Appropriate Articulations of Taste

294 Pages·2014·1.8 MB·English

Appropriate Articulations of Taste:
The (re)production of gender in contemporary youth
taste cultures

Victoria Cann

Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy
University of East Anglia
School of Political, Social and International Studies

Norwich, December 2013

© This copy of the thesis has been supplied on the condition that anyone who consults it is
understood to recognise that its copyright rests with the author and that use of any information
derived there from must be in accordance with current UK Copyright Law. In addition, any quotation
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Abstract
This thesis explores gender in contemporary youth taste cultures, contributing to the
academic field through its illumination of taste’s role in the (re)production of gender. We
continue to see inequality on the basis of gender in contemporary society and thus this
thesis provides a much needed understanding of the (re)production of gender during youth.
Much of the academic field has interrogated gender and youth, albeit with the majority
looking at the experiences of boys and girls separately. However, little work has considered
taste as being a potentially regulatory space in terms of gender during youth. Meanwhile,
save some important interjections by Skeggs (1997), gender has largely been overlooked in
the taste culture literature. This thesis shows that there is great potential in bringing
together taste and youth, allowing us to better understand the complexities of gender
(re)production. To explore these issues this thesis takes an empirical approach.
In total, 112 people aged 13-16 from the Norfolk region took part in this study. Both
traditional and innovative qualitative methods were used, and they were designed to
develop a rich understanding of contemporary youth taste cultures. A bespoke identity
page was a created as a means of capturing the cultural texts young people like and dislike,
and a series of focus groups were also undertaken where collective meanings were
foregrounded. The richness of empirical evidence and its careful analysis has revealed the
significant role that taste plays in young people’s discursive (re)production of gender. It
finds that young people inscribe a range of cultural texts with gendered value, and that
they use these understandings to regulate the parameters of gender ‘appropriate’ taste.
This thesis therefore contributes to the academic field not only through its development of
academic theory, but also in the wealth and originality of data that it provides.

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Table of Contents
Abstract …………………………….…………………………….………………………….…………………………… 2
List of Figures ……………………….………………………………….…………………….………………………. 6
Acknowledgements ……………….……………………………………………………….………..………… 7

Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………….……….. 8

Section One: The Academic Context and Methodological Approach

Chapter One:
Conceptualising Identity: Gender and Youth ……………………………………..……….. 15
1.1 Identity........................................................................................................ 16
1.1.1 Gender………………………….…………………………………….……………………. 20
1.1.2 Youth........................................................................................... 30
1.2 Gender and Youth…………..………………………………………………………………………… 36
1.2.1 Conceptualising Girlhood............................................................ 37
1.2.2 Conceptualising Boyhood …………..……………………………………………. 41
1.3 Researching Gender and Youth: The Way Forward……………………………….… 49

Chapter Two:
Conceptualising Taste………………………………….…………………..…………………………………. 52
2.1Taste and Cultural Reproduction ……………..………………………………………………. 54
2.1.1 Bourdieu’s Contributions ……………..………………………………………….. 55
2.1.2 Theories of Contemporary Taste Cultures................................... 61
2.2 Youth Taste Cultures…………..……………………………………………………………………. 63
2.3 Appropriateness in Contemporary Youth Taste Cultures…………….…………… 67
2.3.1 Gender Appropriate Taste and the (re)production of gender……. 70
2.3.2 Value and Appropriateness………………………………………………………. 70
2.3.3 Masculine Value……………………………………………………………………….. 73
2.3.4 Feminine Value………………………………………………………………………… 75
2.4 Concluding Remarks…………………………………………………………………………………. 76

Chapter Three:
Researching Gender and Youth Taste Cultures: Methodological Procedure
3.1 Methodology …………..………………………………………………………………………………. 79
3.1.1 Capturing Complexity …………………………………………………………..….. 81
3.1.2 Reflexivity…………………………………………………………………………………. 82
3.1.3 Ethical Considerations................................................................. 85
3.2 Exploratory Ethnography…………..…………..………………………………………………… 87
3.2.1 Undertaking the Exploratory Ethnography……………………………..… 87
3.2.2 What Impact Did the Exploratory Ethnography Have?................ 86
3.3 The Schools…………….………………………………………………………………………………… 93
3.4 The Identity Pages ……………..……………………………………………………………………. 95
3.4.1 Why Creative? ……………..…………………………………………………………… 96
3.4.2 Designing the Identity Pages…………………………………………………….. 99
3.4.3 Implementing the Identity Pages............................ ………………… 104
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3.5 Focus Groups…………..…………..……………………………………………………………….. 107
3.5.1 Sample and Schools………………………………………………………………. 110
3.5.2 Pseudonyms………………………………………………………………………….. 111
3.5.3. Conducting the Focus Groups………………………………………………. 112
3.6 Concluding Remarks…………….……………………………………………………………….. 124

Section Two: Taste and Gender in Youth

Chapter Four:
Results from the Identity Pages…………………………………………………………………….. 127
4.1 Preferences in Contemporary Youth Taste Cultures ……………..…………….. 129
4.1.1 Young People and Mainstream Culture ……………..………………… 130
4.1.2 Comedic Texts……………………………………………………………………….. 133
4.1.3 Intersections of Gender............................................................ 135
4.1.4 Concluding Remarks on the Cultural Texts Liked …………………… 140
4.2 Cultural Texts Young People Dislike…………..…………..…………………………….. 141
4.2.1 Problematic Tween Texts………………………………………………………. 143
4.2.2 Boys and Romance……………………………………………………………….. 145
4.2.3 Concluding Remarks on the Cultural Texts Disliked……………….. 147
4.3 Concluding Remarks from the Identity Pages…………….…………………………. 148

Chapter Five:
The Context of Youth Taste Cultures: Fitting in at School………………………. 149
5.1 Schools as Hyper-Regulatory ……………..………………………………………………… 151
5.2 The Consequences of Inappropriate Articulations ……………..……………….. 153
5.3 Fitting into What?…………..…………..……………………………………………………….. 156
5.4 Strategies of Fitting In…………………………………………………………………………… 158
5.5 Concluding Remarks…………….……………………………………………………………….. 164

Chapter Six:
‘I needed a gay’: Participants Understandings of Gender……………………... 167
6.1 Gender in Norfolk ……………..…………………………………………………………………. 169
6.2 Inbetweener ……………..…………………………………………………………………………. 170
6.3 The Sex/Gender Distinction...................................................................... 172
6.4 Concluding Remarks ………….………………………………………………………………….. 176

Section Three: The (Re)Production of Gender in Contemporary Youth Taste
Cultures

Introduction to Section Three………………………………………………………………………… 179
Chapter Seven:
Appropriate Tastes for Boys and Discourses of Masculinity………………….. 185
7.1 Boys’ Taste, Masculinity and the Identity Pages ……………..……………………. 188
7.2 Masculine Value ……………..……………………………………………………………………. 189
7.2.1 The Masculine Value in Sport………………………………………………… 191
7.2.2 The Masculine Value in Music.................................................. 196
7.2.3 The Masculine Value in (Hetero)Sexual Desire………………………. 198
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7.2.4 The Masculine Value in Violence and Conflict……………………….. 200
7.2.5 Case Study: Chuck Norris……………………………………………………….. 204
7.3 ‘They’re Trying to Assert Their Manliness’: Regulating Excessive
Masculinities …………..…………..…………………………………………………………………….. 207
7.4 Concluding Remarks…………….……………………………………………………………….. 210

Chapter Eight:
Appropriate Tastes for Girls and Discourses of Femininity……………………. 212
8.1 Girls’ Taste, Femininity and the Identity Pages ……………..…………………….. 216
8.2 Feminine Value ……………..…………………………………………………………………….. 217
8.2.1 The Feminine Value in Romance……………………………………………. 219
8.2.2 The Feminine Value in Music.................................................... 225
8.3 Girls Taste and the (Re)Production of Femininity Through Articulation… 227
8.3.1 Girls Femininity and Celebrity……………………………………………….. 229
8.3.2 The Feminine Value of Bitching…………………………………………….. 230
8.3.3 Fangirling and Femininity………………………………………………….….. 233
8.4 Concluding Remarks……………………………………………………………………………… 237

Chapter Nine:
Gender Appropriate Rejections and the Potential for Transgression…. 238
9.1 Rejecting the Feminine ……………..…………………………………………………………. 239
9.1.1 Boys Rejecting the Feminine …………………………………………………. 239
9.2.2 Girls Rejecting the Feminine..................................................... 242
9.2 Transgressions?..............………………………………………………………………………. 248
9.2.1 Girls and Gender Inappropriate Taste…………………………………… 249
9.2.2 Boys and Gender Inappropriate Taste…………………………………… 253
9.3 Concluding Remarks: Understanding the Difference Between Girls Tastes and
Boys’ Tastes……………………………………………………………………………………………….. 259

Conclusion and Recommendations………………………………………………………………. 263

Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………………………………..…… 281

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List of Figures

Figure 1 (Personality Image)……………………………………………………………………………… 100
Figure 2 (Blank Identity Page)…………………………………………………………………………… 102
Figure 3 (Partially Completed Identity Page……………………………………………………… 102
Figure 4 (Website Opening Page)………………………………………………………..…………… 106
Figure 5 (Prompt Two)……………………………………………………………………………………… 117
Figure 6 (TV Listings Prompt Example)……………………………………………………………… 119
Figure 7 (Exercise Worksheet Example)……………………………………………………………... 120

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Acknowledgements
First foremost, I’d like to thank my Mum. Mum, you have never doubted that I can do stuff,
even when I have. You have been supportive in every way imaginable. This one’s for you.
To my sisters, my Nanny (who means so much), Uncle Tony, thank you. You never cease to
remind me what’s important in life.
Ryan, I don’t know if you knew what you were letting yourself in for when you met me, but
you’ve stuck through it anyhow. You’re the most wonderful person I know and your
generosity knows no bounds. You keep me grounded and your belief and support is
unending. Thank you.
To my wonderful friends, particularly Clare, Jodie and Kate (but so many more), you have
provided me with all of the right kinds of distractions. Thank you for sticking with me
through this rollercoaster – you are the best and I don’t know what I’d do without you. I’d
also like to extend some thanks to Joe and Abi for not only being great friends but also for
putting together the website for me. Thank you.
I would also like to thank all of my academic colleagues/friends both in and beyond the
PGR community, especially Ana, Fi, Helen, Henry, Nessa, Nick, Suzanne, Tom and everyone
else that has graced Arts 3.82. Without you I’d either have finished it in a year, or not
finished it at all. Either way, it wouldn’t have been half as much fun.
To Heather, thank you for believing in me.
I want to thank the students I have taught over the years for asking interesting questions
and for reminding me, on those difficult days, that what we do in media and cultural
studies is fun.
To all of the teachers, support staff and most importantly, young people that made this
study possible, thank you! Thank you for letting me ask you questions and for giving me a
glimpse of your lives. Your insights have never ceased to inspire me.
With thanks to my examiners, Cindy Carter and Helen Wood for your expert insight and
interest in my work, and for ensuring that this thesis is the best that it can be. It was a
pleasure and honour to discuss my work with you.
And of course, I hope it goes without saying that my greatest gratitude goes to my
supervisors, Sanna and John. I am very grateful for your encouragement, wisdom, and of
course, tissues. Your belief in me and my academic endeavours over the years has kept me
going. You are not only wonderful academics, but wonderful human beings, too.

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Introduction
2013 saw MP Diane Abbott lament the crisis of masculinity facing boys in Britain, it saw
Lego go pink, and it saw segregation on the basis of gender approved by Universities UK. It
seems to me that for young people in contemporary Britain gender politics are far from
fine. Questions about how gender is (re)produced are therefore pertinent; they are
pertinent because gender continues to act as a point where inequality is experienced, and
where tensions and crises occur. This thesis explores some of these issues empirically,
asking questions about how gender is (re)produced and how differences been boys and
girls are maintained.
Taking a poststructuralist account of identity, I argue that gender exists only
through discourse, and so to explore issues of gender we need to interrogate discursive
(re)production. I believe that one of the ways we can undertake this interrogation is
through the exploration of taste cultures. I find taste to be utterly fascinating, especially
when we think about it in relation to gender. Why do say we like some things and not
others? Why might some people think that what we like is odd? As a woman, would it be
fair to say that my experience of articulating taste is different to that of a male or queer
friend? I therefore believe that an exploration of taste cultures can tell us much about
gender. This is precisely because I think that taste is experienced differently by people of
different genders. Masculinity and femininity mean different things, and so what is
appropriate for men or women, or boys or girls will be understood differently. It is my
belief that we can learn much about gender by focusing on taste, and this thesis reveals
just how valuable this endeavour can be.
Rather than just being theoretical, this thesis also contributes to the academic field
through the careful analysis of its rich and original empirical data. As a means of
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understanding contemporary youth taste cultures, this study places young people’s lived
experiences at its heart, with methods designed specifically around their interests. In total,
112 people from the Norfolk region were involved in the study, with a further 28 taking
part in an exploratory ethnography. By engaging with young people I have been able to
develop an invaluable understanding of their taste cultures as well as the ways in which
gender is (re)produced as part of them.
The empirical analysis of this thesis develops academic understanding across a
diverse, yet complementary range of fields. In the first instance it develops the field of
youth studies, speaking primarily to the youth studies strand that has focused on gender.
This is a large and amorphous field, spanning studies of girls and girlhood, of which there is
a burgeoning field of literature (Hains, 2012; Kearney, 2006; Aapola, Gonick and Harris,
2005; Harris, 2004a, Driscoll, 2002; Hey, 1997; McRobbie, 1991) as well as studies of boys
and boyhood of which there has been a growing number of studies (Roberts, 2013;
McCormack, 2012; Frosh, Phoenix and Pattman, 2002; Skelton, 2001). In recent years focus
has also turned to the lives of queer young people (Driver, 2008). However, despite the
wealth of literature in the field of youth gender studies there remains an absence of work
that looks at more than just one gender. Work in the field of girlhood and boyhood studies
has developed a rich understanding of the complexities of gender experienced by boys and
girls, but what about the relational complexities of gender experienced by young people? I
believe that we can learn a lot about how gender is (re)produced by thinking about gender
relationally. There have of course been some important interventions in this field from
scholars such as Nayak and Kehily (2008) and Thorne (1993), but on the whole gender is
not explored holistically, and certainly hasn’t been from a taste cultures approach. What I
therefore show in this research is that through an all-inclusive study of gender and youth,
we can place the tensions between masculinity and femininity that young people
experience into better context. By not focusing on just one gender I am also able to
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interrogate the complexities across genders, and by not reifying the gender binary I am
able to think of gender in more fluid terms.
The reason that I am keen not to reify the gender binary is because I approach
gender from a poststructualist perspective. Inspired broadly by the work of Foucault (1995)
I argue that identity is discursively (re)produced. This leads me more specifically to the
work of Butler (2006), whose conceptualisation of gender performativity is one that
inspires much of this thesis. However, rather than just thinking of the performance of
gender, I am particularly interested in the role that the audience plays in the (re)production
of gender. As a means of developing this understanding theoretically I draw on Goffman’s
(1971) work around presentation of the self. Through Goffman’s interest in the audience I
am able to develop a more nuanced analysis of collective understandings of gender within
contemporary youth taste cultures. These accounts contribute to an original interpretation
of youth and gender by exploring them in relation to taste cultures. In this respect I work
from the premise that taste matters. This position has been well evidenced in Bourdieu’s
now iconic work Distinction (1984), and more recently in the works that it has inspired such
as that from Bennett et al. (2009). However, I believe that we need to take taste much
more seriously when it comes to understanding the (re)production of gender. One of the
few studies that has made a significant intervention into the fields of both gender and taste
is in the work of Skeggs. In Skeggs’ (1997) Formations of Class and Gender a rich and
complex understanding of gender in terms of taste and value has been established. By
focusing on a different generational group (Skeggs explores adult women) and focusing on
age and gender rather than gender and class, this thesis not only develops an
understanding of the discursive (re)production of gender from a taste culture perspective,
but does so with new empirical evidence.
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