VISUAL CULTURE - Intersectional Self
Personal identity can be split into a number of identity categories based on different characteristics - classic examples of these are sexuality, gender, class and ethnicity. Within these identities, there’s usually some sort of binary opposition - male and female, masculine and feminine, straight and gay and so on. When these binaries are brought into play, two things are immediately suggested: one, that there’s some sort of power imbalance in favour of one side; and two, that there’s some sort of intersectionality or “blurring of the binary” within these categories, and often these binaries are challenged.
The first identity category we discussed was gender, and the idea of male and female and masculinity and femininity. Despite masculine and feminine/male and female being different characteristics, they’re often linked by society and as such are assumed to be related, although this isn’t necessarily true as males may present as more feminine, or females as more masculine. With this also comes the idea of gender performativity, which is the idea that individiuals can present or “perform” as any gender identity. However, within this binary, there’s an obvious power imbalance as male is usually seen as default, and female is “marked” - in other words, females are usually made obviously female through stereotypical features such as use of make-up or the colour pink. This is obvious in the designs of Toy Story - the female characters all have very stereotypically feminine traits, while the male characters don’t.
Look at the female characters of Bo Peep, Mrs Potato Head and Jesse - very obviously female, and lots of pink.
With this male power comes the idea of the male gaze - media texts will often present female characters in such a way that objectifies and depersonalises female characters specifically for the male audience, as it’s assumed that the straight male is the default demographic. This is a huge problem with superhero comics; look up any female superhero or villain and you’ll see what I mean. Black Widow, Catwoman, Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy - they’re usually shown as conventionally attractive with thin body types in tight or revealing clothing.
This image took me about two minutes of Google searching and copy-pasting into Photoshop. They were all within the first few results. Also, note the pose - they’re all positioned in a way that makes their figure more obvious.
The second identity category explored was sexuality - in media this is often simply seen as straight or gay with, due to the heteronormative nature of our culture, heterosexuality being considered “default” and homosexual characters usually obviously marked. However, apart from the issue of a power struggle, this comes with another issue; this assumes that straight and gay are the only possible identities within sexuality, thus erasing other sexual orientations such as bisexuality or asexuality. As well as this, families in media are often presented as traditional nuclear families - a mother, a father and a child or two - which again fits with the heteronormative nature of our culture and erases the existence of other sexual orientations.
The third identity category explored was social class and the idea of middle class vs. working class, or rich vs. poor. Often in media texts the working class will be mocked or demonised and, as such, are usually quite marked, whether this is done satirically in shows such as Little Britain or more literally in shows like Benefit Street. This is largely due to the controlling class in the media being middle class - many “media controllers” are middle class and, as such, may assume that they are the default or majority audience. Therefore, the power is immediately given to the middle class in media texts.
Dee Richards of Benefit Street and Vicky Pollard of Little Britain. Fact and fiction.
The fourth and final identity category we looked at was race and ethnicity. This one’s interesting, as it is often broken down into multiple possible Binaries - white or black, “western” or “eastern” cultures and, in the case of British texts, British or non-British. In British media, white British is seen as the default, and anything else is usually marked. However, this can apply to other cases and, in many cases, be problematic. For example, Disney films such as Mulan and Aladdin have major protagonist characters appearing as conventionally attractive according to “western” ideals and usually have lighter skin, while their villains conform to more stereotypical views of those races and have darker skin.
And these guys aren’t even the main antagonising characters.
Now, I’ve already discussed a few issues with the above identity categories - the power imbalance, the marked characters, the demonisation or objectification of people based on these power imbalances, etc. - but there’s further issues with this way of thinking. For one, the idea of a binary itself is problematic, as not everyone may conform to or fit within this binary but may be scared of subverting this binary and therefore feel pressured into performing as one of these binary identities. Along with this, power is always assumed to be given to one side, with the other seen as less than that one - one is viewed as normal or good, while the other is seen as weird or less important. As long as binaries exist, this power struggle exists.
However, identity binaries can, and are, challenged - intersectionality is the breaking down of binaries into less homogenous identities. Through combinations of different identities, new meanings and experiences may be created, and allows people to better “fit” themselves into an identity or label. Part of this can be seen through the idea of drag - binary is challenged through men imitating femininity (or vice versa). For example, in the documentary Paris is Burning, a largely black male presence is seen aspiring to white female ideals and challenging class structure and the idea of wealth. This may, in some cases, be seen as non-subversive as it exaggerates femininity to an unrealistic degree, but it’s still a prime example of subverting and challenging binary identities.
However, intersectionality isn’t foolproof, as some attempts at challenging binary may still support other binary power imbalances - for example, Diet Coke is often marketed towards the female audience and, as such, the “Diet Coke bloke” adverts from 1994 to 2013 usually featured groups of women viewing men as they work, a subverted version of the male gaze that instead gives power to females, but this still implies heterosexuality as the default as it shows women objectifying a man and, in many of the adverts, the women shown are white. This empowers women, but still supports the “straight, white” default in media texts.
Honestly, I went and found every “Diet Coke bloke” ad I could and, over the course of 19 years of adverts, this is the only scene I could find with a non-white character. And she looks so bored.
To summarise the above points, there are a number of stereotypical identity binaries present in media texts which, by and large, could be considered problematic or even offensive towards certain identity groups but, through the idea of intersectionality, these binaries can and are being challenged to allow individuals to better understand our identity. Personally, I find this topic has some super interesting discussions and debates behind it, especially in regards to gender and sexuality - it’s fascinating to see different texts and the way they subvert and challenge these binaries, and to see how different people interpret and support challenges against these binaries. For example, the kid’s show Steven Universe features a predominantly female cast and challenges ideologies relating to race, gender identity and even sexuality, which is basically unheard of in many traditional kid’s shows. It’s a fun topic to write about, and a possible starting point for my Visual Culture essay later in the year.
