This thesis explores why gender hierarchy remains resilient and entrenched in contemporary political life, despite efforts to challenge and transform it. I approach this question by focussing on the reproduction of gendered subjects, which I argue is integral to the reproduction of what I term ‘gender orders’. This reproduction is interrogated through an analysis of the reproduction of homosexuality in the contemporary British armed forces. A review of the literature in feminist International Relations (IR) shows feminists have engaged with poststructural thought to develop sophisticated analyses of the subject as an effect of power. I argue that there might be further resources in post structural thought which could be mobilised to expose the incompleteness and failure of all attempts to reproduce subjectivity which might open up new ways to intervene and subvert gender. Drawing on the thought of Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida and Judith Butler I develop a critical methodology for analysing the reproduction of gendered subjects in the contemporary British armed forces. I argue that the military gender order is traditionally sustained through the segregation of women and the exclusion of homosexuals. As such it is pervasively heteronormative. For this reason I argue that the potential ‘integration’ of homosexuals did pose a significant threat to the gender order. However I will argue the threat posed by the integration of LGBT personnel has been neutralised by a series of responses which ‘re-inscribe’ them into the gender order, although these responses are always unstable. I demonstrate that gender often fails to guarantee the intelligibility it promises, and attempts to order gender necessarily break down. However I will argue that this cannot be exploited instrumentally in order to subvert gender because the gender order is better characterised as being in perpetual crisis, and any attempt to reproduce gender differently will also be unstable and prone to crisis. Consequently critique then becomes a relentless call to question, undermine and deconstruct all attempts to secure political orders, with no guarantees. Ultimately the thesis demonstrates that gender orders are complex, mobile and resilient and argues that modes of feminist critique need to be similarly mobile and responsive to a constantly shifting discursive terrain.

The thesis focuses on gender in primary school and the aim was to study how girls and boys construct their subjectivities in accordance with current gender discourses and how they take up those discourses in school practices. Special attention has been paid to the students' fluid subjectivities. The theoretical frameworks used are Bronwyn Davies' postructural subjectivity theory, Robert W Connells' structural concepts and cultural-sociological research studies concerning multicultural identity. The study was carried out at two schools, one ethnically homogeneous and one ethnically heterogeneous, in six classes encompassing years 0-2 and 5-6. It is ethnographic in nature and includes classroom observations, diaries, biographies, drawings, interviews with students and schoolteachers/headteachers and videotaping on a restricted scale. Data was collected over a period of approximately two school years. The results consist of local gender discourses emanating from the datamaterial and also of poststructural analyses of protocols from lessons etc. Five feminine and six masculine gender discourses, named student types, have been diagnosed: Sporty girl, Barbie, Feminist, Academic girl and Motherly girl and Macho boy, Honourable boy, Academic, Joker, Gentle boy and Ken. These student types are abstract discursive constructions developed from positions the student took up in a more or less repetitive way. They apperar in all classes but with varying frequency due to the influence of the schools' interest profile, leading teachers or leading students. Certain gender discourses are influenced by commercial trends in society, others are characterized by reactions towards the school's academic discourses. Students from working class backgrounds often take up positions as Macho boy or Sporty girl while middle class students dominate the type Academic boy/girl. Otherwise the positions are independent of social class. Immigrant students take up the most common discourses, probably an effect of ambitions to normalise to the majority culture. The analysis reveals that a dualistic and hierarchical gender structure, with male superiority was developed in all school classes and also among the boys in their own gendergroups, and among the girls but in a lesser degree. Teachers' discourses, education strategies, group size and the student's ages influence the gender order during lessons but less so during breaks. Both girls and boys, and some teachers, shift positions and even cross gender boundaries and the younger students (year 0-2) are more flexiable as also are the girls. This is considered to provide openings for changes in gender patterns. Consistently taking up equality discourse in practice influenced the gender order in one class. Some boys showed multiple subjectivities free from desire for power and some girls also wanted to break the gender barrier. Ideas about innate equalities between the genders were common and these circumstances might provide good resources for work aimed at changing gender structures. Macho and Barbie discourses ought to be questioned from the perspective of power. The results also show that cultural meetings in the classroom are characterised by the dominance of the majority culture. Immigrant students in accordance with the curriculum should experience integration taking place from two directions, enriching and strengthing their subjectivity process and also that of their fellow students. / digitalisering@umu

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Denna uppsats avser att undersöka och kartlägga från ett genusperspektiv hur en könsmaktsordning och patriarkala strukturer påverkar och bidrar till att traditionen chaupadi följs. Det är en tradition där kvinnan antas vara oren och bringar otur kring sin omgivning och bör därför i vissa fall bo i en menshydda under sin menstruation. Detta är olagligt i Nepal och denna uppsats avser därför att undersöka förklaringar till varför traditionen följs trots en lagstiftning som förbjuder praktiken. Uppsatsen utgår ifrån att det finns en rådande könsmaktsordning och patriarkal struktur som påverkar och även har en del i att traditionen, trots lagstiftning, följs. I materialet som presenteras i uppsatsen anses även skam och stigmatisering av både kvinnan och menstruation har en roll i chaupadi och detta undersöks även utifrån ett genusperspektiv. / This essay aims to examine and sort out from a gender perspective how a gender order and patriarchal structure effect and contribute to the tradition of chaupadi. Chaupadi is a custom where the women is perceived to be impure and brings misfortunes for her surroundings when menstruating. Because of this she is prompted to stay in a menstrual hut during her period. This custom has been illegal in Nepal since 2005. This essay intends to sort out explanations for why the custom to continue to get practiced even though it has been illegal for 15 years. This study assumes that there is an existing gender order and patriarchal structures that affect and influence the custom and uphold the practice even though there is a law against it. In the material that is presented in the essay, shame and stigma attached to the female menstruating body play a central part in the enforcement, and in the upholding, of the custom. This is also analyzed form a feministic perspective.

Detta examensarbete avser att beskriva hur kvinnliga lärare ser på deras arbetsvillkor och hur maktstrukturer påverkar deras arbete. Två kvinnor och en manlig lärare har blivit intervjuade i New South Wales, Australien och två kvinnor och en man har blivit intervjuade i södra Sverige. Jag har använt mig av genusteorier för att analysera mina informanter svar. Resultatet i denna uppsats visar på att genusordningen påverkar lärarens roll, arbetsvillkor och status negativt. Detta eftersom de regler som finns för både profession och status är uppbyggda efter manliga normer och läraryrket består främst av kvinnor. Min uppsats visar dessutom på hur de egenskaper som tillskrivs kvinnliga lärare inte anses vara lika betydelsefulla som de egenskaper som tillskrivs manliga lärare. / This study aims to describe female teachers’ view of their working conditions and how power structures impact upon their work. Two female and one male teacher have been interviewed in New South Wales, Australia and two females and one male teacher have been interviewed in the south of Sweden. Gender theories have been used to analyze the interviewees’ answers. The findings in this assignment show how the gender order impact negatively on the teachers role, status and working conditions. This is because the system of both professions and status are built after male norms and the teacher profession mainly consists of women. Furthermore, my essay shows that characteristics attributed to female teachers are not as valuable as those characteristics that are attributed to male teachers.

Invandringen till Sverige har ökat under de senaste 10 åren. År 2017 anlände cirka 158 000 personer med syrisk bakgrund till Sverige (Sköld 2017). När en individ flyttar till ett nytt samhälle, kan de möta en annan genusordning. Denna förändring kan leda till förändringar i individers genus- och familjeroller i förhållande till hushållsarbete, barnomsorg och lönearbete. Syftet med denna kvalitativa studie var att förstå invandrade kvinnors upplevelse av förändring och kontinuitet i sina genus- och familjeroller under tiden i Sverige jämfört med tiden i hemlandet, i förhållande till hushållsarbete, förvärvsarbete och barnomsorg. Studien genomfördes med en socialpsykologisk ansats och utgick från teorier om genussystem, genusnormer, stigma samt strukturell rollteori. Fem semistrukturerade intervjuer genomfördes med invandrade kvinnor från Syrien. Resultaten visar att kvinnorna upplever både förändring och kontinuitet i sina genus- och familjeroller. De traditionella rollerna i förhållande till hushållsarbete, förvärvsarbete och barnomsorg står kvar, men nya roller läggs till. De nya rollerna och de höga kraven som förväntas av kvinnorna påverkar deras familjestruktur. Att ändra kvinnans genusroll kan leda till negativ respons från hennes partner, medan de nya rollerna ställer högre krav och gör det svårt för kvinnorna att balansera mellan samhälls- och familjekrav. / Immigration to Sweden has increased over the past 10 years. In 2017, approximately 158,000 people with Syrian background arrived in Sweden (Sköld 2017). Upon immigration, the individual encounters a new society with a different gender order. Moving to another community can lead to changes in one's gender- and family relationships in relation to housework, childcare and paid work. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand immigrant women's experience of change and continuity in their gender- and family roles during the time in Sweden compared to the time in the home country in relation to household work, paid work and child care.With a social psychological approach, this study was carried out based on theories of gender order, gender norms, stigma and structural role theory. The survey contains five semi-structured interviews with immigrant women from Syria. The results show that women experience both change and continuity in their gender and family roles. The results show that the traditional role in relation to housework, paid work and childcare remains, but new roles are added. The new roles and the high demands expected of the women affect their family structure. Changing the woman's gender role can lead to a negative response from her husband, while the new role places higher demands, which makes it difficult for women to balance the demands of society and the family.

In February 2022 the lives of millions of people all over Europe have been divided into two parts – before and after the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. Fearing for their lives, 5,2 million Ukrainians were forced to relocate to neighbouring countries, women and children accounting for about 90% of all refugees leaving Ukraine, as with few exceptions men are prohibited from leaving Ukraine by law. The law has created an advantage and an ethical dilemma for numerous women: they can either seek safety outside Ukraine, meaning they would have to leave their husbands, brothers, and fathers, or stay together but risk their own lives instead. This thesis aims to investigate the effect of the war on women’s rights and the nature of artificially created gender advantage. It aims to answer the following research questions: what current implications does the war in Ukraine have on women’s rights and how do these implications affect women’s decision to leave Ukraine? Through interviewing volunteers who work with Ukrainian refugees it was discovered that what creates a gender difference and a foundation of an advantage to a certain extent is that women are much more exposed to the danger of sexual violence and human trafficking. They also experience larger financial difficulties resulting in poverty and health complications. But it is the parenthood and the desire to protect their children that actually drives women’s decision to leave Ukraine and seek shelter in other countries, even if it means that they will be separated from their families. By creating a gender advantage, government is trying to rescue children and future generations. They cannot leave alone because someone has to take care of them, and it is usually a mother who would do this in Ukraine due to an existing gender order, so women gain an advantage by proxy, while an actual advantage is given to children.

The aim of this study was to examine how authors on Instagram describe masculinity norms. We aimed to further analyse how the authors illustrate the consequences of masculinity norms in relation to social problems. The study is based on 25 posts from authors on Instagram which were analysed by a content analysis method. The theoretical framework in this study consists of Connells (1995, 2008) theory of masculinity. A conception of socialization is also included (Connell 1995, 2009). The results indicated that masculinity norms have a negative impact on men by how they are expected to be, what they are expected to feel, what is allowed for them to talk about, how they should act and what sexual desires they should have. Furthermore, the study showed how masculinity norms lead up to social problems such as reluctance to seek help and using violence against others. The main conclusion of this study was that social problems often are based on the fact that men, due to present masculinity norms, are in need of proving, defending or maintaining their masculinities in different contexts. The man himself along with everyone around him are the one who pays for the consequences of masculinity norms. / Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka hur författare på Instagram beskriver maskulinitetsnormer. Syftet var även att undersöka hur författare belyser konsekvenser av maskulinitetsnormer i relation till sociala problem. Studiens empiri byggdes på 25 inlägg från medlemmar på Instagram som analyserades med hjälp av en innehållsanalys. Studiens teoretiska referensram utgjordes av Connells (1995, 2008, 2009) maskulinitetsteori. Referensramen utgjordes även av begreppet socialisation (Connell 1995, 2009). Resultatet visade att maskulinitetsnormer har en negativ inverkan på hur män förväntas vara och vad de förväntas känna, vad som är tillåtet att tala om, hur de ska bete sig och vilka sexuella begär de ska ha. Studiens resultat visade även att maskulinitetsnormer leder till sociala problem såsom en motvilja att söka hjälp och ett våldsutövande gentemot andra. Studiens huvudsakliga slutsats blev att sociala problem många gånger grundar sig i att män på grund av rådande maskulinitetsnormer, i olika sammanhang behöver bevisa, försvara eller upprätthålla sina maskuliniteter. De som får betala priset för negativa konsekvenser av maskulinitetsnormer är mannen själv likt alla andra han har runt omkring.

<p>Våldtäkt är ett stort samhällsproblem, med över 3000 anmälda våldtäkter i Sverige 2007. Definitionen av våldtäkt är en tolkningsfråga som påverkas av moraliska synsätt. Denna syn</p><p>bygger på historiska, religiösa och kulturella faktorer och kring dem kretsar ett antal vedertagna myter. Sverige är känt för att ha kommit långt på väg mot ett jämställt samhälle, vilket skulle kunna innebära att svenskar har lägre acceptans för dessa myter. Få studier om våldtäktsmyter har gjorts i Sverige. För att granska ämnet närmare genomfördes en kvantitativ</p><p>studie med syfte att undersöka studenters attityder gentemot myter kring våldtäkt i en heterosexuell kontext. Detta genom att studera om samband förelåg mellan studenternas kön</p><p>och acceptans av dessa myter och utifrån teoretiska ramar analysera resultatet. Undersökningen utfördes med hjälp av en amerikansk framtagen mätskala, designad för just våldtäktsmyter, IRMA-skalan. Materialet analyseras sedan med hjälp av socialkonstruktivistiska angreppssätt, där bl.a. genus, hegemonisk maskulinitet, pornografi, könsroller, samt medias skildring och vinkling av våldtäktsproblematiken.</p><p>Den slutsats som kunnat dras av föreliggande studie var att svenska studenter generellt hade låg acceptans av våldtäktsmyter. Dock kunde könsskillnader skönjas, där kvinnor tenderade att ha lägre acceptans för myterna än männen.</p> / <p>Rape is a severe societal problem, with over 3000 police reports in Sweden in 2007. Defining rape is a question of interpretation, influenced by moral views, which are based on historical, religious and cultural ideas, surrounded by a few accepted myths. Sweden’s well-known for its progress concerning gender equality, which could be an indicator of low rape myth acceptance. There are few Swedish studies about rape myths. To</p><p>explore the subject closer, a quantitative study was carried through, with the aim to examine attitudes of university students, in relation to rape myths in a heterosexual context. This by examining whether a connection between the sex of the students and their acceptance of rape myths was found. The results were then analyzed through a theoretical frame. Using an</p><p>American measuring instrument, the IRMA-scale, the examination was carried out. The material was analyzed through a social constructivist perspective, where gender, hegemonic masculinity, pornography, gender roles and the media was used to explain the problems of rape. The conclusion of this study was that Swedish students had generally low rape myth acceptance. However, gender differences were discovered. Female respondents tended to have lower acceptance of the myths compared to the male.</p>

Våldtäkt är ett stort samhällsproblem, med över 3000 anmälda våldtäkter i Sverige 2007. Definitionen av våldtäkt är en tolkningsfråga som påverkas av moraliska synsätt. Denna syn bygger på historiska, religiösa och kulturella faktorer och kring dem kretsar ett antal vedertagna myter. Sverige är känt för att ha kommit långt på väg mot ett jämställt samhälle, vilket skulle kunna innebära att svenskar har lägre acceptans för dessa myter. Få studier om våldtäktsmyter har gjorts i Sverige. För att granska ämnet närmare genomfördes en kvantitativ studie med syfte att undersöka studenters attityder gentemot myter kring våldtäkt i en heterosexuell kontext. Detta genom att studera om samband förelåg mellan studenternas kön och acceptans av dessa myter och utifrån teoretiska ramar analysera resultatet. Undersökningen utfördes med hjälp av en amerikansk framtagen mätskala, designad för just våldtäktsmyter, IRMA-skalan. Materialet analyseras sedan med hjälp av socialkonstruktivistiska angreppssätt, där bl.a. genus, hegemonisk maskulinitet, pornografi, könsroller, samt medias skildring och vinkling av våldtäktsproblematiken. Den slutsats som kunnat dras av föreliggande studie var att svenska studenter generellt hade låg acceptans av våldtäktsmyter. Dock kunde könsskillnader skönjas, där kvinnor tenderade att ha lägre acceptans för myterna än männen. / Rape is a severe societal problem, with over 3000 police reports in Sweden in 2007. Defining rape is a question of interpretation, influenced by moral views, which are based on historical, religious and cultural ideas, surrounded by a few accepted myths. Sweden’s well-known for its progress concerning gender equality, which could be an indicator of low rape myth acceptance. There are few Swedish studies about rape myths. To explore the subject closer, a quantitative study was carried through, with the aim to examine attitudes of university students, in relation to rape myths in a heterosexual context. This by examining whether a connection between the sex of the students and their acceptance of rape myths was found. The results were then analyzed through a theoretical frame. Using an American measuring instrument, the IRMA-scale, the examination was carried out. The material was analyzed through a social constructivist perspective, where gender, hegemonic masculinity, pornography, gender roles and the media was used to explain the problems of rape. The conclusion of this study was that Swedish students had generally low rape myth acceptance. However, gender differences were discovered. Female respondents tended to have lower acceptance of the myths compared to the male.