Gaming Masculinity

Trolls, Fake Geeks, and the Gendered Battle for Online Culture

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Gender Studies, Women&, Cultural Studies, Popular Culture
Cover of the book Gaming Masculinity by Megan Condis, University of Iowa Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Megan Condis ISBN: 9781609385668
Publisher: University of Iowa Press Publication: May 1, 2018
Imprint: University Of Iowa Press Language: English
Author: Megan Condis
ISBN: 9781609385668
Publisher: University of Iowa Press
Publication: May 1, 2018
Imprint: University Of Iowa Press
Language: English

In 2016, a female videogame programmer and a female journalist were harassed viciously by anonymous male online users in what became known as GamerGate. Male gamers threatened to rape and kill both women, and the news soon made international headlines, exposing the level of abuse that many women and minorities face when participating in the predominantly male online culture.

Gaming Masculinity explains how the term “gamer” has been constructed in the popular imagination by a core group of male online users in an attempt to shore up an embattled form of geeky masculinity. This latest form of toxicity comes at a moment of upheaval in gaming culture, as women, people of color, and LGBTQ individuals demand broader access and representation online. Paying close attention to the online practices of trolling and making memes, author Megan Condis demonstrates that, despite the supposedly disembodied nature of life online, performances of masculinity are still afforded privileged status in gamer culture. Even worse, she finds that these competing discourses are not just relegated to the gaming world but are creating rifts within the culture at large, as witnessed by the direct links between the GamerGate movement and the recent rise of the alt-right during the last presidential election.

Condis asks what this moment can teach us about the performative, collaborative, and sometimes combative ways that American culture enacts race, gender, and sexuality. She concludes by encouraging designers and those who work in the tech industry to think about how their work might have, purposefully or not, been developed in ways that are marked by gender.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

In 2016, a female videogame programmer and a female journalist were harassed viciously by anonymous male online users in what became known as GamerGate. Male gamers threatened to rape and kill both women, and the news soon made international headlines, exposing the level of abuse that many women and minorities face when participating in the predominantly male online culture.

Gaming Masculinity explains how the term “gamer” has been constructed in the popular imagination by a core group of male online users in an attempt to shore up an embattled form of geeky masculinity. This latest form of toxicity comes at a moment of upheaval in gaming culture, as women, people of color, and LGBTQ individuals demand broader access and representation online. Paying close attention to the online practices of trolling and making memes, author Megan Condis demonstrates that, despite the supposedly disembodied nature of life online, performances of masculinity are still afforded privileged status in gamer culture. Even worse, she finds that these competing discourses are not just relegated to the gaming world but are creating rifts within the culture at large, as witnessed by the direct links between the GamerGate movement and the recent rise of the alt-right during the last presidential election.

Condis asks what this moment can teach us about the performative, collaborative, and sometimes combative ways that American culture enacts race, gender, and sexuality. She concludes by encouraging designers and those who work in the tech industry to think about how their work might have, purposefully or not, been developed in ways that are marked by gender.

More books from University of Iowa Press

Cover of the book Safe as Houses by Megan Condis
Cover of the book Natural Selections by Megan Condis
Cover of the book Ghostly Figures by Megan Condis
Cover of the book How to Revise a True War Story by Megan Condis
Cover of the book Full Moon at Noontide by Megan Condis
Cover of the book Knowing Where It Comes From by Megan Condis
Cover of the book Art Quilts the Midwest by Megan Condis
Cover of the book Dreaming Out Loud by Megan Condis
Cover of the book A Place for Humility by Megan Condis
Cover of the book Wildflowers and Other Plants of Iowa Wetlands, 2nd edition by Megan Condis
Cover of the book Mad Men Unzipped by Megan Condis
Cover of the book Always Put in a Recipe and Other Tips for Living from Iowa's Best-Known Homemaker by Megan Condis
Cover of the book If I'd Known You Were Coming by Megan Condis
Cover of the book A Nation Empowered, Volume 2 by Megan Condis
Cover of the book Invisible Hawkeyes by Megan Condis
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy