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- Convenors:
-
Indrani Mukherjee
(Indian Anthropological Association)
Abhinav Sen (university of Leeds)
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- Discussant:
-
Subhadra Channa
(Delhi University)
- Format:
- Panel
- Sessions:
- Wednesday 27 July, -
Time zone: Europe/London
Short Abstract:
The panel explores researches on the spectrum of gendered realities in the virtual space and their interplay, ranging from the ungendered to gender fluid/transitional; to gender related constructs, solidarities, biases/toxicity; to gender performativity and gender continuities of the physical space.
Long Abstract:
Gender translates in the virtual space into dynamic realities, based on its participants, audiences; intra-action and interaction; inclusions and exclusions; activities and practices related to usage; social arrangements and organisational forms surrounding usage; and so on. The participation which is otherwise devoid of a physical form provides for explorations in terms of identities that are beyond normative, and might be gender fluid or transitional. Inspite of this the participation is not outside of the socio/cultural/political backdrop of the participants themselves, and the associated materiality includes related gender constructs, solidarities, affirmative action, stereotypes, biases, and toxicity. At one end is a possibility of the creation of forms devoid of gendered embodiment, while at the other end one finds continuities and reproduction of the gender dynamics of the physical world. Gender performativity as a continuation between the physical and virtual space makes for an equally interesting area of exploration. These gendered nuances are in interplay with each other as well as myriad of activities within the virtual space. The panel thus attempts to create a platform for dialogue between research and research experiences in this area, which is still limited due to the sheer expanse of the virtual space, creating possibilities and opportunities for enhancement of learnings.
Accepted papers:
Session 1 Wednesday 27 July, 2022, -Paper short abstract:
The year 2020-21 has seen a surge in new women investors in Cryptocurrency. Women are not only engaging as investors, but also as creators and builders. The present research attempts to take cognizance of this phenomena, looking at the nuances of a gendered engagement in Cryptocurrency.
Paper long abstract:
Cryptocurrency, visualized as fully mechanized, decentralized currency of which all its users collectively retain control, stands to welcome new and diverse users into its folds. Engagement in cryptocurrency displays the gender disparity traditionally prevalent in the investment market. In spite of this, eToro pegs (2021) documents a new wave of women investors, and trading app Robinhood professed a seven-fold increase in women trading crypto on its platform from end 2020 to March 2021(Krishna and Catalano,2021). In the Indian context, between 2020-21, new women investors on Indian crypto platforms surged by nearly 1,400 percent, comparable to new male investors (Frantz, 2022). Women are not only engaging as investors, but also as creators and builders. The present research attempts to take cognizance of this phenomena. Dodd (2017) in context of Bitcoin points out that "the image is of a fully mechanized currency that operates over and above social life...in practice... has generated a thriving community around its political ideals, relies on a high degree of social organization in order to be produced, has a discernible social structure, and is characterized by asymmetries of wealth and power that are not dissimilar from the mainstream financial system. Unwittingly, then, Bitcoin serves as a powerful demonstration of the relational character of money". In light of this understanding the present paper tries to recognize the nuances of a gendered engagement in Cryptocurrency. It also looks at how the socio/cultural/political realities outside of the cryptocurrency community influences the engagement with Cryptocurrency.
Paper short abstract:
An anthropological perspective on the experiences of being a target of gender-based online hate speech in contemporary Spain, and the impact of these experiences on everyday life as lived on the continuum of the online and the offline
Paper long abstract:
Any anthropological examination of digital space needs to consider its embeddedness in the larger societal, cultural, subjective, economic, imaginary structurations of lived experience, and its entanglement with everyday practices and embodied knowledge. This perspective on digital spaces allows us to go beyond the duality between utopian and dystopian understandings of the digital spaces, and beyond the duality of the online and offline. The gendering of digital spaces takes place at several levels, including the coding of algorithms with human biases, but also in relation to digital participation and interactions. The current model of ‘radical transparency’ in social media encourages people to have only one identity online, resulting in an increased blurring between our online and offline lives rendering our bodies more central to our online personas. The use of social media has also contributed to an increase in user produced content, of which violence in the shape of hate speech is one aspect. This paper aims to analyse the experiences of being a target of gender-based online hate speech in the context of contemporary Spain, and the impact of these experiences on everyday life as lived on the continuum of the online and the offline, including participation in online spaces as venues for political discussion.
Paper short abstract:
The paper examines selected Malayalam YouTube vlogs on Bridal beautification to understand ,how certain tenets associated with a ' Malayali Muslim bridal femininity' are being circulated through these vlogs.
Paper long abstract:
The study devices the concept of digital intermediation to explain the circulation of bodily and sartorial prescriptions for a 'perfect Muslim Bridal look' diffused through beauty vlogs on YouTube channels from India. Selected Malayalam YouTube vlogs will be examined to understand how certain tenets associated with a ' Malayali Muslim bridehood' are being circulated through these vlogs. The study is based on a semiotic analysis of Malayalam vlogs on bridal looks for Muslim brides from the state of Kerala, India, which was carried out through a digital ethnography. The analysis was carried out during the between June 2020 and October 2021, and is based on vlogs which were released during this period. Samples were chosen on the basis of views and the analysis is based on vlogs crossing 15 k views. While an emphasis is given to the cultural artefacts insinuated through the vlogs, like home remedies and DIY regimes for the bride, questions regarding the technology and associated practices of production and circulation of the content are also looked at. The paper argues, that the process of 'digital story telling' catalysed the circulation of emergent bridal bodily norms among the Muslim groups in Kerala, arguably in the backdrop of transnational Islam and free market ideology.
Paper short abstract:
This paper explores the multiple forms of gendered presentability on Indian matrimonial websites. It highlights how gendered marriage identities are constructed at the intersection of self-presentation on matrimonial websites, and self-presentation or self-promotion on Social Networking Services.
Paper long abstract:
The advent and proliferation of matrimonial websites in India has not only initiated new modes of matchmaking but has also raised important questions on how the process of matchmaking, spouse-selection and the arrangement of marriage has been shaped by cyber-technology. This study draws from an ethnographic analysis including intensive case studies, in-depth interviews with working professionals in West Bengal, India who use/have used matrimonial websites to seek spouses to explore the multiple forms of gendered presentability in curating an image of the ‘presentable couple’ through matrimonial advertisements. The digital architecture of select matrimonial websites is such that it reproduces specific forms of socio-normative constructs including shades of skin complexion and body type that culminates in the insidious practise of body shaming, racism, and its intersection with gendered constructions that often transcends the digital realm into the physical realm. It also focuses on how ‘photographs’ on matrimonial profiles are used as a lens for construction of visual optics of presentability and gendered nature of ‘classiness’. Discussions on ‘classiness’ also highlights how gendered expectations can have material consequences. This study initiates discussion on how women relate to marriage via matrimonial websites and the presentation of multiple selves through it. By focusing on the embodied contexts which give rise to these multiple selves, one can supposedly delineate how these multiple selves co-exist to reinforce/challenge normative gendered expectations. Finally, it examines how gendered marriage identities are constructed at the intersection of self-presentation on matrimonial websites, and self-presentation or self-promotion on Social Networking Services.
Keywords: matrimonial website, presentability, gendered identity construction, class, choice, compatibility, social networking services