Subliminal Messages of Professional Wrestling

Professional wrestling has been popular in mainstream media for decades now and is mostly popular to young boys all the way up to middle aged men. The sport has become much more than just two or more men fighting it out in a ring with a referee and eventually one becoming a champion, but now has become filled with story lines, protagonists to go along with these story lines, and women have been assimilated into a submissive role in the sport. 

The events that take place in the show are viewed mostly by growing men and can create a lasting affect on their morals and their attitudes towards masculinity and how they will go on to treat their girlfriends and eventual spouses. Modern wrestling, from the 90s until now, has incorporated women into the sports as wrestlers, managers of wrestlers, and even some have unique roles such as Stephanie McMahon, who is the daughter of the WWE owner Vince McMahon and becomes someone that is above other women in the sport and even other male wrestlers. Women in this sport are often objectified just as women are in various other forms of media in society. They are often if not always shown as blondes with incredibly athletic bodies with fake breasts and in skimpy clothing, then on top of the exploitation of these women just from their appearance, they are sometimes required to fight other women in mud or some other liquid or they have to engage in an event where the loser is the first to have all of her clothes stripped off. The effect that this representation of women has on the viewers is that men may start to see women as objects and this also creates a false image of how most women look and act in society. 

Another effect that this sport has on the male viewers is that they may begin to think that domestic violence is not a serious issue and take this out on their partners. There have been an incredible amount of fights between men and women on the show where men do not like the way a women is carrying herself and he simply takes out his frustration on her by performing a "finishing move" to exert his dominance over her, likely instilling the belief in some men that in real life if they think that a women is acting in a way that he may not like he can simply use violence to put her in her place. My opinion is that this concept has more influence on middle school and high school age males because they are in a stage where they are on the brink of getting in serious relationships with women and if they see these actions they may believe that this is just the normal way to behave. Here is a video of finishing moves against women in the sport https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WflOXduWMyM.

The culture that the sport has brought upon society also may be affecting the wrestlers themselves. Long time wrestler Triple H was involved in a domestic violence case with his girlfriend who happened to be Stephanie McMahon, the conclusion can be made that the culture is even having an effect on grown men and can curve their beliefs about how to properly be a man and treat a women. Tragically, another case with one of my favorite wrestlers Chris Benoit, ended in the death of his family, where Benoit ended up murdering his wife and smothering his children. The argument can be made that Benoit was a unique case and he was mentally ill but it is entirely possible that he was another victim of the culture that WWE promotes amongst its fans and participants.

Chris Benoit

Homosexuality in Mad Men

Like my last post, I will be doing a close reading on the AMC original series Mad Men but I will be examining the show's feelings towards homosexuality in the workplace. In the show there is a male employee named Sal Romano for the agency Sterling Cooper who conforms to the culture of the agency's ways when it comes to actions in and out of the agency. From smoking Lucky Strike cigarettes to flirting with women at local bars after work.

Sal is married to a woman named Kitty Romano who like him, is from Baltimore, Maryland but even his own wife has no idea of his true sexuality. Romano makes a great effort to conceal this side of him but slips up along the way and this eventually costs him his job at Sterling Cooper. Romano eventually would take interests in other men in the show and some even in the workplace. In between seasons one and two the conclusion is drawn that Romano has a crush on a coworker named Ken Cosgrove. 

Later on in the show Romano is caught by Don Draper on a business trip with a hotel bellhop on the cusp of a sexual encounter. Draper and Romano agree to keep this incident between them but Draper does not hesitate to use this event as inspiration for and advertisement for the cigarette company Lucky Strike. Lastly, Romano involves himself with Lucky Strike's representatives and this causes him to lose his job because he does not partake in sexual activity with the man, angering him and causing him to take his business elsewhere. Draper goes on to fire Romano. 

Romano's situation is very interesting and plays a big role in understanding what the show Mad Men is trying to highlight about the era in which the show takes place. It shows that in this particular society there are certain characteristics that are allowed in this "fraternity-like" setting of Madison Avenue. It's as if homosexuality is breaking a code within the group provoking one's discipline. Romano likely feels that he must conceal his true self in order to stay within the group and so that he can stay employed. Romano even goes as far as having a wife to show his peers that he is just as they are and fits in without a doubt. The conflict for Romano in this show is likely parallel to some "closeted" gay men in today's society. They likely feel that they cannot move up or even stay afloat in the corporate world they must conform to the non verbal code that comes along with being a man in our current american society.