Question- I am currently working on the final edit of my dissertation question. However the topic my research will follow is how looking at the social and cultural influences that can be said to have influenced 18th century folklore characters/motifs and how the themes of politics/ sexuality and gender are explored through depictions of these characters/motifs in American media in the early 21st century. ( 1995-2008)
- Journal – Weinstein, Deborah Sexuality, therapeutic culture, and family ties in the United States after …: StirGate from Stirling University Library (2018) History of Psychology © 2018 American Psychological Association
2018, Vol. 21, No. 3, 273–289
I found this article through searching for gender and sexuality issues in 1990s America. The purpose of this article is to follow the progress of the development of the gay rights movement in America between 1970- 1990s. The reader can see that society began to consider the acceptance of homosexuality as individuals began to acknowledge that medical treatment for it was unnecessary and cruel punishment. Therefore the source closely looks at how by the 1990s America became a more progressive country in terms of looking at sexuality but it acknowledges that there was still important development needed. This source is useful to my dissertation as it establishes that sexuality in the 1990s was a highly important social issue which can link to this theme being explored in depictions of folklore in the media.
I plan to access American newspapers from the 1990s as an example of a primary source as they can also shed light on the prominence of these issues I will be discussing in my dissertation during this time period. I also plan to look at different tv shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Charmed and True Blood which were made in this time period and how using the folklore motifs explore politics, gender and sexuality.
Blurred lines: Exploring contemporary attitudes to gender
portrayal in the media
James Bryson and David Bunker (2015) Market Research Society
I found this article through searching on google scholar for how gender is explored in the mass media, through reading this it helped me in my ability to critique how these programmes explore these important themes.
The Perpetuation of Subtle Prejudice: Race and
Gender Imagery in 1990s Television Advertising
Sex Roles, Vol. 42, Nos. 5/6, 2000
Scott Coltrane & Melissa Melino
This article was found by again searching race and gender issues in 1990s media through JSTOR. This was helpful to my dissertation as it highlighted how in television adverts white women are often seen as ‘sex objects’ and people of other races are often not shown in quite the same reguard. This helps me as it can develop my argument of how in comparison this use of folklore in the media often tries to show idealistic version of the world and represent the unpresented.
Gender, Race, and Animality in
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Jeffrey Pannekoek and Karin Anderson (2017)
I accessed this through the library catalogue at Stirling. Through reading this I was able to see how the protagonist of Buffy the Vampire Slayer seemed to be a pioneer of feminist characters in the media, other characters in popular tv and culture were often falling prey to sexist stereotypes. This is important and useful to my dissertation as we can see the relationship between the further calls for womens rights and how women are potrayed in the media at this time.