Insurrectionary Womanliness: Gender and the (Boxing) Ring

Authors

Melanie Joy McNaughton, Bridgewater State UniversityFollow

Abstract

Integrating sociological theory on sport with Judith Butler’s concept of insurrectionary speech, the author explores why and how womanliness is produced and problematized. In particular, this article investigates how participating in combat sport violates conventional womanliness by foregrounding physical capability and aggression. Using her identity as a female fighter as a starting point to engage the cultural construction of womanliness, the author connects a critical/cultural look at gender and sport with autoethnography.

Keywords

Sport, Gender, Identity, Femininity, Authoethnography

Acknowledgements

This article would not have been possible without the instruction of great coaches like Scott Hicks, Mark Nardone, and Mark Massey, and is written in loving memory of Adrienne Simmons, the kind of fighter we should all aspire to be.

Publication Date

4-23-2012

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

DOI

10.46743/2160-3715/2012.1781

Recommended APA Citation

McNaughton, M. J. (2012). Insurrectionary Womanliness: Gender and the (Boxing) Ring. The Qualitative Report, 17(17), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2012.1781