Dialectics of Gender Continuity and Discontinuity in African Female Identity in Popular Culture

"I’m a Modern Bride": On the Relationship between Marital Hegemony, Bridal Fictions, and Postfeminism

Previous articleNext article No AccessRoundtable: Film FeminismsTheorizing the Bachelorette: “Waves” of Feminist Media StudiesLynn SpigelLynn SpigelSchool of CommunicationNorthwestern University Search for more articles by this author School of CommunicationNorthwestern UniversityPDFPDF PLUSFull Text Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Signs Volume 30, Number 1Autumn 2004Beyond the Gaze: Recent Approaches to Film Feminisms. Special Issue Editors Kathleen McHugh and Vivian Sobchack Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/422232 Views: 1204Total views on this site Citations: 24Citations are reported from Crossref © 2004 by The University of Chicago. All rights reserved.PDF download Crossref reports the following articles citing this article:Nicole Cox “The butterfly effect”: sexual assault and the aftermath on Netflix’s 13 Reasons Why, Feminist Media Studies 88 (Dec 2022): 1–15.https://doi.org/10.1080/14680777.2022.2154376Stefan Helmreich Wave Theory ~ Social Theory, Public Culture 32, no.22 (May 2020): 287–326.https://doi.org/10.1215/08992363-8090094Steven Downing They’re Not Mean Girls If They Are Adult Women: Reality Television’s Construction of Women’s Identity and Interpersonal Aggression, Sociological Research Online 23, no.11 (Oct 2017): 3–20.https://doi.org/10.1177/1360780417735781Hannah Feldshuh Gender, media, and myth-making: constructing China’s leftover women, Asian Journal of Communication 28, no.11 (Jun 2017): 38–54.https://doi.org/10.1080/01292986.2017.1339721María Elena Cepeda Beyond “filling in the gap”: the state and status of Latina/o Feminist Media Studies, Feminist Media Studies 16, no.22 (Jul 2015): 344–360.https://doi.org/10.1080/14680777.2015.1052005Souha R. Ezzedeen Portrayals of career women in Hollywood films: implications for the glass ceiling’s persistence, Gender in Management: An International Journal 30, no.33 (May 2015): 239–264.https://doi.org/10.1108/GM-07-2013-0073Kumarini Silva, Kaitlynn Mendes Introduction: (In)visible and (Ir)relevant: Setting a Context, (Jan 2015): 1–15.https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137454928_1 Introduction, (Jan 2014): 1–26.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822377030-001 Archives of Pain, (Jan 2014): 27–58.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822377030-002 Speaking Sex/Speaking Race, (Jan 2014): 59–82.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822377030-003 Race-Pleasures, (Jan 2014): 83–106.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822377030-004 Laughing Matters, (Jan 2014): 107–127.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822377030-005 On Refusal, (Jan 2014): 128–145.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822377030-006 Conclusion, (Jan 2014): 146–151.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822377030-007 Notes, (Jan 2014): 153–179.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822377030-008 Bibliography, (Jan 2014): 181–211.https://doi.org/10.1215/9780822377030-009Nicole Cox Kicking Ass…With Lip Gloss: Mediating Gender on TLC's Police Women of Broward County, Critical Studies in Media Communication 29, no.22 (Jun 2012): 149–163.https://doi.org/10.1080/15295036.2011.637223Mary Beltrán Bridging the Gaps, Feminist Media Studies 11, no.11 (Mar 2011): 21–26.https://doi.org/10.1080/14680777.2011.537020Audrey Yue Critical Regionalities in Inter-Asia and the Queer Diaspora, Feminist Media Studies 11, no.11 (Mar 2011): 131–138.https://doi.org/10.1080/14680777.2011.537042Stefan Helmreich Nature/Culture/Seawater, American Anthropologist 113, no.11 (Feb 2011): 132–144.https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1548-1433.2010.01311.xMythili Rajiva In Papaji 's House, Feminist Media Studies 10, no.22 (Jun 2010): 213–228.https://doi.org/10.1080/14680771003672338Sharon Sharp Television, gender and space: an overview of Lynn Spigel, Science Fiction Film & Television 2, no.22 (Jan 2009): 281–292.https://doi.org/10.1353/sff.0.0085Sherryl Vint The New Backlash: Popular Culture's "Marriage" with Feminism, or Love Is All You Need, Journal of Popular Film and Television 34, no.44 (Jan 2007): 160–169.https://doi.org/10.3200/JPFT.34.4.160-169Elizabeth McMahon Puberty Blues Takes Feminist Generationalism to the Beach, Australian Feminist Studies 20, no.4848 (Nov 2005): 281–289.https://doi.org/10.1080/08164640500280241

Exploring YouTube as a Transformative Tool in the “The Power of MAKEUP!” Movement

About the Contributors

Demonstrating that gender representations in popular culture are intertwined with a broad range of cultural, historical, and social discourses that shape both their production and reception, the introduction outlines some of the key concerns related to the performance and policing of masculinity in pop music. It discusses the theoretical and methodological foundations that may underpin an interdisciplinary, intersectional, and interpretive approach to the study of popular music and gender, and places an emphasis on grappling with the multiple affordances elicited by pop artists’ construction of identity across several platforms. It advocates for an inclusive definition of pop music that encompasses the range of musical and cultural impulses that circulate in mainstream popular music culture. It also discusses the selection of material for a study of pop music and masculinity, and considers the benefits and limitations of an artist-centered interpretive approach.

Research Problems: This study explores the tension between Christian moral values and African cultural identity in Nigeria, focusing on challenges in rites, family duties, gender roles, and communal life. It identifies the absence of cohesive pastoral guidance, often resulting in polarised responses, either outright rejection or uncritical acceptance of cultural practices. Methods: The study employs a theoretical approach grounded in theological ethics, African moral philosophy, and contextual theology. Critical engagement with recent theological and ethical discourse provides a reflective and interpretive analysis of the intersections between faith and culture. Results: Findings reveal that cultural influences continue to shape ethical decision-making among Nigerian Christians despite the primacy of Scripture. The lack of structured pastoral direction exacerbates the dilemma, creating fragmented responses within church communities. Conclusion: The study emphasises the need for a contextualised Christian moral framework honouring biblical authority while constructively engaging African cultural realities. Such a structure can tie the gap between faith and culture without undermining. Key Contribution to Knowledge: This research advances scholarly understanding by proposing a balanced ethical vision that integrates Christian moral teachings with African cultural identity. It provides a resource for church leaders and theologians seeking practical tools for fostering meaningful moral formation within Nigerian Christianity. Recommendation: Church leaders and theological educators should develop structured pastoral guidelines and contextual teaching models that address cultural-ethical tensions. This will empower Nigerian Christians to maintain spiritual integrity while affirming positive aspects of cultural identity.

What Is Third‐Wave Feminism? A New Directions Essay

A Relational Approach to the Digital Self: Plus-Sized Bloggers and the Double-Edged Sword of Market-Compromised Identity

A lay carer's story about epilepsy in an urban South African context: They call it an illness of falling or an illness of fitting because a person shakes and eventually falls

he intersection of Black theology, African cultural identities and Indigenous belief systems has been topical in South Africa, given the apartheid history of the country. Black South Africans used theology to define their cultural identities and belief systems in their quest for liberation. The need to engage this symbiotic relationship in Zimbabwe arose with Joshua Maponga III, who used his theological background as a pastor to analyse the meaning of African cultural identities, Indigenous belief systems and the place of theology among suffering Africans. This article aims to interrogate Maponga’s writings, presentations and interviews on social media to find out how he drew from African cultural epistemologies to develop a Black theological perspective and define African cultural identities and Indigenous beliefs. The article argues that Maponga’s work offers a unique insight into how African culture can inform and enrich Black theological discourses. It discusses the methodology used and Maponga’s background. It further analyses how African cultural resources, such as traditional myths, rituals and symbols, enabled Maponga to develop a theology rooted in Black people’s experiences, challenging the dominant Western theological paradigms that have marginalised African culture and theological perspectives for years. Furthermore, the article discusses the implications of Maponga’s work for the ongoing development of Black and African Theologies. It concludes by stating that Maponga’s work offers an example of how African cultural resources can be used to develop a theology that is both contextual and liberative. Contribution: This study highlights the significance of intersectionality and contextualisation in theological research while also challenging dominant Western theological paradigms and emphasising the importance of African cultural epistemologies. It contributes to methodological innovation in theological research and provides implications for the ongoing development of Black and African Theologies.

How do state elites discursively popularize official representations of world politics and the state's location within it? If the broad public holds contrasting, or at least more sceptical, views, how can these gradually be supplanted or even ultimately obfuscated? Drawing on the role of narratives, this article underlines the significance of popular culture in relation to the construction of national identity. Reviewing a series of events in the realm of major sports events and celebrity achievements, I illustrate the way in which state elites appropriate these ‘spectacles’ to reconstruct South Africa's African identity (despite a considerable degree of ambivalence amongst the broad public). However, central to this process of recreation stands a narrative of exceptionalism that becomes instrumental to not only instil national pride but also sustain a discourse of South Africa being the exemplar of African modernity.

Folklorists have examined four relations of folklore and contemporary popular culture: the incorporation of folklore into popular art; traditions engendered within the discourses and production of popular culture; the expressive uses of mass culture in small group contexts; and, popular folk revivals. Students of “cultural studies,” an international academie development which began at the University of Birmingham in the 1960s, have made significant contributions to the study of popular culture, and these works exhibit interests that are akin to those of folklorists. Fundamentally, both fields entertain a humanistic, holistic, nonhierarchical view of “culture”. Moreover, what cultural studies deems as “popular culture,” folklorists anayze as the expressive uses of mass culture in small group contexts, that is, modem folklore. The pluralistic and functional social assumptions of folklorists, however, are at odds with cultural studies’ understanding of society as a complex set of power relations in dynamic flux. Especially relevant to cultural studies in this regard is Antonio Gramsci’s theory of hegemony. This frame is particularly useful to the contextual study of forms of folklore and popular culture that pose an antithetical edge. In turn, cultural studies might benefit from an ethnographic appreciation of the role of cultural continuity and tradition, a method well cultivated in folkloristics.

The new socio-economic situation in our in recent decades is characterized by an active implementation in public consciousness of popular culture. Today there is foreign and national cultural and philosophical literature a noticeable lack of consensus about nature of popular culture that still causes a mismatch positions of contemporary scholars about its conceptual apparatus. Popular culture is a concept that has many scientific and theoretical approaches to their study and determination of its features today. According to researching evolution of term begins on general concept of category of and theory of society and object of theoretical study of popular culture is in 30 – 40's of XX century. The transition to an industrial is most active phase of study of popular culture. According to phenomenon of mass culture within humanities and specialized in modern is ambivalent. The ideological position is considered concept of mass culture is very subjective and depends on conventional reference points or topics that are selected by any researcher or public character to justify his relationship to popular culture. Most Russian culture experts believe that culture that created masses is ground on which later arises and flourishes high art because it reflects spiritual, emotional and experienced fixed tastes and feelings of individual states and their satisfaction or dissatisfaction with world, focus on achieving harmonious interaction with it, embodies hopes, desires and ideal representation of masses. They distinguish following characteristics of mass culture: proximity to basic human needs, growing demand for its products focus on natural, closer to instinctive, primitive sensuality and emotion, always strict subordination of power in society, simplicity in producing a quality product consumption. Ukrainian and Russian researchers interpret identically that popular culture and folk art is in a provider. Ukrainian scientist Danilyuk A. explores concept of popular culture in relation to folklore and proves that it has a number of features. First of all it points to its connection with classical culture, which makes it different from folk; argues that one reason for spread of mass culture in is withering away of folklore. Russian scientist Ivanov G. consideres identity and popular culture, such as impact of latest features in formation of identity. He emphasizes that popular culture has both positive and negative effects on human identity. Polish scientist and science fiction Lam S. argues that popular culture is the amount of social technologies. Thus we can conclude that mass culture is actually not culture in general and that is form, which takes cultural development in terms of industrial civilization, in terms of mass industrial society. Today popular culture represents a higher socio-cultural category, a new form of socialization and inculturation individual guidance in his life and work conditions that are constantly changing, a new system of manipulating his mind, needs, interests, demand, and value orientation and behavior. At beginning of XXI century popular culture is a specific way of understanding of reality and adapt to it, describing specifics of production and distribution of cultural property. Recently popular culture is firmly entrenched in our and therefore became object of studing of modern Ukrainian scientists and cultural studies. Some authors explore key aspects of problem field of phenomenon of mass culture in new plane in domestic scientific thought. Among them Ukrainian scientists such as: Hundorova T., Zabuzhko O., Svidzinsky A., Vovkun V., Masenko L., Poplavsky M., Sinkevych O. and work of young scientists Zastolska V., Danilyuk A., Logvinov V., Pohribna V. etc. Therefore analyzing contemporary socio-cultural reality Zastolska V. offers a definition of mass culture as one that is not based on development and modification of certain provisions relating to analysis of state of culture and in socio-cultural development and to its theoretical reflection as full of cultural modernity with relevant theme. Professor Svidzinsky A. examines popular culture based on highly controversial nature of interaction of culture with consciousness of individual. According to Vovkun V.: Culture is absorbed into mainstream culture moreover not his cut or not able to recommend or develop a strong centralized state. Popular culture as a phenomenon has a right to exist, but problem is that? for example, inUkraineit is usually not Ukrainian. Ukrainian scientist Masenko L. analyzes mass culture in relationship between concepts and language of popular culture. In her view language barrier between elite and mass culture slows and complicates process of establishing a new for several reasons. Mishchenko N. emphasizes that negative interpretation of popular culture does not meet modern social and cultural processes. Denisyuk Zh. in thesis of culture as a factor in transforming national and cultural identity in context of was first who examines popular culture as one of main agents of cultural globalization which has impact on national and cultural identity. Popular culture is an universal crops or characteristic of general population, cosmopolitan, a variety of contemporary culture. Therefore modern mass culture is a complex form of organization and structuring of cultural life of that creates and cultural product and consumer.

1. African Youth: Cultural Identity in Literature, Media and Imagined Spaces. Vivian Yenika-Agbaw and Lindah Mhando 2. Gender Bending and Identity Construction in Jelloun's The Sand Child. Lindah Mhando and Vivian Yenika-Agbaw 3. Childhood Creative Spaces as Survival Spaces in Sade Adeniran's Imagine This. Suzanne Marie Ondrus 4. Edwidge Danticat's Breath, Eyes, Memory: A Critique on the Tradition of Testing Renee Latchman 5. Sankofa's Songbirds: African American Children as Culture Bearers in Jazz-Infused Children's Literature Ada McKenzie 6. African American Boys' Responses to Illustrations and Text Involving Black Inmates and Gangsters in Multicultural Children's Literature Mary Ellen Oslick 7. The Global Outsiders and Colonized: African Child Soldiers and Inner-City African American Teen Gangsters in Adolescent Literature Yoo Kyung Sung 8. Continuing the Conversation: Consider Morality in African Diaspora Nonfiction Picture Books Shanetia P. Clark and Barbara A. Marinak 9. The Exotic, Mysterious and Darkest Africa Seemi Aziz 10. Breaking Barriers: African Knowledge Systems as Windows to Understanding African Childhood in a United States Social Studies Classroom Lewis Asimeng-Boahene 11. The Rise of Sheng: A Sociolinguistic Revolution from Below. Michael Wairungu 12. How African Youth Control Their Identities Through Social Media Stephen Ekema-Agbaw and Vivian Yenika-Agbaw 13. Social Media and North African Arab Spring Youth Identity Wafa Hozien 14. Nollywood Whispers as a Beacon of Hope for Youths Agatha Ada Ukata 15. Planete Jeunes: African Youth Cultures and Globalization Nalova Westbrook

Schools have harbored a manifold of cultural identities since education became accessible to all. Historically, however, knowledge from minority groups was never accepted into the school syllabus and dominant culture prevailed, thus calling for urgent studies to be made in order to show ways of transforming the current state of affairs. This action research project aims at developing a multicultural syllabus for physical education that stems from the heritage of popular body culture. Results gathered through critical analysis of experience show that popular culture contents and ethnography-based teaching methodologies can promote the strengthening of a community’s cultural identity. Keywords: Multiculturalism – popular culture – syllabus.