New Zealand viewers of Geordie Shore talk casual sex and binge- drinking by Grace Low A thesis submitted in requirement for the degree of Master of Arts in Sociology Department of Sociology and Anthropology University of Canterbury 2018 1 Abstract In the current ‘postfeminist’ cultural climate, women are increasingly invited to be confident, free, open and ‘up for it’ and to take part in domains typically considered masculine, such as drinking alcohol and having casual sex. Some understandings of this ‘new’ femininity position women’s participation in cultures of intoxication and sexualisation as a form of social progress, liberation, empowerment and choice. However, women’s engagement with these practices is far from straightforward and some argue that they are faced with an ‘impossible’ task of balancing postfeminist demands of an ‘up for it’ femininity with traditional discourses of feminine respectability and reputation. The reality television show, Geordie Shore, where female and male characters engage in casual sex and heavy drinking is a site in which some of these contradictions of post-feminism are played out. While previous studies have analysed women’s participation in cultures of intoxication and sexualisation, this project makes a significant contribution to existing research by exploring how both men and women engage with these phenomena. Therefore, in this thesis I examine how 23 young adults, living in Christchurch, New Zealand respond to representations of women’s and men’s drinking and casual sex on Geordie Shore. Two mixed gender and two gender specific focus group discussions were analysed using a discourse analytic approach informed by feminist post-structuralism. Participants’ lived experiences and social context informed their readings of representations of men’s and women’s casual sex and drinking on Geordie Shore. For male participants, the ‘laddish’ sexual practices represented on Geordie Shore were contrasted to men’s casual sex in ‘real life’ where having numerous sexual partners could be read as problematic. While the majority of male participants positioned themselves as accepting of women with numerous sexual partners, 2 female participants were aware and critical of a continuing sexual double standard. Drinking and sartorial practices in the night-time economy on the show were further contrasted to participants’ lived experiences and their own identities as ‘Kiwis.’ Participants were critical of how women’s heavy drinking was represented on the show. From a New Zealand context, they drew on dominant discourses of drinking as a masculine domain. Women’s drinking in ‘real life’ was acceptable only to a certain ‘limit’ set by a standard of masculinity. While previous research has suggested that engaging in casual sex and heavy drinking are mainly contradictory terrains for women, I argue that male participants also faced some constraints in their involvement in such practices. Although casual sex and heavy drinking are ‘requirements’ of masculinity, male participants in this research discussed ambiguous ‘limits’ around ‘handling’ their alcohol and an ‘acceptable’ number of sexual partners. Through this, they challenged dominant discourses of masculine sexuality and drinking. 3 Acknowledgements I would like to thank my supervisors Tiina Vares and Ruth McManus for your support and encouragement throughout this project. There were times when I didn’t think I would ever reach the end, so your enthusiasm and chapter feedback were invaluable. I would also like to thank my mother for constant encouragement that I could accomplish this, along with some thoughtful feedback. Finally, I would like to thank everyone who participated in this project, you provided some interesting, insightful and at times, quite entertaining discussion! 4 Contents Chapter One Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 7 The sexualisation of culture: Theoretical and methodological debates ........................... 12 The culture of intoxication ............................................................................................... 23 Thesis outline ................................................................................................................... 26 Chapter Two Discourse, sexuality, postfeminism and the culture of intoxication .............................. 29 Discourse, subjectivity and power ................................................................................... 29 ‘Postfeminist’ discourses of sexuality ............................................................................. 33 From ‘passive objects’ to ‘active subjects’ and the problem of ‘choice’ ........................ 34 Technologies of sexiness and sexual double standards ................................................... 35 Gender, sexuality and the culture of intoxication ............................................................ 39 Discourses of gender and sexuality in Geordie Shore and Jersey Shore ......................... 42 Viewer engagement with reality TV ................................................................................ 47 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................... 50 Chapter Three Methodology ....................................................................................................................... 51 Focus groups .................................................................................................................... 51 Researching ‘sensitive’ topics and focus groups ............................................................. 55 Selection and recruitment of participants ........................................................................ 57 The participants ................................................................................................................ 60 Conducting the focus group discussions .......................................................................... 61 Location ....................................................................................................................... 61 Procedure ..................................................................................................................... 62 Reflecting on the focus groups ........................................................................................ 65 Analysing the data............................................................................................................ 68 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................... 73 Chapter Four “He’s such a fuckboy!” Negotiating the gendered sexual double standard ................. 74 5 “Oh she’s a fucking good bitch”: Participant framings of feminine sexual practices ..... 75 Girls “catch feels” but guys don’t? Complicating the male sex-drive discourse ............. 81 “Chicks always get judged on their number more than guys do”: Negotiating the sexual double standard ................................................................................................................ 85 “Fuckboy doesn’t have the same stigma as slut”: Debating men’s casual sex ................ 89 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................... 95 Chapter Five “I think it depends on whether or not they can handle it”: Drinking and dress in the night-time economy ............................................................................................................ 97 “If a girl gets as drunk as us it’s kind of a bit more of a big deal”: Participants framing of women’s heavy drinking .................................................................................................. 98 “It’s like you can ride up to the top but you’ve got to make sure you don’t fall off the cliff”: Negotiating ‘handling’ ones’ alcohol consumption ............................................ 106 “None of the dudes in New Zealand would wear a U neck like James”: Appearance in the night-time economy ................................................................................................. 112 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 118 Chapter Six Conclusion ........................................................................................................................ 120 References ............................................................................................................................. 128 Appendix A: Participant information sheet ...................................................................... 149 Appendix B: Participant consent form .............................................................................. 151 Appendix C: Participant questionnaire ............................................................................. 153 Appendix D: Focus group discussion guide ....................................................................... 154 6 Chapter One Introduction Variously known as ‘the sexualisation of culture,’ ‘mainstreaming of sex’ (Attwood, 2010), ‘striptease’ (McNair, 2002), ‘pornified’ (Paul, 2005), or ‘raunch’ culture (Levy, 2005), a proliferation of sexual discourse and imagery has become prevalent across Western societies (Coy, 2009). While traditionally