Girls : Feminine Adolescence in Popular Culture and Cultural Theory

The Spice Girls, comicbooks, Sailor Moon, Courtney Love, Grrl Power: do such things really constitute a unique ''girl culture''? Catherine Driscoll begins by identifying a genealogy of ''girlhood'' or ''feminine adolescence,'' and then argues that both ''girls'' and ''culture'' as ideas are too problematic to fulfill any useful role in theorizing about the emergence of feminine adolescence in popular culture. She relates the increasing public visibility of girls in western and westernized cultures to the evolution and expansion of theories about feminine adolescence in fields such as psychoanalysis, sociology, anthropology, history, and politics. Presenting her argument as a Foucauldian genealogy, Driscoll discusses the ways in which young women have been involved in the production and consumption of theories and representations of girls, feminine adolescence, and the ''girl market.'' The Spice Girls, Tank Girl comicbooks, Sailor Moon, Courtney Love, Grrl Power: do such things really constitute a unique "girl culture?" Catherine Driscoll begins by identifying a genealogy of "girlhood" or "feminine adolescence," and then argues that both "girls" and "culture" as ideas are too problematic to fulfill any useful role in theorizing about the emergence of feminine adolescence in popular culture. She relates the increasing public visibility of girls in western and westernized cultures to the evolution and expansion of theories about feminine adolescence in fields such as psychoanalysis, sociology, anthropology, history, and politics. Presenting her argument as a Foucauldian genealogy, Driscoll discusses the ways in which young women have been involved in the production and consumption of theories and representations of girls, feminine adolescence, and the "girl market." The Spice Girls, Tank Girl comic books, Sailor Moon, Courtney Love, Grrl Power: is there really such a thing as "girl culture"? Catherine Driscoll argues that both "girls" and "culture" as ideas are too problematic to fulfill any useful role in theorizing about the emergence of feminine adolescence in popular culture. She relates the increasing public visibility of girls in Western and Westernized cultures to the evolution and expansion of theories about feminine adolescence, in fields such as psychoanalysis, sociology, anthropology, history, and politics. Presenting her argument as a Foucauldian genealogy, with chapters arranged chronologically to follow a girl's development, Driscoll discusses the ways in which young women have been involved in the production and consumption of theories about representations of girls, feminine adolescence, and the "girl market." Is there such a thing as "girl culture"? This text argues that both "girls" and "culture" as ideas are too problematic to fulfil any useful role in theorizing about the emergence of feminine adolescence in popular culture. Instead, a Foucauldian genealogy is presented and explored. THIS FIRST CHAPTER considers the idea of the girl as an historically specific term and as a set of culturally specific histories. Catherine Driscoll. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 345-369) And Index. -- Terri Apter, Times Literary Supplement (London).