Rainbow-Washing on Screen: Perceptions of 21st Century Popular Media Representations of Queer Identities in a Comparison between Sweden and Czechia
(2022) SOCM04 20221Sociology
Department of Sociology
- Abstract
- This thesis investigates how queer people perceive queer representations in popular media (film and TV) produced in recent years and how such representations affect queer people’s identity and self-perception, as well as how they mirror and reproduce heteronormative understandings of queerness. A cultural comparison between Czechia and Sweden in perceptions of heteronormativity and queer representations and media is also made. A research design comprising of an explanatory case study approach and narrative interviews with 10 Czech and Swedish queer people aged 18-25 is used. The theoretical framework comprises of sociological accounts of gender and sexuality as social constructs instead of biologically determined qualities, and queer... (More)
- This thesis investigates how queer people perceive queer representations in popular media (film and TV) produced in recent years and how such representations affect queer people’s identity and self-perception, as well as how they mirror and reproduce heteronormative understandings of queerness. A cultural comparison between Czechia and Sweden in perceptions of heteronormativity and queer representations and media is also made. A research design comprising of an explanatory case study approach and narrative interviews with 10 Czech and Swedish queer people aged 18-25 is used. The theoretical framework comprises of sociological accounts of gender and sexuality as social constructs instead of biologically determined qualities, and queer theorist accounts heterosexuality as normative and queerness as the ‘Other’. Stuart Hall’s work on representation and stereotypes, which sees marginalisation as marking and signifying difference, is added to explain participants’ perceptions of queer representations as stereotypical to be contributing to maintenance of the heteronormative gender order. Symbolic interactionist accounts of social interaction as an instrument of creating and assigning meanings to social categories is applied to findings showing significance of exposure to queer images in media during youth in identity formation. The study finds that queer people view queer representations in popular media to be largely based on negative stereotypes. Findings also show that exposure to queer images in media during youth contributes to identity formation and self-perception. Lastly, no significant cultural differences between the way Swedish and Czech queer people perceive heteronormativity were not found; Czech participants perceived queer representations in media more negatively due to more conservative attitudes in Czechia. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9085092
- author
- Hythova, Elizabeth LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- SOCM04 20221
- year
- 2022
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- queer representation, stereotypes in popular media, social constructionism, heteronormativity, othering of minorities, queer theory
- language
- English
- id
- 9085092
- date added to LUP
- 2022-06-13 11:20:03
- date last changed
- 2022-06-13 11:20:03
@misc{9085092,
abstract = {{This thesis investigates how queer people perceive queer representations in popular media (film and TV) produced in recent years and how such representations affect queer people’s identity and self-perception, as well as how they mirror and reproduce heteronormative understandings of queerness. A cultural comparison between Czechia and Sweden in perceptions of heteronormativity and queer representations and media is also made. A research design comprising of an explanatory case study approach and narrative interviews with 10 Czech and Swedish queer people aged 18-25 is used. The theoretical framework comprises of sociological accounts of gender and sexuality as social constructs instead of biologically determined qualities, and queer theorist accounts heterosexuality as normative and queerness as the ‘Other’. Stuart Hall’s work on representation and stereotypes, which sees marginalisation as marking and signifying difference, is added to explain participants’ perceptions of queer representations as stereotypical to be contributing to maintenance of the heteronormative gender order. Symbolic interactionist accounts of social interaction as an instrument of creating and assigning meanings to social categories is applied to findings showing significance of exposure to queer images in media during youth in identity formation. The study finds that queer people view queer representations in popular media to be largely based on negative stereotypes. Findings also show that exposure to queer images in media during youth contributes to identity formation and self-perception. Lastly, no significant cultural differences between the way Swedish and Czech queer people perceive heteronormativity were not found; Czech participants perceived queer representations in media more negatively due to more conservative attitudes in Czechia.}},
author = {{Hythova, Elizabeth}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Rainbow-Washing on Screen: Perceptions of 21st Century Popular Media Representations of Queer Identities in a Comparison between Sweden and Czechia}},
year = {{2022}},
}