Home > Research > Publications & Outputs > ‘Off to the best start’?

Research

Electronic data

  • Off to the best start - final version

    Accepted author manuscript, 10.1 MB, Word document

    Available under license: CC BY-NC: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

Links

Text available via DOI:

View graph of relations

‘Off to the best start’?: A multimodal critique of breast and formula feeding health promotional discourse

Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review

Published

Standard

‘Off to the best start’? A multimodal critique of breast and formula feeding health promotional discourse. / Brookes, Gavin; Harvey, Kevin; Mullany, Louise.
In: Gender and Language, Vol. 10, No. 3, 20.12.2016, p. 340-363.

Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review

Harvard

Brookes, G, Harvey, K & Mullany, L 2016, '‘Off to the best start’? A multimodal critique of breast and formula feeding health promotional discourse', Gender and Language, vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 340-363. https://doi.org/10.1558/genl.v10i3.32035

APA

Brookes, G., Harvey, K., & Mullany, L. (2016). ‘Off to the best start’? A multimodal critique of breast and formula feeding health promotional discourse. Gender and Language, 10(3), 340-363. https://doi.org/10.1558/genl.v10i3.32035

Vancouver

Brookes G, Harvey K, Mullany L. ‘Off to the best start’? A multimodal critique of breast and formula feeding health promotional discourse. Gender and Language. 2016 Dec 20;10(3):340-363. doi: 10.1558/genl.v10i3.32035

Author

Brookes, Gavin ; Harvey, Kevin ; Mullany, Louise. / ‘Off to the best start’? A multimodal critique of breast and formula feeding health promotional discourse. In: Gender and Language. 2016 ; Vol. 10, No. 3. pp. 340-363.

Bibtex

@article{9995cccbe9d747c789fe6214f8eb952b,
title = "{\textquoteleft}Off to the best start{\textquoteright}?: A multimodal critique of breast and formula feeding health promotional discourse",
abstract = "This study critically examines the multimodal discourses of baby-feeding practices in contemporary health promotion in the UK. Comparing two parallel texts from the ongoing Start4life campaign (one dedicated to breastfeeding, the other to bottle/formula feeding), our multimodal critical discourse analysis identifies a series of recurring, multisemiotic strategies through which these texts aim to promote breastfeeding as the most desirable, natural and even morally responsible method of infant nutrition. These discursive strategies, we argue, are underpinned and driven by neoliberal assumptions about infant feeding, health and risk, which fail to take into account the structural constraints that affect the take-up of the {\textquoteleft}ideal{\textquoteright} of breastfeeding, all the while propagating unobtainable and often contradictory notions of total motherhood and familial relations - discursive moves that can have negative consequences for the health and wellbeing of new mothers and their infants.",
author = "Gavin Brookes and Kevin Harvey and Louise Mullany",
note = "{\textcopyright}2016, Equinox publishing",
year = "2016",
month = dec,
day = "20",
doi = "10.1558/genl.v10i3.32035",
language = "English",
volume = "10",
pages = "340--363",
journal = "Gender and Language",
issn = "1747-6321",
publisher = "Equinox Publishing Ltd",
number = "3",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - ‘Off to the best start’?

T2 - A multimodal critique of breast and formula feeding health promotional discourse

AU - Brookes, Gavin

AU - Harvey, Kevin

AU - Mullany, Louise

N1 - ©2016, Equinox publishing

PY - 2016/12/20

Y1 - 2016/12/20

N2 - This study critically examines the multimodal discourses of baby-feeding practices in contemporary health promotion in the UK. Comparing two parallel texts from the ongoing Start4life campaign (one dedicated to breastfeeding, the other to bottle/formula feeding), our multimodal critical discourse analysis identifies a series of recurring, multisemiotic strategies through which these texts aim to promote breastfeeding as the most desirable, natural and even morally responsible method of infant nutrition. These discursive strategies, we argue, are underpinned and driven by neoliberal assumptions about infant feeding, health and risk, which fail to take into account the structural constraints that affect the take-up of the ‘ideal’ of breastfeeding, all the while propagating unobtainable and often contradictory notions of total motherhood and familial relations - discursive moves that can have negative consequences for the health and wellbeing of new mothers and their infants.

AB - This study critically examines the multimodal discourses of baby-feeding practices in contemporary health promotion in the UK. Comparing two parallel texts from the ongoing Start4life campaign (one dedicated to breastfeeding, the other to bottle/formula feeding), our multimodal critical discourse analysis identifies a series of recurring, multisemiotic strategies through which these texts aim to promote breastfeeding as the most desirable, natural and even morally responsible method of infant nutrition. These discursive strategies, we argue, are underpinned and driven by neoliberal assumptions about infant feeding, health and risk, which fail to take into account the structural constraints that affect the take-up of the ‘ideal’ of breastfeeding, all the while propagating unobtainable and often contradictory notions of total motherhood and familial relations - discursive moves that can have negative consequences for the health and wellbeing of new mothers and their infants.

U2 - 10.1558/genl.v10i3.32035

DO - 10.1558/genl.v10i3.32035

M3 - Journal article

VL - 10

SP - 340

EP - 363

JO - Gender and Language

JF - Gender and Language

SN - 1747-6321

IS - 3

ER -