Sci-Fi
(Media Paper)
Women are normally viewed by society as hopeless and dependent on the
opposite sex. And on the Sci-Fi station there are many different views of gender
equality, and with Lost Girl, it shows women as being liberal, free and strong.
And then there's Troy, which displays the exact opposite with men being the
dominant gender, and lastly there is the hit television thriller Scare Tactics that
show gender equality through fear.
Lost Girl follows supernatural seductress Bo, a Succubus who feeds on
the sexual energy of humans. Growing up with human parents, Bo has no
reason to believe she's anything other than the girl next door. Until she drains her
boyfriend to death in their first sexual encounter. Once she hits the road, Bo
discovers she is one of the Fae, creatures of a legend, which pass as humans
while feeding off them secretly. Displaying women as assertive and conniving
with the power to kill without being revealed. Bo exemplifies women as powerful
and allows women to be strong a liberal. Possessing the strength and courage to
kill and protect; however in Lost Girl the producers have made it seem that Bo is
sneaky about her power. Showing that women are strong and courageous
however must hide to protect there identity. Making it ironic that women in Lost
Girl have amazing powers however must disguise their power to remain hidden
from society. Nevertheless in other cases with men, we see them "flexing their
muscle" and showing off their incredible abilities. Ultimately, placing male
characters as erotic and more exciting, as Bo from Lost girl display humility
throughout the series. Lost Girl shows women as liberal and courageous, but at
the same time calm and modest proving the maturity over men and the
unwillingness to be in the spotlight. This praises women in the sense that they
have a great deal of power and strength.
Nevertheless, power is the driving source of men and has been for
centuries. With power men have the opportunity to possess many things, along
with a large ego boost. This contrasts completely with Lost Girl and women
equality. In the movie Troy, two emerging nations begin to clash after Paris, the
Trojan prince, convinces Helen, Queen of Sparta, to leave her husband
Menelaus, and sail with him back to Troy. After Menelaus finds out that his wife
was taken by the Trojans, he asks his brother Agamemnom to help him get her
back. Agamemnon sees this as an opportunity for power. The time period of the
movie makes a huge impact of gender inequality and shows that power is the
lone entity within male’s desires. However, this makes for good television and
allows people to see the cruel reality of the time and the power struggle that men
had to face on a daily bases.
Although women have the stereotype of being easily frightened, Scare
Tactics show that gender isn’t a factor when it comes to fear. And with gender
inequality comes gender equality through the popular television series Scare
Tactics. On the reality television series, real victims on the show are usually
lured to some location, either invited there by people they know, or reporting for
what they thought was a new job. Soon they would experience some kind of
terrifying scene, like a strange monster, a terrible accident, or a violent crime
being committed. All of which was staged while the victim was secretly being
video recorded from multiple camera angles. Setting up for an unforgettable
scare; and the chance to embarrass someone in front of national television.
However, beyond the embarrassment serious gender equality is going on.
Because the fact is that no matter the gender male or female, we all get scared.
And on Scare Tactics the producers are able to highlight a person’s fear
displaying men at times more scared then women. Revealing more than just a
couple of laughs, it reveals that gender equality.
Prior to watching television I had never tuned into the Sci-Fi channel until
this paper, and I’m glad I did. I discovered and revealed the hidden messages of
gender roles within the station and have come to learn that women compared to
men handle scary, heart thumping situation much better than men. Especially,
when men are left alone and have no reason to act tough in front of someone. I
learned that men have and still want power and that women are slowly achieving
equality through television shows like Lost Girl. I also learned that stereotypes
are short lived when society seems to think other wise about gender roles within
a single community or television series.