Stereotypes In Judith Butler's Gender Trouble

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The Female Gender: Short Skirt, Long List of Hypersexual Roles to Play In Judith Butler’s Gender Trouble, the belief that women must behavior in a certain manner because of their gender is addressed. Through various texts and cultural practices, society imposes a specific view of the female gender and perpetuates this stereotype with images in the mass media. These images reinforce the idea that women are merely objects of pleasure, who must exhibit hypersexual behavior in order to satisfy desires imposed upon them by the male gender. At the same time, modern women are expected to be strong, independent, and intelligent. The paradox created by these mixed messages is impossible to satisfy. In the song “Short Skirt, Long Jacket,” the band Cake’s…show more content…
In the song written by the band Cake, the artists imply that they are looking for an intelligent, hardworking woman who is also beautiful and sexually adventurous at the same time. Throughout the song, this idealized female character can be seen “playing with her jewelry” and “putting her hair” (Cake). While these actions seem innocent, the female in the song is later described as wearing overtly sexy clothes and being fast sexually. The image created here emphasizes a woman’s body, which “is systemically signified by taboos and anticipated transgressions” (Butler 2543). The song implies that a woman is meant to behave in a manner that is hypersexual and concerned only with her appearance, even if she is intelligent. This promiscuous behavior limits her opportunities socially as value is taken away from her mind and placed only on her…show more content…
It's catchy beat and description of a woman who knows how to accomplish tasks quickly seems to describe a strong and assertive woman at first. After examining the lyrics more thoroughly, it is clear that Cake’s song is another subversive message designed to reinforce the idea that women are merely objects of pleasure. The female body is merely “a surface whose permeability is politically regulated… within a cultural field of gender hierarchy…” (Butler 2551). A woman’s worth, according to these media messages, is ultimately only based on her exterior appearance, despite messages that appear to portray the female gender in a more empowering manner. While some strides have been made in terms of altering the stereotypical female role as identified within Gender Trouble, it is clear that the paradox of being both hypersexual and independent conveyed about the female gender continues to oppress women and the opportunities they have within a given
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