Sociology

What gender identity markers were evident at the mall What race or ethnicity markers were evidentThere were several gender identity markers that were evident throughout the visit to the mall. The male role as displayed in the mall was predominantly of a dominating male figure with leadership roles and violence being among some of the characteristics portrayed. In the GameStop, the video games depicted the men as being angry, such as in Battlefield III (2010), and out to lead liberation within the video game world. The cards that were located in Hallmark also depicted boys as being champions or all-stars, boosting the leadership and dominant role for males. This was also evident along the toys in Wal-Mart with the guns and other toys directed toward boys. These toys, including the cars, tractors, and other strong, heroic action figures were located primarily in the boys aisle and featured the similar colors that were seen in the gift wrap shop. The colors are mainly blue and green or even red that focus mostly on the males.

The most evident examples of gender roles with regard to females in the GameStop were that the females were there primarily as side kicks, as seen in Heavy Rain (2010). They were dressed sexually and appeared demure and able to follow the males leadership decisions. In Hallmark, the girls cards focused mainly on how sweet and princess  like the girls were with the messages given. Throughout the advertisements in the mall, the women were focused as sexually appealing in suggestive poses and outfits. All were appearing to be approachable. In the Victorias Secrets sections of advertising, the words were geared toward the woman becoming wild and to unleash the wild side. In the toys area and the music section at Wal-Mart, the women were all portrayed as being more feminine and loving, expressing interest in taking care of the dolls in the toy area. The women on the CD covers were all depicted as being pleasing to look at in comparison to the male figures portrayed as dominating and in charge.

The race in the mall was mainly white with the ratio being 70 white and 30 African American. There were limited numbers of sections within the mall, such as in Hallmark, which had a section specifically labeled for African Americans. The races were depicted throughout the mall inside their individual categories, such as black males in the rap section at Wal-Mart. 2. What agents of socialization exist at the mall (see your text to help out) The agents of socialization existed all throughout the mall. There were no outstanding incidents of any switch in the roles of the men or women. In Hallmark, the girls were already pre-determined to be sweet and femininely called princess as was evident in the cards that were there. The majority of cards depicted these characteristics to the girls. The males were pre-existing as being leadership oriented and in charge as displayed at the GameStop video store and in the advertisements throughout the mall. Even the poses of the males in the ads and on the CDs at Wal-Mart were suggesting that the man was in charge. In comparison, the females were portrayed as being sexually attractive and demure in their poses, being the side-kick to the man, not the leader.3. Do American malls influencereflect our values and philosophies If so, howYes and no. Yes because American influence is geared toward womens roles as being the housewife from the 1950s that takes care of the cooking, cleaning, and looking nice for the men when they arrived home from work. These values are still evident today and are commonly portrayed as in the examples from the mall ads, cards, and even CD covers. The men are still seen as the breadwinners with these ads and are displayed this way to all passers-by.

It seems also that more women in society are becoming the leaders of corporations and businesses, sometimes surpassing the men as the breadwinners within certain states and cities around the nation. Although this is evident in todays society, it doesnt appear to be told in the advertising or other areas of notice around the mall. The nations values and philosophies are changing toward a more unified existence between men and women in being breadwinners and leaders. I believe that these have not been accurately portrayed in most malls across America with the advertisements. The toys sections are beginning to see lifts in this trend, such as with Dora being an Explorer, which was traditionally a role held by men.4. Is identity and sense of self a focus of consumer appeal in this public squareIt seems that identity and sense of self is a major area of focus toward consumer appeal. The focus of the boys as being top achievers or leaders in Hallmark and in GameStop is definitely an indication of these characteristics of self. The boys greeting cards in Hallmark also portrayed sports figures and that they should associate themselves with these areas of interest. The girls sense of self leaned toward being sweet and a princess as portrayed by the cards in Hallmark. The other sense of self that was evident was also the attractiveness and sensuality of the women, with their characters being wild as represented in Victorias Secrets ads.5. What do you conclude about American malls with respect to race, gender, and classI believe that in American malls the base appeal is toward the areas within a person that represent the personality and desire to be appealing or a leader. It seems that these base characteristics are geared toward the outside and inward nature of a male or female. The respect toward race could have been improved with a mixture of more nationalities instead of 70 white and 30 African American. The gender characteristics as seen in the mall are attempting to land us back in the 1950s and it seems that these advertisements and items should be improved upon to push towards a more unified nation as it is already becoming. The class situation appeals to many classes in the United States since the GameStop is usually across the board for its clients. The Victorias Secrets ads may appeal to more upper class individuals looking to buy lingerie and still displayed the same type of role playing information with unleashing the wild side words aimed toward the women. 6.

Thinking sociologically, what is cool How is coolness different based on race, gender, class, and so on Are you influenced by what is cool It seems that in sociology, cool is anything that appeals to base level emotions that try to capitalize on these to gain attention and appeal. In terms of coolness geared toward race, the women and gold chains that were evidenced by the rappers in Wal-Mart seem to appeal to the African American crowd. It is cool to have a lot of jewelry and women among the men of this nationality. The cool among the white individuals were mainly reachable toward the African Americans also with the descriptions and poses from Hallmark and the advertisements around the mall. The males were shown as being cool leaders and in charge authority figures, using violence if necessary as seen in GameStop.

The latest cool for women has been the more sexually demanding ads for Victorias Secrets and the other sexually suggested positions that women were seen in the other ads and CD covers in Wal-Mart. The other cool that was seen in Wal-Marts toys section aimed at girls was the traditionally feminine roles that women play in the home and with children in playing with dolls.
The cool that was seen in regards to class throughout the mall area seemed to be the portrayal of the CD African American men wearing the gold chains and having the women around as evidence of wealth, communicating the message that African Americans were to obtain these things to be seen as wealthy.

I am not typically influenced by what is cool since I believe this to be a base emotional case that identifies what you have with who you are. I have grown out of this stage a long time ago and have refocused my interests towards giving back to society through my work. While it is still nice to have things, it is not going to satisfy me in the long run. Having work that I love to do and share of me with others is mainly my goal.