CONSTRUCTING GENDER IDENTITY THROUGH METAPHOR IN AMERICAN TRAP MUSIC

Abstract

American trap, as a contemporary, popular musical genre which depicts a society full of vice, drugs, sexual promiscuity and immorality, seems to have nothing in common with any type of tradition or norms and moral values, let alone patriarchal society. However, a closer look at the choice of metaphors and the way gender identity is constructed through metaphor in the lyrics offers a different perspective. The aim of this paper is to examine the construction of gender identity through metaphor in American trap music on the sample of 75 American trap songs. The metaphors in the lyrics will be analyzed using the framework of Conceptual Metaphor Theory combined with critical metaphor analysis and the theoretical background of gender studies and patriarchal ideology. The purpose is to draw attention to the values and ideals promoted to young people in the form of catchy beats and harmless entertainment. Ključne riječi: American trap; lyrics; gender identity; metaphor; CMA