Stereotyping and Genre

Have students access the student chapter Genre Analysis and divide the class into groups.

Have each group choose one of the genres that either were on the original list or that were brainstormed by the class. Each group should use the handout to make a list of examples of the genre (specific media works) and its conventions (typical characters, settings, events, and tone.)

When students have finished the handout, explain to them that even when media works don’t have a clear message or moral, they teach us lessons through things like who is expected to be the main character, who is their enemy, and what actions are punished and rewarded.

(If students need help understanding this idea, show them the video Media Minute: Media Have Social and Political Implications.)

Now write the word stereotype on the board and ask students if they know what it means. Make sure they understand that a stereotype is an image or picture of a kind of person that makes it seem like they are all the same: all stepmothers are wicked, all princesses are kind and beautiful, and so on.

Now ask students to think about how a genre’s conventions might lead to stereotyping. For example, wolves and stepmothers are stereotyped as being bad in fairy tales, and girls are often stereotyped as being passive princesses who wait for a prince to rescue them. Have each group brainstorm how the conventions of the genre they analyzed might contribute to stereotyping.

When students have completed their analysis, have them share it with the class and get feedback.

It’s important to make sure students understand that critiquing something — such as by pointing out how it uses stereotypes — is not the same thing as criticizing it, and that there’s nothing wrong with liking a media work that has some elements we don’t like.

• Older students can explore this question in more detail in the lesson Calling Out Versus Calling In.