Examining the luxury apparel behavioural intentions of middle‐class consumers: The case of the South African market

Decently transgressing: expressions of female heterosexuality and the discourses of (hetero)sexual pleasure in South Africa

Sexualities ◽

10.1177/13634607211037479 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 136346072110374

Author(s):

Letitia Smuts

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

Middle Class ◽

South African ◽

Sexual Pleasure ◽

Sexual Agency ◽

South African Context ◽

The South ◽

Heterosexual Women ◽

White Middle Class ◽

African Context

This article explores sexual agency and pleasure among heterosexual women in South Africa. By focussing on Tupperware-style sex-toy parties, this article offers a glimpse into a ‘hidden’ world of white, middle-class women living in Johannesburg. What is revealed in this ethnographic account is that these gatherings promise women new ways of enjoying sex, while remaining within the boundaries of heteronormative notions of (hetero)sex. I use the term ‘decently transgressing’ to capture the ways in which the women in this study make sense of their (hetero)sexual selves and how they negotiate their (hetero)sexual agencies, particularly in relation to past and present heteronormative discourses within the South African context. The findings show that there are tensions between women wanting to embrace their own sexual agency and desires, yet at the same time being limited by certain heteronormative norms.

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Reading Representations of (Un)desirable GBTI Men on QueerLife’s 4Men Website Section

Ada A Journal of Gender New Media and Technology ◽

10.5399/uo/ada.2020.16.8 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 2020 (16) ◽

Author(s):

Kudzaiishe P. Vanyoro

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

Discourse Analysis ◽

Middle Class ◽

South African ◽

Semiotic Analysis ◽

The South ◽

Masculinity And Femininity ◽

Penis Size ◽

Gay Communities ◽

Desirable Trait

Using discourse analysis and semiotic analysis, this article examines how the language and images of the “4men” section of the South African site QueerLife construct masculinity and femininity as (un)desirable aspects in gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (GBTI) men’s relationships. The use of “(un)desirable” in this article suggests that there are contesting definitions of what constitutes desirable and undesirable traits in GBTI relationships. Although QueerLife states that it caters to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) people, this article only focuses on GBTI men’s content in the 4men section. The article argues that despite claiming to cater to all within the LGBTI spectrum, representations on QueerLife 4men seem to treat masculinity as the most desirable trait. This encompasses traits such as penis size, athleticism, class, emotionlessness, and muscular, firmly built bodies. Overall, the analysis of these texts will show that among what such representations seek to achieve in post-apartheid South Africa is an appeal to white, urban, middle-class gay communities.

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