TY - JOUR
T1 - Modern bridal femininity
T2 - Navigating niceness as a Princess Bride and a Bridezilla in the United States
AU - Sharp, Elizabeth A.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2023.
PY - 2023/11
Y1 - 2023/11
N2 - Despite the widespread popularity of United States (US) weddings and the cultural significance assigned to modern brides, scant research has examined US bridal femininity—an important site of analysis for understanding contemporary norms and expectations of femininity, more generally. In response to this gap, drawing on constructivist grounded theory and poststructural feminism, the present study examined 18 heterosexual, predominantly White, middle-class, cisgender US brides’ experiences of their weddings. Analyses revealed that brides navigated expectations of niceness, engaging in both Princess Bride-like and “Bridezilla”-like behaviors and emotions. Implications for idealized femininity within a neoliberal context are considered.
AB - Despite the widespread popularity of United States (US) weddings and the cultural significance assigned to modern brides, scant research has examined US bridal femininity—an important site of analysis for understanding contemporary norms and expectations of femininity, more generally. In response to this gap, drawing on constructivist grounded theory and poststructural feminism, the present study examined 18 heterosexual, predominantly White, middle-class, cisgender US brides’ experiences of their weddings. Analyses revealed that brides navigated expectations of niceness, engaging in both Princess Bride-like and “Bridezilla”-like behaviors and emotions. Implications for idealized femininity within a neoliberal context are considered.
KW - Qualitative
KW - USA
KW - brides
KW - femininity
KW - poststructural feminism
KW - weddings
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85150878926&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/09593535231156306
DO - 10.1177/09593535231156306
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85150878926
SN - 0959-3535
VL - 33
SP - 589
EP - 603
JO - Feminism and Psychology
JF - Feminism and Psychology
IS - 4
ER -