Challenging inequality: Analyzing the portrayal of black women workers in 'self made' through feminist stylistic lens

Wulan, Annisa Sri and Degaf, Agwin ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8551-0867 (2025) Challenging inequality: Analyzing the portrayal of black women workers in 'self made' through feminist stylistic lens. Lire Journal (Journal of Linguistics and Literature), 9 (2). pp. 280-295. ISSN 2581-2130

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Abstract

The physical appearance, particularly beauty standards influenced by social constructs, significantly impacts a woman's self-esteem and employment opportunities. Unfortunately, Black women, particularly African-American women, often experience marginalization due to societal beauty standards, racial biases, and gender discrimination within patriarchal settings. In light of this, our research uses the miniseries "Self-Made" as a case study to examine how the dialogues spoken by the characters reflect the experiences of Black women workers. This study employs a qualitative descriptive research method with a feminist stylistic approach, following Sara Mills' methodology. The findings reveal that at the lexical analysis level, gender manifestations are evident through the use of marked linguistic expressions, where women are depicted as "other," subordinated, and marginalized in the gender hierarchy. At the phrase and sentence level, linguistic choices, including pre-established phrases, presuppositions, metaphors, jokes, and transitivity preferences, indicate the objectification, gender inequality, and dehumanization of Black women. At the discourse analysis level, the research reveals that Black women are not only objectified but also experience racial discrimination. In conclusion, this study analyzes how language represents Black women in their intersectional identities and underscores the importance of addressing bias in media depictions to move towards a more inclusive society.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Keywords:	Marginalization; Empowerment; Black Women; Negro; Feminist Stylistics
Subjects:	20 LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE > 2001 Communication and Media Studies > 200104 Media Studies
Divisions:	Faculty of Humanities > Department of English Language and Letters
Depositing User:	Dr. Agwin Degaf
Date Deposited:	15 May 2025 08:58

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