Who Counts as Trans? A Critical Discourse Analysis of Trans Tumblr Posts

Abstract

Internet and social media sites have long served as a rich form of community-building and knowledge exchange within transgender communities. In particular, Tumblr has become a popular site among trans youth in recent years. Paralleling changes in medical and mainstream societal understandings of what it means to be transgender, trans Tumblr users have engaged in dialogue and debate about the definitions and limits of trans identity. While research has established the potential for positive identity-formation among LGBTQ+ youth on Tumblr, it is also important to consider how online trans communities may re-inscribe hegemonic narratives in addition to disrupting dominant discourses and ideologies. Using a critical discourse analysis of Tumblr posts, this research analyses how trans Tumblr users define “who counts as trans,” including how users define gender dysphoria and its relationship to trans identities. Our findings provide critical insight into how trans communities define the boundaries of their identities in a struggle for visibility, resources, and respect.

Who counts as a woman? A critical discourse analysis of petitions against the participation of transgender athletes in women's sport

“…Critical discourse analysis (CDA) was used to examine the research material. This qualitative approach perceives language as “both constitutive of, and determined by, social relationships and power structures” (Jacobsen, Devor and Hodge, 2022: 64). As noted by van Dijk, CDA often deals with social categories such as gender, sexual orientation, or race, and “much work in CDA is about underlying ideologies [emphasis in original] that play a role in the reproduction of or resistance against dominance or inequality” (1995: 18).…”

Narrativas de homens trans: uma análise discursiva no Facebook

“…Para tanto, as novas narrativas coletadas foram parafraseadas, analisadas metaforicamente, bem como delimitadas em suas condições de produção e contexto. A categoria de análise foi escolhida pelo fato de a análise do discurso visar a compreensão das condições nas quais um discurso foi produzido, sendo a partir (ZITZ et al, 2014;DIRKS, 2016;RIBEIRO;GOMES, 2020;WEST et al, 2021;SHOOK et al, 2022;HALLIWELL et al, 2022;JACOBSEN, 2022). Existem diferentes linhas de análise de discurso que caminham entre uma análise baseada em uma materialidade textual e outra análise mais baseada em práticas sociais e culturais (BUDD, 2006).…”

El feminismo transexcluyente en Twitter: un monólogo sesgado en #ContraElBorradoDeLasMujeres

“…Se ha hablado de "esencialismo de género" (Jones & Slater, 2020) y de debilidad argumental de los postulados atribuida a las feministas gender-critical (Zanghellini, 2020, MacKinnon, 2018. Jacobsen et al (2021) detectan, en el análisis de la plataforma Tumblr, un debate sobre lo trans con marcas de hostilidad, toxicidad y violencia indirecta.…”