It is important to note that gender equality is among the most critical pillars of a fair society based on social justice, equity, and diversity. The given analysis will primarily focus on understanding the current state of representation of women in stories and showings, as well as their creators. The observations in the area of residence reveal that there is a significant underrepresentation of women in terms of the number of characters, their roles, the creators, and emphasis.
In order to properly and thoroughly discuss the subject of interest, it is useful to understand what constitutes a representation and why it is relevant to gender inequality. The latter is a global phenomenon reinforced through religion, gender roles, socialization, oppression, sexism, family structure, and media. If gender inequity manifests most crudely and harshly in the nations struggling with poverty, then in more developed countries, such as the US, the gender gap in income takes place (Social Problems 159).
In order to counteract these powerful forces aimed to indoctrinate women to be inferior to men in accordance with patriarchy, women need to be represented in all areas equally. Representation has a direct impact on an already oppressed group of women as well as future generations, who are able to observe and see their gender and sex being represented without patriarchal strings attached. In other words, representation matters for all groups, including women.
In Columbus, Ohio, the major showings and movies are Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Black Adam, and The Menu. The former is about a fictional African nation fighting for its liberty and sovereignty. The director is an African American male Ryan Coogler, and the writer is Joe Robert Cole, whereas the producers are Nate Moore and Kevin Feige. However, the cast is equally distributed between male and female actors, and the main character is Shuri, played by Letitia Wright. Therefore, the creators are predominantly men, but a positive trend can be observed among actors, who matter the most when it comes to representation since they are the visible elements of the story.
I observed how Black Panther: Wakanda Forever showcases the achievement of the civil rights movement by going against the norm of the overrepresentation of white men. In the case of gender, the movie’s major characters are still mostly men, but the central character is still a woman, which brings some balance. The African American race dominates the film because it is meant to embrace and celebrate their African heritage, which is why representation in this manner is a positive occurrence. Age, ability, and sexuality are rather poorly represented in the movie, but they are still present in smaller traces.
In conclusion, the observations in the Columbus, Ohio, area reveal that there is a significant underrepresentation of women in terms of the number of characters, their roles, the creators, and emphasis. One needs to be able to understand the current state of representation of women in stories and showings as well as their creators. The main reason is that it is vital to note that gender equality is among the most critical pillars of a fair society based on social justice, equity, and diversity. Representation has a major impact on an already oppressed group as well as future generations, who are able to observe and see their uniqueness being represented. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever showcases the achievement of the civil rights movement by going against the norm of the overrepresentation of white men.
Work Cited
Social Problems: Continuity and Change. University of Minnesota, 2015.