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Constructing reproductive agency in an environmentally focused world: An anthropological analysis of how population control is portrayed by anglo-saxon news media

Halldorsdotter, Viktoria LU (2021) SIMV31 20211
Master of Science in Development Studies
Graduate School
Abstract
This dissertation examines the change that has occurred in the discourse around population
growth in Anglo-Saxon mainstream media. The research focuses on the representation of the
“Third World woman” in the context of population control and environmental threats. Drawing
on postcolonial feminism and post-development theory, this dissertation highlights how
women and their fertility are constructed in an environmentally focused world that favors the
economy. An analysis was done on two different samples of news articles coming from five
different Anglo-Saxon news outlets. Each sample substracted twenty articles from a specific
time period, one from 2010 and the other from 2020. In order to analyze the samples, a method
of discourse... (More)
This dissertation examines the change that has occurred in the discourse around population
growth in Anglo-Saxon mainstream media. The research focuses on the representation of the
“Third World woman” in the context of population control and environmental threats. Drawing
on postcolonial feminism and post-development theory, this dissertation highlights how
women and their fertility are constructed in an environmentally focused world that favors the
economy. An analysis was done on two different samples of news articles coming from five
different Anglo-Saxon news outlets. Each sample substracted twenty articles from a specific
time period, one from 2010 and the other from 2020. In order to analyze the samples, a method
of discourse analysis was applied. The research finds that the way Third World women were
constructed in the discourse greatly depended on what was considered to be under threat at
each time. The research also found that fertility was constructed as something disposable and
negative in the context of underdeveloped countries, while it was constructed as something
valuable and necessary in relation to developed countries and economic growth. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Halldorsdotter, Viktoria LU
supervisor
organization
course
SIMV31 20211
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
population control, power, fertility, postdevelopment, postcolonial feminism.
language
English
id
9065285
date added to LUP
2021-09-14 15:23:36
date last changed
2021-11-29 13:59:24
@misc{9065285,
  abstract     = {{This dissertation examines the change that has occurred in the discourse around population
growth in Anglo-Saxon mainstream media. The research focuses on the representation of the
“Third World woman” in the context of population control and environmental threats. Drawing
on postcolonial feminism and post-development theory, this dissertation highlights how
women and their fertility are constructed in an environmentally focused world that favors the
economy. An analysis was done on two different samples of news articles coming from five
different Anglo-Saxon news outlets. Each sample substracted twenty articles from a specific
time period, one from 2010 and the other from 2020. In order to analyze the samples, a method
of discourse analysis was applied. The research finds that the way Third World women were
constructed in the discourse greatly depended on what was considered to be under threat at
each time. The research also found that fertility was constructed as something disposable and
negative in the context of underdeveloped countries, while it was constructed as something
valuable and necessary in relation to developed countries and economic growth.}},
  author       = {{Halldorsdotter, Viktoria}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Constructing reproductive agency in an environmentally focused world: An anthropological analysis of how population control is portrayed by anglo-saxon news media}},
  year         = {{2021}},
}