Media has had a significant influence on both the creation and perpetuation of different roles in society. Sutherland outlines numerous times the thirst for media that Canadian children had during twentieth century, and the rising popularity of different forms of media. Music, reading, and live shows were all popular forms of media before motion pictures became widely available. However once motion pictures became commonplace “Canadian children clearly valued them above all other forms of popular culture”[1].

With the introduction of motion pictures, children would become much more influenced by images than ever before. At this age children are very impressionable and an exposure influential images such as movies, would have contributed to the reinforcement of social standards of the day. As Nicholas exemplifies here, gender roles showed to have been influenced by movies such as the sound of music; “Schellner wrote of her fascination with Julie Andrews as an “ideal mum” In her role as Maria” [2].

Once we consider the effects that media can have on children, looking at the article “The Modern Girl” provides us with insight to the social standards that they were expected to fit within. “The Modern Girl was closely tied to cars, films, and machine-aged aesthetics”[3]. In the 1920’s beauty pageants grew in popularity and proved to be “wildly successful” at influencing young women(4). More so than just what women expected, this likely also had a great influence young men. Being similarly exposed to these images of beauty pageants, young men begin to create what they are to expect from a female partner. Furthermore media shapes what role young men will have to play, in order to be with a “Modern Girl”.

These articles go to show that media was used as a tool to perpetuate gender roles in society, especially targeted to children and young adults. It doesn’t seem however that the media withheld its strong hold on social construction for very long. Once the rapid increase of motion picture availability had settled, and a saturation of media was common place in Canadian society gender roles seem to have moved away from media influences. Baer and Wu have determined that “Norms for gender roles are  changing, with shifts towards gender egalitarianism with respect to the appropriate roles of women and men in the family” (5). Potentially, familiarity to the effects of media has played a part in society moving away from social constructs created and perpetuated by media.