Angela M. Gooden, author of the article “Gender Representation in Notable Children's Picture Book”, agrees that females are being portrayed in a narrow and biased way. Assumptions are made about each gender and stereotypes are evident in many picture books. As mentioned above, Josie's desire to have all the fancy dresses, shoes, hats and purses is an example of a typical stereotype. Many girls her age like dolls, but they also like other toys, playing outside, playing sports, and other “non-girly” activities. Gooden stresses the significant effect of books on children, and how their minds may be shaped by them. “As they develop, children look for structure in their lives and are driven by an internal need to fit into this structure.” Therefore as children continue to develop, they begin to acquire their own stereotypical ideas of what it means to be a girl or a boy.
In the book Rereading America, an article written by Aaron H. Devor goes in depth about our knowledge of gender in our society. In “Becoming Members of Society: Learning the Social Meanings of Gender”, she states that children learn their culture's definitions of gender and gender identity at the same time they learn what gender behaviors are appropriate for them. In Josie's Gift, the father is given the image of a strong, tall person. He sits on his "big" chair, his laugh fills the whole room, the little boy snuggles in one of Papa's "big, strong" arms. Mama rocks next to him in a little chair Papa made for her. Also mentioned in Rereading America, men in our society take up more space when they walk, when they sit, and whenever they can find a chance. This is one of the masculine traits of men, while women take up less space, close their legs when they sit, and make small, "feminine” gestures. Little details in children"s books show much stereotypes of gender roles and traits in which our society is molded into.
I believe that no matter how hard we try, our culture is too deeply embedded in the ideas of femininity and masculinity. I think that it is especially difficult for us to completely eliminate the gender stereotypes because of the media that constitutes a bulk of our culture. The American culture is bombarded with advertisements and models that constantly reassure and confirm the stereotypes of females. Explicit messages are easier to weed out but when it is implicitly planted in children's books, our stereotypes are harder to omit.
Children learn and develop their values and beliefs of their culture through stories and books. When they are repeatedly given stereotypical messages, their choices of what they want to become or accomplish is limited by these gender stereotypes. The biased views of themselves and those around them, prevent children from doing activities that best suits their personalities and capabilities.
Guidelines have been made in an effort to eliminate sexist roles in children's books. They sought to encourage a healthier development for both boys and girls. Not surprisingly, even after these guidelines were established, gender stereotypes and biases continue to appear in children's picture books. This evidently shows how deeply rooted our stereotypes lie within our culture. Our ideas of "femininity" and "masculinity" have undoubtedly seeped so deep into our culture that it seems almost incurable. How are we to resolve this matter when our mentality on these stereotypes have been buried and fixed into our society for so many years? It has been embedded in our culture for too long of time that it is unyielding.
“Two Ways a Woman Can Get Hurt” by Jean Kilbourne expresses her concerns about the common objectification of women in the media. Advertisements and our popular culture give young women stereotypical messages about their gender. Kilbourne believes that the problem lies with our society's thinking that it is normal. People who create children's books are adults who are part of this society that revolve around stereotypes. One can then easily make the assumption that their cemented ideas about the world is in one way or another, transferred into the books they write for children.
Children's developing concepts of themselves as individuals are bound up in their need to understand and fulfill the expectations of the society in which they are a part. Our notions of what it means to be female or male are socially constructed. Children's books which take part in such stereotypes not only prevents and limits the children, but they automatically transfer our society's stereotypes onto them without giving them a chance to interpret the world as they grow. Although common sense tells us that there are obvious differences between males and females, culture and cultural myths shape the roles men and women play in our public and private lives. We must learn to take caution in passing onto our children, the difference between one's biological identity and the conventional patterns of behavior we learn to associate with each sex.
