Topic: Brat Summer, Demure Autumn: Understanding Viral Postfeminist Narratives

Catalog description

Postfeminism is an ambiguous concept; its shifting nature speaks to the difficulties in understanding contemporary relationships between feminism, femininity, citizenship, and identity, as well as the impact of mass communication on all of the above. Positioned simultaneously as a backlash against earlier waves of feminism, a sign of gender equality 'success,' or even a reclamation of traditional feminine values, postfeminism's significance is widely felt even as its specific effects remain unclear. This class will use a postfeminist analytical lens to explore how memes, viral trends, and other forms of digital culture shape understandings and expectations of behavior, including topics like stan wars, trad wives and domesticity, body positivity and narratives of ideal physical traits. over/underconsumption and fast fashion, and more.