Gender stereotype as a vehicle for social change? The case of the Kong girl
Document Type
Journal article
Source Publication
Gender and Language
Publication Date
1-1-2017
Volume
11
Issue
4
First Page
460
Last Page
481
Publisher
Equinox Publishing Ltd
Keywords
Evaluation, Gender stereotype, Indexicality, Reappropriation, Stancetaking
Abstract
The Kong Girl stereotype has been circulating in the media since the mid-2000s. The indexical process of associating social meanings to the Kong Girl label becomes heightened in situations of uncertainty and change. Kira Hall uses the term 'indexical dissonance' to explain the state of identity under globalisation. In this paper, we identify three strategies by which more 'positive' representations of Kong Girls emerge: (1) the Kong Girl label shifts in semantic meaning; (2) the specific Kong Girl qualities taken as stance objects shift; and (3) the Kong Girl label is reappropriated. Through these strategies, we show how the meanings associated with a gender stereotype may be co-opted in emerging discourses of social change.
DOI
10.1558/genl.31607
Print ISSN
17476321
E-ISSN
1747633X
Publisher Statement
Copyright © 2017, equinox publishing. Access to external full text or publisher's version may require subscription.
Additional Information
This paper was first presented at IGALA 9. This article also presented as research paper at the Sociolinguistics of Globalization conference in June 2015 at the University of Hong Kong.
Full-text Version
Publisher’s Version
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Kang, M. A., & Chen, K. H. Y. (2017). Gender stereotype as a vehicle for social change? The case of the Kong girl. Gender and Language, 11(4), 460-481. doi: 10.1558/genl.31607