How Do Certain South African Women Construct Masculinity for Their Sons? An Analysis of Motherly Discourse Regarding Gendered Expectations

Abstract

The study consists of a discourse analysis of ten conversations with a group of mothers whose sons attend a private primary school in Observatory, Cape Town. The purpose was to ascertain what sorts of discourses these particular women would utilise when discussing the notion of masculinity for their boys. I carried out in-depth conversations with each of the study participants, with the intention of elucidating themes and patterns surrounding the participants' constructions of gender. While the interviewees' discourses cannot be said to be representative of South African women in general, they do provide an insight into 'ordinary women's' personal ideologies of gender and masculinity. Based upon theories of social constructionism and feminism, the research hopes to contribute to the ongoing process of transforming gendered power relations in South Africa.