Raphael Daisy Fall 2011
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University of Alberta “‘Doesn’t Anyone Want to Pick a Fight with Me?’: Masculinity in Political Humour about the 2008 Canadian Federal Election” by Daisy M. Raphael A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Political Science © Daisy Raphael Fall 2011 Edmonton, Alberta Permission is hereby granted to the University of Alberta Library to reproduce single copies of this thesis and to lend or sell such copies for private, scholarly or scientific research purposes only. Where the thesis is converted to, or otherwise made available in digital form, the University of Alberta will advise potential users of the thesis of these terms. The author reserves all other publication and other rights in association with the copyright in the thesis and, except as herein before provided, neither the thesis nor any substantial portion thereof may be printed or otherwise reproduced in any material form whatsoever without the author’s prior written permission. EXAMINING COMMITTEE Dr. Linda Trimble, Political Science Dr. Lois Harder, Political Science Dr. Serra Tinic, Sociology DEDICATION To my parents, Karen and Julian Raphael, for encouraging me to pursue a university education and for their unwavering support throughout my undergraduate and graduate degrees. Also, to my partner, Craig, for the beautifully-cooked meals on days that I felt too busy to feed myself, for reminding me that there is life outside of academics, and for his constant words of encouragement throughout this process. -Daisy Raphael ABSTRACT This study explores the relationship between masculinity and political leadership as it was constructed in political humour about the 2008 Canadian federal election. I used content and discourse analysis methods to examine gendered depictions of the two frontrunners in that election – Stéphane Dion and Stephen Harper – in editorial cartoons and on the popular television programmes the Rick Mercer Report, 22 Minutes and the Royal Canadian Air Farce. Guiding this analysis is Connell’s ([1995] 2005) theory of masculinities. Ultimately, I argue that political satirists constructed a hierarchy of masculinities in their portrayals of Dion and Harper by depicting Dion as submissive, weak, effeminate and devoid of masculinity, while portraying Harper as hypermasculine, dominant, aggressive and violent. In doing so, I argue, Canadian political humourists contributed to the normalization of the purported connections between masculinity, power, and politics and to the social construction of politics as a ‘man’s world’. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Dr. Linda Trimble, my thesis supervisor, for encouraging unconventional approaches to research on gender, politics and the media, such that it did not feel at all strange to propose research that involved watching the Rick Mercer Report. Also, thank you to Dr. Trimble for her thoughtful comments on each draft of each chapter along the way, which undoubtedly improved greatly the quality of this thesis. I would also like to thank Dr. Lois Harder for encouraging me in the beginning of my Master’s career to take an innovative approach in my thesis research, and for stimulating an interesting and thought-provoking discussion surrounding issues of gender and the nation during my thesis defense. Thank you also to Dr. Serra Tinic for encouraging me to push the boundaries of this research and to consider new theories, concepts and methodological approaches. Each of you left me with a renewed sense of passion for my research, and with new ideas to carry me into my doctoral studies. This research project was conceived in the spring of 2010 as a term paper for Dr. Siobhan Byrne’s Gender and Politics course. Thus, I would like to thank Dr. Byrne for her comments on a very early draft of chapter 4, and for introducing me to R. W. Connell’s theory of masculinities. As well, I owe thanks to my peer, Michelle Thomarat, whose feedback on the same early version of the fourth chapter challenged me to think differently about gender. I continue to think about the questions you raised. I owe gratitude to my family, close friends, and former professors for their support. Thank you to my older brother, Fergus, for taking interest in this thesis, for your stylistic suggestions and for generally questioning my ideas about Canadian politics. Thank you also to my younger brother, Bruce, the neuroscientist, for endless debates about gender that have challenged my ideas. I also have very deep gratitude to my good friends, Kent Maier and Fabián Gutiérrez, who welcomed me into their home on frequent trips to Edmonton to conduct research. Pam and Peter de Bruycker and Scott and Kerrie Alanen provided constant support and encouragement, and playtime with our adorable nephew, Lenox, was always a welcome break. The support and encouragement of my friends and fellow students – Justin Leifso, Katrina Kyselytzia, Michelle Morris and, again, Michelle Thomarat – was crucial in completing this thesis and surviving the year of coursework that preceded it. On top of that, my close friends Patrice Murphy, Sara Thienes, Krystle Lutke-Schipholt, Ryan Mallard and Thera Body provided advice and encouragement for which I am very thankful. My former professors Carol Williams, Harold Jansen and Lisa Kozleski have also provided endless encouragement for which I will always be grateful. I am sure I would not be in this position without their support and guidance. I would also like to thank the various editorial cartoonists who not only responded to my emails, but whose interest in this study surprised and delighted me. Finally, to the editorial cartoonists whose work was included in this study, and to those whose work is featured on the Rick Mercer Report, 22 Minutes and the Royal Canadian Air Farce, thank you for making my research so enjoyable. TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter One: Introduction 1 Opening Thoughts 1 Why Study Men and Masculinity? 4 Why Study the Media, Men, and Masculinity? 6 Why Study Political Humour? The ‘Politainment’ Phenomenon 7 Canadian Political Humour: The “Unofficial Opposition”? 14 Why Study Editorial Cartoons? 19 The Gender Dimension of ‘Politainment’ 23 Structure of the Thesis 25 Chapter Two: Theoretical Framework and Empirical Foundations 27 Introduction 27 A Brief History of the Study of Masculinities 28 Connell’s Theory of Masculinities 30 Criticisms of Connell’s Theory 36 Masculinity and Political Leadership 44 Women, Politics, the Media and Masculinity 48 Humour and Gender Construction 52 The Editorial Cartoon as a Site of Gender Construction 55 Conclusion 60 Chapter Three: Methodology 62 Introduction 62 Selection of Texts 62 Content Analysis 64 Discourse Analysis 65 Limitations of the Study 68 Conclusion 69 Chapter Four: Findings 70 Introduction 70 Editorial Cartoons 71 Content Analysis 71 Discourse Analysis 72 Television Programmes 83 Content Analysis 83 Discourse Analysis 85 Sex of the Humourist 97 Conclusion 99 Chapter Five: Conclusion 102 Summary of Research Findings 102 Suggestions for Future Research 105 Closing Thoughts 107 Endnotes 109 Chapter Two: Theoretical Framework and Empirical Foundations 109 Chapter Three: Methodology 109 Chapter Four: Findings 110 References 111 Primary Sources 111 Secondary Sources 114 Appendix 126 LIST OF TABLES Table 1 Summary of Content and Discourse Analysis Results 126 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Proportion of Cartoons that Contained Explicit Gendering 127 Figure 2 Percentage of Positive, Negative and Neutral Depictions 127 of Candidates’ Genders in Editorial Cartoons Figure 3 Negative Depictions of Candidates’ Masculinities in 128 Editorial Cartoons Figure 4 Proportion of Television Segments that Contained 128 Explicit Gendering Figure 5 Sumo Wrestling 129 Figure 6 Militarization of Dion and Harper 130 Figure 7 Dion as the ‘Nerd’ 131 Figure 8 Feminized Dion 132 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Opening Thoughts The Liberal party fared dismally in the 2008 Canadian federal election. Earning just 26.2% of the popular vote and losing 27 seats, the Liberal party’s showing in the 2008 election was only slightly better than the party’s worst performance ever. Stéphane Dion, who resigned as leader of the Liberals in December 2008, took responsibility for the party’s catastrophic showing saying, “If people are asking why [we lost], it’s because I failed” (CBC, 2008b). He added that he faced difficulty combating Conservative Party attack ads (CBC, 2008b). Indeed, the Conservative party of Canada created an entire website devoted to criticizing Dion’s leadership ability. Of the various attack ads posted on notaleader.ca, perhaps most notable is the infamous “pooping puffin”, which featured a bird defecating on the leader’s shoulder (Taber, 2008). In an attempt to counter the Conservative party’s campaign to humiliate Dion, the Liberal Party created their own website, ThisisDion.ca, which portrayed the leader as “a rugged family man who loves fishing, spending time with his wife, his daughter and his dog” (CBC, 2008a). In response to the ad, moreover, the leader declared that he intended to “fight with Canadian courage” to beat Harper (CBC, 2008a). Meanwhile, the “pooping puffin” video only added to Stephen Harper’s reputation as a cold, unfeeling bully. In fact, this harsh image of Harper is one that the party had been trying to counter for some time, with advertisements portraying him as a warm, kitten-loving “sweater-vested family man” (CBC, 2008a). In short, while Dion attempted to recuperate his masculinity after Harper had succeeded in undermining it, Harper attempted to soften his image from that of a hypermasculine bully to a warm, caring family man. This story of the 2008 Canadian election illustrates the ways in which masculinity is often foregrounded in election campaigns. Indeed, politicians – male and female –emphasize their masculinity in order to portray themselves as ‘man enough’ for the job. While campaigning to be the President of the United States in 2008, for instance, Barack Obama shot hoops with college students, 1 vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin shot moose, and Hillary Clinton talked about learning to shoot a rifle with her father.