Paper short abstract:

This study argues that despite patriarchal power, men also position themselves as victims in their narratives about their marital challenges. It analyses Nigerian men’s self-positioning and constructions of victimhood in their narratives about their marital discords posted on Joro on Instagram

Paper long abstract:

How do men position themselves when they identify themselves as victims in their narratives about their marital challenge? What is the nature of victimhood portrayed in such narratives? What is the influence of masculinity and patriarchal power structures on their self-positioning? What sociocultural and ideological underpinnings underlie their self-positioning in the narratives? What does this role reversal tell about gender roles, stratification and stereotypes in Nigerian marriages? Existing studies on marital discord have examined its psychological effects on couples and the extent to which it limits marital satisfaction. Most studies on marital discord have focused on women’s voices in the narratives about marital discord and the psychological effect it has on marital partners. This study deviates from such studies by arguing that men also position themselves as victims in their narratives about their marital discord, and through social media platforms, they are breaking gendered stereotypes about marriages in Nigeria by contributing their voices to the narratives about marital discord. The study utilises discourse analytic methods with insights from Davies and Harre’s Positioning Theory to textually and thematically analyse Nigerian men’s self-positioning and constructions of identity in their narratives about their marital discords as posted on Joro on Instagram . The study maintains that men’s narratives about marital discords provides insights into how patriarchy and societal constructs of gender roles in marriage shape men’s constructions of victimhood in cases of marital discordance.