Verkningslöst motstånd

Sammanfattning

This study examines how Love Island Sweden Season five functions as a norm-producing arena for gender through a thematic analysis with a deductive approach of four episodes. The aim is to explore how the program both reproduces and challenges contemporary gender norms, and how participants' actions are shaped within these structures. The findings show that the program does not primarily enforce gender norms through explicit rules, but rather through the construction of situations in which normative behavior appears natural, rational, and necessary. The show’s format, including games, ceremonies and audience voting mechanisms, reinforces a heteronormative framework in which coupling becomes a condition for social survival. The analysis is grounded in Judith Butler’s theory of gender performativity, Raewyn Connell’s concept of hegemonic masculinities and femininities, together with Stuart Hall’s theory of representation, and Michel Foucault’s concept of panoticism. The results indicate that gender is produced through a combination of structural, institutional, and affective mechanisms rather than individual choices alone. Furthermore, the study highlights the role of “superfans” as an institutionalized form of audience power that contributes to normative regulation within the show. Overall the study argues that reality television should be understood as an active site in the production of gender norms rather than a neutral reflection of society.