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Ellie Terry Phd University of York Women's Studies May 2020

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Ellie Terry Phd University of York Women's Studies May 2020 Netflix and Chill – The Cultural Politics of Sex in the #MeToo ‘Moment’ Eleanor Terry Doctor of Philosophy University of York Women’s Studies May 2020 Ellie Terry PhD University of York Women’s Studies May 2020 Netflix and Chill: The Cultural Politics of Sex in the #MeToo ‘Moment’ Abstract This thesis explores the queer feminist potential of the #MeToo ‘moment’. Drawing on themes prevalent in previous cultural moments of the ‘Sex Wars’ and ‘Raunch Culture’, I argue that the rise of the #MeToo hashtag and concomitant disclosures, trials, apologies, and cultural discussion has led to a significant shaking up of sexual politics within Anglo-US feminism and – more broadly – the sexual discourses in these societies, beyond individual exposures. I position the #MeToo ‘moment’ within another controversial chronological concept, ‘fourth-wave feminism’, drawing attention to the latter’s efficacy for understanding aspects of Anglo-US feminist theory and practice and extending the meaning of feminist ‘waves’. My investigation is located in the entertainment media of our time, Netflix, and focusses on two shows: Orange is the New Black and Sense8. I ask, primarily: how can this new era of sexual politics be conceptualised?, while also assessing the potentialities for sexual mores reflected in, and influenced by their textual depictions. Through close readings of these representations I seek to identify the subtle, radical discourses at play, to assess how these accrue meaning within their cultures, and to offer a glimpse of a contemporary queer feminist liberatory sexual politics. This analysis coalesces around four themes: embodied feminism, (toxic) masculinities, identity politics (and particularly trans aesthetics), and utopian queer possibilities. I conclude by briefly locating my analysis within current pandemic cultures as experienced in the UK and US, with the (alleged) rise in the consumption of online media and non-contact intimacies alongside very troubling domestic and societal discord, wondering if and how my arguments might help understand sexual cultures in this emergent Corona ‘moment’. Ellie Terry Page 1 of 259 Netflix and Chill: The Cultural Politics of Sex in the #MeToo ‘Moment’ Contents Abstract ......................................................................................................................... 1 Contents ........................................................................................................................ 2 List Of Figures .............................................................................................................. 4 Acknowledgements...................................................................................................... 5 Author’s Declaration .................................................................................................... 5 1. Introduction: The Path To #MeToo ........................................................................ 6 2. ‘Moments’ Gone By: A Critical Context For The #MeToo Moment ................. 12 Making Waves: Contextualising Sexual Moments and Feminist Advancements ...... 12 (Sex) War: What Is It Good For? ....................................................................................... 14 Sexy Girls: The Rise Of Raunch and the Third-Wave Response ................................. 16 Post-Modern, Post-Feminist? .............................................................................................................. 22 ‘Add to Basket’- Raunch Meets Consumer Culture ....................................................................... 27 3. From Movement To ‘Moment’ – The Cultural Politics Of #MeToo and the Fourth Wave ................................................................................................................ 29 #MeToo… Well Sort Of ...................................................................................................... 29 What The Hell Is Fourth-Wave Feminism? A Political Context for #MeToo ............................. 34 Trans-Feminism .................................................................................................................................. 36 If your Feminism isn’t Intersectional, It isn’t Feminism ........................................................... 43 My Feminism, My Choice: Fourth-Wave Choice, Celebrities and Consumers ................... 46 Sex Work Is Work ............................................................................................................................... 56 Who Are You Calling Radical? ........................................................................................................ 57 From Feminist Tweets, To Feminists On The Streets: Praxis and Activism In The Fourth- Wave, Snowflakes, Safe Spaces And Avalanches ......................................................................... 58 A Culture of Feminism, A Feminist Culture? Viewing The #MeToo Moment .......................... 62 4. Examining A ‘Moment’: Methodologies For Exploring The Cultural Politics Of Sex In The #MeToo Era ......................................................................................... 66 Netflix – A Context, A Text, A Site .................................................................................... 69 A Golden Age Of (Feminist) Television: Beyond Representation .............................................. 70 Limitations ................................................................................................................................................ 77 A Few Of My Favourite Things – Notes On Text Selection .......................................................... 82 Prisoners, Empaths, Dildos And Orgies – Some Background Discussion On My Chosen Texts ........................................................................................................................................................... 88 Conducting ‘Feminist Research’ ...................................................................................... 93 Stories, Narratives And Discourses ................................................................................................... 94 Situations And Standpoints – On Where I Am Coming From ..................................................... 97 Me, Myself and I – Conducting An Autoethnographically Informed Study ............................ 100 ‘Moments’ and ‘Snapshots’– Devising And Adopting Frameworks And Terminologies ... 102 Themes Emerging ................................................................................................................................. 104 5. No Longer A Ghost In The Machine – Feminism Front And Centre .............. 108 Embodying The #MeToo Moment ..................................................................................................... 121 Ellie Terry Page 2 of 259 Netflix and Chill: The Cultural Politics of Sex in the #MeToo ‘Moment’ TV Titties And Defamed Pot-Plants —Sexy Bodies On OITNB ................................................. 122 Bleeding Women – Menstruating Bodies On OITNB ................................................................... 126 Shit Gets Real – Functioning Bodies On OINTB ........................................................................... 127 Full Bush, Half Snickers (Kohen, 2017b) – Hairy Bodies On OITNB........................................ 132 Abortion Demonised -OITNB’s Dirty Un-Feminist Secret ........................................... 136 6. Puerile, Disgusting and Dangerous – Toxic Masculinity On OITNB And Sense8 ....................................................................................................................... 141 Trope 1: The Affable Man-Child ...................................................................................... 142 Trope 2: The Creepy Perv ............................................................................................... 146 Trope 3: The Dangerous Predator .................................................................................. 154 A Lifetime Of Violence: The Repeated Rapes Of Tiffany Doggett ............................................ 155 (Straight) Men And Only Men Are Dangerous ............................................................................... 168 Sexual Danger On The Outside ......................................................................................................... 169 Danger Concluded ................................................................................................................................ 171 7. A Feminist Utopia And The Potentialities of Identity ...................................... 173 Who Do You Think You Are? Identity Politics On Netflix ........................................... 178 Lesbian Request Approved: Sapphic Love On Netflix ................................................................ 179 Gloriously Butch And Playing With Gender................................................................................... 185 Trans* ....................................................................................................................................................... 190 Trans Aesthetics and Queer Temporalities..................................................................................... 194 8. Queer Possibilities And Heterosexual Mundanities ........................................ 199 Re-defining Romantic And Familial Relationships .....................................................................
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