Quotes from David Gauntlett (Media, Gender and Identity)
'It is the case
that the construction of identity has become a known requirement. Modern
Western societies does not leave individuals in any doubt that they need to
make choices of identity and lifestyle - even if their preferred options are
rather obvious and conventional ones, or are limited due to lack of financial
(or cultural) resources. As the sociologist Ulrich Beck has noted - everyone
wants to 'live their own life,' but this is, at the same time 'an experimental
life'.
'Your life is your project - there is no escape. The media provides some of the tools which can be used in this work. Like many toolkit, however, it contains some good utensils and some useless ones; some that might give beauty to the project and some that might spoil it.'
'The role model remains an important concept, although it should not be taken to mean someone that a person wants to copy. Instead, role models serve as navigation points as individuals steer their own personal routes through life.'
'The power relationship between the media and the audience
involves a 'bit of both' or to be more precise, a lot of both. The media sends
out a huge number of messages about identity and acceptable forms of
self-expression, gender, sexuality, and lifestyle. At the same time the public
have their own even more robust set of diverse feelings on the issues. The
media's suggestions may be seductive but can never simply overpower contrary
feelings in the audience.'