Muted Group

From what I understood, the Muted Group theory is considered to be a critical theory because of the involvement of power; and how it is used against people. The theory is said to be concerned with different groups of people who are said to be powerless compared to others. British anthropologists, Edwin Ardener and Shirley Ardener, were the first two people who introduced and developed the theory. The theory focuses on the ways that the communication practices of dominant groups suppress, mute, or devalue the words, ideas, and discourses of subordinate groups. Edwin contributed to anthropology by studying genders and concluded that many ethnographers in the society were generalized to the male population, which led to the creation of the theory. The theory explains the cause of muteness by a certain group of population especially of that of women in the society. The theory upholds a gender perspective where the male is the dominant class.

University of North Carolina Wilmington and University of Southern California researched on the theory in the context of media, and the role it plays in influencing people to give into the idea of a male dominated society. The schools researched to see how the media portrays women in the context of movies. One movie that was examined was Legally Blonde, and was said to be the perfect example of the theory. It was considered to be perfect because it showed women trying to step in to the world of law, an attitude carried by much of society as a male dominated career. Also in the movie, it was shown that legal skills were only for men, and she only knew about hair care, which in our society, women are believed to be only good at that aspect.

Second, this theory is not only limited to gender, but also power difference and one-group under-represented compared to the other. It is seen in the movie The Help, a movie about a time in America where white American women dominated black women. In the movie, Black women's perception towards things are greatly rejected by the White society. This shows how the different cultures are and how the other, showing how they dominate in the society, mutes one. It shows how this Black women are a muted group having to be overshadowed by all the White women.

         The third example would be the ever present stereotyping of women as a sex symbol in the advertisement, especially in male products. The perspective of male towards women has been narrowed down to either sexual or emotional symbol. One perfect example would be this Dolce and Gabbana advertisement. The ad portrays men in a powerful dominant manner, standing over the women who look weak and powerless to the grasp the man has on her. Another example of the image of women as sex symbol in the media would be the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy. In the book, Anastasia, the main female character, is convinced and obliged to pleasure the male.

The muted group theory was further studied by Cheris kramarae, a professor in women studies upheld the idea that, communication was started by men and due to that reason they take advantage of women. While speaking, women are considered less powerful than men and the reason behind this is simple psychology. Women’s needs are emotionally driven unlike men. And thus the perspective of women differs from men in all aspects. As women now become powerful and equally contribute to her family and through awareness, the perception dominance can be changed. Women are growing to be more independent. More and more examples are occurring in the media. Starting with famous Disney movies such as Mulan, Brave, and Tangled, talk shows like Ellen and Oprah, and even female politicians and presidential candidates. Women are now part of the workforce where they can take on different leadership roles.