Stereotypes in the Media

The representations of teenage girls by the media is usually different from reality. Movies, magazines and advertisements stereotype girls into different groups. The most common and followed stereotype of teenage girls is the popular "It Girl" who has perfect hair, clear skin, confident personalities and in-style fashion. This represents teenage girls to be involved with beauty and fashion as well as gossip and boys. People would say a "typical" girl. This is what the media wants us to think all teenage girls should be like in order to sell products and achieve high ratings. 

The types of media I have chosen to study point out that teenage girls are almost always represented by the average beautiful girl. Although they do have their own uniqueness's, each girl has certain characteristics and traits. Because teenagers are the targeted audience for my studied media, what they see impacts them and their society. The values shown in these types of media effect girls as they absorb most details shown. With all of the context of magazines, beauty advertisements and themes in the movies, gossip, fashion and beauty are shown as three important values a teenage girl should have. With the glamorous ways of The Bellas and The Plastics, to the cover girls and spokeswomen, a silent expectation of teenage girls has arisen. The creators of the media I have studied have skillfully crafted these values in a way which impacts society. They compare the local teenagers to the media's representation of them which puts pressure on the girls to act a certain way. 

In Mean Girls an Pitch Perfect, the reasons for creating such characters as The Plastics and The Bellas, was to show the change in their behavior once they stop judging everyone for what they do and just accepting them for who they are. I believe this i what reality is like. Yes there are some girls who consider themselves superior to everyone else but at school especially, there isn't one superior clique which dominates the year level but different cliques based on interest and mutual respect for each other.

The advertisements and magazines representations of teenage girls is close to reality of a celebrity but not for an average teenager. The reasons for they way the present teenage girls to us is so that they can sell their product. When we see a gorgeous girl using a certain product in a magazine or on the television we assume that the product works and therefore will work for everyone.

The impact which the media has on teenage girls and their societies impacts their way of life. 

Beauty Products Advertisements

                                           http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueZnDUDXlRE  

The Garnier BB Cream commercial advertises this product to be a "miracle skin perfecter" which renews your skin in an instant. The creator of this advert has used a "simple" approach by keeping everything plain which makes it look quite fresh. The simple language and slogans used makes it easy to understand what BB Cream is without going into any detail. There is no major colours or items shown which can distract us from the message they are trying to get across. One of the spokeswomen says "My skin, perfect. Just like that" while she snaps her fingers. It is a simple quote which gets straight to the point. This approach is effective as it enables their target audience, teenage girls, to truly understand that their product is user friendly and far from anything complicated. 
The choice of spokeswomen is very stereotypical towards teenage girls. The two girls who appear in this commercial present teenagers to have clear and bright skin. Even before the application of the BB Cream, the spokeswomen has smooth skin with very few blemishes. This is a false representation of teenage girls as there is many different types of skin in the teenage population which can not be instantly fixed with a layer of the Garnier BB Cream. This representation puts pressure on teenagers in our society to achieve the clarity we see in the spokeswomen's skin. The message which Garnier is trying to get across is that, if you use our miracle skin perfecter, your skin will look exactly like these models, clear and even, when in reality it will only supply minimum coverage. 
You will not instantly go from having skin like this:                          To looking like this: 




















I know that Garnier wants beautiful young girls to advertise their BB Cream in order to attract teenagers who are looking for an easy answer to covering their skin, but the consequences are that girls are beating themselves up because they don't have that photo-ready look once they have used this product. By representing teenage girls with models who have gorgeous complexions, issues in societies are rising as society is expecting more and more teenage girls to have clear skin, when in reality there are more girls struggling, fighting the battle against acne.
The perception of beauty which is presented to society and targeting teenage girls by the Garnier BB Cream commercial is a high step from reality. Girls are trying to make the jump to the next step by absorbing what they hear and see about this product. 
One layer and all your flaws will disappear. Nothing is quite this simple and because the media is presenting our exterior beauty to be this easy to expressed, they are influencing false expectations in societies against teenage girls. 

                                          http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zI_139PxdpU

Garnier is not the only brand of make-up which uses the beauty of their models to present their products. The Maybelline New York Superstay 14 hour Lipstick is advertised to be super-weightless, fade free and continuously glossy. Like Garnier, the creator of this advert has taken a "simple" approach to advertising this product. The background is white and the spokeswomen's attire is casual-dress. Because this lipstick is bright and the bold font matches the lipstick colour on the model, the white background enhances our vision to focus on the message Maybelline is trying to get across. It is simple and clear which makes it easy for Maybelline's audience, mostly teenage girls and young women, to understand their product. Their slogan, "It's a One-step Hit" compliments the approach of the creators as it is simple and sums up the idea of Maybelline's Superstay 14 hour Lipstick.
Maybelline uses the same approach as Garnier for advertising their product. With the simple theme for their advert it makes sense that the models presenting their products have effortless beauty. The girls have a natural look about them with their clear skin and even tones. This causes stereotypes to be made about women.  They are being represented by females with photo-ready skin and hair that falls perfectly when in reality not all women and teenage girls have the complexion of a Maybelline spokeswomen. Because the media is using specific women for advertisements, society's idea of women has high expectations of beauty. They compare them to what they see on these adverts which causes a certain pressure on women to constantly look their best without being over-the-top. Maybelline presents their product successfully as they use the stereotype of women created by the media to represent their audience in order to attract customers. 

Garnier and Maybelline represent their target audience, women and teenage girls, with the stereotypical spokeswomen, which effects the way society looks at this group with in themselves. Because they link a certain type of beauty with their products, society's expectation of women reflects the stereotype shown in their adverts. The difference between the representation of teenage girls (and women) shown by these products, and reality is that everyone is unique. Garnier BB Cream  and Maybelline Superstay Lipstick may not be the best products for everyone. By presenting their products with models that are photo-ready there is unnecessary pressure on women and girls to try and reach those beauty standards. The reality is that everyone has different skin, so Garnier BB Cream may not be suitable for certain skin types and Maybelline Superstay Lipstick shades might not match your skin tone. Just because the media represents women and teenage girls in this way, it does not mean that society needs to apply the pressure for them to match it.         

Teen Magazines

There are many magazines which are directed at teenage girls. A well-known teen read is Creme magazine. Creme magazine targets girls between the ages of 10-16 year old.  

Selena Gomez, Cover girl. Beautiful and talented, the perfect role model for young girls. Gomez is a young singer and actress who inspires and motivates young teenage girls worldwide and its this representation which allows her to be successful in her work. She is a good cover girl for Creme as the readers will respond positively to her appearance on the cover. Young girls aspire to be like Gomez for her "girl next door" vibe. She has the beauty (clear skin, rich hair, slim build), no doubt the brains with all of her talents, and the innocence that all parents want their young girls to look up to. When has there ever been anything negative in the media about Selena Gomez? Maybe this is because of all the pressure society has put on her to live up to her stereotype. For her to cross the line from innocence to mildly wild would cause a big dent in her fan base. Teenagers see her as the ultimate girl. Because she is still only young and closely aged to us teenagers, the idea of reaching her heights does not seem like it is out of the question. We look at her and thrive to be like her. The image she has created for herself is positively influencing young girls away from the nasty stereotypes shown elsewhere in the media. 

By casting Gomez as their cover girl, Creme has immediately drawn the attention of young teenage girls to their magazine. Although she is an inspiring role model, we instantly know that this magazine is going to be the typical "girl mag" with all things fashion, boys, and gossip. With the bright colours and quirky fonts to attract their readers, the design of the cover alongside the main image of Gomez holds the attraction of a bubbly girl interested in all that this magazine beholds. The articles within the magazine are outlined with various titles such as "Music Madness", "Babe Alert", Advice, best beauty buys. Automatically we know that the content of Creme is sleep-over material, so to speak. They have chosen articles which they assume young teenagers want to read and learn about. Stereo typically you would assume that most girls want to read about this stuff, but that may not be true. I remember when I was a couple of years younger, I thought I needed to read this kind of material and that it was an important part of being a girl, getting your Creme mag out and reading all the gossip about celebrities and boys, when really I wasn't at all interested. Many girls have the same issue as I did. They think that because every other girl enjoys reading about gossip, boys, and fashion, that they have to aswell. Because many of the Creme readers are not actually interested in the items provided, but think this is what they should be wanting to read so they buy it anyway. Creme believes that their audience wants to know all about their articles so they therefore continue to publish the same kind. This is where it is confusing. I'll break it down:

- Creme publishes articles about boys, gossip, make-up and fashion.
- Teenage girls buy this magazine to fit in with all the other girls because they think it's "cool" to do it.
- Creme gets the idea that young girls enjoy reading this material so they continue to publish it.

Statistics taken from this magazine show that the most frequent type of article which features in this magazine is Advice. There are Five different advice articles in this issue alone. Other statistics include three articles about beauty, three about relationships i.e friendships, boyfriends, and eleven articles about "other" categories which include advertisements for make-up, skin care, clothing etc. and crafts ideas. 

This is how the theme of Creme would have started and now it is stereotyped as "a girls best friend". This stereotype represents young teenage girls to be bubbly, gossip girls, and to have fashion awareness. This representation affects teenage girls by influencing them with their articles and advertisements. Because Creme is subjected to young girls, and only contain certain content, it is easy for teenagers to be influenced to think and act a certain way. For example, one of the articles is about Babe Alert: Austin Butler. This article expresses the world wide obsession with Austin Butler. Because Creme is devoting an article especially for Butler, their readers are going to think that he is something special and will start to talk and gloat about him, maybe because they truly have a celeb crush on him, or maybe it's because he is in the magazine. They have provided guidance for the way young girls think. Because the girls are being influenced by the articles, their values and beliefs will start to develop as they get older around the basis of Creme magazine. They may not even realise that these articles have such an impact on them. Before they know it, when they are faced with a decision they will confront their latest Creme mag to seek advice and assurance of their choice. Because Creme influences girls decision making like this, the stereotype which comes with this magazine is seen in reality. Quirky girls who love to gossip about celebrities and boys, fashion lovers and advice addicts. Society will catch on to the craze of Creme magazine, and will start to stereotype all girls under this representation which the media has created of young teenage girls. This will cause people to judge girls who are not in to the girly scene as an outcast in society. It is as if the magazine is saying, if you don't like me, we won't like you. The way that society, especially young teenage boys, look at girls will be based on magazines such as Creme. 
Imagine a magazine with dark Gothic people on the front, gloomy font highlighting the articles inside to be filled of punk rock music, "dark"magic, and advertising the latest leather gear. If this magazine became extremely popular the way Creme is among young teenage girls, their stereotype would differ because their representation has changed. What ever is on trend among young teenage girls will influence their stereotype and therefore their values, beliefs and actions. 

Selena Gomez is an amazing role model for this era of time. Because Creme magazine has provided a cover girl who is such an inspiration to young teenage girls, they are presenting a stereotype of simple elegance and talent to aspire from. The look that Selena has compliments the articles within the magazine creating a strong girly trend . She is beautiful, which compliments the talk of beauty products and advice, she is talented and well known, enabling them to include articles about the up and coming bands and whats happening on the screens, and mostly shes a girl. This representation of girls influences society and comes relatively close to young teenagers in reality.

Like Creme, every women magazine has a picture perfect cover girl. They are all glamorous and glowing. Yes, they are beautiful women, but the fact is that the majority of magazines use photo shop to perfect the features of their cover girl. Some people wonder why they do this when their cover girls are already stunning. By using photo shop to trim down their arms and legs, flatten their stomachs, smooth over blemishes and uneven skin tones, and enhance all their curves and angles, the cover girls look younger, fresher and even more gorgeous than before. Not only is it in women magazines that we see the extreme use of photo shop but also in magazines such as Creme, which targets young teenage girls. 

Example of the "Digital Beauty" which Media
Presents to Society

The media changes the perception of beauty for women of all ages, especially teenagers. Girls look at cover girls and their perfect complexion, wishing they could have similar features and to be considered as beautiful as them. If they have a computer and can work photo shop they can achieve this look, but only in pictures. It is all digital. Our role models and inspirations are represented by the digital images the media chooses to display. The media is presenting the stereotypical beautiful women which puts pressure on society and young teenagers to live up to this stereotype. Magazines are giving out the impression that you can not be beautiful unless you have the "cover girl" look. This influences teenage girls to go after various beauty products that are advertised to "make your skin glow" in order to achieve this look.
We are given this perception of beauty by more than most magazines available to us. Society is influenced to think beauty is what you see on the cover. The pressure that this puts on women and teenage girls is unnecessary and heavy. Because the image they presented as beautiful, the media influences many girls to change themselves. This is a negative consequence on society. Girls go through so much trouble trying to better their appearances and become slender that some may start to cause harm to their health. Because the girls can't reach that level of beauty with out digital touch-ups, many become depressed and some even develop eating disorders. 


The reality of beautiful women and teenage girls is very different than their representation by magazines. In reality, it does not matter if your skin tone is uneven or if your face is not symmetrical, beauty comes from within. It is a very unique trait to carry as no one's beauty is the same as someone else. Although you may not feel like your appearance is welcoming from others, you are beautiful in your own way and I think this is what the media needs to focus on portraying. It isn't all about having the perfect complexion but about how you present yourself as an individual and express your own beauty.   

Pitch Perfect and Mean Girls

The stereotypes in the movie Mean Girls are different although very similar to those from the movie Perfect Pitch.

The Barden Bellas

In Pitch Perfect I have identified the sophisticated but sexual Barden Bellas, the alternative and independent Becca and the confident and cocky Fat Amy as the three important stereotypes. These stereotypes allow for contrast and conflict between each other in the movie, which causes the ending to occur as it does. They learn to accept each other for their different qualities and work together to take out the big a cappella competition.

Mean Girls is based around the character Cady Heron who moves to America after being home schooled by her parents in Africa for the last 12 years. She attends her first ever school and is taken under the wing of Janice Ian. She teaches Cady the ropes of high school and who to befriend and who to avoid. The "It" group known as "The Plastics" take an interest in Cady and invite her to join their clique. This starts out as a fake friendship so Janice can get revenge on Regina George(the Queen B) but shortly turns into a competition for the crown. Cady turns into a replica of Regina George which causes a junior girls riot as the Burn Book (filled with rude comments about each junior girl) is spread around the school. This causes The Plastics to separate and join other crowds.

Gretchen, Regina, Karen.
The Plastics

The stereotypes in Mean Girls are similar to those in Pitch Perfect, though they have their own uniqueness.
The three main stereotypes from Mean Girls are; "The Plastics", Janice Ian, and Cady Heron. The Plastics are similar to the traditional Barden Bella's although their stereotype differs. The Plastics are described as a clique of glamorous, pretty,skinny, judgmental, vain, fake, back-stabbing, barbie-like bitches who consider themselves the "Queen B's" of the school. This clique consists of three girls whom all fit the description above. They live by the girl code and the rules in which you have to follow to be apart of the Plastics. Some of these rules are:
- You can only wear your hair in a pony-tail once a week.
- Wednesday is pink day.
- Track pants or jeans are only to be worn on Fridays.
- Never like or date your friends ex.
These rules are the girls values and beliefs. They live by them. The other girls in their resent The Plastics because they are jealous of their reputation. "Normal people only hate cliques because they just want to be included too." This is a quote from the article Mean Girls? A Culture of Cliques (http://www.bcheights.com/2.6178/mean-girls-a-culture-of-cliques-1.917755#.Ux0IDvmSzVp&id=41420055&folder_id=1264035) which is featured on the Boston College website. It backs up the idea of how girls than are not involved in The Plastics clique are jealous of them and their popularity.    

As seen in the picture above, your attire has to be girly but also sexy. The mini skirts and short tops which finish near their belly buttons is the basic uniform for The Plastics. This gives them that on-trend designer look. Their accessories are very simple but also quite classy.
Each member of this clique have defined legs, luscious silky hair, flat stomachs and clear skin. They hold themselves tall and strut the hall ways, rather than walk them. Through out the movie we see a few backwards tracking shots of the incoming Plastics as they make their way down the corridors. This enhances their superiority as it allows us to see The Plastics walking through their peers as they step aside to allow a clear pathway.To top off their Queen B look, The Plastics are full of attitude. The way they speak to each other and about other people is judgmental and deceiving. They twist others words to form a different meaning and say compliments which aren't necessary true. For example in the cafeteria when they first meet Cady Heron, Regina says "so you agree, you think your pretty?" after Cady replied "thank you" for a compliment on her beauty. 
With their composure, costumes, and attitudes all combined together, you get the stereotypical popular group of teenage girls.  

This is similar to The Bellas because they both consider themselves to be superior to their peers. Although their looks are different, they are similar at the same time. The Bella's are sophisticated with a subtle touch of seductiveness; The Plastics are stunning, Queen B material girls. Short skirts, tight tops, the typical "It"girls uniform which The Bella's and The Plastics both tend to wear.

This representation of the two girl groups by the media effects teenage girls and their societies, who are audiences to these films.
Because The Plastics and The Bellas are the main girl groups in these movies, teenage girls want to be like them. We are shown the power they have over their peers (in some cases their teachers), what they wear, and who they befriend which gives us a certain perspective of what teenage girls should be like. The media has created this stereotype of teenage girls, and we, as the audience, feel like this is how we need to be. This causes consequences like girls developing issues with eating, weight, personalities, appearances and relationships. Girls put pressure on themselves and each other to live up to this "perfect teenager" image which is created. Some girls achieve it, while others do not. Because young girls respond to the media's perception of teenage girls, the society assumes that most teenage girls are caught up with gossip, themselves and boys. This happens because they see these movies and are aware of the characteristics the girls have. They can see that many girls want to be the "It" girl and so their attitude towards teenagers is impacted. They look at them as troublemakers, hard work, and obsessive. This perception of teenaged girls by society is only there because of they way the media, Mean girls and Pitch Perfect, have chosen to present their characters. 
Reality, in some cases, is not too far from this representation. Most highschools have their  "Mean Girls" and "Queen B's", but not quite to this extent. The representation which girls see in these movies, does cause them to think about themselves and ask ,"what can I do to be like this?" As I mentioned before, this leads to all kinds of issues which are not healthy for the girls, emotionally and physically. The reality of teenaged girls is that they put pressure on themselves to achieve that "Queen B" look and status. Eventually they realise not everyone can have this role in life, or that they don't actually want to be like this. Some figure this out early in life, others later, and some can never quite grasp this concept. So although this representation is not totally false, it still isn't true either. Somewhere inbetween is the perfect reality of teenage girls. Theres a bit of The Plastics, a bit of the alternative or humourous, and some smart or sporty. Reality has a range. A unique range, allowing girls to be themselves and not a copy of the media's representation.


Not only are The Bellas and The Plastics similar at the beginning of each film, but also at the end.
In Pitch Perfect, The Bellas come back to reality and grow to know and respect each other for their differences. They no longer judge each other for their personalities and actions, but accept the fact that everyone is an individual.
This is similar in Mean Girls. Due to the "Burn Book" (a book The Plastics wrote about all the girls in their level) being exposed, the girls were able to express how they really felt to about each other without it being cast as back-stabbing or bitching. Everyone was able to say the honest truth face to face which led to the break down of The Plastics. They all got over their desire to be Queen B and accepted each others differences. They stepped off their high horse and came down to reality. The Plastics, although they remained friends, no longer ruled the school. They resolved all the Bitchiness.



These stereotypes from Pitch Perfect and Mean Girls put ideas into young teenage girls minds. Some girls believe that this is what teenage girls should act and dress like just because it is shown to us in this way. It is hard for young girls to realise that this is the wrong way to act. That to judge someone and talk bad about someone is okay, when it really is not. Teenage girls need to focus on the turning point of these movies and look at the important messages hidden behind the glamorous lives of these characters.
If you judge someone and/or talk bad things about them behind their backs, it will only cause you trouble and tension between you and other people. These things are unnecessary issues that can be solved just like in Pitch Perfect and in Mean Girls. Bitchiness will not get you anywhere.

Pitch "Perfect"

Pitch Perfect is about an ongoing college a cappella rivalry . It follows the girls a capella group, The Barden Bellas, journey towards earning their spot in the national a cappella competition and earning the respect they deserve from their fellow singers. Throughout this film we see people from different social groups interact and learn to work together to form a unique a cappella group. The Bellas transform from their strictly traditional look to  expressing group showing each members individuality. This change is the reason for their success.

In the movie Pitch Perfect, there are various social groups which all have there own stereotype. The Bellas, Becca, and Fat Amy have their own stereotypes. 

The Barden Bellas
The Barden Bellas are presented to us as a sophisticated group of girls. Their costume for performing is a short skirt and blazer with an open shirt. A scarf tied around their necks tops off the image of an air hostesses. The open shirt shows cleavage which gives off a sexual look. During the pep talk before their performance, the leader is bitchy towards the members that are next in line to run the a cappella group.
"I can't believe The Bellas are being passed onto you two slut-bags when we graduate." The tone of voice used is assertive and rude which suggests that they are stuck up girls who are all about them selves. As they walked on to the stage to perform, The lighting is bright which highlights their clear skin and high locks portraying them as beautiful young women. The host makes a comment saying that "girls are only as good as they are as being doctors." This suggest that girls are no competition in the a cappella society. The song that they sing is very traditional, which adds to the stereotype of sophisticated.  The look and the vibe that The Bellas give off at the competition, inclines people to make assumptions about what kind of people they are. I have stereotyped them as sophisticated but sexual, stuck up and bitchy, aswell as carrying a traditional air around them. This is The Bellas from a glance.

The Barden Bellas at the previous years A Capella Competition.

Becca 
When we are first introduced to Becca, we are immediately aware that she is different from the average college girl. She is mixing her own music with a techno genre. Her clothing is simple-casual with a touch of punk rock. This is assumed by the checked shirt, black boots and leather bracelets that she wears. Becca's black fingernail polish and eyeliner stereotype her as a punk rock chick also. How she composes herself with her music and her attire, Becca has an alternative vibe. We see that she is different from others as instead of arriving to college with her parents, she is alone and transported by a taxi. Also, she carries her own bags to her room. This shows that Becca is independent and doesn't need to be surrounded by people to be herself. After she has set up her music equipment i.e. spin table, Becca's Dad comes in to check on her. Her independence and a bit of sarcasm is shown in the way that she talks to her father. "I didn't want to inconvenience you and Sheila. How is the step-monster anyway?" Becca uses this sarcasm when her Dad asks her how she got to the university.

Fat Amy  
Fat Amy has very unique stereotypes. She is confident, cocky, funny and speaks whatever is on her mind. "I'm the best singer in Tasmania, with teeth." This is the first thing she says when she meets The Bella's. She is straight up and isn't shy to boast about herself. Just by giving herself the name "Fat Amy" shows that she isn't bothered about what people think about her, as she named herself that so "twig bitches" couldn't call her it behind her back. She wears simple clothes and a casual ponytail. I think her attire works well with her outgoing personality as it does not distract you from her actions or what she says. Fat Amy is a very unique person. Sometimes she says inappropriate things without meaning to as she has no filter. "That's not a real word but keep trying". This comes with her self confidence and quirkiness. Amy's personality slightly conflicts her stereotype as the "typical fat girl". Usually you would expect people to call her names and say rude things, but with her attitude towards everything, Amy makes 'under-the-breath' comments about the other girls. *cough* slut, Twig Bitches, lesbeonest are a few examples of this. 

Further on in the film, after seeing a bit more of The Bellas, Becca and Fat Amy, their stereotypes grow into personalities.

The two original Bellas (Aubrey and Chloe) who have taken the reins over the group are the same traditional sophisticated girls who are always involved with The Bellas.  These two (especially Aubrey) are quick to judge based on first impressions at the a cappella auditions. They speak with proper pronunciation which upholds their original stereotypes. "The Trebles don't respect us, and if we let them penetrate us we are giving them our power." The way Aubrey worded this statement is classy and proper and is evidence that they are holding on to tradition. Although the girls that are accepted into The Bellas are not the typical "Bella Girls", they still stick to the traditional look and sound. "We don't stray from tradition". Due to the previous year, Aubrey is determined to stick to the ropes and keep The Bellas classy. Aubrey teaches the girls the same choreography which goes along with the same song, which she chocked on the previous year. Basically she is stuck in the past. 

Becca's stereotypes are confirmed as being alternative form everyone else. At the a cappella auditions she sang a different song to everyone else and also sat down on the stage while performing it. She does things in her own way. When Becca is selected into The Bellas, we can see the immediate contrast between herself and Aubrey as they have different personalities which are likely to clash. During the Bella's first practice, we see that Becca is straight up, "I'm pretty sure you need me more than I need you." By this we see that Becca is her own person and isn't afraid to speak her mind.

Fat Amy is continuously saying random statements about everything. "Sometimes i have a feeling i should do crystal meth, but then I think, hmm... better not." She is her own person and will change situations to suit herself. For example, during their practice Aubrey leads a cardio session. Everyone is running up and down the stairs while Amy is, as she called it, "horizontal running". We never know what to expect with Fat Amy. She is always speaking or doing something new. 

The Traditional Barden Bellas Look.

The New Barden Bellas Look.

At the end of Pitch Perfect, The Bellas transform into a different group. They no longer live up to the expectations that everyone holds over them. Aubrey looks past her previous experiences and asks Becca for help as she realises things need to change in order for them to have the best chance at winning. Their final performance takes everyone by surprise as it conflicts The Bellas stereotypical sophisticated bunch of girls. Their individuality was expressed in their new performance outfits (a mix of jeans, skirts or shorts and blazers, blouses or shirts) which still consisted of the neck scarves, though they all wore them in a unique way. The song choices were a mixture of old and new, upbeat and slow, which enabled the audience to become more attached throughout their performance. Instead of being the traditional Bellas, they brought out a new era which made a cappella history and brought the girls closer together than ever before.  

The Bellas during their final performance

The stereotypes shown at the start of the movie are three general categories which girls in society get cast under today: popular (The Bella's), alternative (Becca), and confident(Amy). Because the media represents teenage girls to society in this way, we start to think this is how we should be. Just pick a type of person and live like them. It shouldn't be like this. Although Pitch Perfect portrays a certain image of teenage girls at the beginning of the movie, it also allows young girls to see that when you accept people for who they are, even if you don't like some things they say or do, you will be able to focus on more important things. Girls need to discover their own personalities for themselves and not worry about not fitting in with certain people. Once teenagers start to live up the these stereotypes, society assumes all girls are like this, and expect nothing else from them. It shows the true meaning of individuality and how important it is to express it. The change in stereotypes throughout Pitch Perfect is a positive aspect for teenage girls to take away from this movie. 

Stereotypes

Stereotypes are specific ideas and assumptions which categorise individuals and their actions as a certain type. For example, If you see a young girl sitting outside the library with a book in hand, her hair falling across her glasses and is wearing a plain jersey and jeans. Your first thoughts may be along the lines of quiet, shy, intelligent, respectful.

This is stereotyping. Judging an individual on what you see and casting them as a certain type of person.
Everyone stereotypes at one time or another. We make assumptions and guess ideas about individuals. When we class them under a 'type' of person. I think that the main reason as to why we stereotype is to figure out who a person may be without actually talking to them.

The media uses stereotypes to get their message across. They use celebrities to portray a certain look for a certain type of person. For example we see Lady Gaga in her crazy Red Carpet outfits due to media capturing her and categorising her as a crazy, out there person, who seems to be always taking it to the next level. The media cast celebrities and different activities into certain catergories, as to say what is 'HOT' and what is 'NOT'. This is their way of presenting their message and views to the readers and watchers of media.