Category: Gender Studies
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Adventure Time, BMO and the Networked Self
Chris Olson wrote this initial take on the representation of BMO in the cartoon series Adventure Time for a class paper. In the paper he argues that BMO\’s representation in the series demonstrates the fluidity and hyperreality of identity and the idea that we come to develop our sense of self via our interactions with our online…
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The Demon Within: Tensions in Exorcism Cinema
This year, while concluding the virtual world television project with Pooky Amsterdam and continuing projects on gender and media engaging (such as My Little Pony and cross-gendered media engagings), I will also be working with Christopher J. Olson on a number of projects. One of the new ones is a consideration of the representation of women and feminist discourses in…
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Men and Their Engagements with Stereotypically Feminine Media Products
The following is an excerpt from the paper I will be presenting at the 2014 Central States Communication Association Convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This paper presents a new analysis from the data collected for my dissertation on gendered media engagings. With the help of my undergraduate research assistant, Kevin Miller, we were able to conduct…
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The Study of Gendered Media Engagings (Part 3): Why It Matters
This is the third part of my dissertation’s first chapter. The first part was on defining gendered media engagings. The second part was on defining gender. Why studying gendered media engagings matters Thanks to the work of scholars such as Dallas Smythe, we are aware of the central role of advertisement in most media industries (Smythe,…
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The Study of Gendered Media Engagings (Part 2): Defining Gender
This is the second part of my dissertation’s first chapter. The first part was on defining gendered media engagings. Theoretical constructions of gender In order to properly begin a discussion on the theoretical approach being employed in this study, it is necessary to define what is meant by the gendering process. The concept of gender…
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The Study of Gendered Media Engagings (Part 1): Defining Gendered Media Engagings
The following is how I began my dissertation, “Gendered media engagings as user agency mediations with sociocultural and media structures: A Sense-Making Methodology study of the situationality of gender divergences and convergences.” The discussion focuses on defining the concepts studied in the dissertation, focusing on the research topic of gendered media engaging. The results of…
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Carnival of Souls and Emergent Feminism in the Early Half of the Sexual Revolution.
Christopher Olson discusses how this early indie horror movie relates to the early years of the sexual revolution. In the early 1960s, when women were moving out of the house and into the workforce, and beginning to control their sexual lives, Carnival of Souls shows one woman doing just that — or is she? Key to this…
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Fantasy, Fairy Tales, and Female Sexuality in Spirited Away, Pan’s Labyrinth, and Coraline
Christopher J. Olson presents his MPCA 2013 Conference talk on the portrayals of girls exploring their emergent sexuality in the coming-of-age stories Spirited Away, Pan’s Labyrinth, and Coraline. The films’ depictions of the girls’ experiences present positive representations for girls to embrace their agency, their sexuality, and their identity. via Fantasy, Fairy Tales, and Female Sexuality…
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What Women Don’t Want — LadyBits on Medium
What Women Don’t Want — LadyBits on Medium — Medium. So here we have another wonderful breakdown of a breakdown in the progress of bringing women across gendered lines. This summer — and maybe even this year thus far — has been one in which we really start to address the realities of what has…
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