Gendered discourse(s)
-
Grace Diabah
Abstract
Politics is one field in which patriarchy has enjoyed some level of acceptance over the years. For instance, some researchers (Gidengil and Everitt 1999; Sapiro 1993; Atanga 2007) have indicated that many people have always perceived politics as the field for ‘men’. Accordingly, women who subscribe to the ‘ideals’ of womanhood should not engage in politics. This does not only constrain women’s political ambitions, but it also constructs them as politically weak and unfit for such ‘serious’ business. This assumption has however been challenged by the changing roles of women as they construct multiple identities. In this paper, I discuss two texts (profiles of Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and George Weah) from the BBC produced on the Liberian election in 2005, which represent both the traces and changes in patriarchal practices in Africa. Important to this election was that Mrs Johnson-Sirleaf (if elected) was going to be the first female African president – a role perceived as inconsistent with socio-cultural roles of (African) women. So, to what extent was gender (rather than experience) considered a major factor in the BBC’s profiles? The results show that this political discourse is gendered because a man and a woman are the major aspirants. However, the issue of ‘gender’ becomes ‘omni-relevant’ (Holmes 1997) and explicit only in Mrs Johnson-Sirleaf’s profile. This, I argue, is because the text producers perceive her to be ‘the deviant’ one. In this way, her political ambition is presented as a challenge to patriarchy.
Abstract
Politics is one field in which patriarchy has enjoyed some level of acceptance over the years. For instance, some researchers (Gidengil and Everitt 1999; Sapiro 1993; Atanga 2007) have indicated that many people have always perceived politics as the field for ‘men’. Accordingly, women who subscribe to the ‘ideals’ of womanhood should not engage in politics. This does not only constrain women’s political ambitions, but it also constructs them as politically weak and unfit for such ‘serious’ business. This assumption has however been challenged by the changing roles of women as they construct multiple identities. In this paper, I discuss two texts (profiles of Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf and George Weah) from the BBC produced on the Liberian election in 2005, which represent both the traces and changes in patriarchal practices in Africa. Important to this election was that Mrs Johnson-Sirleaf (if elected) was going to be the first female African president – a role perceived as inconsistent with socio-cultural roles of (African) women. So, to what extent was gender (rather than experience) considered a major factor in the BBC’s profiles? The results show that this political discourse is gendered because a man and a woman are the major aspirants. However, the issue of ‘gender’ becomes ‘omni-relevant’ (Holmes 1997) and explicit only in Mrs Johnson-Sirleaf’s profile. This, I argue, is because the text producers perceive her to be ‘the deviant’ one. In this way, her political ambition is presented as a challenge to patriarchy.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Gender imbalances revisited 1
-
Part I. Patriarchy and emancipation in private spaces
- “He beat her so hard she fell head over heels” 17
- The discursive construction of gender among Dholuo speakers in Kenya 49
- Snippa – a new word for girls’ genitals in Swedish 69
- What it means to be a Bosnian woman 81
-
Part II. Mediating gender in public spaces
- Greek men’s and women’s magazines as codes of gender conduct 113
- Representation of desire and femininity 145
- Gendered discourse(s) 169
- Gender ideologies in the Vietnamese printed media 195
-
Part III. Trajectories of patriarchy and emancipation across professions
- Constructing masculine work identity through narrative 219
- Stereotyping gender 249
- Living in therapeutic culture 273
- Index 303
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Gender imbalances revisited 1
-
Part I. Patriarchy and emancipation in private spaces
- “He beat her so hard she fell head over heels” 17
- The discursive construction of gender among Dholuo speakers in Kenya 49
- Snippa – a new word for girls’ genitals in Swedish 69
- What it means to be a Bosnian woman 81
-
Part II. Mediating gender in public spaces
- Greek men’s and women’s magazines as codes of gender conduct 113
- Representation of desire and femininity 145
- Gendered discourse(s) 169
- Gender ideologies in the Vietnamese printed media 195
-
Part III. Trajectories of patriarchy and emancipation across professions
- Constructing masculine work identity through narrative 219
- Stereotyping gender 249
- Living in therapeutic culture 273
- Index 303
