Group Debates Portrayal of Women in TV

A mostly-female group of 20 gathered in the Lowell House Junior Common Room last night to view popular television shows and to discuss portrayals of women in modern television.

The informal event, sponsored by the Harvard College Women’s Center, the Seneca Inc., and the Organization of Asian American Sisters in Service, sparked conversation on female sexuality, competition, and relationships as seen in Grey’s Anatomy, Nip/Tuck, and Gossip Girl.

Yi-Hui “Ivy” Wu ’09 decided to organize this event for her senior project as an intern at the Women’s Center.

“I’m focusing on the role of pop culture and popular TV on how we view women, because I think that people don’t always realize how much of an impact pop culture has on how we see things,” Wu said.

Although shows like Gossip Girl, Nip/Tuck, and Grey’s Anatomy are, first and foremost, forms of entertainment, said OAASIS Director of Communications Jessica J. Wen ’10, they can also have detrimental effects on the way people view women.

“Especially with ‘Gossip Girl,’ there’s a lot of petty fighting, and general cattiness,” said Wen in an interview before the event. “It tends to portray girls negatively through situations like fighting over boys, getting back at each other...stupid stuff like that.”

Others disagreed: “especially in the last 10 years, women have increasingly been portrayed in a positive way,” said Ann Marie Brouillette ’09, membership chair for the Seneca and one of the discussion moderators.

“There have been a lot more strong female characters in shows,” said Brouillette, who is also an inactive Crimson business editor. “There are still issues related to body image, female sexuality and female competition, but I would say that it’s a display of certain stereotypes of women that people currently have.”

Exploring topics from catfights to using sex as manipulation, attendees viewed five to 10-minute clips and delved into deeper discussions on self-image and mental health. The group spoke on the danger of watching these shows that portray a focus on the superficial and exaggerated social expectations.

“The way it affects us is subconscious,” Wu said. “Whatever is familiar to you becomes the norm, and our ideas of relationships and sexuality are shaped by what we expose ourselves to.”

Characters become role models to those who base their metrics of social interaction on television shows, said Michelle M. Parilo ’10, president of the Seneca, in a phone interview.

“It’s not an extreme problem, but it does impact how women think,” Parilo said.