Still reading the romance: gothic sexuality and the remembrance of feminism throughTwilightandFifty Shades of Grey

286. Australian Young Women's Perceptions of Dating and Dating Violence

“…Thus, a young woman faces pressure to behave as per her family's expectations and while this is a state of oppression, it is considered to be an acceptable and benign social norm. What we understand and practise as dating is also taught to us by movies, music, books and other forms of art and media that are consumed by society in the form of entertainment (Bonomi, Nichols, Carotta, Kiuchi, & Perry, 2016;Bowen et al, 2013;Ismail et al, 2007;Luft et al, 2012;Srdarov & Bourgault du Coudray, 2016). We are thus taught through entertainment and by society 'how' to perceive dating and related behaviours and 'whether' to acknowledge certain behaviours at all, therefore our individuality in attributing meanings to dating and dating violence, is severely limited.…”

“…Dating violence was minimised and normalised within pervasive, patriarchal social scripts that are reinforced through fairy tales and media depictions of romance. Dating violence is socially constructed to be a 'normal' component of young people's romantic relationships within media depictions of social life, and this is reinforced by family and friends (Bonomi, Altenburger, & Walton, 2013;Chung, 2007;Ismail et al, 2007;Jackson, 2001;Luft et al, 2012;Srdarov & Bourgault du Coudray, 2016). Thus, the young women were unable to look beyond this lens bestowed upon them by societal influences.…”

“…More modern adaptations of ideal romances reinforce these perceptions of masculinity and have been notorious in portraying 'love' as a concoction of abusive behaviours including stalking, controlling and other severe forms of violence Srdarov & Bourgault du Coudray, 2016). The young women minimised these sorts of toxic masculine behaviours, normalised them, and took blame and responsibility for getting themselves into abusive situations, whilst actively disconnecting from any perception of disempowerment or victimisation.…”

“…This is consistent with recent evidence that Australian young people lack formal and structured education about respectful relationships (Hall and Partners Open Mind, 2015). Young people's violence supportive attitudes are informed by adhering to gender stereotypes, which are usually learned through multiple sources including social media, friends, pornography, gaming culture, celebrities and media portrayals of women Hall and Partners Open Mind, 2015;Politoff et al, 2019;Srdarov & Bourgault du Coudray, 2016). Therefore, there is an urgent need for widespread, structured, evidence-based education targeted at youth, about respectful relationships.…”

“…The concept of master narratives is consistent with the social constructionist theoretical perspective, as social constructionism acknowledges that social constructs are informed by discourses, images and metaphors that we internalise and live out according to the perspective that we have adopted (Burr, 2015). Master narratives are important to identify because they must be studied well to understand how they contribute to oppressed identities and misrepresenting people (Nelson, 2001); in this case fairy tales and the media are seen to normalise violence by depicting gendered heterosexual relationships in which power and control favour young men Ismail et al, 2007;Luft et al, 2012;Srdarov & Bourgault du Coudray, 2016). Master narratives not only construct but 'normalise' an identity through 'stories focusing on the behaviour that is expected under certain conditions, which deflects attention away from the conditions themselves' (Nelson, 2001).…”