On April 2, eleven UG and MA students in Gender Studies Programme presented their theses on gender-related issues. Their discussions ranged from women’s mental health and career development to the dynamics of marriage, as well as the representation of diverse gender identities and expressions in digital media, popular culture, fashion, literature, and films in contemporary society.

Four MA speakers shared their insightful research. Ana Carabelli explored the challenges faced by women diagnosed late with autism in Mexico, focusing on their identity formation. Ni Cheng Shirley discussed the legal and social hurdles encountered by mainland Chinese sex workers in Hong Kong post-1997, advocating for a deeper analysis of court case proceedings in relevant studies. Tong Yunaxin talked about how materiality and olfactory narratives in Chi Zijian’s fiction shape bodily boundaries in gendered ways. Wang Ying analyzed the female director Esther Eng’s interactions with the ecology of Hong Kong cinema in the 1930s, examining the unique opportunities and challenges she faced.

Seven UG speakers also presented fascinating studies. Cheung Tin Ho illustrated the evolution and influence of unisex fashion, challenging traditional gender binaries in design. Hau Chi Fung examined the gendered projection and cultural influence of KOLs’ content creation, while Chong Elvis Ryan investigated gender role representation in idol pop culture in Hong Kong. Leung Sau Kuen analyzed the evolving masculinities in the character JoJo, highlighting the fluidity of masculinity throughout life stages. Choi Ho Fai addressed the dilemmas faced by gay men in Hong Kong, while Tsang Yuet Yi examined how gender stereotypes are negotiated through injuries in rugby. Lastly, Ng Hoi Wai studied the expressions of resistance to marriage by female users on the Xiaohongshu platform, shedding light on shifting attitudes towards gendered social expectations among young Chinese women.

Their studies not only enrich our understanding of gender issues but also challenges and expands the theoretical frameworks that shape discussions about gender in both local and global contexts.

Written by: TU, Lingyan

The seminar featured ten insightful presentations exploring gender issues across various disciplines. Four MA students and six UG students shared their researches, employing methodologies ranging from qualitative interviews to textual analysis. Ana, Wang Ying, Ni Cheng and Tong Yuanxin are ma students. And Cheung Tin Ho, Chong Elvis Ryan, Hau Chi Fung, Leung Sau Kuen, Ng Hoi Wai Ivy and Tsang Yuet Yi, are six students from UG. Those presentations collectively examined themes of gender identity, resistance to traditional norms, and inclusivity in both contemporary and historical contexts, highlighting the interdisciplinary nature of gender studies.
First of all, there are four students from MA presenting: Ana investigated late autism diagnosis in Mexican women, revealing challenges like misdiagnosis and gender identity questioning. Wang Ying analyzed Esther Eng’s groundbreaking films (1936-1939), focusing on her transnational identity and subversion of early cinema’s gender norms. Ni Cheng critiqued Hong Kong’s discriminatory legal policies against female migrants from mainland China, exposing prosecution disparities. Tong Yuanxin explored smell as a narrative device in Chu Tiejun’s literature, connecting sensory descriptions to memory, trauma, and gender politics.
And six UG Students give us their amazing presentations: Hau Chi Fung examined gender stereotypes in Hong Kong KOL culture, noting male-dominated decision-making despite female platform dominance. Chong Elvis Ryan traced evolving gender roles in Hong Kong pop culture, observing increased neutrality and female empowerment in modern stars. Ng Hoi Wai Ivy studied Xiaohongshu users’ humorous resistance to traditional marriage norms. Tsang Yuet Yi documented female rugby players’ struggles with stereotypes and concussion risks. Cheung Tin Ho analyzed gender-fluid fashion’s role in challenging norms, using brands like Gucci as case studies. Leung Sau Kuen deconstructed masculinity in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, a famous Japanese animation, highlighting its fashion-conscious character portrayals.

These presentations demonstrated how gender intersects with media, law, sports, and art, providing both academic insights and calls for societal change. Each study combined rigorous methodology with critical perspectives on pressing gender issues.

Written by: YIN, Kangjun

Generally, several speakers in today’s mini conference of thesis demonstrated an excellent performance.
Firstly, Ana presented her thesis on identity formation and late autism diagnosis in women. In her methodology, she applied semi-structured interviews with young Mexican women. Her study highlighted autism as integral to identity, explaining struggles with societal femininity norms and masking. Secondly, Ni Cheng demonstrated her study on criminal and immigration law on mainland Chinese sex workers in pre- and post-1997 Hong Kong. Ni highlights Hong Kong’s high female prisoner rate, particularly among mainland Chinese immigrants engaged in sex work, originated from colonial-era legal policies that discriminate against non-local individuals. Thirdly, Tong Yuanxin introduced an interesting thesis related to smell and gender by taking an in-depth analysis of two books. She concluded that gender, environment and emotions intertwine with each other through smell. Wang Ying presented her study on the invisibility of female filmmakers, and mainly focusing on Esther, a pioneering female director in Chinese cinema during the 1930s. She combines film history and gender studies to analyze transnational identity, female character portrayals, and unique narratives in Hong Kong’s cross-cultural context.
Cheung Tin Ho concentrated his study on the evolution and social impact of unisex fashion. To some extent, unisex fashion challenges gender norms, promotes inclusiveness and responds to cultural shifts. Elvis explores how Hong Kong’s pop culture has evolved from the 1980s to modern times, focusing on stars who challenge gender norms through their actions and images. It examines cultural, social, and economic influences on gender roles, using qualitative methods like interviews and content analysis to highlight how celebrities shape attitudes toward gender equality and diversity. The next speaker focused on Hong Kong KOL’s content creation from gender perspectives, which revealed that KOL doesn’t mind creating gendered content due to the shortage of gender awareness. Next, Leung explored her study on the basis of a prominent Japanese animation, JoJo. She focused on its unique visual style, gender performance, and narrative evolution and examines its influence on fashion, media, and gender norms, highlighting its blend of Italian-inspired aesthetics and themes of masculinity and family responsibility. Ivy presented her study on marriage topic on Xiaohongshu media, highlighting users from Xiaohongshu expressing their distrust and dissatisfaction toward men as well as resistance to marriage. The platform also plays a significant role in constructing female mutual assistance and promoting collective resistance. The last speaker, Tsang, introduced her study on the influence of female rugby players’ injuries and gender identity. She revealed that tackle-related injuries that female rugby players have, adding cultural pressures to endure pain, and become marginalized in a male-dominated sport seeking acceptance and respect.
At last, four professors delivered their suggestions and encouragement to all the presenters.

Written by: ZHENG, Yuling

本場研討會由十位學生彙報研究要點，教授給出點評建議。匯總如下：
1. 墨西哥女性自閉症延遲診斷與身份認同
關注成年後確診自閉症對女性身份認同的影響，通過訪談6位患有自閉症的墨西哥女性，分析延遲確診的原因包括父母忽視與誤診，發現受訪者普遍經歷生存性偽裝與性別認同衝突；提醒注意研究倫理，保護受訪者匿名，建議展開交叉性。
2. 香港女性移民與性工作法
對媒體報導進行文本分析，還將訪談NGO，分析香港性犯罪法律的雙重標準，探討其針對本地人與移民的不同威懾力；建議文本分析可結合庭訟記錄。
3. 嗅覺的物質性與文學中的性別政治
創新地應用新物質主義，分析遲子建小說中的嗅覺敘事如何建構身體政治與情感景觀等，挑戰以視覺為中心的西方傳統；提醒應說明新物質主義與傳統氣味表徵的區別。
4. 香港電影中的女性導演與敘事
關注伍錦霞導演在香港時期的電影，發現其描述的女性角色性別身份、民主身份的多樣性，並對比同期上海與重慶的電影，突出其女性敘事關注友誼主題的獨特性，填補早期華語女性導演研究領域的空白；建議補充女性導演是否只能通過涉足男性主題得到認可。
5. 無性別時尚的社會影響
結合內容分析與訪談法，分析時尚趨勢從上個世紀60年代YSL的煙熏妝到當代Gucci的性別流動設計，提出無性別時尚在挑戰傳統性別規範的同時，也可能淡化女性特質；建議明確女性是否在追求更平等的關係。
6. 香港流行文化中的性別角色演變
通過分析偶像作品並訪談粉絲，對比80年代（如張國榮）與當代（如MIRROR男團）的偶像性別表達，提出當代偶像更挑戰性別規範；建議關注當代偶像作品性別進步與保守元素的矛盾。
7. 香港KOL的性別內容生產
發現KOL為追求流量，往往物化女性，強化性別刻板印象，男性KOL通過混合男性氣質來維持異性戀身份，演算法在這個過程中加劇了性別不平等；建議具體說明混合男性氣質。
8. 漫畫《JoJo的奇妙冒險》中的性別表演
應用性別表演理論分析JoJo角色設計對傳統男性氣質的挑戰，包括中心性的服裝、芭蕾式的姿勢；建議明確近十年男性氣質發展的理論框架。
9. 中國年輕女性對婚姻的反抗
指出中國結婚率從2010年的24%下降到2022年的5.4%，分析小紅書用戶對婚姻中父權剝削的批判，通過幽默化表達構建女性共同體，發現這其實是女性對平等關係的渴望而非對婚姻的絕對抗拒；建議詳細說明資料選擇的方法。
10. 橄欖球中的性別與傷病
通過訪談大學和俱樂部的女球員，發現社會將強悍視為男性特質，女球員被邊緣化；建議聚焦傷病如何體現性別身份的獨特視角。

Written by: GE, Zeyu

本次Gender Studies的小型論文分享會是由10名來自本專業的MA和UG學生從不同領域分享自己對於性別交叉議題的研究。
首先是來自MA的四名學生。Ana Carbonell探討了墨西哥女性自閉症晚期診斷如何通過異化、掩飾行為及社交挑戰影響身份認同，並指出文化和資源匱乏的加劇作用。Ni Cheng分析了1997年前後香港刑法與移民法的斷層，揭示殖民遺留和政策差異如何導致大陸性工作者被系統性定罪，並指出法律效力低下、裁決矛盾和執行問題加劇了其困境。Tong Yuanxin分析了女性作家遲子建小說中的嗅覺如何作為物質和情感力量，通過性別化的身體政治、情感記憶和多物種糾纏，連接中國東北的性別、環境與文化敘事。Wang Ying聚焦在1930年代香港電影生態中女性導演伍錦霞如何通過其電影作品挑戰性別規範並與本土文化互動，突顯其在性別敘事和跨文化交流中的先驅意義。
然後是來自UG的六名學生。Cheung Tin Ho分析無性別時尚於60、70年代從反文化到主流趨勢的演變，揭示其如何挑戰性別刻板、促進包容，並探討青年驅動的市場變革及面臨的文化阻力。Chong Elvis Ryan的研究表明香港流行文化中偶像的性別角色從1980年代到現代逐漸轉向性別中立和女性賦權，受社交媒體和韓國流行文化推動，反映社會對性別平等的接受度提高。Hau Chi Fung揭示了香港KOL內容創作中性別投射的複雜性，強調文化、媒體和平臺動態如何強化性別不平等。Leung Sau Kuen指出《JoJo的奇妙冒險》中的男性氣質從傳統肌肉英雄轉向更具社會責任感及女性主導的多元表達，這一演變受日本時尚、家庭結構和性別規範等影響。Ng Hoi Wai Ivy研究發現中國年輕女性在小紅書上通過批判父權、抒發情感和幽默抵制婚姻，折射出女性採取新的賦權敘事導致性別觀念逐漸變遷。Tsang Yuet Yi揭示橄欖球女性運動員面臨更高腦震盪風險與恢復期，同時承受性別認同質疑，卻以堅韌表現突破傳統性別框架，促進女性賦權。

Written by: AO, Zhuoyue