Women's rugby at Stellenbosch University: challenging normative constructions of gender in sport

Date
2022-12
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Publisher
Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
Abstract
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The purpose of this thesis is to examine how women playing rugby pose a challenge to normative constructions of gender. The study attempts to examine and understand the experiences of women rugby players at Stellenbosch University, where men’s rugby is an integral part of the University. The aim of this thesis is to capture and reflect on individual stories and experiences of Maties women’s rugby players, together with my own personal experiences as a Maties women’s rugby player, by using qualitative research as the data collection method. The study participants comprised seven women rugby players from the Maties Rugby Club. These interviews demonstrate that a sport such as rugby has still not fully acquired gender equity due to the relative lack of representation of women’s teams when compared to men’s teams. The research was influenced by Kimberlé Crenshaw (1991) on her work on intersectionality (race, gender and sexuality), and how this can be related to how women face discrimination in a sport like rugby. The findings reflect how aspects such as gender, race and sexuality cut across experiential registers of meaning and how female rugby players attain a positive sense of identity amidst structural occlusion and gender-based discriminations.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die doel van hierdie proefskrif is om te ondersoek hoe vroue wat rugby speel 'n uitdaging stel ann normatiewe konstruksies van geslag. Die studie poog om die ervarings van vrouerugbyspelers aan die Universiteit Stellenbosch, te ondersoek en te verstaan waar mansrugby 'n integrale deel van die universiteit is. Die doel van hierdie tesis is om individuele stories en ervarings as 'n Maties-vrouerugbyspeler vas te le en daaroor na te dink, tesame met my eie persoonlike ervarings as 'n Maties-vrouerugbyspeler, deur kwalitatiewe navorsing as die data-insamelingsmetode te gebruik. Die studiedeelnemers het uit sewe vrouerugbyspelers van die Maties-RugbyKlub bestaan. Hierdie onderhoude toon dat 'n sportsoort soos rugby steeds nie ten volle geslagsgelykheid verkry het nie as gevolg van die relatiewe gebrek aan verteenwoordiging van vrouespanne in vergelyking met manspan. Die navorsing is beinvloed deur Kimberle Crenshaw (1991) oor haar werk oor interseksionaliteit (ras, geslag en seksualiteit), en hoe dit in verband gebring kan word met hoe vroue diskriminasie in 'n sport soos rugby in die gesig staar. Die bevindinge weerspieel hoe aspekte soos geslag, ras en seksualiteit deur ervaringsregisters van betekenis sny en hoe vroulike rugbyspelers 'n positiewe sin van identiteit verkry te midde van strukturele okklusie en geslagsgebaseerde diskriminasie.
Description
Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2022.
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