Gender, feminism, family life and equality; you can never see an end to the spectrum of these topics. The deeper you go, you realise there is so much more to it. And the wider you research, you realise how so much of it is relevant in some of the most mundane things. Walking out of class that day, I could picture all that I could do with these themes. All that I could find out about, all that I could bring to the class.
Sociology is that one subject that sends me down rabbit holes. It gets me frantically searching the internet, switching tabs and squinting my eyes to read research and look up statistics, wondering all the while about what I could do with this information I have. It’s a subject that propels the broader thinker in me, encouraging me to see society from a bird’s eye view. I begin to notice little interactions and observe much more of my surroundings.
Rich discussions, diverse interpretations, and differing views make every Sociology class even more intriguing than the last.
One particular chapter in Grade 11 Sociology for a certain topic regarding family life and gender equality, made my mind wander a little, as it always does. I thought of the historical perspective, and how women’s roles in the family have changed over time.
And how could I observe this?
Through something that has been present, and has continued to remain historically relevant in most time periods.
Art and media
With art, there has always been revolutionary and political undertones. Whether it’s about a personal dilemma or a grave injustice, there will be something to say about the circumstances of the artist.
Art speaks volumes, influences thousands, and for researchers like me, it provides insight into the decade of interest. For my presentation, I chose seven pieces of art that I found were relevant to women’s roles in the family (or in general).
These were Woman with A Dead Child (1903) by Kathe Kollewitz, The Cradle (1872) by Berthe Morisot, Untitled (Your Body is a Battleground) (1989) by Barbara Kruger, Self-Portrait on the borderline between Mexico and the United States (1932) by Frida Kahlo, Migrant Mother (1936) by Dorothea Lange, and Family Portrait (2012) by Njideka Akunyili Crosby.
I organised them roughly into three categories — if the message of the piece resonated with Liberal, Radical, or Marxist feminism. However, these three perspectives intersect so often, it would be hard to really place them in a single category.
Next, I analysed them and interpreted what each piece was trying to say. Though, looking back at the brilliant insights from the other students, there was really no one right interpretation. In fact, some people gave insights so far from what I’d thought of.
Woman with Dead Child (1903)
For example, for the first painting, Woman with Dead Child, so many noticed and talked about the monstrous, masculine quality of the figure holding the child and connected it with grief and motherhood. And I realised I hadn’t even seen it close enough to realise that.
Untitled (Your Body is a Battleground) (1989)
Another piece we talked about was Untitled (Your Body is a Battleground). We touched upon the historical context of it, and how it was set in a period of turmoil as women fought for reproductive rights. This was particularly made for the Women’s March in Washington in support of reproductive freedom in 1989. From this, we saw art as a form of protest and a rallying cry. Others also talked about the font used, the colours used, the boldness the artwork carried, touching upon everything to give this piece justice.
We saw how these pieces of art covered so many of the themes we’d talked about in this chapter: the Family. But we also saw how many other themes intersected with them; colonialism, culture, immigration, poverty, motherhood, self-identity and globalisation.
As a class, we noticed the little things, the connotations and the connections, and gradually my one slide with sparse notes began to look unremarkable compared to the insights thrown in.
After having given enough time to the art section of my presentation, we moved on to seeing how the portrayal of women in media changed throughout the decades. For example, in the mid 20th century, there were traditional family roles, with women always being caregivers and nurturers.
In the 1960s, with the rise of second wave feminism, we saw a movement for women’s liberation reflected in the media through discussions on divorce, work, and equality.
In the 1980s, we saw third wave feminism slowly integrating itself with gradual inclusions of women from different cultural and racial backgrounds. There were more diverse portrayals of family structures and blurring of gender roles.
And at last, for contemporary media, I talked about how women are finally seen as more than caricatures — most of the time, at least. Women characters in movies and TV shows have much more depth and characterisation, showing the very real struggles with self identity, career, ambition and family. This can be seen through characters such as June Osborne (The Handmaid's Tale), Fleabag (Fleabag), and Midge Maisel (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel). These characters are flawed and human, with layers of complexity to them. Other pieces of media worth dissecting are The Intern (2015), FRIENDS (1994-2004), and Modern Family (2009-2020). There is a lot of breaking away from fixed family structures, talking about sexuality and incorporating ideas of feminism.
Moreover, while western contemporary media has normalised all these diverse changes, Indian media is also slowly incorporating changing family and gender dynamics. This can be seen through a few popular movies and TV shows such as Gangubai Kathiawadi (2022), Laapata Ladies (2023), Made in Heaven (2019-2023), and Bulbbul (2020) — also one of my favourite movies ever if you want to be stunned and punched in the gut.
When we talk about Sociology, what better place to analyse it than in the media? TV shows, movies, even Youtube videos. Our own society, portrayed in different ways, be it a fantasy or a sitcom; certain ideologies will always seep through and reflect through the production. Especially with family roles and women’s roles, we saw how these particular movies and TV shows have reflected the drastic change over these last few decades. Something to really think about, is it not? Next time, when you’re watching a binge worthy show, make sure to take a minute and see what ideology or political stance it could be reflecting. Whether it be through short interactions, or a blatant tell-not-show, you will always be able to infer its politics.
At the very end of the presentation, we discussed the implications of media and art and the heavy influence it has on people. How we’re either always influenced by art or media, or our actions/thoughts and collective ideologies are reflected through them.
Through using art and media as a tool for understanding and observing women’s roles, we gained deeper insight than what the textbook could have never given us.
With some of the most fascinating discussions I’ve ever had, I ended the presentation with my eyes sparkling with glee and quite literally in awe. How could people think of such different things? How could the same piece of art or media be interpreted in the most polar ways?
But that too, is another little rabbit hole of Sociology we could dive into, isn’t it?
By Hita Maniar (G11)
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