What Women Can’t Do, According to the Internet
Narratives about women’s capabilities are written by society and constantly circulated by passive internet users. The success of many online articles about women comes at a cost, as their popularity relies on perpetuating stereotypes that portray females as the less-competent half of the world’s population. These clickbait articles reinforce ideas that women are materialistic, obsessed with appearance, and undeserving as the same respect as men. August 26th marks Women’s Equality Day, and to recognize the fact that women still face unwarranted sexism and discrimination on a daily basis, Politically Polished turned to Google.
We began our investigation by searching “women can’t” in Google News. Through our research, the internet generously explained many aspects of life in which women are unequal to their male counterparts. Many of these articles reinforced the stereotype that women are materialistic. LinkedIn user, Bruce Hurwitz, shared a post in which he explains: “When interviewing for a job, lose the ring!” Hurwitz’s logic did not try to obscure its use of its stereotypes, referring to a woman with a large ring as “high maintenance” and her female co-workers as “jealous”. Under the assumption that women are the ultimate competitors, Hurwitz explains that it’s not just men who notice a woman’s rock: “When the woman at the office who has the largest diamond on her finger, sees that ring, she will realize that if you are hired she will fall to second place”. In addition to pettiness and a poor use of commas, this post provides a tiring reminder that merely being a woman with a fiance can solicit unfair hiring practices.
In addition to not being able to wear engagement rings to job interviews, the internet also finds its place to remind women to be respectful of their partner’s space (as if basic manners are unobvious). This article is flawed far beyond its pronounced heteronormativity, and appears to be the ramblings of one individual projecting his own experience into cyberspace. Nonetheless, this post reinforces the stereotype that having XX chromosomes qualifies someone as an artist in deception. The post’s author, Silas Nyanchwani, explains: “You can tell she is not doing these things for you. She has her motive. Hoodwinking.” This story proves that an article does not
have to be widely consumed to be demeaning. Despite emerging from the depths of cyberspace, this story shares a theme with many others throughout the internet: there are many things that men can do better.
Although many articles portrayed women as less-capable or less-competent than men, this piece blatantly argues that female superheroes will never equate to their male counterparts. Author Mark Tapson explains: “While this wave of female empowerment may be exhilarating for many, there is also an element of emasculation here.” With this statement, Tapson associates femininity with weakness. Following this logic, he continues: “Boys--more than girls--need a cultural pantheon of vigorous warrior heroes in place as role models”. In an attempt to disguise his own sexist statement, Tapson turns to biological existentialism and gendered stereotypes. In an effort to argue that women are inherently unequal to men, he explains that “in reality men are and always have been, with rare exceptions, the fighters, the protectors of the weak, the defenders of home and country.” More effectively than other articles, this post demonstrates the unfortunate truth that the internet thinks men are better.
Equality for women does not yet exist. With election season in full swing, the internet news has been quick to point out how far women have come, often citing Hillary Clinton’s historic nomination as the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate. Too often, however, the conversation focuses on political equality instead of social equality. Representation, although important, does not translate to the extinction of sexism, harassment, and gender-based discrimination. On this day, take the time to be a conscious media critic. While browsing the internet stop and think. How might the clickbait you’re sharing contribute to society’s dismal portrayal of women?
