Marginalization in the Media

This past week, I was watching a show called Rules of Engagement. I'm not sure how many people know of this show but it's a comedy that follows two couples and their friend who is single. Throughout the seven seasons that it lasted, there were many negative reviews associated with it due to the underlying problems that producers of this show tried to make light of.

For example, in one of the episodes that I was watching, called The Power Couple, I came across a great example of marginalization. Marginalization is the exclusion from meaningful participation in society. It proves to be on of the most dangerous forms of oppression. In this episode, married couple Audrey and Jeff, have a disagreement. Audrey recently got a raise at work and with the increase in income, Audrey sets out to buy a new television. Jeff grows upset because that men should be the breadwinners of the household and he believes that men should also be the ones purchasing electronics for the household. Below, I embedded the episode. Fast forward to 16:56 to see what I am referring to.



To me, this episode represented a good example of marginalization because Jeff is essentially oppressing Audrey when he says that men should be the ones buying electronics and is clearly upset that Audrey is making more money than he is. Audrey states that he should support her when she is successful just like she supports him when he's successful. This sort of issue is seen in a lot of contexts. When women start becoming more successful than men, there is an issue that is brought forth. And because women being successful is seen as threatening to some men, it is a form of oppression and marginalization.

Women essentially become deprived of things that men aren't. It's seen as abnormal when women make more money than their husband. It's seen as abnormal when women buy things for their home that men are expected to buy, like electronics. Women are deprived of that realm of involvement within the material world. Women are depreciated in this sense.

Like I stated earlier, this show received a lot of bad reviews because of the actual problems that exist that producers covered up with comedy. The issues that present itself in this show are portrayed as funny and something that should be taken as a joke. And while I find this show to be comical and I don't take it too seriously, there are episodes such as this one that might go a little too far. Marginalization is so prominent in this show that it's hard to see the funny side. It's hard to look past what the real problem is that the characters are discussing. For me, I couldn't focus on the dialogue between the characters for the last few minutes of the show after this scene because I was too focused on how this episode provides a perfect example of the problem that still exists in our society today. That is, the marginalization of women not only in media, but in the real world as well. In many aspects, women are oppressed and it's not surprising to see a show like this participating in this social construction that women are of lesser value than men.

The question is, what do we do when we see marginalization in the media?

First, try not to overlook it. It's easy to do sometimes. When you see it, address it. Discuss why it's not fair or essentially progressive for society in any form. Be aware when marginalization is prevalent and think about how the scenario would differ if marginalization wasn't a part of it. Try to look at it from a different perspective than what is being portrayed to you. By doing this, you'll become a more educated and diverse consumer of media.