The thesis examines the relationship between the level of intra-abdominal pressure and abdominal wall expansion. The theoretical part brings an overview of knowledge about the function of intra-abdominal pressure and about the possibilities of objectification of postural functions. There are described studies which dealt with the influence of intra-abdominal pressure on the stability of spine. Theoretical part also includes detailed description of individual invasive and non-invasive methods of measurement of intra-abdominal pressure and activation of abdominal muscles. Work methodology: In the practical part the intra-abdominal pressure was measured using anorectal manometry and abdominal wall expansion by utilizing DNS brace device. 31 healthy examinees with average age of 26.77 (SD 3.01) were measured in five different standing postural situations: during resting breathing, Valsalva Maneuver, Müller's maneuver, diaphragm test and in the situation with added external load in the form of static holding of dumbbell. Results of the thesis: Among the values of the pressure gathered from the DNS brace device and from anorectal manometry was proven statistically important correlation (p < 0.001) in all five tested situations. In all situations the Pearson Correlation Coefficient was higher than 0.6...

This thesis offers a reading of GQ South Africa 2000, the first glossy men’s magazine to be launched in South Africa (in 2000). It traces the possible iconographical genealogy of glossy men’s magazines to canonical erotic artworks and examines the aesthetic conventions used by GQ to elevate its contents through an implied association with art. This thesis, furthermore, investigates the commonalities between GQ, a ‘mainstream’ publication, and ‘pornography’ (as defined by the United States Civil Rights Ordinance 1985). In this way, the fluid impermanence of ‘art’, ‘pornography’ and ‘popular culture’ as typologies is highlighted. The new taxonomy of ‘gentlemen’s pornography’ is introduced in order to counter the notion that material that has the gloss of ‘high culture’ and is deemed socially acceptable, cannot be pornographic. This thesis submits that a critical reading of glossy men’s magazines from an interdisciplinary perspective is imperative in order to reveal their ideological assumptions. The ideological position that informs this study is the radical feminist belief that pornography objectifies and subordinates women and is, therefore, harmful. The thesis is simultaneously grounded in the theoretical methodologies of visual culture and art history, and as such assumes the intonation of these disciplines. From a Postmodern point-of-view, popular visual culture not only wields power in terms of generalising (capitalist and sexist) western paradigms, but is also skilful at masking its significant influence in doing so. For this reason, this dissertation endeavours to raise a critical dialogue concerning the ideological ‘message’ of glossy men’s magazines. The sometimes antithetical nature of discourse critically centered on gender representation in visual culture may be attributed to the pervasiveness of familiar (and therefore seemingly harmless) female objectification in the popular media. This thesis examines the iconography of gendered stereotypes against the erotic/pornographic, high culture/low culture object/subject binaries, and, furthermore, situates these types in the wider dialectic of ‘obscene’ (off-scene) versus ‘acceptable’ culture. The glossy men’s magazines that form the interest of this study are a trade situated in the alliance of social elitism and representational control over the female body, and, thus, this thesis marks the point of intersection between consumer culture and the politics of display. / Dissertation (MA (Visual Arts))--University of Pretoria, 2003. / Visual Arts / unrestricted

The gangsta rap has topped the Swedish music charts in recent years and the controversial message of the music genre has led people in the community to question what the gangsta rap message convey. The purpose of the study is to investigate how a normalization and encouragement of crime are characterized in the contemporary song texts, and how men and women are portrayed in connection with the power aspects of society. The method choice is a qualitative thematic and linguistic content analysis with the aim of examining the significance of the song texts in deph. The study has been conducted on the 24 songs that have been streamed the most number of times according to P3´s DigiLista since 2018. The result shows that the gangsta rap encourages and romanticizes crime through its choice of personal pronouns and semantics in the song lyrics. Women and men are portrayed in an unequal way, where women are portrayed as objectified as opposed to the hegemonic masculinity with which masculine men are equated. Power has been proven to be a dominant concept throughout the performance analysis and the power aspect has conveyed different viewpoints in each theme. The power that gangster rappers get through their coveted music may come to encourage criminal acts through their choice of words. / Gangsterrapen har toppat de svenska musiklistorna de senaste åren och musikgenrens kontroversiella budskap har fått människor i samhället att ifrågasätta vad gangsterrapens budskap förmedlar. Syftet med studien är att undersöka på vilket sätt en normalisering och uppmuntran av kriminalitet präglas i de nutida låttexterna och hur män och kvinnor skildras i koppling till samhällets maktaspekter. Metodvalet är en kvalitativ tematisk och språklig innehållsanalys med syftet att kunna granska låttexternas betydelse på djupet. Studien har genomförts på de 24 låtarna som har streamats flest antal gånger enligt P3’s DigiLista sedan 2018. Av resultatet framkommer att gangsterrapen uppmuntrar och romantiserar kriminalitet genom dess val av personliga pronomen och semantiken i låttexterna. Kvinnor och män skildras på ett ojämlikt sätt, där kvinnor framställs som objektifierade gentemot den hegemoniska manligheten som maskulina män likställs med. Makt har påvisats vara ett dominerande begrepp genom hela resultatanalysen och maktaspekten har förmedlat olika synvinklar i respektive tema. Makten som gangsterraparna får genom deras eftertraktade musik bidrar till att de kan komma att uppmuntra till kriminella handlingar genom deras val av språkbruk.

This quantitative study examined male and female characters in digital games between the years 2015–2020 and a total of 120 games were analyzed where 2108 characters were observed. Quantitative content analysis was used to analyze the characters. The analysis indicates that female characters (n=448) are underrepresented compared to male characters (n=1660). The female characters are significantly more portrayed with sexually revealing clothing, nudity, sexual verbal expressions, sexual behavior and inappropriate clothing for the task they were expected to perform in the narrative than the male characters. The male characters are more often portrayed with unrealistic body proportions than the female characters and overall the male characters are portrayed stereotypically muscular as previous research has shown. The results are compared with previous research and this study observes more female characters in 20 digital games released in 2020 than is noticed in 60 games from 2003. Furthermore, more characters with unrealistic body proportions are found in games from 2020 (n=39) than in games from 2003 (n=24). / Denna kvantitativa studie undersökte manliga och kvinnliga karaktärer i digitala spel mellan åren 2015–2020, totalt analyserades 120 spel där 2108 karaktärer observerades. Karaktärerna i studien analyserades genom en kvantitativ innehållsanalys. Analyserna visar att kvinnliga karaktärer (n=448) är underrepresenterade jämfört med manliga karaktärer (n=1660). Kvinnliga karaktärer porträtteras oftare med sexuellt avslöjande kläder, nakenhet, sexuellt verbala yttringar, sexuellt beteende och opassande kläder till uppgiften de förväntades utföra i narrativet än de manliga karaktärerna. De manliga karaktärerna porträtteras oftare med orealistiska kroppsproportioner än de kvinnliga karaktärerna och övergripande porträtteras de manliga karaktärerna stereotypiskt muskulösa likt tidigare forskning visat. Resultaten jämförs med tidigare forskning och denna studie observerar fler kvinnliga karaktärer i 20 digitala spel släppta år 2020 än vad som uppmärksammas i 60 spel år 2003. Vidare påträffas fler karaktärer med orealistiska kroppsproportioner i spel från år 2020 (n=39) än i spel från år 2003 (n=24).

Esta investigación pretende hacer un análisis de la evolución del arquetipo de la damisela, y con ello, identificar los cambios en este arquetipo en las películas en live action de las 3 últimas versiones del superhéroe Spiderman. Para ello, se ha hecho una investigación para la base teórica y se ha planteado analizar a la damisela desde 4 categorías distintas: apariencia visual, discurso, patrones de comportamiento y función del personaje. Además, entre las películas que se han analizado se encuentran: “El hombre araña” (2002), “El sorprendente hombre araña” (2012) y “Spider-man: Lejos de casa” (2019). Y donde el personaje de la protagonista femenina, es decir la damisela, haya tenido un cambio notorio. Por último, se ha enriquecido este trabajo con una serie de entrevistas para analizar la perspectiva de acuerdo a este arquetipo. / This research aims to make an analysis of the evolution of the archetype of the damsel, and with it, identify the changes in this archetype in the live action movies of the last 3 versions of the Spiderman superhero. To do this, an investigation has been made for the theoretical basis and it has been tried to analyze the damsel from 4 different categories: visual appearance, discourse, behavior patterns and function of the character. In addition, among the films that have been analyzed are: "The Spider-Man" (2002), "The Amazing Spider-Man" (2012) and "Spider-Man: Away from Home" (2019). And where the character of the female protagonist, that is the damsel, has had a noticeable change. Finally, this work has been enriched with a series of interviews to analyze the perspective according to this archetype. / Tesis

ABSTRACTObjectification of especially women have often been mentioned in connection to discussions concerning negative body image wherein individuals have been claimed to evaluate their body and look based on standardized societal ideals (Nash:2015, Hodgkinson, Wittkowski & Smith:2014). Studies have also shown that newspapers, magazines, and movies routinely present post-pregnancy bodies as something temporarily that women should strive to improve (Breda et al.:2015, Roth et al.:2012, Williams et al.:2017). Although, it has been stated that social media can work as a supportive and inspirational tool for this specific group of women (Baker & Yang:2017, Jarvis:2017) as well as platform of expression where users can shape and spread their own beauty standards (Cwynar-Horton:2016a, Guha:2014, Earl & Rohlinger:2018). Women’s thoughts of their post-pregnancy bodies in connection to the motivations behind their bodily exposure on social media platforms have not yet been examined, even though it has been claimed that this group is particularly vulnerable to body image concerns due to social media representations (Coyne et al.:2017). As a contribution to the field of post-pregnant body advocates affordances of Instagram, this paper has focused on Swedish post-pregnant women that have posted images of their bodies under the hashtags #mammamage (mum tummy) and/or #mammakropp (mum body). By applying affordance theory’s suggestion that environments afford different affordances for individuals, this paper has asked 94 post-pregnant women how they feel about their bodies and what they think of societal body ideals, as well as examined their motivations behind their use of Instagram with the aim to identify prominent emotional affordances. Here, objectification theory, comparison theory, postmodern feminism, and feminist reflexivity were used as supporting theories in the analysis of the data which was conducted through a mixed methods survey.The main findings have been that Instagram is seen as a platform that enables its users to experience emotional affordances of 1) criticism and comparisons, 2) inspiration and support and 3) acceptance, where post-pregnant body advocates are using the affordances primarily to visualize average post-pregnancy bodies, challenge standardized body ideals and get inspired or inspire other women into re-thinking the notion(s) of their post-pregnancy bodies. What this paper further has contributed with is a greater understanding of post-pregnant body advocates experiences of their own bodies, a broader perspective on post-pregnant body advocates thoughts of societal ideals, a more profound comprehension behind post-pregnant body advocates motivation(s) behind their use of Instagram, and new knowledge to the field of emotional affordances among Instagram users.Keywords: post-pregnant women, body advocates, Instagram, affordances, affordance theory, emotional affordances, objectification theory, feminist reflexivity, comparison theory, postmodern feminism, survey, mixed method

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This essay investigates the character Rhysand from Sarah J. Maas’ popular Young Adult series A Court of Thorns and Roses through a feminist perspective. Maas’ series has gained popularity since the release of the first novel in 2015, yet there has not been much academic analysis of it. Instead, most analyses of the series have taken place online, on social media websites such as TikTok and Twitter. This essay focuses on Rhysand and aims to investigate how his masculinity, as well as power, is constructed, and how these notions work together in the way he treats the main female character, Feyre. The essay demonstrates that Rhysand’s masculinity leans more towards a traditional kind; that there is a link between power, violence, and pleasure for him; and that he actively enjoys utilizing his traditional masculinity and patriarchal power through objectifying Feyre in multiple ways. Lastly, it emphasizes the effect of Feyre’s narration – how it is through her focalization that Rhysand is characterized, and his masculinity, power, and objectification are mediated.

Sociala medier är en stor del av vår vardag och Instagram som social plattform används som ettsocialiseringsverktyg av en stor andel unga individer idag. Unga kvinnor visar en generellthögre utsatthet jämförelsevis med unga män när det kommer till risk för negativ påverkan påsjälvkänsla och kroppsuppfattning. Denna studie undersökte det eventuella samband som finnsmellan Instagram-användning och försämrat välmående, utifrån begrepp så som självbild,kroppsideal och objektifiering. Detta genomfördes utifrån empiriinsamling av 8 kvalitativaintervjuer av semistrukturerad karaktär med unga kvinnor mellan 22 och 25 år. Studiens syftevar att skapa en uppfattning om hur de använder Instagram samt skapa en förståelse för hurdetta påverkar dem. Till hjälp analyserades empirin med Erving Goffmans (1959) teori omintrycksstyrning, Tomar J. Scheffs (1994) teori om sociala band, samt utifrån ettgenusperspektiv med begreppet genuskontraktet av Yvonne Hirdman (2001) ochperformativitet av Judith Butler (2007), samt objektifieringsteorin av Barbara Fredrickson ochTomi-Ann Roberts (1997). Studiens resultat ger en uppfattning om att unga kvinnor ärmedvetna om de ideal som finns på Instagram, och är något som upprätthålls och i viss månäven eftersträvas. De normer, ideal och beteenden som är dominerande på Instagram följs, trotsupplevelsen av att idealet är medskapare av en osund kroppsuppfattning. Den makt somInstagram utgör, skapar en negativ självbild hos dess användare. / Social media is a big part of our everyday lives and Instagram as a social platform is used as asocialization tool by a large proportion of young individuals today. Young women show agenerally higher vulnerability compared to young men when it comes to the risk of negativeeffects on self-esteem and body image. This study examined the possible link betweenInstagram use and impaired well-being, based on concepts such as self-image, body ideal andobjectification. This was conducted on the basis of empirical collection of 8 qualitativeinterviews of a semi-structured nature with young women between the ages of 22 and 25. Thepurpose of the study was to create an idea of how they use Instagram and create anunderstanding of how this affects them. To help the empirical analysis was analyzed withErving Goffman's (1959) theory of impression control, Tomar J. Scheffs' (1994) theory of socialties, and from a gender perspective with the concept of the gendercontract by Yvonne Hirdman(2001) and performativity by Judith Butler (2007), and objectification theory by BarbaraFredrickson and Tomi-Ann Roberts (1997). The results of the study give a perception thatyoung women are aware of the ideals that exist on Instagram, and are something that ismaintained and to some extent also sought. The norms, ideals and behaviors that are dominanton Instagram are followed, despite the experience that the ideal is a co-creator of an unhealthybody image. The power of Instagram creates a negative self-image among its users.

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