According to Charles et al. (2018), sexism is prejudice, discrimination, and serotyping people based on their gender. These stereotypes in society are primarily against women. In the past, sexism was very evident in the community, with women being left out in the most important sectors at work and home. Women were also judged and harshly punished for the same actions that men got praised for doing. Although sexism is a bit hidden and reduced in modern society, it is still evident in almost all sectors. The entertainment industry is not left out as various form of sexism is witnessed. They, however, try to show how society discriminates and treats the genders differently. I will explain the television show “two and a half men.” The show aired for twelve seasons from September 2003 to February 2015. It followed the lives of pleasure-seeking jingle writer Charlie Harper, his uptight brother Alan, and Alan’s naughty son Jake. Alan and Jake move into Charlie’s beachfront Malibu house after his marriage begins to crumble, and divorce seems likely, making Charlie’s carefree lifestyle more complicated than it would otherwise be. Chuck Lorre and Lee Aronsohn created the show. I will address sexism as shown in “Two and a half men.” The show’s most evident theme is sexism and shows gender inequality throughout its plot.
The show is very sexist as the movie is based on focusing on and following the life of male characters. Even though the show has female characters, the main actors in the film are men, and women are given junior roles. This reflects society’s view and belief in male superiority. The community believes that men are superior and better, as shown in the show. The characters in the show are also sexist, and they think and demonstrate their ability to control women and use them without any consequences.
Charlie, a free-lance writer, is shown as sexist and a man who takes advantage of women and their vulnerability. Charlie views women as objects to be used by men whenever they wish as he sleeps around with multiple women. From Charlie’s viewpoint, women are painted as excessively demanding, which is insane. Even though he is not so much into having a woman in his life, he uses several women as sexual objects. He values women for what they can offer, which is sex, rather than loving them for who they are. Sexism is seen in how women are dehumanized, made valueless, and only seen as objects for men’s pleasure. The show’s value of women is clearly shown through its constant display of prostitutes (Zimdars, 2018). It shows how women are valueless and can be harassed, used, and their body parts displayed for anyone to see without much struggle.
The show also emphasizes women’s menstrual cycle, where Lee states, “enough ladies, I get it you have periods.” Even though people can argue that it was used to acknowledge that women are human and have their biological processes, it is far from that. This show how women are demoralized and ignored despite their significant contribution to life continuity. Getting “chicks” was the driving force behind every episode. I don’t know what would be duller than that. Boobs, dicks, and vaginal references are made frequently throughout the show. The only thing a lesbian niece cares about is having sex with whatever woman she may find. Lesbians walk around freely screaming, “must have a vagina.” The highest point goes to the player whose sex has the most participants. Everyone is a pervert.
Sexism is also shown in the way the characters childishly talk about sex. The show jokes about rape despite being a common issue affecting women. The joke causes the women audience to feel disrespected and unsafe despite their suffering in the world. The show diminishes the effect rape has on women and the fear of going through, making it seem like it is not an issue. Charlie is also heard saying, “if we are at peak vagina, the prices at the pump are gonna skyrocket.” This shows how women are viewed as objects for financial gain as their prices are negotiable. Sexism is also demonstrated in how all women, especially in season 11, have alcohol addiction problems, are sexually promiscuous, and hate each other. The women hate each other, and the show paints it as dangerous to create meaningful feminine friendships. Women on the show are devalued to the status of their bodies based on the size of their breasts. The fact that Alan is not stereotypically masculine and therefore labeled “gay” is sometimes the most “comic” aspect of his character.
Even after Charlie leaves the show, the series still hold sexist views even though it is not against women. Walden is shown as a person with a good heart and has financial independence and success. Despite his accomplishments, Walden is painted as a man-child who throws tantrums whenever things go against his wishes and hopes. He’s the type to toss food in restaurants, make theatrical and ludicrous suicide attempts after being dumped, flail his penis around in public naively, and fall hopelessly in love with every woman he encounters, con artist included. He even enters into a pseudo marriage to adopt a child. Even though most people could interpret this action as praise for the importance of family when having a child, it is not. The creator uses this to emphasize that women are objects or can be used as a means to an end and to get what men desire. The creator paints men as weak creatures who women sometimes beat. It also shows that men’s pain does not matter, just like how society views men. Even though men are free to do as they want, the community does not welcome men who show emotions openly or cannot handle their wives (Yao 2022). The men are therefore left to suffer in silence.
So much more could be said about the show’s discrimination is its fundamental misogyny. It is a wonder how this show lasted for 12 seasons. The show comes across as a magnificent celebration of toxic masculinity. Still, it’s just a bunch of poor jokes that are repeated over and over again, some misogyny, rape culture, and homophobia set against a background score that tells you when to laugh. While women are shown as material and sex objects, men are portrayed as sex-driven individuals. They are also painted as greedy and selfish. The show’s society has no room for an upright man or a loving woman, which is a hostile world viewpoint.
References
Charles, K. K., Guryan, J., & Pan, J. (2018). The effects of sexism on American women: The role of norms vs. discrimination (No. w24904). National Bureau of Economic Research.
Yao, C. (2022). Analysis of Verbal Humor in Two and a Half Men from the Perspective of Cooperative Principle. International Journal of Social Science and Education Research, 5(4), 210-218.
Zimdars, M. (2018). Having it both ways: Two and a Half Men, Entourage, and televising post-feminist masculinity. Feminist Media Studies, 18(2), 278-293.
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