Men are objectified too!

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Men are objectified too!

Warning: image heavy click to make them bigger image credit goes to goodcomics.comicbookresources.com and escher girls tumblr

So there’s been a lot of debate about whether women are objectified and overtly sexualized in comics.

The answer is yes. The answer is also DUH.

This isn’t to say or call everyone who works in the comic industry sexist or misogynistic, I am saying however their is a clear disparity between the way men and women are drawn in comics that is very sexist. This isn’t meant to be an attack on the industry, it’s meant to showcase the undertones of sexism in this form of media and to educate others who think there’s no problem with the broken zipper epidemic. The important thing is to not get defensive, but to sit down and listen and then discuss the subject so everyone can better understand it and work to address it. Being sexist or misogynistic doesn’t mean you’re a raging bigot who believes women should stay in the kitchen, but there is such a thing as internalized sexism that most aren’t even aware they suffer from. Comics, in my opinion, is one such victim of internalized sexism (well for most artists/writers some are just outright misogynistic *coughmillercough*).Sure you’ll be hard pressed to find a man in the real world who looks like Dick Grayson or Logan/Wolverine

One of the main counter arguments I see a lot in this debate is that men are objectified too. Only they’re, ya know, not.

Okay so Dick Grayson has a hot ass, and we all know it. But for every Dick Grayson there’s about ten female characters suffering from broken zipper syndrome.

Ahem

I’m not really sure what’s going on with these zippers but they are broken, maybe zippers don’t work on female characters in comics. Maybe living in a world with superheros has busted all their zippers till the end of time. Maybe it’s just the industry continuing to perpetrate the age old sexist standard.

Women are objects first, people second.

Men in comics aren’t presented this way. They aren’t being objectified, they are being idealized. There’s a difference. No dude actually looks like Scott Summers, Captain American, Batman, or Hal Jorden. This is true. It’s also true that their costumes are painted on for full six pack abage. I’ve got no problem with looking at Tim Drake’s abs or Billy ‘I got it from my Mama’ Kalpan’s great bod, just like I don’t have an issue looking at Starfire’s luscious orange skin or Wonder Woman’s wondrous arms.

What I do have a problem with is that Green Lantern can look like this

While Star Sapphire looks like this

But wait, you say, Star Sapphires are the Corps of ~love~ and blahblahblah because that’s another argument some straight guys use when confronted with the notion that comics have sexist undertones and that women are overly sexualized. They use the “well there are ~REASONS~ for her to be dressed/posed that way!”

Ok, well here’s a panel of a male Star Sapphire

Shall we see that again?

Male:

Female

See how I outlined them in colors for everyone’s convenience?

Lets take these next two pictures into account

Both panels/covers are a group shot. Men have their abs and bulging muscles, women have their twisted spines, and gravity defying bosoms. In the first picture you have two female characters, one in a revealing costume while all the men are pretty much covered from head to toe, and the other posing in a contorted fashion to show off her breasts and butt at the same time. While the dudes can just stand there looking strong and imposing.

Hn.

Now in the second picture you have two guys with different body types but the same muscles. You’re probably tempted to go ‘hey the guy in the bottom right has no shirt objectification!’ Only, uh no. He’s not posed in a sexual manner like his female counterparts. The middle one who’s boobs kinda worry me as they look like they might fall off and the pretty blue haired girl next to her who seems to be suffering a spinal injury. But hey that one dude has no shirt so it’s totally equal objectification right?

Look I don’t have a problem with sexy characters and while I believe artists should have some basic idea of how real life anatomy works I also understand that comic!people just aren’t going to be built that way. I’m cool with that. I’m cool with sexy characters of both the male and female variety. Such as pre-nU!Starfire, Emma Frost, Namor, and Dick Grayson for example.

My issue is that there only seems to be one default body type for a majority of female characters in comics

Male characters don’t suffer this.

Superman looks like this

Spider-Man like this

My issue isn’t that female characters are sexy, I would love more sex positive female characters in mainstream media period. My issue is that ladies are being objectified for the straight male gaze posing women as objects first, people second. Comics are a major visual form of media, the first thing you see when you buy a comic is the cover. If I see these two covers side by side on the shelves in my local comic shop what does that show me?

I can’t even tell if she’s wearing a thong can you? I just see like a little leaf or somethin

Again the issue isn’t that women can’t/shouldn’t be sexy, they most certainly can and I’ll be making another post about sexualized vs sexual soon enough to further explain that. No the issue is that female characters are posing in thoroughly sexual poses to fully show off their thighs, butts, and bosoms as much as non-humanly possible in one panel. With costumes that make little to no sense and exist for no other reason then to show off how ~sexy~ women are for the straight male gaze

wtf how does that not pinch in areas that would really hurt!? And how does that protect anything on your body? I’d like to sue the person who came up with this armor for damages

Finally for every person who wants to use the previously stated arguement that ‘there are ~reasons~ for why she’s dressed that way!’ Where is Superman’s boob window? Or better yet, him and Starfire both get their powers from out sun (Superman moreso then Starfire) where is my Super!Thong? Superman is THE alien of comics. WHERE’S MY SUPER THONG SUPERMAN!? WHERE’S YOUR BIKINI ARMOR SO YOU CAN ABSORB MORE SUN THROUGH YOUR SKIN!?