Gender Roles in Music

In contrast to biological differences in reproductive organs between females and males, gender differences and the roles we assign to them are socially constructed and learned sets of behaviors and perceptions. The role of music in such a construction of gender perceptions is particularly important, as it is a dominant aspect of preadolescence and adolescence. Music is heard in all forms of media and is particularly accessible when downloaded from the Internet or through its adaptation to visual forms, such as music video clips broadcast on MTV (the Music Television channel). Music is used by youth for leisure, tension reduction, and mood control. It is a resource in their search for individual as well as group identity and solidarity and aids them in expressions of self, independence, and intimacy by appealing to many of their concerns, rebellious urges, and sexual drive. It provides emotional support and helps young audiences deal with the anxieties of growing up. Female and male celebrity singers alike serve as role models for [Page 366]identification and imitation and are idolized by children and youth. For example, the way music performers are portrayed defines for the young viewers what is “normal,” what is accepted in their society, and therefore what wins positive reinforcement, whereas what is exceptional and deviate is viewed negatively. As a result, such images have significant potential to contribute to young audiences' developing identities as females and males, their expectations from each other and from themselves, and their attitudes toward society's norms.

Many of the studies that have examined the portrayals of women and men in various musical genres have found that video clips of pop and rock music, in particular, as well as most mainstream television genres, portray a social world that systematically differentiates between the genders. On the whole, men are identified with “doing” in the public sphere and are portrayed through characteristics such as activity, rationality, forcefulness, independence, ambitiousness, competitiveness, achievement orientation, and higher social status. Women, on the other hand, are associated with “being” in the private sphere and are characterized as mostly passive, emotional, caregiving, childish, sexy, subordinate to men, and of a lower social status. The occupational roles presented in music videos, too, are often stereotypical: On the one hand, men are presented mostly performing manual labor, involved in law and order, and in high-status roles; women, on the other hand, are assigned traditional service, secretarial, and caregiving roles.

The external appearance of women, more specifically their predominant portrayal as a sex objects, is highlighted in the lyrics of songs, in the performers' provocative appearance and revealing clothing, in the association with sexual objects and settings, in camera angles that present them as objects of the lustful gazes of others (men, in particular). Even when highly visible and successful, female performers most often exhibit their independence, assertiveness, and power through their sexuality. The debate over the provocative video clips of the American super pop star Madonna in the 1980s and 1990s illustrates this theme: On one hand, Madonna's media image was that of an independent woman resisting society's ideological constraints that allocated women either the role of “virgin” (and the associated traits of asexuality, modesty, caring, submissiveness, passivity, delicacy, dependency, and so forth) or that of the “whore” (the independent, assertive, sexual woman who is provocative, active, and powerful). In presenting herself thusly, she consciously portrayed herself in various nontraditional gender roles, refused to be manipulated by men, and transmitted a sense of control over her own image and destiny. On the other hand, it has been argued that her struggle for independence remained constrained within the realm of sexuality and appearance that lies at the heart of the subordination of women.

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