Rural geography: rural gender identity and the performance of masculinity and femininity in the countryside

Playing in the woods: youth, leisure and the performance of gender relations in rural Newfoundland

“…Some scholars have argued that venturing in to and the conquest of 'nature' or 'the woods' is akin to the phallic desire to penetratively control the feminine 'Mother Earth', and that through such performances masculinity is confirmed and re-confirmed (see Brandth, 1995;Little, 2002). Our research reveals the spatial mobilities and freedoms that motorised recreational vehicles play in such desires and performances within the rural Newfoundland context.…”

“…Thus, cultural representations of masculinity draw upon rural outdoor recreational adventures and conquests, such as hunting, fishing and snowmobiling (see Bye, 2003Bye, , 2009), as well as rural labour practices, such as farming, mining, and fish harvesting (see Kenway et al, 2006;Little, 2002;Power, 2005), in articulating what it is to be masculine.…”

“…Dominant constructions of 'Nature' code it as feminine (e.g. Mother Earth) (Jones, 1999), a construction that has given rise to the masculine imperative to penetrate, conquer and control the wild, untamed and leaky 'essence' of the natural, feminine-Other (see Brandth, 1995;Little, 2002). Indeed, central to the outdoor performances of rural masculinity is the acquisition of the necessary technological skills to control and manipulate the natural environment, whether it is driving tractors in the cultivation of farmland (Brandth, 1995;Liepins, 2000) or using guns and snowmobiles in hunting expeditions (Bye, 2003(Bye, , 2009.…”

Strong, active women: (Re)doing rural femininity through equestrian sport and leisure

“…These practices are timeconsuming and Abigail manages the strip grazing twice a day, every day, in order to maintain a healthy weight for her animals and to protect the quality of the fields for future use. This has strong resonance with the ways that farmers manage their land and livestock, and suggests a desire and ability to master the natural environment for her own purposes (Little, 2002). Birke and Brandt (2009) discuss how even within feminised locales like the world of equestrianism, expertise is gendered male.…”

“…Rural spaces are seen as maledominated and male-defined; places in which definitions of masculinity and what it means to be a 'real' man are bound up with mastery of the land, physical toughness and the denigration of normative feminine traits such as emotion and sensitivity (Bye, 2009). Farming continues to dominate rural societies and communities, even as the economic importance of farming deteriorates in many countries, and to be a 'good' (male) farmer is to dominate and tame the elements, to endure physical toil and extreme conditions, and to demonstrate mastery of the land and landscape (Laoire , 2002;Little, 2002;Saugeres, 2002a;Brandth and Haugen, 2005). In contrast, women's positions in rural societies have often been restricted to supportive and nurturing roles within the family and wider community.…”