scholarly journals Female Monsters: Figuring Female Transgression in Jennifer's Body (2009) and The Witch (2013)

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 10
Author(s):  
Aidatul Chusna ◽  
Shofi Mahmudah
Keyword(s):  
Gender Identity ◽  
Julia Kristeva ◽  
Monstrous Feminine ◽  
Female Monsters ◽  
The Witch ◽  
Absolute Identity ◽  
The Way

This paper aimed to examine the depiction of the monstrous feminine in two horror flms, 2009’s Jennifer’s Bodyand 2015’s The Witch, by investigating how horror flms confront transgression through the construction of woman as a monstrous fgure in the story. The theory of abjection proposed by Julia Kristeva and of the monstrous feminine by Barbara Creed were used in the analysis. The main data were taken from these two flms, focusing on the characterization and narrative aspects. It was found that the depiction of the monstrous feminine in both flms was through the use of monstrous acts and images. The way in which these flms constructed monstrosity indicates female transgression of patriarchal boundaries, specifcally on the issue of gender identity and religiosity. The transgression emphasizes that there is no absolute identity, and thus boundaries are disrupted due to this fluid identity

scholarly journals Female Monsters: Figuring Female Transgression in Jennifer's Body (2009) and The Witch (2013)

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 10
Author(s):  
Aidatul Chusna ◽  
Shofi Mahmudah
Keyword(s):  
Gender Identity ◽  
Julia Kristeva ◽  
Monstrous Feminine ◽  
Female Monsters ◽  
The Witch ◽  
Absolute Identity ◽  
The Way

This paper aimed to examine the depiction of the monstrous feminine in two horror flms, 2009’s Jennifer’s Bodyand 2015’s The Witch, by investigating how horror flms confront transgression through the construction of woman as a monstrous fgure in the story. The theory of abjection proposed by Julia Kristeva and of the monstrous feminine by Barbara Creed were used in the analysis. The main data were taken from these two flms, focusing on the characterization and narrative aspects. It was found that the depiction of the monstrous feminine in both flms was through the use of monstrous acts and images. The way in which these flms constructed monstrosity indicates female transgression of patriarchal boundaries, specifcally on the issue of gender identity and religiosity. The transgression emphasizes that there is no absolute identity, and thus boundaries are disrupted due to this fluid identity

Rangda and the Goddess Durga in Bali

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 50-77
Author(s):  
Sarah Weiss
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Binary Opposition ◽  
Dynamic Relationship ◽  
The Witch ◽  
Purity And Impurity ◽  
Good And Evil ◽  
Negative Attributes ◽  
The Way

This article examines Rangda and her role as a chthonic and mythological figure in Bali, particularly the way in which Rangda’s identity has intertwined with that of the Hindu goddess Durga— slayer of buffalo demons and other creatures that cannot be bested by Shiva or other male Hindu gods. Images and stories about Durga in Bali are significantly different from those found in Hindu contexts in India. Although she retains the strong-willed independence and decision-making capabilities prominently associated with Durga in India, in Bali the goddess Durga is primarily associated with violent and negative attributes as well as looks and behaviours that are more usually associated with Kali in India. The reconstruction of Durga in Bali, in particular the integration of Durga with the figure of the witch Rangda, reflects the local importance of the dynamic relationship between good and bad, positive and negative forces in Bali. I suggest that Balinese representations of Rangda and Durga reveal a flux and transformation between good and evil, not simply one side of a balanced binary opposition. Transformation—here defined as the persistent movement between ritual purity and impurity—is a key element in the localization of the goddess Durga in Bali.

Cute Girls, Tough Boys

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-111
Author(s):  
Alexandra Gueydan-Turek
Keyword(s):  
Gender Identity ◽  
Social Norms ◽  
Graphic Art ◽  
Masculinity And Femininity ◽  
Gender Performances ◽  
Primary Focus ◽  
Form Of Expression ◽  
The Way

This article explores the way in which masculinity and femininity are constructed in Algerian manga, an emerging, understudied sub-genre within the field of Algerian graphic art. Through the exploration of youth-oriented publications of shōjo and shōnen manga, I will demonstrate how these new local works offer a privileged form of expression for and platform to address disaffected Algerian youths. The primary focus of this investigation will be the differences (or lack thereof) between ideals of gender performances as expressed in Algerian manga and ideals of gender identity in society at large. This article will demonstrate that, while some differences manifest a desire for change on the part of both artists and readers, they certainly do not constitute radical revisions of the popular Algerian notions of masculinity and femininity. Ultimately, this study will demonstrate the limits of manga as an imported genre within an Arab-Islamic context, oscillating between the promulgation of alternative social ideals and the reinforcement of social norms.

AN EXPLORATION OF GENDER DIFFERENCES IN TEENAGERS’ USE, CONSUMPTION AND DIGITAL PRODUCTION

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corina-Maricica Seserman ◽  
Daniela Cojocaru
Keyword(s):  
Gender Differences ◽  
Social Media ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Gender Identity ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Peer Group ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Digital Content ◽  
Media Consumption ◽  
The Way

Today’s teenagers have a very close relationship with ICTs and the digital space related to them, as they have impacted the way the youth constructs their sense of self and the tools they use to perform their carefully constructed identity. One key element which influences the way one constructs their views by themselves is within the boundaries set by their biological sex and therefore through the behaviors associated with their asigned gender. Through the symbolic interactionist lense, or more specifically through Goffman's dramaturgical theory on the manner in which one presents him/herself in society, this paper looks at the manner in which teenagers use social media platforms and at the way they consume and create digital content in order to present their gender identity. The way teenagers consume and produce digital content differs and depends on how they interpret their ideals of femininity and masculinity, which are afterwards reproduced in the content they post on their social media pages. Therefore this research is an attempt to understand what are the factors teenagers take in account when consuming and producing content. What gender differences can be observed in regards to new media consumption? What difference can be observed in online activity behaviors between males and females? How do they feel about their gender identity concerning fitting in with their peer group? A mix-methodological approach was engaged in the data collection process. In the first stage of the research highschool students (n=324) from the city of Suceava (Romania) participated in taking an online survey. The initial intent was to meet with the young respondents in person, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic this was deemed impossible. For the second stage of data collection, six of the participants who took the online survey were invited to participate in a focus group designed to grasp a better understanding of the results from the previous stage. The discovered findings uncover engaging gender similarities and differences in social media consumption and the type, subject, matter and style in which they posted their content, but also in regards to the performance of the self between the online and offline space.

scholarly journals The P600 for singular “they”: How the brain reacts when John decides to treat themselves to sushi.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grusha Prasad ◽  
Joanna Morris
Keyword(s):  
Gender Identity ◽  
Gender Identities ◽  
Processing Effort ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Binary Gender ◽  
The Way

There has been increased awareness that individuals need not have a binary gender identity (i.e., male or female), but rather, gender identities exist on a spectrum. With this increased awareness, there has also been an increase in the use of they as a singular pronoun when referring to individuals with a non-binary gender identity. Has the processing of singular they changed along with a change in its usage? Previous studies have demonstrated that sentences in which they is co-indexed with singular antecedents, are judged acceptable and are easy to process, but only if the antecedents are non-referential and/or have ambiguous gender; co-indexing they with referential antecedents with unambiguous gender (e.g., Mary) results in lower acceptability ratings and greater processing effort. We investigated whether participants who frequently interacted with individuals with a non-binary gender identity and/or identified as having a non-binary gender themselves would process sentences in which themselves was co-indexed with singular antecedents similarly. We found a significant P600 effect for sentences in which themselves was co-indexed with singular referential antecedents with unambiguous gender, but failed to find a P600 effect when the antecedents were non-referential and/or had an ambiguous gender. This pattern of results is consistent with behavioural results from previous studies, suggesting that the change in the usage of singular they has not resulted in a corresponding change in the way in which this pronoun is processed.

scholarly journals Exclusive language: The tool to empower and create identity

2016 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ananda Geyser-Fouche
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Michel Foucault ◽  
Jacques Derrida ◽  
Julia Kristeva ◽  
South African Context ◽  
Literary Theories ◽  
African Context ◽  
Qumran Community ◽  
Selection Of ◽  
The Way

This article used some postmodern literary theories of philosophers such as Jean-Fran�ois Lyotard, Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida and Julia Kristeva to scrutinise a selection of texts from the post-exilic period with regard to the exclusive language employed in these texts. Lyotard�s insights relate to and complement Foucault�s concept of �counter-memory�. Foucault also focuses on the network of discursive powers that operate behind texts and reproduce them, arguing that it is important to have a look from behind so as to see which voices were silenced by the specific powers behind texts. The author briefly looked at different post-exilic texts within identity-finding contexts, focusing especially on Chronicles and a few Qumran texts, to examine the way in which they used language to create identity and to empower the community in their different contexts. It is generally accepted that both the author(s) of 1 & 2 Chronicles and the Qumran community used texts selectively, with their own nuances, omissions and additions. This study scrutinised the way the author(s) of Chronicles and the Qumran community used documents selectively, focusing on the way in which they used exclusive language. It is clear that all communities used such language in certain circumstances to strengthen a certain group�s identity, to empower them and to legitimise this group�s conduct, behaviour and claims � and thereby exclude other groups.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: Based on postmodern literary theories, this article compares the exclusive language used in Chronicles and in the texts of the Qumran community, pointing to the practice of creating identity and empowering through discourse. In conclusion, the article reflects on what is necessary in a South African context, post-1994, to be a truly democratic country.Keywords: Exclusive language; inclusive; Jean-Fran�ois Lyotard, Michel Foucault, Pierre Bourdieu; Derrida; Qumran Chronicles

The Articulating-Self Inside Out

2020 ◽  
pp. 73-86
Author(s):  
Somayeh Noori Shirazi
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Identity ◽  
Gender Identity ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
The Self ◽  
Iranian Woman ◽  
Inside Out ◽  
The Way

This chapter maps the different ways with which an Iranian woman artist, Katayoun Karami, critically responds to the stereotypes about the depiction of cultural identity in the artworks of female artists with a Middle Eastern background. The key point of Karami's response is the way she applies her self–portrait to articulate the self and her subjectivity, which is analysed in this chapter by examining one of her works named the Other Side. In this installation, the artist demonstrates the construction of gender identity in today's Iran through her personal perception of veiling. Working within the frameworks of feminist and Orientalist discourses, this chapter aims to explore how Karami's lived experience as a continual activity of becoming has been formed through the experience of veiling, and what strategies are deployed by her to interrogate the presumptions about the image of the veiled body in Western and Iranian contexts.

The Manifestation of Desire

2021 ◽  
pp. 120-147
Author(s):  
Kent Cartwright
Keyword(s):  
Causal Power ◽  
Faerie Queene ◽  
Midsummer Night's Dream ◽  
A Midsummer Night's Dream ◽  
The Witch ◽  
The Faerie Queene ◽  
The Way

Chapter 4 conceptualizes the device of ‘manifestation,’ the term identifying the causal power of desires, thoughts, and words to call forth objects and even characters in Shakespeare’s comic world. In the spirit of critic Elena Zupančič, the device shows, among other things, the way that comedy can surface the amusing monstrousness and presumptuousness of human wishes. The concept of manifestation entails various literary and dramatic values that characterize Shakespearean comedy. Historically, it reflects interests and theories found in Renaissance treatises on magic, and it even parallels certain modern-day linguistic patters. The chapter formalizes and theorizes the device, drawing examples from a range of comedies. The Comedy of Errors (Dr. Pinch), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Helana and the love potion), and The Merry Wives of Windsor (the Witch of Brainford) come in for special discussion. The chapter ends by situation manifestation in relation to entrance effects in medieval and Tudor drama and to allegorical effects in Spenser’s The Faerie Queene.

Conclusion

2018 ◽  
pp. 221-232
Author(s):  
Laura Kounine
Keyword(s):  
Visual Culture ◽  
Free Will ◽  
The Body ◽  
Popular Media ◽  
Trial Process ◽  
The Witch ◽  
Fundamental Categories ◽  
The Way

The process of identifying the witch brought questions about emotions, gender, and selfhood to the fore. As witchcraft was a crime largely without evidence, legal and religious authorities had to employ their expertise in their attempts to uncover the truth about a person. The trial process reveals the overlapping and at times contradictory individual, communal, legal, and religious understandings of not only witchcraft, but more fundamental categories of sin, morality, free will, guilt, and innocence. The trial process further reveals how individual and communal narratives took on, and themselves shaped, understandings of witchcraft, gender, and emotions in popular media, visual culture, and intellectual treatises. The way in which people attempted to make sense of themselves and each other, how the body and emotions were ‘read’, and how this was gendered, was thus at the very heart of the struggle to identify the witch.

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