Japanese Female and ‘Trans’ Athletes: Negotiating Subjectivity and Media Constructions of Gender, Sexuality, and Nation by Satoko Itani A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Curriculum, Teaching & Learning Ontario Institute for Studies in Education University of Toronto © Copyright by Satoko Itani (2015) Japanese Female and ‘Trans’ Athletes: Negotiating Subjectivity and Media Constructions of Gender, Sexuality, and Nation Satoko Itani Doctor of Philosophy Department of Curriculum, Teaching & Learning Ontario Institute for Studies in Education University of Toronto 2015 Abstract The focus of this thesis is twofold: 1) the construction of Japanese female athletes in ‘masculine’ sports by Japanese media in terms of gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and nation; and 2) Japanese female and ‘trans’ athletes’ negotiation with Japanese gender and sexuality norms in the formation of their gendered subjectivities. A theoretical framework informed by feminist, queer, and postcolonial theories is used to analyze the discursive constructions and constitution of subjectivities of Japanese female and ‘trans’ athletes in the ‘masculine’ sports of soccer and wrestling. Critical discourse analysis (CDA) was employed to analyze Japanese mainstream newspaper and magazines published between 2001 and 2012 and in-depth interviews with twelve Japanese female and ‘trans’ athletes in wrestling and soccer. The result of the media analysis illustrates that Japanese mainstream media used multiple normative and normalizing ii discursive tactics to construct Japanese female athletes within patriarchal, sexist, and heterosexist gender and sexual norms. These discourses were also mobilized in the reporting of international competitions in which the success of Japanese female athletes was appropriated to construct Japanese national identity in order to recuperate Japanese masculinity. The analysis of interviews with female and ‘trans’ athletes illustrates their intricate processes of negotiation with male domination of their sport, Japanese gender and sexual norms, the conflicting demands of athletic careers, and the medicalized discourse of ‘Gender Identity Disorder (GID)’. The discursive fissures opened up by these conflicting and oppressive discourses, however, provided a ‘third’ gender space in which ‘female sporting masculinity’ is recognized as the ‘norm’ and not as ‘queerness’. Although this ‘third’ space may be temporary, it provided female and ‘trans’ athletes a space to negotiate heterosexist and cisgenderist Japanese sporting spaces and the society at large. iii Dedication to Keiko Itani my mother and feminist scholar who brought into my childhood the concept of gender which helped me survive navigate and resist this sexist cisgenderist and transphobic world iv Acknowledgements I gratefully and sincerely thank Dr. Heather Sykes. My supervisor and a scholar with profound wisdom, knowledge, and compassion, who taught me a critical, decolonizing, and anti-oppressive pedagogy and scholarship by example. A great story teller and healer, who sustained and nourished me in the time of mental and physical breakdown. Without your support, I would not be here today. An outdoor enthusiast, skilled kayaker and mountain biker, who introduced me the magical Yukon, the land of midnight sun and endless trails. I am looking forward to continuing our journey together, now as a fellow scholar and friend. Thank you Dr. Roland Sintos Coloma, Dr. Caroline Fusco, Dr. Tara Goldtein, Dr. Akiko Shimizu, and Dr. Ruben Gaztambide-Fernandez for agreeing to serve on my committee. I can never overstate how much I have learned and been influenced by your scholarships and teaching. I will never forget the day of my thesis defense. In the time of uncertainly and anxiety, you showed sincere care and gave me the confidence to become an independent scholar. I would also like to thank the twelve brave athletes who generously offered their time to share their stories with me. I learned tremendously from your wisdom and courage. I promise, your stories will be written in Japanese in the near future. Thank you KWKN sisters, especially Gina Park, who supported me throughout my dissertation journey with your unwavering friendship, work ethic, and the countless nights with music, swimming, and great food. You all understood with your heart the difficulty of being a PhD student in a North American university, being so far away from your home and having to work in English, the language that is so fundamentally different from our own. Thank you Mittens Crew members. You generously shared your knowledge and wisdom to navigate through Ph.D. program in the institution where isolation often becomes the biggest threat to our work and health. I will never forget those weeks of writing intensives; I was always encouraged and motivated by your presence and generous support. I am the biggest fan of your amazing works, and I am looking forward to reading your thesis and future works. Thank you Shawna Carroll: You patiently and skillfully edited this long thesis even when you were facing tremendous life challenges. It has been an honor and a privilege to know and to work with you in the past year. I am looking forward to walking the life with you. I am sure there will be challenges ahead, but I cannot be more sure that we will take on each challenge with deep care, wisdom, and respect. Finally, thank you my father, Kenichi Itani. You always quietly gave me your trust and congratulated my achievement in your heart. Your dedication to the art of tenkoku is my great inspiration. Thank you my brother, Nobuyuki Itani, for being such an amazing brother ever since I can remember. I am looking forward to our time in the beautiful mountains. v Table of Contents List of Tables ............................................................................................................................ ix List of Figures .............................................................................................................................. x List of Appendices .................................................................................................................... xi Preface ...................................................................................................................................... xii PART I: SETTING UP Chapter 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................... 1 Background ....................................................................................................................... 1 Research Questions ......................................................................................................... 6 Chapter Outline ............................................................................................................... 7 Chapter 2. Literature Review: Situating the Current Research ........................................ 11 Sport, Gender, and Sexuality .......................................................................................... 11 Homophobia and Transphobia in Sports in North America ............................... 11 Sport, Gender, and Sexuality in Japan ................................................................ 16 Transgression and Negotiation of Japanese Feminine Norms through Sport .... 19 The Social Construct of Ab/normal Sexualities in Japan ............................................... 21 A Brief History of Queer Gender and Sexual Practices in Modern Japan ......... 22 The Emergence of ‘Transgender’ Communities .................................................. 27 Nation, Body, and Gender .............................................................................................. 32 Gendered Production of “Imagined Communities” through Sport .................... 33 Nationalism/s and Gender in Japan .................................................................... 34 Chapter 3. Methodologies and Methods: Approaching Subjectivities of Japanese Female Athletes in Masculine Sports ............................................................................... 38 “Masculine” Sports: Why Soccer and Wrestling? .......................................................... 38 Theoretical and Interpretive Frameworks ..................................................................... 40 Subjectivity ......................................................................................................... 41 Discourse and Power/Knowledge ....................................................................... 42 Performativity of Gender/Sex and Abject Bodies .............................................. 43 Disidentification ................................................................................................. 46 Marginality/Coloniality ...................................................................................... 47 Methods .......................................................................................................................... 49 Data/Data Collection: Mainstream Media .......................................................... 50 Newspaper .............................................................................................. 50 Magazines .............................................................................................. 50 Period of media data collected ............................................................... 51 Media data collection