This paper explores the relevance of Sunderland Church High School for Girls in understanding the... more This paper explores the relevance of Sunderland Church High School for Girls in understanding the life and beliefs of Eileen O'Shaughnessy, George Orwell's first wife. It will take account of education reforms, and look at how the influential head teacher, Miss Ironside, instigated changes in the school that benefited Eileen and led to her studying at Oxford University before working in London. The love of education that Ironside instilled returned to Eileen in the early 1930s and contributed to her enrolling on an MA which in turn led to her meeting Eric Blair. The skills and resourcefulness that she started to develop at Sunderland Church High set her in good stead to survive as a single woman in the 1930s. Drawing on archive material, the paper shows how Eileen embraced school life and how her teachers perceived and encouraged Eileen in her formative years.
This article looks at forms of political and public engagement to emerge in Web 2.0. Focusing on ... more This article looks at forms of political and public engagement to emerge in Web 2.0. Focusing on the platform Twitter, the article looks at both antagonistic and agonistic types of political engagement. It discusses Twitter’s capacity for direct contact with main political party leaders as part of an antagonistic public discourse, geared towards creative expressions of individualised disaffiliation. However, in interventions around @EverydaySexism, the article finds collectivising practices more in keeping with an agonistic public discourse based upon involvement and the tactical use of irony and humour. While showing that the platform provides for new forms of antagonistic engagement with political elites, the article therefore offers support for the view that Web 2.0 gives rise to new and shifting formations of non-institutionally-aligned political public.
In spite of a record number of female parliamentary candidates, the 2010 general election campaig... more In spite of a record number of female parliamentary candidates, the 2010 general election campaign became notable for the intensity of coverage given to the female spouses of the three main party leaders. We find that this resulted from a combination of party communication strategy, established media discourses, and the agency and visibility of the wives themselves. First, Labour and the Conservatives were the most prominent in integrating their leaders' wives into their campaigns, often to counter the less marketable qualities of the leaders themselves. Secondly, while mainstream media outlets-particularly newspapers-sought to cover all three women,they did so drawing upon established gender-based conventions, focussing on the wives' physical appearance and apparent dedication to their husbands. Thirdly, while the wife of the Liberal Democrat leader opted for limited and strategic contact with media, the wives of the Conservative and Labour leaders exploited a range of new media platforms, combining official party websites, personal blogs and webcasts. We argue that any assessment of the role of the spouses of party leaders has to look at media-driven priorities only alongside the various strategies open to parties and individuals in managing media activities. We also suggest that there is room to use the coverage of leaders' spouses to explore the development, limits and gender politics of any shift towards presidentialism.
... The OSTIReport Theory and Analysis John Sinclair, Susan Jones and Robert Daley Edited by Rame... more ... The OSTIReport Theory and Analysis John Sinclair, Susan Jones and Robert Daley Edited by Ramesh Krishnamurthy Michael Hoey, Michaela ... of American, British and Italian Television News Reporting of the 2003 Iraqi War Edited by Louann Haarman Linda Lombardo Page 5. ...
This special issue of the Journal of War and Culture Studies brings together a collection of arti... more This special issue of the Journal of War and Culture Studies brings together a collection of articles around the theme of ‘reporting war’. The purpose of this introduction is to explain why this should be a central concern for all of those interested in war and culture, and also to situate the reporting of war within its fuller historical context. Two main themes that we want to highlight as suggestive ones in understanding this history are, first, the development of the war correspondent as a personality and, second, the changing possibilities of media technology. In doing this, we hope to emphasize links and parallels between the articles published here and the issues that have enabled and bedevilled war reporting in the progress through an age of mass mediation, towards digital, individualized content. We begin by asserting the difficulty of conceiving of war without mediation. As the theme of this journal reveals and explores, ‘war’ is itself a discursive set of activities. Max Weber’s (1971) definition of the state as those that exercise
This article considers the complex relationship between civility and gender in Scottish politics.... more This article considers the complex relationship between civility and gender in Scottish politics. It addresses two themes that have dominated discussion of Scotland's political tone. The first has been the seeming rise in intemperate political discourse, amplified by social media and the divisiveness of Scottish independence. The second has been those developments in the representation of gender in Scottish politics, both in the composition of the Scottish Parliament and in discourses around First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon. We also focus in on discourses surrounding a recent breach of civility by male Liberal Democrat MSP, Alex Cole-Hamilton, in which Cole-Hamilton is recorded mouthing an expletive towards a female Scottish government minister during a Zoom meeting of the Scottish Parliament's Equalities and Human Rights Committee on 11 February 2021. Analysis of this includes political responses to the 'outburst' and its subsequent media coverage, and examines, in particular, associations with masculinity and the relevance of the mitigating pleas of exasperated spontaneity. The article makes broader associations between the representation of this example of political incivility and those asymmetrical gender power relations given prominence by the #MeToo movement. Drawing on literature about angry populism, the article draws lessons about how mainstream politicians weaponise the language of incivility.
Researchers have shown that it is common to use nationalist
appeals when marketing food products.... more Researchers have shown that it is common to use nationalist appeals when marketing food products. Research has also shown that geographical places play an important role in creating feelings of national identity and national belonging. To a much lesser extent, research has shown how these “places” are represented and reproduced in the packaging of food products in specific national environments and to an even lesser extent, compared these representations and reproductions. In this article, using multimodal critical discourse analysis, we examine how butter packaging in Sweden and the UK represents nature in ways that create associations that are linked to the national identity that exists in each country. We argue that commercial interests, through their choice of packaging design, not only exploit cultural and political ideas and values but also reinforce them by connecting to prevailing national sentiments. In times of political and social change, this can be used to strengthen national affiliation and thus ally with political interests.
This article uses discourse analysis to the expressive practices around "clean eating", looking a... more This article uses discourse analysis to the expressive practices around "clean eating", looking at the engagement of a popular cookery writer with those that foreground non-processed foods, the informed consumer and assumptions around health, much of which we will see dismissed as "faddy food trends". Looking at the example of popular cook, food writer and television presenter Nigella Lawson, the article will explore the discursive work undertaken to manage discourses around clean eating, including associated discourses around health and well-being. In the management of a critical relationship with "clean" food, we will see the importance of particular claims of authenticity in the integration of clean eating within Lawson's expressive lexicon of popular cooking. This paper will therefore explore an aspect of clean eating, its culinary ingredients, to show how these have become normalised in some ways by cooks who would otherwise shun them. Nigella Lawson is on record for her views on food fads: What I hate is the new-age voodoo about eating, the notion that foods are either harmful or healing, that a good diet makes a good person and that that person is necessarily lean, limber, toned and fit […] Such a view seems to me in danger of fusing Nazism (with its ideological cult of physical perfection) and Puritanism (with its horror of the flesh and belief in salvation through denial). (Nigella Lawson, How to Eat 1998: ix) This strident refusal to engage in faddy food trends by is one that underpins her cookery writing for the next 20 years. This is in the face of a seemingly never-ending series of diet trends that promise us good health, mostly through giving things up or replacing them with new-fangled ingredients. What this paper seeks to show is the insidious influence of such trends which ultimately affect even food writers such as Nigella Lawson who have explicitly rejected them. We will see how clean eating, as one of the many disputed notions of just what is "good food", has become normalised in contemporary food culture. Food trends: towards clean eating A great deal of research has explored the imposition of commerce on food. At the centre of this, the nutritional necessities of life have become bound up within what Bourdieu (1983) famously describes as a system of "distinction" in which ingredients, process and practices around cooking and eating are used to exercise judgement and
Tough guys and little rocket men: @RealDonaldTrump's Twitter feed and the normalisation of banal ... more Tough guys and little rocket men: @RealDonaldTrump's Twitter feed and the normalisation of banal masculinity Abstract This article looks at discourses of masculinity in the social media performance of US President Donald Trump. The article discusses the implications of these for the normalisation of regressive forms of masculinity in public discourse, where normalisation is the process of co-opting otherwise deviant behaviours by integrating them into institutional practice. The article begins by exploring ways in which Trump's social media performance exhibits the characteristics of "hypermasculinity". The analysis then turns to the everyday expression of traditionally macho masculinity by Trump by conducting a search for tokens of the masculine-gendered nouns "man" and "guy", and using critical discourse analysis to reveal the use of these in exercising gendered forms of judgement. Of particular importance is the informal "guy", through which Trump defines challengers within power-based masculine oppositions. Overall, we find that while the concept of hypermasculinity is useful in describing provocative displays of "bad behaviour" oriented-towards a populist style of leadership, but that Trump routinely produces more banal types of masculine performance that objectify allies and opponents within a gendered hierarchy, and may be said to normalise regressive forms of masculinity within the prevailing political culture.
This paper seeks to show how male politicians can draw on performances of masculinity to appeal t... more This paper seeks to show how male politicians can draw on performances of masculinity to appeal to voters. The paper uses former UK Prime Minister David Cameron as an example of how performances of masculinity interact with the opportunistic use of populist forms of political engagement. It argues that while Cameron's performances of populism are often situated in compatible policy initiatives such as the "big society", we can also identify a more sustained deployment of masculine discourse in "performances" of alignment with the people. This paper shows how these gendered performances of political leaders mirror changes in society, while exploring how they can also be politically hazardous. Whilst the "new man" might appeal to Western voters, this paper shows how Cameron draws on this performance of masculinity in his first term as UK prime minister; at the same time, showing the limits to such appeal in an age of austerity.
This Special Issue arrives at a time of contradiction and challenge in the study of gender and po... more This Special Issue arrives at a time of contradiction and challenge in the study of gender and politics. Progressive politics has begun to internalise the drive for equality of representation, with political institutions such as the Nordic states and devolved parliaments of Wales and Scotland increasing the proportions of women elected to office (Mackay and McAllister 2012). Yet, throughout political life, women still confront variations of the dilemma between the exercise of power and conventions of femininity commonly referred to as the "double bind" . In what Parry-Giles (2018, 315) has recently articulated as the "power paradox", women are encouraged to pursue political office, but are routinely demeaned and treated with suspicion when they meet with success. Added to this is the rise of a new populism, laced with that toxic masculinity identified by some of our contributors below, where gendered abuse has become a tactical resource in a grotesque lexicon of "authentic" expression.
This Special Issue arrives at a time of contradiction and challenge in the study of gender and po... more This Special Issue arrives at a time of contradiction and challenge in the study of gender and politics. Progressive politics has begun to internalise the drive for equality of representation, with political institutions such as the Nordic states and devolved parliaments of Wales and Scotland increasing the proportions of women elected to office (Mackay and McAllister 2012). Yet, throughout political life, women still confront variations of the dilemma between the exercise of power and conventions of femininity commonly referred to as the "double bind" . In what Parry-Giles (2018, 315) has recently articulated as the "power paradox", women are encouraged to pursue political office, but are routinely demeaned and treated with suspicion when they meet with success. Added to this is the rise of a new populism, laced with that toxic masculinity identified by some of our contributors below, where gendered abuse has become a tactical resource in a grotesque lexicon of "authentic" expression.
There is a long history of dating shows on TV, most famously in the UK in the form of the long-ru... more There is a long history of dating shows on TV, most famously in the UK in the form of the long-running ITV show Blind Date which ran from 1985 until 2003, and its re-boot is back on ITV1. The game-show format continues in shows such as Take Me Out (also ITV1) and Dinner Date (More 4). Elsewhere, the make-over shows that dominated the schedule in the late 1990s and first decade of the century morphed into relationship/dating shows, such as Gok's Fashion Fix (C4) and Snog, Marry, Avoid (BBC3). However, another relationship/make-over show, How to Look Good Naked (C4 2006-2012) seems to have heralded a further development of this. Whilst How to Look Good Naked never showed full frontal nudity, with participants always expressing the empowering nature of their 'naked picture' finale, in recent years there has been a further development of the nakedness theme across several dating shows that have a game-show format. The one that has caused most comment is Channel 4's Naked Attraction, with the Guardian commenting that 'the bottom of the barrel has been reached'. With full nudity, lingering close-ups and graphic descriptions, this show drove many viewers to Twitter to express dismay that this show has made it to mainstream tv, and led to the Guardian referring to this show as being symptomatic of dystopian tv since 2016. This paper will explore how the shock of graphic nudity is ameliorated by the linguistic strategies of positive politeness that all participants seem to collude to engage with. Such amelioration would appear to be a defence against accusations of voyeuristic and pornographic content on mainstream tv.
This chapter will explore how the rejection of the claims for equality are represented in the tec... more This chapter will explore how the rejection of the claims for equality are represented in the technology of the 21st century, but at the same time embody the language of a pre-feminist world and can thus be seen to at once empower and restrict feminist discourse. In this way, the crisis in gender relations is one that emerges in the 1990s in Westernised contexts and continues to develop into the 21st century, contributing to the emergence of a Fourth Wave of feminist action. As such, " crisis " is employed in this chapter to explore how various small events, seemingly insignificant in isolation, have been raised to public notice through social media to enhance the emergence of Fourth Wave Feminism in the last ten years.
This paper explores the relevance of Sunderland Church High School for Girls in understanding the... more This paper explores the relevance of Sunderland Church High School for Girls in understanding the life and beliefs of Eileen O'Shaughnessy, George Orwell's first wife. It will take account of education reforms, and look at how the influential head teacher, Miss Ironside, instigated changes in the school that benefited Eileen and led to her studying at Oxford University before working in London. The love of education that Ironside instilled returned to Eileen in the early 1930s and contributed to her enrolling on an MA which in turn led to her meeting Eric Blair. The skills and resourcefulness that she started to develop at Sunderland Church High set her in good stead to survive as a single woman in the 1930s. Drawing on archive material, the paper shows how Eileen embraced school life and how her teachers perceived and encouraged Eileen in her formative years.
This article looks at forms of political and public engagement to emerge in Web 2.0. Focusing on ... more This article looks at forms of political and public engagement to emerge in Web 2.0. Focusing on the platform Twitter, the article looks at both antagonistic and agonistic types of political engagement. It discusses Twitter’s capacity for direct contact with main political party leaders as part of an antagonistic public discourse, geared towards creative expressions of individualised disaffiliation. However, in interventions around @EverydaySexism, the article finds collectivising practices more in keeping with an agonistic public discourse based upon involvement and the tactical use of irony and humour. While showing that the platform provides for new forms of antagonistic engagement with political elites, the article therefore offers support for the view that Web 2.0 gives rise to new and shifting formations of non-institutionally-aligned political public.
In spite of a record number of female parliamentary candidates, the 2010 general election campaig... more In spite of a record number of female parliamentary candidates, the 2010 general election campaign became notable for the intensity of coverage given to the female spouses of the three main party leaders. We find that this resulted from a combination of party communication strategy, established media discourses, and the agency and visibility of the wives themselves. First, Labour and the Conservatives were the most prominent in integrating their leaders' wives into their campaigns, often to counter the less marketable qualities of the leaders themselves. Secondly, while mainstream media outlets-particularly newspapers-sought to cover all three women,they did so drawing upon established gender-based conventions, focussing on the wives' physical appearance and apparent dedication to their husbands. Thirdly, while the wife of the Liberal Democrat leader opted for limited and strategic contact with media, the wives of the Conservative and Labour leaders exploited a range of new media platforms, combining official party websites, personal blogs and webcasts. We argue that any assessment of the role of the spouses of party leaders has to look at media-driven priorities only alongside the various strategies open to parties and individuals in managing media activities. We also suggest that there is room to use the coverage of leaders' spouses to explore the development, limits and gender politics of any shift towards presidentialism.
... The OSTIReport Theory and Analysis John Sinclair, Susan Jones and Robert Daley Edited by Rame... more ... The OSTIReport Theory and Analysis John Sinclair, Susan Jones and Robert Daley Edited by Ramesh Krishnamurthy Michael Hoey, Michaela ... of American, British and Italian Television News Reporting of the 2003 Iraqi War Edited by Louann Haarman Linda Lombardo Page 5. ...
This special issue of the Journal of War and Culture Studies brings together a collection of arti... more This special issue of the Journal of War and Culture Studies brings together a collection of articles around the theme of ‘reporting war’. The purpose of this introduction is to explain why this should be a central concern for all of those interested in war and culture, and also to situate the reporting of war within its fuller historical context. Two main themes that we want to highlight as suggestive ones in understanding this history are, first, the development of the war correspondent as a personality and, second, the changing possibilities of media technology. In doing this, we hope to emphasize links and parallels between the articles published here and the issues that have enabled and bedevilled war reporting in the progress through an age of mass mediation, towards digital, individualized content. We begin by asserting the difficulty of conceiving of war without mediation. As the theme of this journal reveals and explores, ‘war’ is itself a discursive set of activities. Max Weber’s (1971) definition of the state as those that exercise
This article considers the complex relationship between civility and gender in Scottish politics.... more This article considers the complex relationship between civility and gender in Scottish politics. It addresses two themes that have dominated discussion of Scotland's political tone. The first has been the seeming rise in intemperate political discourse, amplified by social media and the divisiveness of Scottish independence. The second has been those developments in the representation of gender in Scottish politics, both in the composition of the Scottish Parliament and in discourses around First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon. We also focus in on discourses surrounding a recent breach of civility by male Liberal Democrat MSP, Alex Cole-Hamilton, in which Cole-Hamilton is recorded mouthing an expletive towards a female Scottish government minister during a Zoom meeting of the Scottish Parliament's Equalities and Human Rights Committee on 11 February 2021. Analysis of this includes political responses to the 'outburst' and its subsequent media coverage, and examines, in particular, associations with masculinity and the relevance of the mitigating pleas of exasperated spontaneity. The article makes broader associations between the representation of this example of political incivility and those asymmetrical gender power relations given prominence by the #MeToo movement. Drawing on literature about angry populism, the article draws lessons about how mainstream politicians weaponise the language of incivility.
Researchers have shown that it is common to use nationalist
appeals when marketing food products.... more Researchers have shown that it is common to use nationalist appeals when marketing food products. Research has also shown that geographical places play an important role in creating feelings of national identity and national belonging. To a much lesser extent, research has shown how these “places” are represented and reproduced in the packaging of food products in specific national environments and to an even lesser extent, compared these representations and reproductions. In this article, using multimodal critical discourse analysis, we examine how butter packaging in Sweden and the UK represents nature in ways that create associations that are linked to the national identity that exists in each country. We argue that commercial interests, through their choice of packaging design, not only exploit cultural and political ideas and values but also reinforce them by connecting to prevailing national sentiments. In times of political and social change, this can be used to strengthen national affiliation and thus ally with political interests.
This article uses discourse analysis to the expressive practices around "clean eating", looking a... more This article uses discourse analysis to the expressive practices around "clean eating", looking at the engagement of a popular cookery writer with those that foreground non-processed foods, the informed consumer and assumptions around health, much of which we will see dismissed as "faddy food trends". Looking at the example of popular cook, food writer and television presenter Nigella Lawson, the article will explore the discursive work undertaken to manage discourses around clean eating, including associated discourses around health and well-being. In the management of a critical relationship with "clean" food, we will see the importance of particular claims of authenticity in the integration of clean eating within Lawson's expressive lexicon of popular cooking. This paper will therefore explore an aspect of clean eating, its culinary ingredients, to show how these have become normalised in some ways by cooks who would otherwise shun them. Nigella Lawson is on record for her views on food fads: What I hate is the new-age voodoo about eating, the notion that foods are either harmful or healing, that a good diet makes a good person and that that person is necessarily lean, limber, toned and fit […] Such a view seems to me in danger of fusing Nazism (with its ideological cult of physical perfection) and Puritanism (with its horror of the flesh and belief in salvation through denial). (Nigella Lawson, How to Eat 1998: ix) This strident refusal to engage in faddy food trends by is one that underpins her cookery writing for the next 20 years. This is in the face of a seemingly never-ending series of diet trends that promise us good health, mostly through giving things up or replacing them with new-fangled ingredients. What this paper seeks to show is the insidious influence of such trends which ultimately affect even food writers such as Nigella Lawson who have explicitly rejected them. We will see how clean eating, as one of the many disputed notions of just what is "good food", has become normalised in contemporary food culture. Food trends: towards clean eating A great deal of research has explored the imposition of commerce on food. At the centre of this, the nutritional necessities of life have become bound up within what Bourdieu (1983) famously describes as a system of "distinction" in which ingredients, process and practices around cooking and eating are used to exercise judgement and
Tough guys and little rocket men: @RealDonaldTrump's Twitter feed and the normalisation of banal ... more Tough guys and little rocket men: @RealDonaldTrump's Twitter feed and the normalisation of banal masculinity Abstract This article looks at discourses of masculinity in the social media performance of US President Donald Trump. The article discusses the implications of these for the normalisation of regressive forms of masculinity in public discourse, where normalisation is the process of co-opting otherwise deviant behaviours by integrating them into institutional practice. The article begins by exploring ways in which Trump's social media performance exhibits the characteristics of "hypermasculinity". The analysis then turns to the everyday expression of traditionally macho masculinity by Trump by conducting a search for tokens of the masculine-gendered nouns "man" and "guy", and using critical discourse analysis to reveal the use of these in exercising gendered forms of judgement. Of particular importance is the informal "guy", through which Trump defines challengers within power-based masculine oppositions. Overall, we find that while the concept of hypermasculinity is useful in describing provocative displays of "bad behaviour" oriented-towards a populist style of leadership, but that Trump routinely produces more banal types of masculine performance that objectify allies and opponents within a gendered hierarchy, and may be said to normalise regressive forms of masculinity within the prevailing political culture.
This paper seeks to show how male politicians can draw on performances of masculinity to appeal t... more This paper seeks to show how male politicians can draw on performances of masculinity to appeal to voters. The paper uses former UK Prime Minister David Cameron as an example of how performances of masculinity interact with the opportunistic use of populist forms of political engagement. It argues that while Cameron's performances of populism are often situated in compatible policy initiatives such as the "big society", we can also identify a more sustained deployment of masculine discourse in "performances" of alignment with the people. This paper shows how these gendered performances of political leaders mirror changes in society, while exploring how they can also be politically hazardous. Whilst the "new man" might appeal to Western voters, this paper shows how Cameron draws on this performance of masculinity in his first term as UK prime minister; at the same time, showing the limits to such appeal in an age of austerity.
This Special Issue arrives at a time of contradiction and challenge in the study of gender and po... more This Special Issue arrives at a time of contradiction and challenge in the study of gender and politics. Progressive politics has begun to internalise the drive for equality of representation, with political institutions such as the Nordic states and devolved parliaments of Wales and Scotland increasing the proportions of women elected to office (Mackay and McAllister 2012). Yet, throughout political life, women still confront variations of the dilemma between the exercise of power and conventions of femininity commonly referred to as the "double bind" . In what Parry-Giles (2018, 315) has recently articulated as the "power paradox", women are encouraged to pursue political office, but are routinely demeaned and treated with suspicion when they meet with success. Added to this is the rise of a new populism, laced with that toxic masculinity identified by some of our contributors below, where gendered abuse has become a tactical resource in a grotesque lexicon of "authentic" expression.
This Special Issue arrives at a time of contradiction and challenge in the study of gender and po... more This Special Issue arrives at a time of contradiction and challenge in the study of gender and politics. Progressive politics has begun to internalise the drive for equality of representation, with political institutions such as the Nordic states and devolved parliaments of Wales and Scotland increasing the proportions of women elected to office (Mackay and McAllister 2012). Yet, throughout political life, women still confront variations of the dilemma between the exercise of power and conventions of femininity commonly referred to as the "double bind" . In what Parry-Giles (2018, 315) has recently articulated as the "power paradox", women are encouraged to pursue political office, but are routinely demeaned and treated with suspicion when they meet with success. Added to this is the rise of a new populism, laced with that toxic masculinity identified by some of our contributors below, where gendered abuse has become a tactical resource in a grotesque lexicon of "authentic" expression.
There is a long history of dating shows on TV, most famously in the UK in the form of the long-ru... more There is a long history of dating shows on TV, most famously in the UK in the form of the long-running ITV show Blind Date which ran from 1985 until 2003, and its re-boot is back on ITV1. The game-show format continues in shows such as Take Me Out (also ITV1) and Dinner Date (More 4). Elsewhere, the make-over shows that dominated the schedule in the late 1990s and first decade of the century morphed into relationship/dating shows, such as Gok's Fashion Fix (C4) and Snog, Marry, Avoid (BBC3). However, another relationship/make-over show, How to Look Good Naked (C4 2006-2012) seems to have heralded a further development of this. Whilst How to Look Good Naked never showed full frontal nudity, with participants always expressing the empowering nature of their 'naked picture' finale, in recent years there has been a further development of the nakedness theme across several dating shows that have a game-show format. The one that has caused most comment is Channel 4's Naked Attraction, with the Guardian commenting that 'the bottom of the barrel has been reached'. With full nudity, lingering close-ups and graphic descriptions, this show drove many viewers to Twitter to express dismay that this show has made it to mainstream tv, and led to the Guardian referring to this show as being symptomatic of dystopian tv since 2016. This paper will explore how the shock of graphic nudity is ameliorated by the linguistic strategies of positive politeness that all participants seem to collude to engage with. Such amelioration would appear to be a defence against accusations of voyeuristic and pornographic content on mainstream tv.
This chapter will explore how the rejection of the claims for equality are represented in the tec... more This chapter will explore how the rejection of the claims for equality are represented in the technology of the 21st century, but at the same time embody the language of a pre-feminist world and can thus be seen to at once empower and restrict feminist discourse. In this way, the crisis in gender relations is one that emerges in the 1990s in Westernised contexts and continues to develop into the 21st century, contributing to the emergence of a Fourth Wave of feminist action. As such, " crisis " is employed in this chapter to explore how various small events, seemingly insignificant in isolation, have been raised to public notice through social media to enhance the emergence of Fourth Wave Feminism in the last ten years.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this p... more The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
Edited collection of essays exploring the experience of readers of Spare Rib, and an analysis of ... more Edited collection of essays exploring the experience of readers of Spare Rib, and an analysis of selected concepts as presented in the magazine.
This paper explores the figure of the 'zombie' in literature and art of the First World War. As w... more This paper explores the figure of the 'zombie' in literature and art of the First World War. As well as the conventional image of the undead as threatening violence and death, this article finds the undead appearing as harbingers of conscience and truth.
Flags and fields: a comparative analysis of national identity in butter packaging in Sweden and the UK, 2021
Researchers have shown that it is common to use nationalist
appeals when marketing food products.... more Researchers have shown that it is common to use nationalist appeals when marketing food products. Research has also shown that geographical places play an important role in creating feelings of national identity and national belonging. To a much lesser extent, research has shown how these “places” are represented and reproduced in the packaging of food products in specific national environments and to an even lesser extent, compared these representations and reproductions. In this article, using multimodal critical discourse analysis, we examine how butter packaging in Sweden and the UK represents nature in ways that create associations that are linked to the national identity that exists in each country. We argue that commercial interests, through their choice of packaging design, not only exploit cultural and political ideas and values but also reinforce them by connecting to prevailing national sentiments. In times of political and social change, this can be used to strengthen national affiliation and thus ally with political interests.
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Papers by Angela Smith
appeals when marketing food products. Research has also shown
that geographical places play an important role in creating
feelings of national identity and national belonging. To a much
lesser extent, research has shown how these “places” are
represented and reproduced in the packaging of food products in
specific national environments and to an even lesser extent,
compared these representations and reproductions. In this article,
using multimodal critical discourse analysis, we examine how
butter packaging in Sweden and the UK represents nature in
ways that create associations that are linked to the national
identity that exists in each country. We argue that commercial
interests, through their choice of packaging design, not only
exploit cultural and political ideas and values but also reinforce
them by connecting to prevailing national sentiments. In times of
political and social change, this can be used to strengthen
national affiliation and thus ally with political interests.
appeals when marketing food products. Research has also shown
that geographical places play an important role in creating
feelings of national identity and national belonging. To a much
lesser extent, research has shown how these “places” are
represented and reproduced in the packaging of food products in
specific national environments and to an even lesser extent,
compared these representations and reproductions. In this article,
using multimodal critical discourse analysis, we examine how
butter packaging in Sweden and the UK represents nature in
ways that create associations that are linked to the national
identity that exists in each country. We argue that commercial
interests, through their choice of packaging design, not only
exploit cultural and political ideas and values but also reinforce
them by connecting to prevailing national sentiments. In times of
political and social change, this can be used to strengthen
national affiliation and thus ally with political interests.
appeals when marketing food products. Research has also shown
that geographical places play an important role in creating
feelings of national identity and national belonging. To a much
lesser extent, research has shown how these “places” are
represented and reproduced in the packaging of food products in
specific national environments and to an even lesser extent,
compared these representations and reproductions. In this article,
using multimodal critical discourse analysis, we examine how
butter packaging in Sweden and the UK represents nature in
ways that create associations that are linked to the national
identity that exists in each country. We argue that commercial
interests, through their choice of packaging design, not only
exploit cultural and political ideas and values but also reinforce
them by connecting to prevailing national sentiments. In times of
political and social change, this can be used to strengthen national affiliation and thus ally with political interests.