.
Be careful to NOT just fire a bunch of questions at your respondent... instead, try to build rapport and then engage them in a conversation. 1-word or 1-sentence answers are nearly worthless.  If they give you short answers then rephrase the question to get more details out of them. Be persistent but respectful & friendly.
Here are some questions to include; it's not necessary to ask them all, but try to cover most of them.
  -what does it mean to be a woman? (if you're speaking to someone who is multicultural, you can ask, "what does it mean to be a woman in american society as compared to ___ culture"?)
  -how is being a girl different from being a woman?
  -how do you know when someone is a girl or a woman? what I'm asking here, is, how do we distinguish between girls & women? is there a clear line? if not, on what basis do we decide?
  -what does "femininity" mean? can you describe or give an example of what it means to be feminine?
  -is femininity central to being a woman?
  -it seems that in our society, men just have to be smart & women have to be smart, attractive, and care-taking (do emotional labor) (or dependent on others) to be happy. do you have any thoughts about why this is?
  -since the early 90s there has been a slogan that "girls can do anything" - what do you think about the effect of this on young women? do you really think that "girls or women CAN do anything" in our society today (when only 2 of the fortune 500 companies are run by women; only 14 of the 100 US Senators & 67 of the 435 House members are women; women earn just 75 cents/$1, black women earn 65 cents & hispanic women earn 54 cents)?

4. GGW-WTF?!?
I will soon be posting more information about this option exploring images of young women's sexuality.

5. Other
I will consider proposals for other Final Project topics. Please make an appointment to meet with me and discuss your idea.