“This is it. This should be enough” : negotiations of Neoliberal performative empowerment in selected contemporary women-centric television series

Abstract

This study explores gendered performative empowerment through the main women protagonists in three women-centric American comedy series: Superstore (Spitzer 2015); Kevin can F*ck Himself (Armstrong 2021) and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Sherman-Palladio 2017). Gendered performative empowerment is analysed through the dominant intersecting themes of labour, class and gender, all of which emerge from the three selected series. The study also specifically engages with women protagonists in comedy therefore it offers insight into the development of women protagonist characters in comedy television series.

The written argument of the study conceptualises, and frames gendered performative empowerment within neoliberalism and neoliberal feminism. In addition to this conceptualisation, the study draws on scholarship surrounding fourth-wave feminism to assist in framing the problematic ideology surrounding gendered performative empowerment.

The analysis of each series comprises of how gendered performative empowerment is embraced and subverted by each main woman protagonist through labour, class and gender. This analysis is a combination of a thematic and textual analysis. To assist in the understanding of gendered performative empowerment, I use two broad themes: the individual versus neoliberal society and the neoliberal individual versus themselves. These broad themes use labour, class and gender to strengthen their argument as well as problematize gendered performative empowerment. Each series places a different amount of emphasis on each theme therefore certain themes are more prevalent and engaged with more heavily than others. SuperStore (Spitzer 2015) showed the gradual shift in Amy from embracing performative empowerment to actively resisting it. In Kevin can F**k Himself (Armstrong 2021) Allison shifts from murdering her husband, Kevin, to 'murdering’ her former neoliberal self. Midge, in The Marvellous Mrs. Maisel (Sherman Palladio 2017), comes to terms with the façade created by the American Dream and abandons her pursuit of it for her own dream, stand-up comedy.

The written aspect of the study is complemented by three audio-visual essays that highlight a particular aspect or focal point of the problematized idea of gendered performative empowerment in each show. The audio-visual essays also demonstrate how each woman protagonist is able to find empowerment within the ruling ideology of neoliberalism that is not gender performative. This study therefore demonstrates through its written argument and audio-visual component that a non-gendered performative empowerment is possible within a neoliberal society.