Analyze 15 to 20 birthday cards at a nearby store. Categorize cards by gender and by age of intended recipient. If you have no card store nearby, shop birthday cards on the Web. (To do this, go to a search engine like www.google.com and type "greeting cards" in the blank search line.) Are the messages you find in the cards positive or negative?
Jot down what differences you find about age and lack of sexual activity, attractiveness, intelligence, or physical ability by sex. Compare these impressions with those you see on the television or in magazine ads. Taken together, how do birthday cards and other media represent the problems that men and women have as they age?