Sexing the Soldier: The Politics of Gender and the Contemporary British Army (Transformations: Thinking Through Feminism)

Sexing the Soldier takes a critical look at how gender - what it means to be a man or a woman - is understood within the contemporary British Army, and the political and practical consequences of this. Drawing on original research, this informaive volume looks at: the history and structure of the British Army as a masculine institution personnel policies which deal with gender issues the construction of ideas about military masculinities and femininities within the Army media representations of the figure of the soldier. Using case studies ranging from the exclusion of women from direct combat posts, to the issues surrounding bullying, this book argues that we need a fuller, more nuanced assessment of gender issues in the military that moves beyond the simplistic ideas about women's and men's 'natural' capacities for soldiering. Sexing the Soldier takes a critical look at the policies and practices that shape gender relations and identities in the contemporary British Army, and the political and practical consequences of this. Drawing on original research, this informative volume discusses how being a soldier in the Army is influenced by discourses on gender that promote specific ideas about what men and women are, what they do and what they can be. The book examines: the history and structure of the British Army as a masculine institution; personnel policies that deal with gender issues; practices through which military gender identities are developed and examined in order to understand how military masculinities are performed, consolidated and reproduced; ways in which popular culture contributes towards a shared understanding of the gender politics of the Army Sexing The Soldier Takes A Critical Look At How Gender Is Understood Within The Contemporary British Army. Drawing On Original Research, This Book Argues That Dominant Ideas About Gender, Evident In Areas As Diverse As Policy Documents And Cultural Pract. Gender And The British Army: Military, Civilian And Conceptual Issues -- Patterns And Histories Of Gender In The British Army -- British Army Personnel Policies And The Politics Of Female Difference -- Masculinities And The British Army -- Gender And The Soldier In The British Media And Popular Culture -- The Politics Of Gender And The Contemporary British Army. Rachel Woodward And Trish Winter. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [107]-133) And Index. Book Cover......Page 1 Title......Page 6 Copyright......Page 7 Contents......Page 8 Acknowledgements......Page 10 Abbreviations......Page 12 1 Gender and the British Army: Military, civilian and conceptual issues......Page 14 2 Patterns and histories of gender in the British Army......Page 28 3 British Army personnel policies and the politics of female difference......Page 52 4 Masculinities and the British Army......Page 74 5 Gender and the soldier in the British media and popular culture......Page 92 6 The politics of gender and the contemporary British Army......Page 112 Notes......Page 120 Bibliography......Page 136 Index......Page 148 Rachel Woodward and Trish Winter argue that civilian and academic interest in military gender issues is necessary because our understanding of such issues contributes to wider debates about gender identities in civilian life, and that there is a need for an informed, constructive debate about men and women's military participation. Written by two experts in the field of gender and military studies, Sexing the Soldier will prove an invaluable resource to students across a range of disciplines such as sociology, media and cultural studies. Relevant modules include cultural politics, gender and military studies