Netball As a Space of Resistance
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Understanding ‘the National Sport for New Zealand Women’: A Socio-Spatial Analysis of Netball A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at The University of Waikato by AMY ELIZABETH MARFELL 2016 Abstract Since the early 20th century, netball has been heralded ‘the national sport for New Zealand women’ and it continues to represent one of the few team sport environments not characterized by the interests and participation of men. Created by and for women, netball promotes and preserves a sense of women-onlyness. There is, however, a link between netball and femininity that has gone largely unexplored among contemporary studies of sport. This research focuses on the social production of netball space and the ongoing and complex relationship between netball and heteronormative femininity in New Zealand. Drawing upon interviews with 16 recreational players and ethnographic fieldwork conducted over two years, I examine how women experience, negotiate and challenge notions of gender, sexuality, corporeality and subjectivity in spaces of netball. Adopting a poststructural feminist interpretation of Henri Lefebvre’s spatial theory, I demonstrate how the relationship between women’s sporting bodies, space and social relations is mutually constituted. In this thesis, I explain spaces of netball as reproducing and celebrating particular gendered and sexualized identities and thus, prioritizing a relatively narrow but culturally valued heteronormative feminine athletic ideal. Whilst some women enjoy and are empowered by the social conditions of this sport, the power relations operating on and through netball spaces can also work to subordinate and exclude alternative or ‘other’ femininities and bodies. Yet, as my research reveals, netball also offers opportunities for resistance as some netballers engage in oppositional politics and/or use this space to disrupt normative discourse. This is particularly evident in the ways some players resist the involvement of men, how mothers use netball space to obtain momentary reprieve from the expectations of motherhood, and how pregnant, ‘fat’ and older bodies challenge the discursive construction of the contemporary (feminine) athletic ideal via their participation in this sport. To this end, this research not only demonstrates the social geography of netball in the everyday lives of New Zealand women, but also the potential of theoretical syntheses between Lefebvre and feminism for offering productive new ways to think about the interrelationships between active bodies, identities, space, power and resistance in sport and female physical culture. i Dedication To Sue and Chris Marfell, two selfless, supportive and devoted parents who have nurtured both a love of netball and a passion for learning. ii Acknowledgements Writing this thesis has been a journey on which I certainly have not embarked alone. Rather, there have been a number of people who have accompanied me on this ride: who have, in many instances, felt the bumps, twists and turns in the road and kept me company and offered support along the way. My sincerest thanks, therefore, must go to the following individuals and groups without whom this project and thesis simply would not have been possible. First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to both of my supervisors. My thanks go to Dr. Holly Thorpe for her mentorship and tireless support over the course of both my graduate and postgraduate studies. The time, effort and hard work she has invested in my education have meant more to me than words can describe. She has continually challenged me to push my thinking in new and exciting directions and helped me to develop the intellectual knowledge and skills necessary to undertake this Doctoral journey. I am truly grateful for Holly’s mentorship, encouragement and enduring commitment throughout this process. A huge ‘thank you’ must also go to Professor Robyn Longhurst, whose immense generosity, support, enthusiasm and helpful feedback have been instrumental in the production of this thesis and my continued growth as an intellectual. I am grateful for Robyn’s faith in my abilities and for having had the opportunity to work with and to learn from her. To both, I wish to extend my sincerest and deepest gratitude and appreciation and to express my utmost respect. I also wish to extend my appreciation to those who have supported me financially throughout this process. I am extremely grateful for the financial support provided by the University of Waikato Doctoral Scholarship, Te Oranga: School of Human Development and Movement Studies, The New Zealand Federation of Graduate Women’s Educational Trust and the Claude McCarthy Fellowship Trust. The funds provided by these institutions and groups have not only helped to make this research possible, but have also enabled me to present aspects of this work both in New Zealand and overseas. On a personal note, I am forever indebted to my parents Sue and Chris, my partner Dave, and my close friends for their endless and unfaltering love, patience, iii encouragement and tolerance throughout the duration of this project. Their appreciation of the (literal) blood, sweat and tears that have gone into this project and their willingness to listen and offer support throughout this rewarding, yet immensely challenging process, has been astonishing. I feel incredibly lucky to have had them all to cheer me on. Last, but by no means least, I wish to acknowledge the 16 women who voluntarily gave up their time to participate in this study and whose voices fill many of the pages of this thesis. Without their willingness to share their experiences and ‘stories’ of netball, this project would not have been possible, nor would the content be so rich. I have been deeply overwhelmed by each woman’s enthusiasm, not only for netball, but also for contributing her time, energy and insight to this study. Special thanks must also go to those at the Hamilton City Netball Centre who facilitated my research at this venue and to my netball teammates, coach and managers who have supported and deepened this project and my own playing experiences over the past three years. iv Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................... i Dedication .............................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................... iii List of Tables and Figures ..................................................................................vii Preface .................................................................................................................... 1 CHAPTER ONE - Introduction .......................................................................... 4 Defining netball .................................................................................................... 5 Women and netball: Existing research and contributions .................................... 8 Fragments of a netballer: My relationships with the game ................................ 11 Thesis overview ................................................................................................. 12 CHAPTER TWO - Intersections Between Gender, Space and Netball Bodies: A Feminist Reading of Lefebvre ............................................. 16 Space, place and sporting bodies ....................................................................... 21 Henri Lefebvre and The Production of Space .................................................... 32 (Re)reading Lefebvre through feminism ............................................................ 46 CHAPTER THREE - Exploring Women’s Embodied Netball Experiences: An Ethnographic Approach ........................................................ 51 Reflexivity in feminist and sociology of sport research ..................................... 53 Reflexive beginnings and researching from the ‘intimate inside’ ..................... 56 ‘Taking the court’: An athlete/researcher in netball space ................................. 63 Interviews: Talking with ‘the girls’ .................................................................... 75 Media analysis: Poring over the ‘pages’ ............................................................ 85 Understanding and (re)presenting women’s netball experiences ....................... 86 Summary ............................................................................................................ 91 CHAPTER FOUR - The 'Game for New Zealand Girls’: The Feminization and Heterosexualization of Netball Space ................................