Gender Issues in Cartoons
Gendered roles are evident in all forms of the media. For my research, I decided to view the gender construction in cartoons. After viewing the Cartoon Network for a day, I decided that Dexter's Laboratory would be the best show to document the gender roles and common ideologies of men and women in society. Dexter's Laboratory is based on the tale of a child genius. A small, red-headed boy genius, Dexter lives in a quiet suburban neighborhood with his mother, father, and older sister Dee Dee. Quite often, Dexter slips away to his fully-equipped bedroom laboratory to solve problems ranging from saving the world to defeating schoolyard bullies. Dexter is sometimes left struggling to fix or clean up the damage done to his laboratory by his older sibling. Dee Dee does not share Dexter's passion for science, preferring instead to be an adorable ballet dancer. Dee Dee often times throws a monkey wrench into Dexter's great plans. She
His mother is always wearing an apron and cleaning gloves. Her role, as portrayed in the cartoon, is to cook and clean. Dexter's father is more likely seen reading the newspaper or leaving the home to go to work, bolstering the doctrines that make the man the breadwinner of the home. Dexter's mother is also placed into gender constraints by the media. This writing shows that Dee Dee is unable to solve her own problems, unlike Dexter. She then uses one of Dexter's own creations to destroy or hinder him. In the cartoon, Dee Dee entices Dexter into playing some game. This cartoon illustrates some common roles that men and women are put in by the media. This also implies that men are better at math and science, while women are best suited for dancing or homemaking skills. breaks into Dexter's lab and always seems to cause trouble because of her lack of knowledge in the science field. The emergence of biased gender roles in cartoons may well be the reason that most of the stereotypes of women and men exist to this day. These clothing items limit her to one position, as that of the housewife. Dee Dee is being the stereotypical emotional female who needs help from others to resolve her issues.
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