How Perpetuated Stereotypes Affect the STEM Field for Women: An exploration through 21st century films
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18533/jah.v12i02.2325Keywords:
Female Stereotypes, Hysteria, STEM fields, ScopophiliaAbstract
As more members of the 21st century society become increasingly supportive of equal rights for both sexes, the film industry is striving to produce more stereotype-breaking representations of women. One of the many ways filmmakers attempt to achieve this goal is by producing movies related to the women in STEM fields. While the intention behind these films may be to raise awareness for the importance of breaking female stereotypes, it can achieve the opposite effect on the film audiences. This paper aims to look at the effects The Imitation Game’s and Don’t Look Up’s portrayal of female characters in STEM. To do this, the two movies are analyzed with a literature review and application of theoretical framework on specific scenes within the two movies. The conclusion that this paper reached is that both The Imitation Game’s and Don’t Look Up’s portrayal of female characters in STEM fields encourage the perpetuation of unrealistic stereotypes that mislead younger generations of girls when pursuing careers in STEM fields.
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