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The Sacred Circle A Safe Haven for women on the Journey to Divorce and Beyond Message Information Embrace being a Woman Breaking down the Stereotype It’s all about You Legal Children Support
BREAKING DOWN THE STEREOTYPE Based on historical assumptions, stereotypes are standardized and popular conceptions of specific types and or groups of individuals. In the 2002, The Role of Stereotypes, Richard Dyer briefly emphasizes why the word ‘stereotype’ is thought of today, as a statement of abuse. Dyer calls attention to the ways in which the mass media, as well as everyday communication has contributed to negative stereotypes upon WOMEN, blacks, and gays. Dyer highlights a man named Walter Lippmann who initiated the term ‘stereotype,’ unaware it would have distasteful implications. Dyer proves this by providing an explanation held by Lippmann: A pattern of stereotypes is not neutral. It is not merely a way of substituting orderfor the great blooming, buzzing confusion of reality. It is not merely a short cut. It is all these things and something more. It is the guarantee of our self- respect; it is the projection upon the world of our own sense of our own value, our own position and our own rights. The stereotypes are, therefore, highly charged with the feelings that are attached to them. They are the fortress of our tradition, and behind its defenses we can continue to feel safe in the position we occupy. Dyer refers to ideas raised by Walter Lippmann on stereotypes as, an ordering process, a short cut, referring to ‘the world,’ and expressing ‘our’ values and beliefs. Dyer breaks down each idea throughout, The Role of Stereotypes, and concludes that stereotypes are not what is wrong but who holds the power, and what interests they serve that are. Dyer begins by discussing stereotypes as an ‘ordering process.’ This process makes it possible for societies to catogrize individulas by sorting all indistinguishable data collected from around the world. On the other hand, stereotypes not only create distinctions among groups and individuals but they also set up the idea of what is normal and deviant. Stereotypes also set up value systems within a society, in other words they create boundaries. So what do stereotypes have to do with you; A woman on the journey to divorce and beyond? Sadly and understandably, a female divorcee is stereotyped as a depressed, desperate, angry, and alone woman. Our society has even gone as far as referring to older women as ‘cougars.’ So, why are divorced women preceived in such a negative light and when did this begin? Unfortunately, stereotypes have affected the way in which women have always been viewed around the world. From the beginning, women have been expected to ‘take care,’ not ‘take charge.’ Throughout history, stereotypes have formed by the way a specific soceity views certain individuals. As a woman, how are you viewed? Has your former spouse ever responded by saying, “Your CRAZY,” or “Your PSYCHO,” or “ You need some serious therapy?” Well, first of all, you are NOT crazy and second; you are not the first. This ‘crazy’ view of women began in the 18th century. Men were the dominate sex and highest on the chain of command, so what they thought or said was basically deemed correct. Women who were sufferring from disorders such as depression, anxiety, and psychosamatic were deemed mad or thought of as having a disease of the brain. The word hysteria became the prognosis for women who demonstrated one or more of these side effects. Given that men were unable to understand the |
