Final Activist Media Project: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/gratefuldread6
In our current society, from an outside perspective, I wonder why LGBTQ relationships
seem so “complicated” or “taboo.” I am constantly asked questions, mostly from straight friends,
about how these non-heterosexual relationships work- specifically how gender roles work. I look
towards the media’s influence when analyzing why so many people do not fully grasp the
different concepts of LGBTQ relationships. How many television shows, movies, or
advertisements do you know that focus on LGBTQ relationships? I could probably count on two
hands the amount of movies I have seen with gay main characters. And, when analyzing these
characters further, many of them fit stereotypes commonly associated with gay men or lesbians.
In my activist piece, I argue that there is such a misunderstanding of LGBTQ relationships
because our society is restricted by gender binaries which are perpetuated through the
mainstream media. When we queer these binaries, and look at it from the opposite perspective, it
becomes clear how ridiculous these presumptions are.
In my piece, the Tumblr post labeled “If Straight People Were Asked/Told the Same
Things that Lesbians Commonly Are,” I look at this concept of binaries from a queer theory
perspective. When I refer to binaries, I am referring to the gender binary, which according to
Wikipedia is “the classification of sex and gender into two distinct, opposite and disconnected
forms of masculine and feminine” (Hoyt, 7). We see the perpetuation of male and female roles
and their association with masculinity and femininity through all forms of media from movies to
television shows to commercials. Because of these binaries, it creates confusion for society and
individuals when people don’t conform to them, especially in LGBTQ relationships, for example
the question stated in my activist piece “who is the man, and who is the woman?” Because being
LGBTQ is not a norm, there are no gender roles or norms established. Neither partner in these
types of relationships pick up the male or female role, it is very much based on an equal
distribution of roles and responsibilities.
In lecture we defined queer theory as “an interdisciplinary perspective that seeks to
disrupt socially constructed systems of meaning surrounding human sexuality and relationships
in general”(Hoyt, 8). The reason I chose this particular approach for my piece was because I
thought it would make it more relatable to my audience in which the majority (I’m assuming) is
heterosexual. By looking at it from this queer perspective, just as we did for the “blurred lines”
music video, it allows us to see how ridiculous the messages are when we take them out of the
normalized context. For example, if we were to ask a straight person how they know they’re
straight if they have never been with someone of the same sex, many people would find this
question makes no sense, yet it is a common question for LGBTQ people who have never had
sexual interaction with the opposite sex.
The reason that I used gifs specifically was to portray my argument in a similar way that
memes do. Meme’s are “a ‘unit of culture’ which is ‘hosted’ in the minds of one or more
individuals, and which can reproduce itself, thereby jumping from mind to mind” (Hoyt, 3). I
find that gifs can accomplish very similar things. Gifs, especially when take from mainstream
media pieces, can arguably just as influential as memes when driving home a point. Memes tend
to use sarcasm as well as a picture from a common media moment, to support their point.
Specifically on my Tumblr page I used examples from well-known television shows and movies
such as Orange Is the New Black, Austin Powers, and the Office. By using well-known media
examples, this allows arguments to be made clearer, as they become much more relatable to the audience. Both memes and gifs can be taken out of context in order to support the author’s
claims, for example in question number two “how did your family react” Michael from the
Office is obviously not hugging Jim for “coming out” but his reaction in his gif makes it both
comical and relative to the answer of the question.
References
Dudebropartymassacre3. (n.d.). Retrieved November 20, 2015, from
http://giphy.com/gifs/dudebropartymassacre3-5sf-l0qYX3JRyYbPq
http://giphy.com/gifs/JdhoPVAzf143K
Hug GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY. (n.d.). Retrieved November 14, 2015, from
http://giphy.com/gifs/editingandlayout-the-office-hug-michael-scott-yidUzriaAGJbsxt58k
Hoyt, K. (n.d.). Comm in Pop Culture Fall 2015. Retrieved November 14, 2015, from
http://comminpopculturefall2015.blogspot.com/
Kristen Wiig GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY. (n.d.). Retrieved November 14, 2015, from
http://giphy.com/gifs/kristen-wiig-frustrated-unimpressed-Xj8orUvjQ2SLS
Oitnb GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY. (n.d.). Retrieved November 14, 2015, from
http://giphy.com/gifs/oitnb-scotus-marriage-equality-80UQAJYZYm1JC
http://giphy.com/gifs/good-friday-ya-MsWnkCVSXz73i
Right GIF - Find & Share on GIPHY. (n.d.). Retrieved November 14, 2015, from
http://giphy.com/gifs/right-dr-evil-jeXiz1RAvzX44
(n.d.). Retrieved November 20, 2015, from
http://giphy.com/gifs/katy-perry-gif-i-woke-up-like-
this-fVtFqDTmRW5os
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