Date of Award

5-2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Communication Studies

Department

Communication Studies

First Reader/Committee Chair

Algan, Ece.

Abstract

The Barbie movie has been celebrated by fans for its feminist narrative. Although the film garnered appreciation from fans across the world, my thesis illustrates that it ultimately serves as a vehicle to promote a product, leading to question its feminist narrative. This mixed method study, which combines feminist textual analysis and feminist political economy analysis, investigates feminism and postfeminism within the Barbie movie and the marketing for the movie. The feminist textual analysis identified both feminist and postfeminist ideologies that are present within the film. The feminist political economy analysis identified the marketing for the Barbie movie as postfeminist. The results of the analysis indicate that Mattel turns female empowerment into a commodity that perpetuates gendered consumption and reinforces a patriarchal society.

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