ASSOCIATION FOR CONSUMER RESEARCH
Association for Consumer Research, University of Minnesota Duluth, 115 Chester Park, 31 West College Street Duluth, MN 55812
Ruling Through the Body: the Evolution of Male Grooming in China Xiaoxi Ding, Lancaster University, UK Chihling Liu, Lancaster University, UK Xin Zhao, Lancaster University, UK
We examine the interplay between male grooming and portrayals of masculinity in the Chinese media since the year 1949. Our findings show the male body is politicized to shape gender identity over time.
[to cite]: Xiaoxi Ding, Chihling Liu, and Xin Zhao (2019) ,"Ruling Through the Body: the Evolution of Male Grooming in China", in NA - Advances in Consumer Research Volume 47, eds. Rajesh Bagchi, Lauren Block, and Leonard Lee, Duluth, MN : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 536-537.
[url]: http://www.acrwebsite.org/volumes/2552068/volumes/v47/NA-47
[copyright notice]: This work is copyrighted by The Association for Consumer Research. For permission to copy or use this work in whole or in part, please contact the Copyright Clearance Center at http://www.copyright.com/. Ruling Through the Body: The Evolution of Male Grooming in China Xiaoxi Ding, Lancaster University, UK Chihling Liu, Lancaster University, UK Xin Zhao, Lancaster University, UK
EXTENDED ABSTRACT 1. Socialist Worker Masculinity (since 1949): when the Peo- Extant marketing and consumer research has long identified ple’s Republic of China first founded in 1949, there was a women’s body as a site of political and social struggle (Bettany et al. strong emphasis on production and the importance of sta- 2010; Maclaran 2015; Stevens & Maclaran 2007). This is particular- tus elevation for the workers. Becoming a factory worker ly the case within the feminist literature where there is continued am- to participate in the development of the state’s economy bivalence as to whether an escape from the material body is empow- was portrayed as the ideal citizen at that time. Chinese men ering or disempowering for women seeking greater gender equality working in the assembly line, looking frugal and dressed (Bristor & Fischer 1993; Stevens & Maclaran 2007). The body was in collared shirts and loose dungarees were the dominant the focus of second wave feminism in the 1970s, mainly concerned images in People’s Daily. with issues such as fertility and abortion. Second wavers fought to 2. Military Masculinity (Since 1965): during the period of obtain legal and social equality of women in part by refuting femi- Cultural Revolution, Chinese government became devoted ninity – they are often negatively stereotyped as the “ugly feminist” to endorsing the manifesto of the communist party and (Scott 2006). As a backlash to the rejection of femininity, the new encouraged Chinese citizens to participate in the socialist generation of third wavers (e.g., lipstick feminism) seeks empow- revolution and the fight against capitalism. At the time, ads erment – politically, socially and psychologically – through beauty in people’s daily typically portrayed men and women in practices such as the wearing of makeup, fashion, fitness regimes and uniforms serving as the Liberation Army. People wearing sensually-appealing clothing (Liu et al. 2016). Yet, such a movement the uniforms were seen as the most reliable socialists and has been increasingly criticized as leading to the current hypersexual harboring the strongest revolutionary spirit. They became culture and a return of sexism (Stevens & Maclaran 2012; Walter a cultural icon through which the state advocates criticality 2010). In sum, there is a persistent emphasis in the literature (and of serving the army above all. perhaps rightfully so) on studying women’s body and its relevant 3. Entrepreneur Masculinity (Since 1989): during the ‘mid- consumption/beauty practices as a means of molding identity and dle’ stage of Reform, the state sought to participate in the pursuing female emancipation in personal and political terms. Such world economy as it underwent the reform of its socialist an emphasis however risks a return to the Cartesian male/female, economy. In the 1990s, the reform focused on transform- mind/body dualism, reinforcing the assumption that men’s body is ing the state-owned enterprises into privately owned cor- liberated from sociocultural or political constrains and freed from porations. At this time, ads in People’s Daily concentrated the negotiations of power in gender relations. In this study, we ex- on depicting men as industry leaders and in business at- amine the development of the interplay between male grooming and tires. Women were commonly shown as supporting actors portrayals of masculinity in the media in Chinese history since the (e.g., secretaries) with a well-groomed appearance. year 1949 and in modern times. We show how the construction of he- 4. Soft Masculinity vs. Chinese Dream Chaser Masculinity gemonic masculinity operates over time, as the male body becomes (since 2000): in the era of Globalization, femininity and a site of political ‘subjection’, inscribed by systems of state control. masculinity became more hybrid and diversified (Song & Popular media (e.g., film and print advertising) plays a crucial Lee 2010). With women becoming more highly educated role in shaping gender discourses (Schroeder & Zwick 2004), and in and financially independent, we started to see ads in Peo- reflecting idealized gender images in specific social and ideological ple’s Daily portraying men in casual clothing and in fam- contexts (Kates & Shaw-Garlock 1999). These images could influ- ily settings acting as husbands and fathers. With the global ence one’s self-perceptions (Martin & Gentry 1997) and even work metrosexual trend, we also started to see ads with men as panoptic mechanisms to induce one’s self-monitoring (Duncan wearing makeup and more feminized menswear. Yet, with 1994). We argue that China serves as a rich context for exploring the Xi Jinping’s leadership that proposed the importance of politicized nature of the body as the print and broadcast system has achieving the Chinese Dream with a focus on the revival of long been the state’s tool to disseminate knowledge around ‘appro- nationalism, we at the same time witnessed the state’s ef- priate’ ways of thinking, talking, grooming consuming and behaving forts in restraining the metrosexual trend by banning male (Bandurski 2015). In addition, we have witnessed several drastic cul- images that are perceived overly feminine. There is also tural, political and economic changes in contemporary China (Hung a resurgence of images focusing on representing men in & Li 2006). We demonstrate how these changes influence the ways business attires as well as in socialist uniforms who shoul- in which hegemonic masculinity has been constructed, portrayed and der strong national and social responsibilities. transformed in the Chinese print and broadcast system from 1949 to the present day. Our findings contribute to the lack of research (Hearn & Hein Following theories of semiotics and visual rhetoric (Barthes 2015) into understanding men’s structural position(s) within the gen- 1977), we conducted an extensive review of advertisements in the der system called patriarchy and how the male body is also politi- People’s Daily since the year 1949. The People’s Daily is chosen be- cized and transformed to shape gender identity in the marketing and cause it has been the Chinese government’s official newspaper since consumption context over time. 1949, and thus it closely reflects the ideological changes of the state (Zhao & Belk 2008). Our findings point to four stages of state-spon- sored construction of hegemonic masculinity and how the body/male grooming plays an imperative role in constituting this discourse:
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