`Empowerment' and the Pole: A Discursive Investigation of the Reinvention of Pole Dancing as a Recreational Activity

Abstract

'Empowerment' and the pole: a discursive investigation of the re-invention of pole dancing as a recreational activityThe activity of 'pole dancing' has recently been transformed from an act performed exclusively in strip clubs to one currently marketed as a form of aerobic exercise. While much feminist academic work has investigated aspects of the sex industry, such as stripping, very little research has been conducted into this recent social phenomenon of pole dancing as a recreational activity.This study takes a feminist poststructuralist approach to the investigation of this topic through the discursive analysis of talk produced in a range of focus groups and interviews. Participants included instructors at pole dancing studios, regular pupils at the studios, once-off pole dancers, and general university students (a total of 25 participants; 20 females and 5 males). Our analysis focuses on the ways in which ideological dilemmas surrounding issues such as empowerment, control, and the male gaze are managed within the participants' accounts. Implications of these constructions are discussed in relation to the redefinition/reiteration of hegemonic, patriarchal notions of female sexuality.

What Is Sexual Empowerment? A Multidimensional and Process-Oriented Approach to Adolescent Girls’ Sexual Empowerment

“…From this perspective, the discourse of choice obscures the fact that girls who engage in "pornifed" sexuality are merely conforming to misogynistic social expectations (Whitehead and Kurz 2009).…”

“…The majority of authors that have written about empowerment (generally) and about the sexual empowerment of adolescent girls (specifically) have written from their position in mainstream U.S. culture, and this is also my cultural context. However, some of the theoretical and empirical work cited in this article does come from other countries, including Australia (Bryant and Schofield 2007;Whitehead and Kurz 2009), Germany (Pinquart 2009), the Netherlands van Zoonen 2006, 2007;Vanwesenbeeck 2009), New Zealand (Allen 2008), and the UK (Andrews 2002;Gill 2007;Henwood and Pidgeon 1995;Spencer et al 2008).…”

‘Legends’ in ‘Lingerie’: Sexuality and Athleticism in the 2013 Legends Football League US Season

“…In this regard, it is argued that women, heterosexual or not, might consciously embody (hetero)sexy feminine styles of their own volition, for reasons other than blind, alienating conformity with male desire (e.g., Caudwell, 2006;Heywood, 2008;Heywood & Dworkin, 2003;Thorpe, 2011). The role of women's agency in simultaneously embodying (hetero)sexy femininities and 'empowered' subjectivities has been discussed in a range of empirical and theoretical papers on women's sport and leisure, including those on athletes/fans' nudity (Heywood & Dworkin, 2003;Valentich, 2014), recreational/competitive pole dancing (Petersson McIntyre, 2011;Whitehead & Kurz, 2009), striptease (Ross, 2007), cheerleading (Moritz, 2011), erotic wrestling (Scambler & Jennings, 1998), snowboarding (Thorpe, 2008;, and roller derby (Breeze, 2010;Carlson, 2010;Finley, 2010;Pavlidis, 2012). Here, the possibility of feeling empowered either through or regardless of heterofeminine embodiment in such activities troubles the notion that emphasised, heterosexual femininity is always the product of alienating cultural forces which victimise, objectify and exploit women whilst undermining their athletic achievement.…”

The confidence trick: Competing constructions of confidence and self-esteem in young Australian women's discussions of the sexualisation of culture

“…This vision has materialised into the figure of the sexually agentic, adventurous woman who is unafraid to flaunt her sexuality (Gill, 2003), whether it be through wearing revealing clothing (Duits & VanZoonen, 2006), learning to pole dance (Donaghue, Kurz, & Whitehead, 2011), displaying a "perfomative shamelessness" in social media profiles (Dobson, 2014), or engaging in "raunchy" public displays of sexually suggestive behaviour (Levy, 2005). Confidence and empowerment are central tenets of sexualised culture, and have become common buzzwords in marketing products such as pole dancing lessons (see Donaghue, et al, 2011) and lingerie (Amy-Chinn, 2006), as well as in some women's positive accounts of their experiences with them (e.g., Holland & Atwood, 2009;Regehr, 2012;Whitehead & Kurz, 2009). Yet despite the focus on confidence and empowerment as key gains to be had from such forms of self-sexualisation, the precise nature of the "empowerment" on offer is often not explicitly articulated.…”

“…Finally, empowerment can be conceptualised as an affective experience, reflected in the enjoyable mix of confidence, boldness, fun and (harmless) transgression reported by many women of their experiences of intentionally courting sexualised attention. For example, studies of women taking pole-dancing classes found that they felt a sense of confidence and achievement from successfully performing "sexy moves" (e.g., Holland & Attwood, 2009;Whitehead & Kurz, 2009). In this view, engaging in practices of sexualised culture (such as recreational pole dancing) gives women an opportunity to work through "issues of body management, body image and sexual display in ways which make them feel powerful" (Holland & Attwood, 2009, p. 180).…”