The Construction of Urban Single Career Woman in Indonesian Chick Lit, Jodoh Monica

The text of urban single career women in Jodoh Monica is constructed to be negative and unfavorable as opposed to the text of married women, which is positive and favorable. The construction of both texts is based on a patriarchal ideology that is deeply rooted in every aspect of Indonesian family and social lives that Monica, the protagonist in Jodoh Monica, takes a subject position in this the patriarchal discourse of gender role. The text of urban single career woman in Jodoh Monica seeks to conform rather than challenge the patriarchal ideology

Living in Limbo: the Buddha of Suburbia and the Final Passage

Karim and Leila live between two cultures that are considered to be in two polar opposites, the cultures of the white and the black. Because of their parentage, they belong to both cultures and yet they do not belong to either one. The white British regards Karim as "the other", but he also regards an India born Indian to be "the other". Whereas Leila, is also regarded as "the other" in the Caribbean village where she grew up and yet, when she has immigrated to London, she regards the other Caribbean immigrant as "the other". This means that both of them have shifted their position from "the other" to "the self" in their attempt to find a place where they belong. The feeling of not belonged, puts them in a state of limbo; a state that is loaded with anxieties, questions and conflicts as they are unable to find an anchor that they can grip on

Masquerade of Femininity and Masculinity in Japanese Comic Midori is a Tomboy and W-juliet

Masquerade is the use of mask and disguise by a person to hide a certain identity and make a new identity. The concept of masquerade that is the use of mask has been used in Japanese theatre such as Kabuki and Takarazuka; however those theatres also use the concept of gender bender. Nowadays, the two concepts are applied in Japanese comic that is popular in teenager. In this study, I would like to analyze the use of mask and gender bender by Makoto and Midori in Japanese comic W-Juliet and Midori is a Tomboy. I would like to reveal the strategy that is used by Makoto and Midori in wearing their mask and the meaning of the masks that they use. By this study, I will prove that femininity and masculinity are not related by sex and can be used as mask to create a new identity

Masculinity in Question in TIME of Unemployment in Wendy Holden's the Full Monty

Men see masculinity as a form of identity as an individual as well as a group. This identity is usually attached to the jobs men have because of the traditional gender work division where men is put in a role as a breadwinner of their families. When they are out of work, they also lose their sense of identity, hence, their sense of worth as they think that they are on the brink of losing their masculinity. This is the condition that befalls the three male characters, Gaz, Dave and Gerald, in The Full Monty. They feel that they have lost their masculinity when they lose their works thus, they hold on to ways that they think can preserve their sense of worth

Feminist Perspective of Cross-gender Power Relation in Caryl Churchill's Top Girls

Top Girls, one of Caryl Churchill's most popular plays, describes the lives of six female characters coming from different centuries. Each of them has their own story to tell, as they have all been victimized by the patriarchal system in the century when they live and have resisted the system with different strategies. They either employ roles that are traditionally reserved for men or they adopt the archetypically feminine qualities. Despite their resistance and success, they find themselves unhappy and unsatisfied over their achievements. Thus this raises the question of the effectiveness of the feminist movement

The Hypermasculine and Ubersexual Men in the Harlequin Novels of the 1980s and 2000s

Harlequin novels are so popular that Harlequin romance emerges as a genre. Unlike on the heroines, there are scarcely any studies or works on the heroes, thus, I want to focus my study on the heroes of Harlequin Romance. By analyzing using the Male Sex Role in the 1980s and themes of masculinity in the 2000s, I will prove that there are four types of ideal men in the 1980s Harlequin novels whose characteristics originated from the ideal men in the society at that time, the Hypermasculine men with extreme masculinity and avoidance of any feminine sides. I will also prove that there are three types of ideal men in the 2000s Harlequin novels whose characteristics are in accordance with the Ubersexual men\u27s, the ideal men in the society in 2000s having positive characteristics of traditional manliness with some “feminine“ characteristics. The reason behind these changes is because of the changes in the heroines and the characteristics of men in the society in time and these push for the changes in the heroes. As a publisher, Harlequin\u27s goal is the highest selling rate, thus, they adjust to the market\u27s demand

Iago and the Ambiguity of His Motives in Shakespeare\u27s Othello

Iago\u27s motives for vengeance are problematic as Iago offers different motives throughout the play. Shakespeare scholars have attempted to explain some probable answers for the problem. Yet, none of the answers is definite that Iago\u27s motives remain vague. This paper explores the ambiguity of Iago\u27s motives by negating Iago\u27s explanations, as they do not correspond to his actions. He plays his role skillfully that he can act as a confidante to all of his victims that he masters them and pushes them to helplessness and desperation. His skillful mastery over his victims\u27 lives can be compared to that of a devil who destroys the lives of his victim and that of a skillful artist who decides on the fates of his characters. If an artist creates a work of art, then Iago creates destruction

Angel's Redemption in Francine Rivers' Redeeming Love

This article deals with the main female character, Angel's, redemption in the Christian Romance novel, Redeeming Love. This article will discuss Angel's perception of her body before her marriage and how that perception changes after her marriage to Michael. To analyze Angel's concept of her body, I will use biblical verses in the books of Genesis, Corinthian, John, and Luke. I find that Angel regards her body as an empty vessel before her marriage to Michael. By finding Angel's perspective of her body before her marriage, I found that Angel uses her body and soul separation as a strategy to deal with her pain. Once she is married, Angel regards her body as the temple of God and uses her knowledge of her body as the temple of God to help others like her receive God. At last, I can conclude that the Christian romance genre can be used as tool to spread the Christian perspective about the body