The Corporate Masquerade: Branding Masculinity through Halloween Costumes

This paper argues that men's Halloween costumes do not offer insight on versions of hegemonic and non-hegemonic masculine performativity as much as Halloween costumes tell us about the colonization of masculinity by commercial interests, thus creating yet another version of branded masculinity....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of men's studies 2014-09, Vol.22 (3), p.180-193
Main Author: Alexander, Susan M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Content analysis
Costume
Costumes
Halloween
Masculinity
Men
Psychological aspects
Social aspects
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Summary:This paper argues that men's Halloween costumes do not offer insight on versions of hegemonic and non-hegemonic masculine performativity as much as Halloween costumes tell us about the colonization of masculinity by commercial interests, thus creating yet another version of branded masculinity. The data, from a content analysis of 100 images of men's Halloween costumes, demonstrates the considerable power commercial culture has today in constructing and limiting ideas of American masculinity through licensed/branded costumes. Men's Halloween costumes are not a mere masquerade, an impersonation; rather commercially produced costumes masquerade as consumer “choice” while simultaneously masking the continued transformation of American masculinity into specific brand products.
ISSN:1060-8265
1933-0251
DOI:10.3149/jms.2203.180