scholarly journals Masculinity in Numafung, a Film Directed by Nabin Subba

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 59-70
Author(s):  
Asmita Bista
Keyword(s):  
Gender Roles ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Hegemonic Masculinity ◽  
Cultural Construction ◽  
Cultural Dynamics ◽  
Feature Film ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Asymmetrical Power ◽  
Gender Practices

The prevailing gender practices in the Limbu culture promote asymmetrical power relations not only between males and females but also between dominant males and subordinated males. This practice is portrayed in the feature film Numafung by Nabin Subba. Thus, the paper aims to investigate how the practice of hegemonic masculinity has affected the life of individuals, both males and females in Limbu community in the film. It scrutinizes what sort of problems do the conventional masculine roles bring in the characters’ lives. This paper also intends to assess the reasons that force the males to perform the conventional gender roles. To analyze the text, R.W. Connell’s and Michael Kimmel’s idea of masculinity theory has been used as an approach. These theorists propose that masculinity is a constructed entity that is achieved through constant performance: a series of cues observed, internalized and repeated over time. Illuminating the gender practices in the Limbu culture, Numafung unfolds the cultural dynamics of the Limbu society in the light of hegemonic masculinities. The paper concludes that cultural practices such as ‘sunauli- rupauli,’ ‘mangena’ and ‘jari’ keep their hegemonic masculinity intact. The paper further concludes that the male characters of Numafung embrace hegemonic masculinity because gender is a socio-cultural construction; being part of that society, one hardly can escape from the socially enforced gender roles.

scholarly journals An Obscure Perception of Transgender in Islam: A Case of Hijra in Bangladesh

2019 ◽  
pp. 29-36
Author(s):  
Rezwana Karim Snigdha
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Cultural Construction ◽  
Transgender Identity ◽  
Inherent Property ◽  
Colonial Legacy ◽  
Muslim Countries ◽  
Religious Law ◽  
Related Stigma ◽  
British Colonial ◽  
Asymmetrical Power

Religion-related stigma and discrimination towards transgender are common phenomena in the current world. Despite the legal recognition of hijra, those people were denied basic civil and human rights such as marriage or inherent property rights. Like many colonized countries, Bangladesh legal system has its roots in British colonial legacy. But, in case of marriage or inherent property law, Bangladesh follows the religious law of Islam. The Quran or Hadith do not have a specific guideline concerning transgender, and the Muslim countries do not follow any homogenous law due to the contextual cultural construction. This paper argues, without addressing the cultural practices of Islam, the proper conceptualization of transgender identity is not possible. Although it is also the case, only the Islamic perspective, will give us a narrow understanding of hijras who are one of the transgender communities in Bangladesh. To do so, this paper will analyze the dynamic relation between Islam and transgenderism in Bangladesh with a special reference to sharia law and explore the asymmetrical power relations to construct the reality of the ‘Trans’ as well as the cultural perception of the hijra in Bangladesh.

You Haven’t Seen the Last of Men

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-67
Author(s):  
Julie Michot
Keyword(s):  
Gender Roles ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Western World ◽  
The Real ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
The North ◽  
Major Shift ◽  
Industrial Crisis ◽  
Comedy Film ◽  
Gender Conflicts

The Full Monty (Peter Cattaneo, 1997) is much acclaimed as a comedy film. Yet, its screenplay is based on a serious context, contemporary of its shooting—the industrial crisis in the North of England—and deals with its societal effects—a major shift in gender roles and patterns. The real achievement of the male characters is that they resolve gender conflicts adopting cultural practices traditionally reserved for women, asserting their masculinity while posing as sex objects. At a time when men–women relationships are at the heart of debates in the Western World, this article seeks to demonstrate that the movie has a quasi-universal dimension by suggesting that, rather than a reversal of gender roles, a new kind of balance can emerge, with all its attendant “contradictions.”

scholarly journals Exploration of Masculinity in Sanjeev Upreti's Hansa

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-59
Author(s):  
Indira Acharya Mishra
Keyword(s):  
Gender Roles ◽  
Hegemonic Masculinity ◽  
Continuous Process ◽  
Judith Butler ◽  
Male Gender ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Male Characters ◽  
Traditional Masculinity ◽  
Male Gender Roles ◽  
Social Constructivist Approach

 Can a man be rigid, strong and decisive all the time? How do people know about their normative gender roles? Who formulates the rules about love, sex, marriage, and men and women relations? These are some of the issues raised in Sanjeev Upreti's latest novel Hansa [Duck] (2019). The novel artistically and sensitively traces the limits of patriarchal gender roles and suggests that masculinity is contextual and undergoes a continuous process of change. The major male characters of the novel, despite their inclination towards heterosexuality, and despite their effort to perform traditional masculinity, fail. Though they have embraced hegemonic masculinity as an ideal form of masculinity, and try to practice it, they are weak and vulnerable. This article explores why these characters fail to perform their gender roles as par their expectations. To analyze male gender roles and masculinity in the novel, theories of masculinity are drawn basically from Raewyn Connell and Judith Butler‟s social constructivist approach to gender studies. Analyzing the novel through the lens of masculinity helps the reader understand the constraints of hegemonic masculinity and provides insight to alternative ways of understanding male gender roles and masculinity. The article has found that the male characters of the novel suffer because they stick to the traditional masculinity and fail to adapt to their changed roles.

“Girls Are Like Flowers; Boys Are Like footballs”

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-62
Author(s):  
Florencia Herrera
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Hegemonic Masculinity ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Gender Practices ◽  
First Time ◽  
Masculine Gender

To contribute to the discussion about how masculinity—understood as a configuration of gender practices (Connell 2000)—is reproduced, this paper analyzes fathers’ discourse about the gender of their sons and daughters. I carried out a qualitative longitudinal study in Chile during which 28 first-time fathers were interviewed before and after their child’s birth or arrival (adoption). I suggest that these fathers see gender in essentialist, dichotomous, and hierarchical terms. They expect to shape their sons’ gender practices according to hegemonic masculinity (discouraging gender practices associated with femininity or homosexuality). In the study, no attempt to reformulate masculine gender practices was observed but, rather, an interest on the fathers’ part in maintaining the patriarchal gender order.

scholarly journals Mahesh Dattani’s Dance Like a Man: A Depiction of the Trials and Tribulations of an Androgynous Personality

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chhavi ◽  
◽  
Rajiv Bhushan ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Gender Roles ◽  
Hegemonic Masculinity ◽  
Indian Society ◽  
Indian Family ◽  
Cultural Domain ◽  
Conventional Practice ◽  
Indian Theatre

Abstract Mahesh Dattani is one of the leading Indian dramatists who responded to the problems of sexuality on the canvass of Indian theatre. He examined various facets of subjugation and marginalization rampant in Indian society. His plays focus on the sub-urban Hindu family and its trifle with gender and alternate sexuality. His plots revolve around the damaging implications of patriarchal constructs and his characters strive for liberty and self-satisfaction beneath hegemonic masculinity, compulsive heteronormativity and prejudiced cultural domain. Regarding his famous play Dance Like a Man, this paper critically examines the existing socio-cultural domain which practices politics of exclusion of androgynous identities behind the façade of peacefully cohabiting heterosexual Indian family and shows how Dattani, has remarkably countered the presentation of the polarized association of gender roles with conventional practice through performance of his protagonist. Set against the backdrop of patriarchal mindset, this paper delineates that the victim of patriarchal norms is not a woman but a man, who has traits of androgyny. It gives a brief account to highlight the significance of androgyny and portrays how androgyny is directly proportional to creativity. It elucidates how androgynous men undergo searing experiences of stigma and social untouchability in a traditional setup and how patriarchal norms reinforce dominant powers of society to stunt the growth of their personality.

Discoursal representation of masculine parenting in Arabic and English websites

Pragmatics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammed Nahar Al-Ali ◽  
Hanan A. Shatat
Keyword(s):  
Discourse Analysis ◽  
Gender Roles ◽  
Critical Discourse Analysis ◽  
Family Life ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Critical Discourse ◽  
Cultural Ideologies ◽  
Shared Parenting ◽  
Arabic And English ◽  
Family Life Educators

Abstract The purpose of this study is to investigate the differences and similarities between Arabic and English parents’ role in Arabic and English parenting website texts and the linguistic exponents used to address parents and signal their roles, and to find out the socio-cultural ideologies that have given rise to variations in gender roles. To this end, a corpus of 40 articles targeting gender-neutral titles and father related ones were selected equally from English and Arabic websites. Drawing on Van Leeuwen’s (2008) framework on critical discourse analysis (CDA) and Sunderland’s (2000, 2006) framework of analysis, the data were analysed and contrasted. The English texts reflected the prevalence of ‘shared parenting’ discourse, whereas the Arabic ones revealed a ‘very traditional parenthood’ discourse. These differences can be attributed to variation in the socio-cultural practices dominant in Arab and Western societies. Such findings will hopefully provide some useful insights for family life educators and parents who resort to such websites.

Masculinity Left to Be Desired

Contracultura ◽  
2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Dunn
Keyword(s):  
Gender Roles ◽  
Female Sexuality ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Gender And Sexuality ◽  
The Political ◽  
Left Wing ◽  
Political Repression ◽  
Brazilian Society ◽  
Political Debates ◽  
Sexual Repression

Chapter Five explores social and cultural practices that challenged traditional conventions of gender and sexuality in Brazilian society. In the late 1970s, emergent feminist and gay movements succeeded in expanding the range of leftist political debates to include discussions around gender roles, sexual desire, corporal pleasure, and other issues previously regarded as personal or private and therefore outside the realm of the political. These activists sought to link political repression to diverse forms of sexual repression such as the maintenance of male dominated gender relations, the policing of female sexuality, or the violent suppression of homosexuality. Here the author draws on the alternative press, especially the largest gay journal Lampião da Esquina. He examines here the influential work by performers who subverted gender norms, like former tropicalists Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil, the gender-bending troupe Dzi Croquettes, and gay icon Ney Matogrosso. The author also discusses left-wing intellectuals, including former guerillas such as Fernando Gabeira, who sought to redefine notions of masculinity during the final phase of military rule.

Urban Nepali Women and Experiences of Love, Intimate Relations, and Media

2018 ◽  
pp. 1230-1247
Author(s):  
Nemu Joshi
Keyword(s):  
Gender Roles ◽  
Intimate Relationships ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Urban Women ◽  
Visual Media ◽  
Local Context ◽  
Common Source ◽  
Daily Lives ◽  
Intimate Relations ◽  
Nepali Women

Focusing on the influence of media, this chapter explores a variety of gender practices in the era of globalisation. This chapter explores how urban Nepali women constantly negotiate between global flows and local context and the effects of this negotiation on their gender roles, and on their familial and intimate relationships. The chapter analyses the ways media, especially Indian visual media, which is a common source of discussion among urban women, is affecting them and their daily lives. Examining the importance of visual media, films and television in directing new identities and implications of gender roles and intimate relationships, this chapter explores ways urban women of Nepal are negotiating their gender relations and intimate lives in relation to the binary of ‘cultural practices' and ‘modernity' through watching Indian visual media.

The Bhāgavata Speaks of Woman

2020 ◽  
pp. 123-136
Author(s):  
Gopal K. Gupta
Keyword(s):  
Gender Roles ◽  
Social Norms ◽  
Gender Studies ◽  
Crucial Role ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Indian Society ◽  
Subaltern Studies ◽  
Gender Discourse ◽  
Positive Light

Indic texts have played a crucial role in constructing, and greatly influencing, gender roles and social norms in Indian society. Scholarship on these texts has identified problems of identity and hegemony that are thoroughly discussed in such fields as subaltern studies, gender studies, cultural studies, and the like. Because of cultural practices such as satῑ‎ and religious laws for widows, Hinduism and some of its associated texts tend to have a reputation for patriarchal misogyny. In her Encyclopedia of Feminism, Lisa Tuttle advises scholars to ask “new questions of old texts;” following her lead, this chapter intends to examine the gender discourse contained in the Bhāgavata Purāṇa, focusing on the text’s characterization of women as māyā, which we have here defined as God’s deluding or covering potency. The analysis should make it plain that while the Bhāgavata does support patriarchal institutions and practices, on a deeper level it portrays women in a far more positive light, holding them in a more esteemed position than one may assume.

Marrying Islam and Pop Culture

2019 ◽  
pp. 111-137
Author(s):  
Thomas Barker
Keyword(s):  
Gender Roles ◽  
Pop Culture ◽  
Religious Practices ◽  
Normative Values ◽  
Feature Film ◽  
Polygamous Marriage ◽  
And Gender

As feature film has become mainstream entertainment again, it has coincided with the emergence of new forms of piety and religious practices amongst Indonesian Muslims. Beginning in 2008, a new kind of feature film with Islamic themes began to be made capturing these new modes and ideas of Islamic piety. Tracing the emergence and development of this genre, this chapter looks in depth at how polygamy is represented by culturally progressive filmmakers. To balance normative values around love and gender roles, the films take an anti-polygamy stance by showing the impossibility of polygamous marriage. Behind many Islamic themed films is the director Hanung Bramantyo who has emerged as the most commercially successful but also controversial directors making Islamic films today.

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