Mittwoch, 13. November 2024, 11:30 - 13:00 iCal

IPW Lecture - Carol Harrington

Neoliberal „Womenomics“ and „Toxic Masculinity“ Discourse

Sitzungszimmer (C0424), Institut für Kultur- und Sozialanthropologie, NIG, 4. Stock
Universitätsstraße 7, 1010 Wien

Vortrag


Vortrag: Carol Harrington (Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand)

Neoliberal „Womenomics“ and „Toxic Masculinity“ Discourse

Moderation: Dorit Geva (Institut für Politikwissenschaft, Uni Wien)

 

ABSTRACT

“Womenomics” inspired social policies address toxic or traditional masculinity as a problem because it inhibits women’s economic productivity. In OECD states, social policies treat men’s violence and impoverished single mother households as caused by troubled masculinity. Development literature has applied similar theories to poor communities in developing economies. This presentation analyses how welfare and development literature thus construct the figure of the violent, idle, toxically masculine man as responsible for feminized poverty and violence against women. The presentation shows how programmes tackling poverty and violence attempt to transform men in poor communities to adopt healthy masculinity so that they can contribute to heterosexual couple-based households. Similarly, business media and human resources advice to employers on dealing with “#MeToo issues” construct the figure of the toxically masculine elite man as inhibiting women’s economic productivity and progress into senior leadership positions to the detriment of the global economy. The presentation argues that mainstream disparagement of toxic masculinity reflects a change in the conditions of patriarchy since many economists no longer support a form of patriarchy where women should devote their productive energies to the domestic sphere. While it may have a superficial appeal to feminists, toxic masculinity discourse depends on a binary conception of gender that elevates a new idealized hegemonic masculinity over other forms of masculinity and in opposition to femininity.

 

Carol Harrington is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Social and Cultural Studies, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. Her research concerns gender-based violence politics and policy. She is currently researching contemporary misogynies. She is author of Politicization of Sexual Violence from Abolitionism to Peacekeeping and Neoliberal Sexual Violence Politics: Toxic Masculinity and #MeToo.

 

 


Veranstalter

Institut für Politikwissenschaft


Kontakt

IPW Lectures
IPW Wien
+43-1-4277-494 02
ipwlectures@univie.ac.at