Racial Gender Stereotypes Portrayed in Film

Hollywood films portray false assumptions about the “nerdy” girl, by usually claiming that these weird girls have never had sex. The “awkward virgin” misconception has framed into societal standards, that many people look down upon. For example, the common misconception is if you don’t lose your virginity by a certain age, then you are automatically weird. There are a variety of reasons as to why women choose to not give themselves up to anyone. We have acknowledged that some of these reasons may consist of moral values, religious beliefs or just not ready to take the next step. False misconceptions of this stereotypical role can only lead to negative examples for young girls watching these films. Roles like this should be created as a positive light to help younger viewers understand the concept of sex. For example, the series Jane the Virgin , centers around a young writer who happened to be saving herself until marriage. Jane Villanueva, played by Gina Rodriguez, was raised in a re...

There is no denying that women in Hollywood are still being portrayed as the typical female stereotypes. Now that we have discussed the “sassy black girl” and the “spicy Latina” roles in films, this stereotypical role isn’t seen too much in modern day movies. According to Sheknows, “ If you're a nerd, as far as Hollywood is concerned, you've never gotten laid”. This role of the “awkward virgin” has definitely had it’s attention in the past, from films in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Hollywood has characterized this female character as a model minority and doesn’t fail to portray these women as nerdy, conservative individuals. For example, a famous role of an “awkward virgin” is, Josie Geller, from Never Been Kissed, played by Drew Barrymore. Throughout the movie, Josie is a timid, shy woman who may be too insecure about herself. She is seen as the typical nerdy girl who wears glasses and dull colored clothes, who doesn’t know how to interact with men; hence why she is a virgin. How...

As a devoted fan of movies and TV shows, there is no shock when it comes to the portrayal of the typical Latina stereotype. These prevailing roles that are being portrayed by famous Latina actresses validates the stereotypical Latina. There are a variety of stereotypical roles; for example, a cleaning lady or a bystander who speaks little to no English. However, the one constant role that I see in numerous films is the typical “spicy” Latina character. The term “spicy” refers to a strong willed individual with an overly confident personality. Although this typical role doesn’t necessarily sound all bad, it continues to give a non-accurate depiction of Latinas. For example, the famous character from ABC’s Modern Family , Gloria Delgado-Pritchett played by Sofia Vergara, perfectly depicts the stereotypical “spicy” Latina character. Vergara’s character gives a false assumption of reality by the portrayal of her extremely loud and obnoxious character. Not all Latinas are like this. Also, ...

We as an audience are still witnessing how women are being portrayed as the typical female stereotype in Hollywood films. No surprise here! The stereotypical role that typically irks me the most, is the “sassy black friend”; particularly seen in Romantic Comedies. This character is rarely portrayed as the protagonist and only as the supporting character. For example, actress Wanda Sykes is known to play this “sassy” character many times in Romantic Comedies like, Monster-in-Law . Although whoever takes on this role never fails to impress with her comedic talent, I’ve noticed that this is a reoccurring role among black women mostly. Why is that? The only reason I can think of as to why these roles are repetitive is because of the misconception on how black women can be loud, dramatic and have an overly confident personality. Not saying these characteristics aren’t necessarily bad; however, it should not be the only thing these women are known to be. Many black actresses are insanely ...