The construction of gender in cartoons for early chilhood audiences: The example of Vikings

In this study, it was examined how gender roles were represented in Vikings Cartoon. This thesis is a qualitative study for descriptive purposes. In accordance with the purposeful sampling technique of the Vikings cartoon, the 43 most watched ones were selected as samples. After the movies were converted into written text, the data were processed with the Maxqda Program and analyzed with the inductive thematic analysis method. As a result of the research, it has been seen that patriarchal thought patterns that build gender are dominant in the selected sample, and it is possible for the audience in early childhood to learn gender patterns sometimes explicitly and sometimes implicitly through the representations in cartoons. As a result, it has been seen that cartoons can serve children in early childhood to learn and adopt sexist stereotypes and to build their lives on these learned stereotypes. Key Words: Gender, cartoon, patriarchy, media, early childhood