The above picture is the movie poster for Life As We Know it starring Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel. It is about two god parents who didn't know the other existed until the parents of their godson die and they are responsible for raising the child together. The movie poster sums up the messages viewers get regarding gender and raising children: women naturally fall into the warm, caring, "mother" role, while men are portrayed as babies themselves, despite being well into their 20s and 30s.
In the poster, Heigl looks well put together. She is responsibly and happily following the baby with open arms, and paying attention to him. Duhamel is shown as an "adult" baby, in only white underwear and sneakers, and a bottle in his mouth. He is careless, easy going, and irresponsible and cannot get his life situated. Despite all of this, Heigl settles for a relationship with him, and they live "happily ever after".
This can be seen as offensive to both men and women. Men are commonly presented in movies as juvenile and immature, especially when the situation involves traditional "female" roles, such as child-rearing, and it takes a woman and many, many years for them to realize that they are no longer children. Women could be offended by this because it makes it seem like, although they deserve more, they typically decide to settle for a lesser man and find his negative qualities endearing rather than annoying and insulting. On top of this, they will have to assume the role of parent and adult immediately and not be able to count on their male counterparts for support in the household.
The gender stereotypes on display here are offensive and reprehensible, but it is not uncommon in films and television shows.
--Breana Swain
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