At the mini-conference on April 1st, UG and MA students in the Gender Studies Program gathered to showcase their wonderful theses, exploring gender-related topics in diverse social spheres ranging from media and games to family and public policy.

The MA theses shared their insightful exploration of gender power and discourse within digital and media landscapes. CHEN Duhaoyu explored the everyday experiences of young female employees at state-affiliated media institutions, illustrating how feminist discourse is depoliticized through digital governance. XIN Gege analyzed female violence and decadent aesthetics in Ti West’s X film trilogy as a means of reclaiming subjectivity through female-centered horror narration. YAU Cho Ming examined how Chinese content creators contest discursive power regarding transgender issues in response to J.K. Rowling’s comments. YE Xinping investigated attitudes of female audiences in mainland China toward cinematic nudity under domestic censorship systems.

The UG theses provided three crucial perspectives for examining gender issues. First, they responded to shifting gender relations in digital age: CHEN Yuanrou examined the power shifts and skills transformation for rural women on short-video platforms; SIT Hiu Nam discussed the commodification of intimate relationships and grey zones of insecurity for women; and WAN Hin Wing, CHAN Lok Yin, and YEUNG Yan Yi (Evelyn) explored, respectively, emotional practices among female fans in the “Yumejoshi” subculture, gender performance within underground idol culture, and female players’ agency in the game Yan Yun.

Second, they successfully connected gender politics with broader cultural and historical contexts. LEONG Wing Shan revealed how Charlie Kirk’s rhetoric pushes women back into traditional gender roles. YU Zhiqi traced connections between the Half-Child Policy and individual memory. TANG Fai Yuen Tom investigated Hong Kong–Mainland cross-border couples’ domestic lives interwoven with legal asymmetries.

Third, their research showed how gender norms are reproduced through daily practices, such as Hong Kong’s public toilet provision (LAU Chun Kin), gender bias and discrimination in sports (HUI Ming Yin & LIN Keqin), or gendered family labor and care, constantly negotiated by both housewives and cohabiting couples (HU Ziying & WONG Man Ngai). Collectively, these studies have enriched the empirical evidence and theoretical frameworks of gender studies in contemporary societies.

Written by: CHEN, Jing 

I was deeply impressed by this mini seminar on undergraduate and master students in gender studies for 2026. The students focused on women’s lived experiences, struggles over identity, and Chinese-language practices across various contexts, covering fields such as media work, film and television communication, digital labor, family life, and popular culture. Moreover, each researcher adopted distinct methodologies and approaches, making for a morning filled with delightful surprises. Although each researcher’s work revolved around gender studies, they challenged the binary notion of “either complete oppression or total empowerment,” fully demonstrating the complexity and diversity of contemporary gender issues.

Personally, I am most interested in two of these topics. The first is exploring the attitudes of female audiences in mainland China toward nude scenes performed by actresses in films and TV dramas. This is the research topic of my friend Ye Xinping, and I have also participated in his survey. As a woman, I have watched many films featuring scenes of female nudity, such as <Lust, Caution>, <The Lover>, and <Titanic>. These classic films are still widely discussed today, largely due to the scenes of female nudity they contain, rather than solely because of their storylines. While watching, I sometimes experience the thrill of visual stimulation, and at other times, I feel a genuine need to question whether the actresses truly had to go to such lengths. Ye Xinping’s research keenly captures these subtle and complex sentiments among Chinese female audiences, filling a gap in the study of Chinese female audiences from a feminist perspective.

The second topic focuses on the skill transition and gender negotiation of rural female short-video creators, and I think the angle of this topic is particularly ingenious. As someone who has followed many rural female short-video creators, I had never previously considered gender issues from this perspective. This student approaches the topic through an entertaining format, analyzing the personal skill development and shifting family power dynamics that accompany rural women’s transition from the “kitchen stove” to the “camera lens.” She also acknowledges that while content creation has brought tangible change, it remains constrained by family, society, and platforms—resulting in a situation where empowerment has emerged but remains incomplete. This has prompted me to reflect more deeply on the subject, and I eagerly anticipate her full-length paper.

Written by: BAI, Yun

在本次的論文作品展覽中，Gender Studies專業的同學們圍繞性別以及性別制度不平等現象展現出了豐富的研究群體和研究內容，其研究內容包括影視劇集中的性別角色建構，跨性別者與公共空間，中產階級母職，女性的就業與職場狀況，女性向遊戲等多種多樣非常有趣的研究題材。

由於觀看的時間有限，我只在部分作品前駐足，並和作者進行了充分的交流，因此在本次的作業中我挑選了兩個最讓我感興趣的作品來概括它們的內容，也感謝作者對自己作品耐心的描述和解釋。論文作品Approximating Blood and Love：Female Violence and the Reconfiguration of Decadent Aesthetics in Ti West’s X Trilogy講述以女性施暴者為主角的電影對這類角色的建構，研究突出了施暴者的傷害背後存在一種女性被壓迫後的情緒表達，同時探討了女性施暴者角色存在的爭議性，比如這是否是對現實中男性更多作為施暴者事實的掩蓋和視線轉移，體現出了該類題材的意義複雜性，即有對女性憤怒的表達又有與現實的衝突。

而論文作品Contesting Discursive Power：Chinese Content Creators’ Reinterpretation of Transgender Discourse in Response to J.K. Rowling（2020-2025）則是採用了定性訪談的方式，收集和分析了不同性別性取向群體對於JK羅琳提出的有關於跨性別者的爭議性觀點的不同看法，JK羅琳對於跨性別者的觀點在早期主要在於反對男性跨女性跨性別者進入女廁所這一女性場域，認為這增加了女性遭到侵害的風險，但是支持維護跨性別者的其他權益，但是隨著時間的變化，她的觀點發生了變化，如她例舉了三名“跨性別者”的負面消息，但是卻最後發現這三個案例本身並非是“跨性別者”。非常有意思和有意義的是不同群體對於該事件的關注點不同，如無性戀群體更關注跨性別者本身的感受表達，而異性戀女性則更關注男性跨女性跨性別者進入女廁所對女性權益帶來的侵害，而她們的描述也非常的精准，清晰地指出了這是源自於對於原本是男性性別的恐懼，因為社會上男性侵害女性的案例是遠大於女性侵害男性的。同時受訪者對於羅琳的觀點，許多時候並非是完全不同意或者是完全同意，而是呈現出一種理性的觀點表達，很多人即反對男性跨女性跨性別者進入女性廁所，女性體育賽事，但又支持維護跨性別者的權益，傾聽她們的感受。

Written by: DING, Yifan 

本次展示的論文主題涉獵廣泛且問題意識鮮明，大致可分類為五個研究方向。

首先，在國家治理與制度權力維度，多項研究關注宏觀制度如何塑造個體的性別經驗。例如，有論文以“一孩半政策”為切入點，探討地方執行政策過程中所產生的代際創傷；亦有研究聚焦中國大陸政府部門的女性宣傳工作者，分析其在審查機制中通過“規避錯誤”進行日常實踐，揭示國家權力、話語生產與性別主體之間的複雜互動關係。

其次，在性別規範的實踐與角色協商方面，多篇論文以不同的具體女性群體為切入點，細緻呈現個體如何在結構性限制中發揮能動性並進行日常協商。例如，關於農村女性短視頻創作者的研究，展示其從家庭內部空間邁向數字公共領域的過程中所經歷的能力與角色轉變，並在家庭權力關係與平臺機制之間不斷協商自身位置；對中產階級家庭主婦的代際研究，則揭示女性如何在自主選擇與社會規訓之間進行意義建構；關於女性跆拳道運動員及女性體育參與的研究，探討女性進入傳統“陽剛性領域”時，如何在身體實踐與社會期待之間持續調適以回應刻板印象與結構性歧視。

第三，在親密關係與家庭實踐層面，多項研究關注微觀互動中的性別權力運作。例如，關於跨境婚姻的研究分析制度不對稱如何嵌入日常生活，並影響情感勞動與溝通權力；針對同居關係的研究，則指出性別分工往往並非通過明確協商達成，而是在日常實踐中逐漸形成並被自然化。這類研究強調性別規範在親密關係中的日常化再生產。

第四，在媒介、文化與消費領域，本次會議呈現出豐富的數字文化與文本分析取向。例如，有論文探討乙女遊戲中的情感消費如何從二維（2D）延伸至現實（3D）互動實踐；關於女性玩家的研究則關注其在遊戲文化中的主體性建構；此外，對影視作品中女性裸露畫面的觀眾研究，揭示審查制度與性別觀看經驗之間的張力；對恐怖電影中女性暴力與主體性的再闡釋，體現出文化生產與性別再現之間的複雜關係。

最後，在身體政治與話語權方面，部分研究聚焦當代性別議題的意識形態維度。例如，對反墮胎話語的分析揭示女性身體如何被重新納入道德與社會責任框架；而圍繞跨性別議題的研究通過分析社交媒體平臺的討論，呈現不同主體如何在數字公共空間中爭奪話語權，反映性別二元結構在當代語境中的延續與重構。

總體而言，本次小型學術分享會議展現了學生在性別研究領域的多元探索。從宏觀制度到微觀經驗，從身體政治到數字媒介，各項研究都體現著作者對於日常生活的細緻觀察，以及對於生命經驗的深刻反思。他們從個體經驗和現實關懷出發，提出真正感興趣的、觸動內心的問題，並以學術研究的方式尋求答案。參與者也借由現場互動的形式，收穫許多啟發與思想碰撞。

Written by: DONG, Yike