A Critical Discourse Analysis of Female Sexuality Articles in Women Magazines
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of Study
Motivated by goals of social emancipation and transformation, the critique
of grossly unequal social orders characterizes much feminist, in regard to
discursive dimensions of social (in)justice, research in critical discourse analysis
(CDA). This female sexuality articles in women magazines bring CDA and
feminist studies together in proposing a „feminist critical discourse analysis‟ (or
„feminist critical discourse studies‟), which aims to advance a rich and nuanced
understanding of the complex workings of power and ideology in discourse in
sustaining (hierarchically) gendered social arrangements. This is all the more
pertinent in present times, when issues of gender, power, and ideology have
become increasingly more complex and subtle.
The aim of critical discourse studies in this feminist case, therefore, is to
show up the complex, subtle, and sometimes not so subtle, ways in which
frequently taken-for-granted gendered assumptions and hegemonic power
relations are discursively produced, sustained, negotiated, and challenged in
different contexts and communities. In this research,
have been focused on
analysis of text and analysis of discursive practice. Such an interest is not merely
an academic de-construction of texts and talk for its own sake, but comes from an
acknowledgement that the issues deal with (in view of effecting social change)
have material and phenomenological consequences for groups of women and men
in specific communities. A CDA that focuses on feminist perspective is obviously
interdisciplinary in nature. On the one hand, it contributes to (critical) language
1
Universitas Sumatera Utara
and discourse studies a perspective informed by feminist studies, and on the other
hand, it suggests the usefulness of language and discourse studies for the
investigation of feminist issues in gender and women‟s studies.
Magazines like Cosmopolitan and Glamour construct themselves, not
only as experts, but as advisors. Consequently, they are presented as being „in the
know‟ of what women want. Thus, if they frequently print articles about sex,
dieting and fashion, they construct femininity as primarily concerned with these
subjects (Ferguson, 1983). Furthermore, since they are presented as a distinctly
feminine discourse, these magazines ostensibly select and reformulate their
subjects in order to present an authentically female perspective. This process of
„selection‟ and „reformulation‟ is primarily achieved by the editor who operates,
to a large extent, on her intuitions about what sells and what will draw advertisers
(Ferguson, 1983). With regard to this study, the most important consequence of
the above-mentioned information is that femininity is defined as something that
must be performed. To perform femininity successfully, one must perform
„womanly things‟ frequently and perfectly – often for other women or men‟s
approval (Ferguson, 1983: 7). The magazine represents the source of what
„womanly things‟ are. More importantly, she (the magazine) is the reader‟s
constant advisor, especially since she is the expert on „womanly things‟. However,
this expert is not a clinical advisor, but a friend who understands „what it feels
like‟ to pursue the perfection of femininity. Thus, the magazine is indispensable in
this life-long quest (Ferguson, 1983:184–185).
This proclivity is manifested in the variety of „how-to‟ and „step-by-step‟
articles in magazines like Cosmopolitan and Glamour. By defining what
2
Universitas Sumatera Utara
„womanly things‟ are, in these articles, socialization is achieved by upholding
representations of what femininity should be. Simultaneously, advertisers are
lured by connecting „womanly things‟ with dieting, cosmetics and fashion. For
example, the evasive goal of being „sexy enough‟ may be presented as a
„womanly pursuit‟ not because it is authentically feminine, but because it draws
advertisers of dieting and fashion products (Ferguson, 1983:184–186).
Thus: although „womanly things‟ can now be incorporated within a
variety of social roles, women are still expected to achieve certain goals, such as
the maintenance of heterosexual romantic relationships (Ferguson, 1983). Of
course, this requires certain rituals of dieting, exercising, and purchasing the right
fashion and cosmetic items. Therefore, it seems conceivable that femininity although ostensibly flexible - is nevertheless constructed around a core of
„womanly things‟ to do and master.
As products of mass culture, women‟s magazines have attracted the
attention of social scientists. There seems to be a consensus among scholars in
that these publications offer pleasurable and light reading to their readers on the
one hand, and are value-laden in contrast to the commonsense conception of
women‟s magazines as apolitical, ideology-free publications on the other.
The literature on women‟s magazines has almost always been critical
of these publications: women‟s magazines have been accused of providing their
readers with restricted roles of traditional womanhood or of not coping with the
changes in gender roles that have taken place in society. The status and impact of
women‟s magazines are all the more interesting for Indonesia. Although the genre
3
Universitas Sumatera Utara
“women‟s magazine” is imported from American culture and the content usually
combines consumerism with the image of the western woman.
The Glamour, Cosmopolitan and other women‟s magazines are
increasingly the objects of critical sociological and cultural analysis (Ballaster et
al., 1991; Caldas- Coulthard, 1996; Coward, 1989; Durham, 1996; Ferguson,
1983; Hermes, 1995; Illouz, 1991; McCracken, 1993; Winship, 1987; Wolf,
1991). As studies prove, women‟s magazines have a highly important role in the
maintenance of cultural values, since they construct an „ideal‟ reader who is at the
same time both produced and in a sense imprisoned by the text. As mass cultural
texts, they „exert a cultural leadership to shape consensus in which highly
pleasurable codes work to naturalise social relations of power,‟ claims McCracken
(1993: 3).
The Cosmopolitan appears in 43 local editions in national languages
and is read by 35 million women across the world, as one can read in the editorial
of the first issue (October 2001). Therefore, the Cosmopolitan is an example of a
globalised magazine that deals with supposedly universal problems, difficulties
and questions for women. Reading the Cosmopolitan involves an undeniable
number of pleasures of participation and action (Ballaster et al., 1991; Herman,
1995). Indeed it is very difficult to resist reading it, because it deals with women‟s
lives and desires, it shows ideal bodies, represents ideal relationships and
prescribes ideal sex. It reports on individual experiences women can easily
identify with.
Glamour is a women‟s magazine published by Condé Nast Publications.
Founded in 1939 and first published in April 1939 in the United States. It targets
4
Universitas Sumatera Utara
women 18–49 (with the median age of 33.5) and reaches a subscription audience
of 1,411,061 readers in the United States. Its circulation on newsstands is
986,447, making the total average paid circulation: 2,397,508 Glamour was the
first women's magazine to feature an African-American cover-girl when it
included Katiti Kironde on the cover of its college issue in August 1968.
Femininity, therefore, becomes both a source of anxiety and a source of
pleasure because it can never be fully achieved. The magazine perpetuates this
myth of femininity and offers itself as a solution. The magazine will be a friend,
an advisor and an instructor in the difficult task of being woman. Constructed thus
on the ideology of consumerism and on formulas of advice, the private world of
sexuality is, according to Caldas-Coulthard (1996: 255), directly accessed either
through first-person narratives of personal experience („I am twice divorced …‟),
analysed by her, or through advice articles („you should do this or that‟), which
are the focus of the present study.
For example of the analysis is the sentence from article in Glamour
Magazine No.108 April 2016, page 66, the title of article “Sex Train your Brain”.
Think sex, think genitals.
This sentence contained both wording of meaning and metaphors. Whereas,
„wording of meaning‟ means this sentence is kind of interpretative perspective to
contrast the way think sex are worded into think genitals that showed the idea of
sexual orientation to do some sex activities. Then metaphors in this sentence
means explicit. Explicit in this case showed that the using of vulgar words, such
as sex and genitals, this analysis refers to first problem in this study. Then, this
sentence contains lower level. It shows a set of sequence of sounds, this analysis
5
Universitas Sumatera Utara
refers to second problem in this study. The last, the article shows liberalism
ideology, means there are the using of vulgarism words both written and the way
of thinking.
The female sexuality‟s articles in women‟s magazines has been
analyzed based on Fairclough‟s Framework for analysis and the ideology in these
women magazines. In case there were the analysis of text and the analysis of
discursive practice. In the analysis of text had been found the using of vocabulary,
grammar, cohesion and text structure. For those parts, vocabulary focuses on three
ways, there are meaning of words that means literary meaning of the text, wording
of meaning that means interpretative of the texts, and metaphors means the text
can contains explicit meaning which is have vulgarism contexts both the using of
words and thought. Then, grammar focuses on three dimensions, there are
transivity, theme and modality. Transivity focuses on how text contains particular
process types and participants, theme focuses on discernible pattern in the texts
thematic structure, then modality focuses on the using of modal auxiliary.
Cohesion focuses on how clauses are linked together and text structure focuses on
elements are combined in texts.
In another analysis, discursive practice had been found the using of
utterances, coherence of text and intertextuality of text. For those parts, force of
utterances focuses on the interpretation of text that represented as multilevel
process; i.e. lower level that analyze a set on sequence of sounds and higher level
that concerned with the whole text meaning. Coherence of text focuses on the
centre of interpretation, then intertextuality of text focuses on transforming the
past existing convention and prior texts into the present.
6
Universitas Sumatera Utara
The woman‟s magazines have been selected as the source of the data
and the female sexuality‟s articles as the data because the problems can be related
in to the language use in these article, the research has been identified by using
critical discourse analysis as a main resource and fairlough as the theory under
CDA. In this case, feminist as the common thing in female sexuality articles have
close relation with CDA, whereas the female sexuality articles contains elements
of CDA, in the using of words, ideological views and the structure of texts.
Critical discourse analysis took a main role to this research, whereas female
sexuality articles was suitable to be discussed using this subject. This study is
important because for women readers, especially, the context of these women
magazines, Cosmopolitan and Glamour are mostly talking about how sex activity
and the treatment of sex related to their sex life. Indeed these female sexuality
articles become a source for those readers as a media to know how they can
improve their sex habit in real life better than before. The using of vulgarism
context both words and the writer‟s thought (re. the writer of magazine), for adult
women are necessary to discussed, but it will become a mistake if the readers are
teenage girl or even boys. So, there must be different interpretation and
understanding. However Fairclough‟s theory has been used in this study to
analyze how female sexuality articles generate the contents by using distinctive
terms, especially by the choice of words and the context of the articles to give
information about „sex corner‟ to the readers of women magazines.
1.2 Problems of Study
Based on the background, the problems are formulated as follows :
7
Universitas Sumatera Utara
1. How is the realization of text of female sexuality articles in women
magazines i.e. vocabulary, grammar, cohesion and text structure?
2. How is the realization of discursive practice of female sexuality articles in
women magazine i.e. force of utterances, coherence of texts, and
intertextuality of texts?
3. What ideology that showed in the women magazines?
1.3 Objectives of Study
Based on the problems of study above, the objectives of study are :
1. To analyze the text of female sexuality articles that realized in the women
magazines i.e. vocabulary, grammar, cohesion and text structure based on
Fairclough theory.
2. To analyze the discursive practice in female sexuality articles that realized
in the women magazines i.e. force of utterances, coherence of texts, and
intertextuality of texts based on Fairclough theory.
3. To find out the ideology that showed in the women magazines.
1.4 Scope of Study
There are many aspects that can be discussed in connection with the
study of critical discourse analysis. They can be studied in a wider scope in order
to gain a much better understanding. In case, this study is limited on analysis of
text, analysis of discursive practice which based on Fairclough theory in his book,
Discourse and Social Change. Then, the ideology that represented in that female
sexuality articles in women magazines.
1.5 Significances of Study
8
Universitas Sumatera Utara
The significances of this study are divided in two, theoretical and
practical significances. Theoretically, it is expected that the findings of the study
can give much contribution to critical discourse analysis particularly in Fairclough
theory which can be used a reference for the similar studies in the future,
especially the studies which discuss under critical discourse analysis in women‟s
magazines.
Practically, it is expected that the findings can be useful for the
guiding information for the readers. And for information and idea for other
researcher is who want to carry out further study on female sexuality, and
ideology in critical discourse analysis.
9
Universitas Sumatera Utara
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of Study
Motivated by goals of social emancipation and transformation, the critique
of grossly unequal social orders characterizes much feminist, in regard to
discursive dimensions of social (in)justice, research in critical discourse analysis
(CDA). This female sexuality articles in women magazines bring CDA and
feminist studies together in proposing a „feminist critical discourse analysis‟ (or
„feminist critical discourse studies‟), which aims to advance a rich and nuanced
understanding of the complex workings of power and ideology in discourse in
sustaining (hierarchically) gendered social arrangements. This is all the more
pertinent in present times, when issues of gender, power, and ideology have
become increasingly more complex and subtle.
The aim of critical discourse studies in this feminist case, therefore, is to
show up the complex, subtle, and sometimes not so subtle, ways in which
frequently taken-for-granted gendered assumptions and hegemonic power
relations are discursively produced, sustained, negotiated, and challenged in
different contexts and communities. In this research,
have been focused on
analysis of text and analysis of discursive practice. Such an interest is not merely
an academic de-construction of texts and talk for its own sake, but comes from an
acknowledgement that the issues deal with (in view of effecting social change)
have material and phenomenological consequences for groups of women and men
in specific communities. A CDA that focuses on feminist perspective is obviously
interdisciplinary in nature. On the one hand, it contributes to (critical) language
1
Universitas Sumatera Utara
and discourse studies a perspective informed by feminist studies, and on the other
hand, it suggests the usefulness of language and discourse studies for the
investigation of feminist issues in gender and women‟s studies.
Magazines like Cosmopolitan and Glamour construct themselves, not
only as experts, but as advisors. Consequently, they are presented as being „in the
know‟ of what women want. Thus, if they frequently print articles about sex,
dieting and fashion, they construct femininity as primarily concerned with these
subjects (Ferguson, 1983). Furthermore, since they are presented as a distinctly
feminine discourse, these magazines ostensibly select and reformulate their
subjects in order to present an authentically female perspective. This process of
„selection‟ and „reformulation‟ is primarily achieved by the editor who operates,
to a large extent, on her intuitions about what sells and what will draw advertisers
(Ferguson, 1983). With regard to this study, the most important consequence of
the above-mentioned information is that femininity is defined as something that
must be performed. To perform femininity successfully, one must perform
„womanly things‟ frequently and perfectly – often for other women or men‟s
approval (Ferguson, 1983: 7). The magazine represents the source of what
„womanly things‟ are. More importantly, she (the magazine) is the reader‟s
constant advisor, especially since she is the expert on „womanly things‟. However,
this expert is not a clinical advisor, but a friend who understands „what it feels
like‟ to pursue the perfection of femininity. Thus, the magazine is indispensable in
this life-long quest (Ferguson, 1983:184–185).
This proclivity is manifested in the variety of „how-to‟ and „step-by-step‟
articles in magazines like Cosmopolitan and Glamour. By defining what
2
Universitas Sumatera Utara
„womanly things‟ are, in these articles, socialization is achieved by upholding
representations of what femininity should be. Simultaneously, advertisers are
lured by connecting „womanly things‟ with dieting, cosmetics and fashion. For
example, the evasive goal of being „sexy enough‟ may be presented as a
„womanly pursuit‟ not because it is authentically feminine, but because it draws
advertisers of dieting and fashion products (Ferguson, 1983:184–186).
Thus: although „womanly things‟ can now be incorporated within a
variety of social roles, women are still expected to achieve certain goals, such as
the maintenance of heterosexual romantic relationships (Ferguson, 1983). Of
course, this requires certain rituals of dieting, exercising, and purchasing the right
fashion and cosmetic items. Therefore, it seems conceivable that femininity although ostensibly flexible - is nevertheless constructed around a core of
„womanly things‟ to do and master.
As products of mass culture, women‟s magazines have attracted the
attention of social scientists. There seems to be a consensus among scholars in
that these publications offer pleasurable and light reading to their readers on the
one hand, and are value-laden in contrast to the commonsense conception of
women‟s magazines as apolitical, ideology-free publications on the other.
The literature on women‟s magazines has almost always been critical
of these publications: women‟s magazines have been accused of providing their
readers with restricted roles of traditional womanhood or of not coping with the
changes in gender roles that have taken place in society. The status and impact of
women‟s magazines are all the more interesting for Indonesia. Although the genre
3
Universitas Sumatera Utara
“women‟s magazine” is imported from American culture and the content usually
combines consumerism with the image of the western woman.
The Glamour, Cosmopolitan and other women‟s magazines are
increasingly the objects of critical sociological and cultural analysis (Ballaster et
al., 1991; Caldas- Coulthard, 1996; Coward, 1989; Durham, 1996; Ferguson,
1983; Hermes, 1995; Illouz, 1991; McCracken, 1993; Winship, 1987; Wolf,
1991). As studies prove, women‟s magazines have a highly important role in the
maintenance of cultural values, since they construct an „ideal‟ reader who is at the
same time both produced and in a sense imprisoned by the text. As mass cultural
texts, they „exert a cultural leadership to shape consensus in which highly
pleasurable codes work to naturalise social relations of power,‟ claims McCracken
(1993: 3).
The Cosmopolitan appears in 43 local editions in national languages
and is read by 35 million women across the world, as one can read in the editorial
of the first issue (October 2001). Therefore, the Cosmopolitan is an example of a
globalised magazine that deals with supposedly universal problems, difficulties
and questions for women. Reading the Cosmopolitan involves an undeniable
number of pleasures of participation and action (Ballaster et al., 1991; Herman,
1995). Indeed it is very difficult to resist reading it, because it deals with women‟s
lives and desires, it shows ideal bodies, represents ideal relationships and
prescribes ideal sex. It reports on individual experiences women can easily
identify with.
Glamour is a women‟s magazine published by Condé Nast Publications.
Founded in 1939 and first published in April 1939 in the United States. It targets
4
Universitas Sumatera Utara
women 18–49 (with the median age of 33.5) and reaches a subscription audience
of 1,411,061 readers in the United States. Its circulation on newsstands is
986,447, making the total average paid circulation: 2,397,508 Glamour was the
first women's magazine to feature an African-American cover-girl when it
included Katiti Kironde on the cover of its college issue in August 1968.
Femininity, therefore, becomes both a source of anxiety and a source of
pleasure because it can never be fully achieved. The magazine perpetuates this
myth of femininity and offers itself as a solution. The magazine will be a friend,
an advisor and an instructor in the difficult task of being woman. Constructed thus
on the ideology of consumerism and on formulas of advice, the private world of
sexuality is, according to Caldas-Coulthard (1996: 255), directly accessed either
through first-person narratives of personal experience („I am twice divorced …‟),
analysed by her, or through advice articles („you should do this or that‟), which
are the focus of the present study.
For example of the analysis is the sentence from article in Glamour
Magazine No.108 April 2016, page 66, the title of article “Sex Train your Brain”.
Think sex, think genitals.
This sentence contained both wording of meaning and metaphors. Whereas,
„wording of meaning‟ means this sentence is kind of interpretative perspective to
contrast the way think sex are worded into think genitals that showed the idea of
sexual orientation to do some sex activities. Then metaphors in this sentence
means explicit. Explicit in this case showed that the using of vulgar words, such
as sex and genitals, this analysis refers to first problem in this study. Then, this
sentence contains lower level. It shows a set of sequence of sounds, this analysis
5
Universitas Sumatera Utara
refers to second problem in this study. The last, the article shows liberalism
ideology, means there are the using of vulgarism words both written and the way
of thinking.
The female sexuality‟s articles in women‟s magazines has been
analyzed based on Fairclough‟s Framework for analysis and the ideology in these
women magazines. In case there were the analysis of text and the analysis of
discursive practice. In the analysis of text had been found the using of vocabulary,
grammar, cohesion and text structure. For those parts, vocabulary focuses on three
ways, there are meaning of words that means literary meaning of the text, wording
of meaning that means interpretative of the texts, and metaphors means the text
can contains explicit meaning which is have vulgarism contexts both the using of
words and thought. Then, grammar focuses on three dimensions, there are
transivity, theme and modality. Transivity focuses on how text contains particular
process types and participants, theme focuses on discernible pattern in the texts
thematic structure, then modality focuses on the using of modal auxiliary.
Cohesion focuses on how clauses are linked together and text structure focuses on
elements are combined in texts.
In another analysis, discursive practice had been found the using of
utterances, coherence of text and intertextuality of text. For those parts, force of
utterances focuses on the interpretation of text that represented as multilevel
process; i.e. lower level that analyze a set on sequence of sounds and higher level
that concerned with the whole text meaning. Coherence of text focuses on the
centre of interpretation, then intertextuality of text focuses on transforming the
past existing convention and prior texts into the present.
6
Universitas Sumatera Utara
The woman‟s magazines have been selected as the source of the data
and the female sexuality‟s articles as the data because the problems can be related
in to the language use in these article, the research has been identified by using
critical discourse analysis as a main resource and fairlough as the theory under
CDA. In this case, feminist as the common thing in female sexuality articles have
close relation with CDA, whereas the female sexuality articles contains elements
of CDA, in the using of words, ideological views and the structure of texts.
Critical discourse analysis took a main role to this research, whereas female
sexuality articles was suitable to be discussed using this subject. This study is
important because for women readers, especially, the context of these women
magazines, Cosmopolitan and Glamour are mostly talking about how sex activity
and the treatment of sex related to their sex life. Indeed these female sexuality
articles become a source for those readers as a media to know how they can
improve their sex habit in real life better than before. The using of vulgarism
context both words and the writer‟s thought (re. the writer of magazine), for adult
women are necessary to discussed, but it will become a mistake if the readers are
teenage girl or even boys. So, there must be different interpretation and
understanding. However Fairclough‟s theory has been used in this study to
analyze how female sexuality articles generate the contents by using distinctive
terms, especially by the choice of words and the context of the articles to give
information about „sex corner‟ to the readers of women magazines.
1.2 Problems of Study
Based on the background, the problems are formulated as follows :
7
Universitas Sumatera Utara
1. How is the realization of text of female sexuality articles in women
magazines i.e. vocabulary, grammar, cohesion and text structure?
2. How is the realization of discursive practice of female sexuality articles in
women magazine i.e. force of utterances, coherence of texts, and
intertextuality of texts?
3. What ideology that showed in the women magazines?
1.3 Objectives of Study
Based on the problems of study above, the objectives of study are :
1. To analyze the text of female sexuality articles that realized in the women
magazines i.e. vocabulary, grammar, cohesion and text structure based on
Fairclough theory.
2. To analyze the discursive practice in female sexuality articles that realized
in the women magazines i.e. force of utterances, coherence of texts, and
intertextuality of texts based on Fairclough theory.
3. To find out the ideology that showed in the women magazines.
1.4 Scope of Study
There are many aspects that can be discussed in connection with the
study of critical discourse analysis. They can be studied in a wider scope in order
to gain a much better understanding. In case, this study is limited on analysis of
text, analysis of discursive practice which based on Fairclough theory in his book,
Discourse and Social Change. Then, the ideology that represented in that female
sexuality articles in women magazines.
1.5 Significances of Study
8
Universitas Sumatera Utara
The significances of this study are divided in two, theoretical and
practical significances. Theoretically, it is expected that the findings of the study
can give much contribution to critical discourse analysis particularly in Fairclough
theory which can be used a reference for the similar studies in the future,
especially the studies which discuss under critical discourse analysis in women‟s
magazines.
Practically, it is expected that the findings can be useful for the
guiding information for the readers. And for information and idea for other
researcher is who want to carry out further study on female sexuality, and
ideology in critical discourse analysis.
9
Universitas Sumatera Utara