The development towards a linguistic female gaze in selected American situation comedies

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dc.contributor.advisorHolm, Nicoleen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorGouws, Moniq Estien_ZA
dc.contributor.otherStellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Drama.en_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2024-02-26T05:56:43Z
dc.date.accessioned2024-04-26T08:04:36Z
dc.date.available2024-02-26T05:56:43Z
dc.date.available2024-04-26T08:04:36Z
dc.date.issued2024-03
dc.descriptionThesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2024.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractENGLISH ABSTRACT: Mass media, especially the media we consume as entertainment, greatly affects our views on societal topics like gender performativity. This study investigates two situation comedies, Two and a half men(2003-2015) and Mom(2013-2021), to determine how language use in the series has developed from a male gaze to a female gaze influence. Discussions on the societal position of women throughout the 20th century, the feminist movement and feminist media theory is provided. Mulvey’s (1975) theory of the male gaze, based on Freud’s psychoanalysis, and possible definitions of the female gaze are explored. However, there is still a need for a female gaze in digital series, as the largest purveyor of societal norms in mass media. Linguistic theories on gendered language use and discussions on communication theory, transitivity and paralinguistic features are given along with comedy theory and the role gender and language play in comedy. The strong influences gender, language and comedy have on each other becomes an important point of departure for this study. A multimodal discourse analysis of both series is completed based on specific scenes and storylines that discuss the ways men and women, sex and parenthood are portrayed. Women in the early 2000s were portrayed as sex-objects, but later drove the narrative as the protagonists. Both series exhibit the double standard for mothers and fathers, but was initially portrayed as comedic from the male perspective, while the seriousness of the situation will only be portrayed later through the female perspective. Sexual desire remained an issue throughout both series, only presented through fragmentation and objectification, adhering to the male gaze. It was concluded that Mom contained more positive female language use than Two and a half men and portrayed women in many different regards, not merely sexually or in antagonized roles. However, both series still fall short of a true female gaze in terms of the double-standard of mothers and fathers and the sexual desire of both genders.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractAFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Massa media, spesifiek die media wat ons vermaak, het ‘n groot effek op die opinies wat ons vorm oor onderwerpe soos geslag. Hierdie studie ondersoek twee Amerikaanse komedies, Two and a half men(2003-2015) en Mom (2013-2021), om vas te stel hoe taalgebruik in die digitale reekse ontwikkel van die manlike uitkyk na ‘n meer vroulike uitkyk. Die sosiale posisie van vroue tydens die 20ste eeu, the feministiese beweging en feministiese media teorie word bespreek. Mulvey (1975) se teorie oor die manlike uitkyk, gebasseer op Freud se psigoanalise, en moontlike definisies van ‘n vroulike uitkyk word verken. Daar is ‘n behoefte aan ‘n vroulike uitkyk in digitale reekse, aangesien digitale reekse die grootste invloed oor sosiale norms in massa media het. Linguistiese teorieë wat handel oor die taalgebruik van verskillende geslagte en ‘n bespreking van kommunikasie teorie, transitiviteit en paralinguistiese kenmerke word verskaf saammet komedie teorie. Die invloede wat geslag, taal en komedie opmekaar het word vasgestel as ‘n belangrike basis vir hierdie studie. n Multimodale diskoers analise van albei reekse word voltooi, gebasseer op spesifieke tonele en storielyne wat die maniere wat mans en vroue uitgebeeld word, sowel as seks en ouerskap bespreek. Vroue in die vroeë 2000s is as blote seks-objekte uitgebeeld, maar vroue het later die narratief van die storie gedryf as die protagoniste. Albei reekse wys die dubbel standaard van moeders en vaders, maar hierdie was aanvanklik uitgebeeld as komedies uit die oogpunt van die pa, terwyl die erns van die situasie eers later uit die vrou se perspektief uitgebeeld is. Seksuele begeerte het ‘n probleem gebly in albei reekse en is slegs uitgebeeld deur fragmentasie en objektifikasie, wat onder die manlike uitkyk val. In konklusie het Mom meer positiewe uitbeeldings van vroulike taalgebruik as Two and a half men en beeld vroue in verskillende maniere uit, meer as net seksuele of antagonistiese rolle. Alhoewel, albei reekse het nog ‘n gebrek aan ‘n ware vroulike uitbeelding in terme van die dubbel standaarde van moeders en vaders en die seksuele behoefte van albei geslagte.af_ZA
dc.description.versionMastersen_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttps://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/130176
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherStellenbosch : Stellenbosch Universityen_ZA
dc.rights.holderStellenbosch Universityen_ZA
dc.subjectGender performativity en_ZA
dc.subjectFemale gazeen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshMass media -- Social aspectsen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshGender identity in mass mediaen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshMass media and languageen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshGender expressionen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshSituation comedies (Television programs) -- United Statesen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshSexism in languageen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshFeminismen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshCommunication -- Sex differencesen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshSociolinguisticsen_ZA
dc.subject.nameUCTD
dc.titleThe development towards a linguistic female gaze in selected American situation comediesen_ZA
dc.typeThesisen_ZA
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