"Exfoliation, Cheese Courses, Emotional Honesty, and Paxil": Masculinity, Neoliberalism, and Postfeminism in the US Hangout Sitcom. (1st September 2021)
- Record Type:
- Journal Article
- Title:
- "Exfoliation, Cheese Courses, Emotional Honesty, and Paxil": Masculinity, Neoliberalism, and Postfeminism in the US Hangout Sitcom. (1st September 2021)
- Main Title:
- "Exfoliation, Cheese Courses, Emotional Honesty, and Paxil"
- Authors:
- Wolfman, Greg
- Abstract:
- Abstract: This article applies a conjunctural analysis to four US "hangout sitcoms"— Friends, How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory, and New Girl —to examine the tensions faced by masculinities in a neoliberal era. After establishing the "hangout sitcom" subgenre, I use critical discourse analysis to unpack three male subject positions. The postfeminist male singleton reacts neurotically to a perceived loss of power with a desperate search for true love. The douchebag responds with excessive performances of both masculinity and neoliberal subjectivity, while the househusband' s stable job and long-term heterosexual relationship reflect neoliberalism's relationships with intimacy and the family. I argue that the hangout sitcom, and specifically its representation of masculinities, offers an under-explored opportunity to examine the politics of masculinities, postfeminism, and neoliberalism.
- Is Part Of:
- Journal of bodies, sexualities, and masculinities. Volume 2:Number 2(2021)
- Journal:
- Journal of bodies, sexualities, and masculinities
- Issue:
- Volume 2:Number 2(2021)
- Issue Display:
- Volume 2, Issue 2 (2021)
- Year:
- 2021
- Volume:
- 2
- Issue:
- 2
- Issue Sort Value:
- 2021-0002-0002-0000
- Page Start:
- 57
- Page End:
- 81
- Publication Date:
- 2021-09-01
- Subjects:
- conjunctural analysis -- genre -- masculinities -- neoliberalism -- postfeminism -- sitcoms -- television studies
Masculinity -- Periodicals
Men -- Sexual behavior -- Periodicals
Men -- Identity -- Periodicals
Men -- Psychology -- Periodicals
155.33205 - Journal URLs:
- https://www.berghahnjournals.com/view/journals/jbsm/jbsm-overview.xml ↗
- DOI:
- 10.3167/jbsm.2021.020205 ↗
- Languages:
- English
- ISSNs:
- 2688-8149
- Deposit Type:
- Legaldeposit
- View Content:
- Available online (eLD content is only available in our Reading Rooms) ↗
- Physical Locations:
- British Library HMNTS - ELD Digital store
- Ingest File:
- 21038.xml