The politics of being a woman: Feminism, media and 21st century popular culture

Abstract

What does it mean to be a woman in the 21st century? The feminist movement has a long and rich history, but has its time now passed? This edited collection is driven by the question, why is feminism viewed by some as outdated, no longer necessaryand having achieved its goals, and, we ask, what role have the media played in this?Debates in media and cultural studies often focus on the politics of everyday life, tending to marginalise formal (or 'big P') Politics (government and Parliament); whereas debates in political science tend to marginalise the everydayness of politics ('small p' politics). Aiming to bring these two strands together, this volume argues that 'politics' needs to be reinserted into debates around the nature of contemporary feminism, as well as restating that feminism is central to contemporary P/politics.