Scripts of Western heteronormativity: South African 'lifestyle' magazines and (hetero) socialization

Abstract

The focus of this article is how western notions of heterosexual femininities and masculinities are represented as normative in South African editions of magazines such as True Love, Femina, Fair Lady, Men's Health, Blink and For Him Magazine. Through constant reiteration, magazines play a critical and influential rile in defining a particular kind of heterosexuality as the only acceptable sexuality to perform. Allen argues that the media is one space where (hetero) sexual identity and discursive parties that support an active male and passive female sexuality are deeply embedded and perceive as normative. The ubiquitous nature of the media means that children cannot easily escape consuming the gendered scripts produced as normative in South African society. Girls and boys are socialized into particular ways of performing their roles as women and men through magazine scripts which idealize western notions of femininity and masculinity. (Hetero) socialization in popular South African magazine scripts help delimit, erase and produce sexual depression outside of heterosexualuty as deviant.