Even though the Weinstein scandal and the #metoo movement opened the debate about feminism across societies, it seemed that the debate did not happen in Japan. After doing some research, one can...Show moreEven though the Weinstein scandal and the #metoo movement opened the debate about feminism across societies, it seemed that the debate did not happen in Japan. After doing some research, one can see that mass media in Japan do not echo any feminist ideas. Throughout the years, the mass media have neglected feminist debates and even generated negative discourse on feminism. However, if one looks into more alternative media sources, it becomes obvious that the feminist debate is actually well established in Japan. There are media sources such as feminist journals that open discussions on topics like gender roles and sexual liberation. Feminist publications have existed in Japan since the beginning of the 20th century. However, as those journals challenge Japanese societal norms, they are categorized as niche media with quite a small readership. On the other hand, manga is another type of alternative media with a large readership that highlights a feminist debate. Within manga literature, there are specific genres that target a female readership from teenagers (shoujo) to adults (josei). I argue that among manga, shoujo and josei manga genres are the most read outlets of feminist ideas within Japanese media.Show less
This thesis is a qualitative analysis of the clothing of Japanese Gothic Lolita women supported by six remarks. The study hypothesises that the statements made were meant to redefine gender...Show moreThis thesis is a qualitative analysis of the clothing of Japanese Gothic Lolita women supported by six remarks. The study hypothesises that the statements made were meant to redefine gender identities, societal values, and gender role expectations for women in the Japanese society and to find empowerment within the societal structures. It hypothesises that the statements were meant to signify a rebellion against the idea that dressing in a stereotypically feminine, childlike, and kawaii way is disempowering for women. Furthermore, this research finds that Japanese Gothic Lolitas lay the foundation to rethink the gendered structures embedded in the Japanese society through the signifiers of their clothing and the discourse within their statements by defining themselves not in relation to others, but to themselves. Thus, a framework is created that allows women to rebel against the traditional constraints of gender role expectations and to redefine their identities as influential, assertive individuals.Show less
As the presidential campaign has escalated polarization among Brazilian voters it is significant to understand how certain social movements have reacted to the political and social issues that the...Show moreAs the presidential campaign has escalated polarization among Brazilian voters it is significant to understand how certain social movements have reacted to the political and social issues that the country faces. In particular, the feminist movement played an important role in define their position against the candidate Jair Bolsonaro organizing the #EleNão movement, thus the interest of studying the emersion of the identity. Further, this dissertation investigates what kind of feminist identity emerged from the movement #EleNão during the presidential campaign of 2018 in Brazil? In order to advance this research, the author of this paper has critically analyzed the ideological discourses of two texts (one manifesto and one Facebook publication) of what it is considered to be part the feminist identity group construction of the #Ele Nao movement.Show less
The role of the woman in urban Chinese society has evolved since the socialist era, when Mao was striking for a genderless society. Today, gender roles are defined in a societal framework and...Show moreThe role of the woman in urban Chinese society has evolved since the socialist era, when Mao was striking for a genderless society. Today, gender roles are defined in a societal framework and Chinese women are facing discrimination and pressures at all levels. Media in China is known to be the main source that promotes Chinese societal values, in accordance with the party’s ideology. Previous research finds that the representation of Chinese women in media with a feminist approach is an underdeveloped topic, thus not focusing on the emancipation of these women. This thesis focuses on how urban Chinese women are portrayed in Chinese media, and more particularly in Television Dramas. Conducting an analysis of the Chinese produced television series Ode to Joy (欢乐颂) through the lens of four Feminist Film Theories; the male gaze, the female voice, the female as a sign, and the female spectator, the thesis shows how this chosen case study represents the emancipation of urban Chinese women in regards to romantic relationships, professional career and gendered expectations. Moreover, it relates this representation to the existing discourse in China's urban areas.Show less
In 2011, President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was ousted from power following the Jasmine Revolution, a series of protests where women played an incredibly vocal and important role. However, this...Show moreIn 2011, President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was ousted from power following the Jasmine Revolution, a series of protests where women played an incredibly vocal and important role. However, this dissertation seeks to argue that ‘The Woman Question’ in Tunisia is now more complicated than ever. Despite the comparatively progressive civil liberties Tunisian women have been granted, the reality women face in Tunisia is much bleaker than initially assumed in 2011. The aspects of co-optation, authoritarianism, class and religion will be used to assess how historically the conflicting issues surrounding women came to be, and the issues women face following the 2011 Jasmine Revolution.Show less
Throughout the Egyptian January 25 Revolution in 2011, as part of the so-called Arab Spring, many incidents have put women, their bodies, and portrayals of female bodies at the heart of the...Show moreThroughout the Egyptian January 25 Revolution in 2011, as part of the so-called Arab Spring, many incidents have put women, their bodies, and portrayals of female bodies at the heart of the uprisings. As the political participation of women became challenged, suppressed, and even violently punished under the ruling of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, who came to power after the ousting of President Mubarak, the female body became a site of domination. Nevertheless, young women rose against the oppressive forces they faced, challenging the social and political standards by putting their bodies into the public sphere and transforming the female body into a means of revolutionary contention. Derived from the underlying question how the female body is a site of power interplay in times of political transition, the aim of this thesis is to examine how women have addressed the appropriation of their bodies and the reduction of their political voices to the female corporality in post- revolutionary Egypt. This thesis analyses the vastly differing cases of Samira Mohamed Ibrahim and Aliaa Magda Elmahdy, who use their bodies as a tactic of and topic for political dissent and struggle for agency. Illustrating the centrality of the female body throughout times of political transitions, the plural expressions of female agency and ‘bodily insurgency’ in post-revolutionary Egypt, these women express a counter-discourse to existing ideas about femininity and a woman’s corporality. As they denounce the practices of a patriarchal system that reduces their political voices to merely their sex, it is argued that the female body is more than a disciplined and ‘docile’ object, for it contains transformative and political potential – in different ways.Show less
In this thesis I asked the question: how can Merleau-Ponty’s political work reveal essentialism in feminist thought and thereby contribute to feminist philosophy?
This thesis looks into two of Margaret Atwood's famous novels, Alias Grace and The Handmaid's Tale, to analyse how the female protagonists of both novels illustrate the marginalisation of women who...Show moreThis thesis looks into two of Margaret Atwood's famous novels, Alias Grace and The Handmaid's Tale, to analyse how the female protagonists of both novels illustrate the marginalisation of women who were being suppressed in a patriarchal society during Atwood's own early adulthood. Furthermore, it looks into how the women in Atwood's novels respond to this marginalisation and whether the response is comparable to the ideals of feminism.Show less
