Rights statement: The final, definitive version of this article has been published in the Journal, Sexualities, 18 (8), 2015, © SAGE Publications Ltd, 2015 by SAGE Publications Ltd at the Sexualities page: http://sex.sagepub.com/ on SAGE Journals Online: http://online.sagepub.com/
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Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - ‘When there's no underbrush the tree looks taller’
T2 - a discourse analysis of men’s online groin shaving talk
AU - Hall, Matthew
N1 - The final, definitive version of this article has been published in the Journal, Sexualities, 18 (8), 2015, © SAGE Publications Ltd, 2015 by SAGE Publications Ltd at the Sexualities page: http://sex.sagepub.com/ on SAGE Journals Online: http://online.sagepub.com/
PY - 2015/12
Y1 - 2015/12
N2 - It seems many men continue to be obsessed with their penis and especially its size and look. Two thirds of men in a recent UK study (Veale et al., 2013) reported some dissatisfaction with their genitals. Arguably much of this anxiety is perpetuated by the media and marketers, but may also follow more general trends in male body image consciousness (Grogan, 2007; 2010; Flowers et al., 2013). Marketers have been quick to offer both surgical and non-surgical remedies to help change the size, shape and image of the penis, especially online. Stepping aside from more traditional scholarly foci on culture (Lehman, 2006), media (Lehman, 2007), social (Davison, 200) and personal relationship issues (Lever et al., 2006), I focus instead on how men account for pubic hair shaving to enhance image. I use discourse analysis to examine online electronic dialogue in response to an advert promoting male groin grooming showing the complex ways in which men discursively negotiate their interest in this non-typical gender practice. The analysis shows charges of vanity are swept under the carpet in favour of heterosexual pleasure, cleanliness, self-respect and individuality. The implications for understanding traditional and contemporary masculinities are also discussed.
AB - It seems many men continue to be obsessed with their penis and especially its size and look. Two thirds of men in a recent UK study (Veale et al., 2013) reported some dissatisfaction with their genitals. Arguably much of this anxiety is perpetuated by the media and marketers, but may also follow more general trends in male body image consciousness (Grogan, 2007; 2010; Flowers et al., 2013). Marketers have been quick to offer both surgical and non-surgical remedies to help change the size, shape and image of the penis, especially online. Stepping aside from more traditional scholarly foci on culture (Lehman, 2006), media (Lehman, 2007), social (Davison, 200) and personal relationship issues (Lever et al., 2006), I focus instead on how men account for pubic hair shaving to enhance image. I use discourse analysis to examine online electronic dialogue in response to an advert promoting male groin grooming showing the complex ways in which men discursively negotiate their interest in this non-typical gender practice. The analysis shows charges of vanity are swept under the carpet in favour of heterosexual pleasure, cleanliness, self-respect and individuality. The implications for understanding traditional and contemporary masculinities are also discussed.
KW - body image
KW - discourse analysis
KW - masculinities
KW - penis aesthetics
KW - penis size
U2 - 10.1177/1363460715583603
DO - 10.1177/1363460715583603
M3 - Journal article
VL - 18
SP - 997
EP - 1017
JO - Sexualities
JF - Sexualities
SN - 1363-4607
IS - 8
ER -