The first theme I will discuss are the bodily discourses of the 15 male and 15 female athletes. Specifically in their profile pictures. When looking at the profile pictures of male athletes, a lot of gender normative behaviors or actions can be seen.
(Screenshot from Hayden Hurst’s Twitter profile)
Of the 15 male athletes that were analyzed on twitter, 73.3% of them had a profile picture that depicted masculinity. This means that there was blood shown while they were playing, they were in uniform, sweating, dirty, and lots of muscle showing. Another common pattern I noticed amongst male athletes profile pictures that represented gender normative behavior was the lack of emotion shown in pictures. 46.6% of the 15 male athletes are shown not smiling and expressing very stoic and serious faces, which is seen as more masculine. Similarly, in the profile pictures of female athletes, they have shown gender normative behaviors associated with femininity.
(Screenshot from Simone Biles’ Twitter profile picture)
60% of female athletes’ profile pictures depict characteristics of femininity. This includes long hair, make up, well-dressed, etc. This reinforces the idea that women should be more feminine, wear make-up, and fit into a certain role. Additionally, 53% of female athletes smile in their profile picture. This reinforces the idea that it’s socially accepted for women to smile in their pictures and appear more vulnerable and approachable. Thus, male athletes were less approachable, sweaty, scary, and dirty. Female athletes were more vulnerable, approachable, and friendly. Through the profile pictures of the 15 male and15 female athletes on twitter, it can be seen through their bodily discourses that they demonstrate gender normative behavior related to masculinity and femininity.