Masculine sexuality: A critical discourse analysis of FHM

Abstract

This article aims to investigate the linguistic construction of gender ideology in the men’s lifestyle magazine For Him Magazine (FHM), by investigating its approach to masculine sexuality. A critical discourse analytic (CDA) framework, based on Fairclough (2003), as well as Kitis and Milapides (1997), was used to qualitatively analyse two articles on sex. The findings suggest that magazines like FHM approach sexuality as a test of men’s masculinity without paying attention to the relationship in which sex occurs. However, when confronted by readers’ personal questions, this  approach is altered in order to acknowledge the importance of such relationships. One consequence is that the importance of gaining women’s consent before engaging in sexual experiments is highlighted.

Southern African Linguistics and Applied Language Studies 2011, 29(2): 167–185