Representation of Changing Gender Stereotypes in SpongeBob Square Pants Animation and Its Relationship with Cultural & Economic Liberalism

Individualism is a phenomenon emerged from liberalism and capitalism; a system that is created on the basis of competitive principles, in which the only concern of people is welfare through more material consumption. In cultural studies, consumption has been transformed into a cultural subject that has symbolic aspect, so that individuals do not consume for their needs, but they tend to exhibit themselves via consuming materials, making their identities in this way. On the other hand, gender prototypes of men and women in the community define people in a different way; depicting women to be weak, dependent, and sentimental people and men to be strong, independent and serious individuals. But, the stereotypes in the Sponge Bob Square Pants series have changed towards intensification of individualism and behaviors specific to men and women have replaced each other. The present study intends to review the relations between changing gender stereotypes in this animation and cultural and economic liberalism and subsequently individualism and capitalism. Representation of the stereotype changes in the series reveals the close relationship between these stereotypes and liberalistic thought. Since capitalism is one of the inseparable principles of liberalism, the resulted narcissism and consumerism are the main reasons behind reviewing gender stereotype changes in this series.