Plastic masculinities: A Critical Design Proposal on the Referents of Hegemonic Masculinity in Star Wars

Abstract

Plastic Masculinities is a critical design project that seeks to reflect on the role of entertainment culture narratives as abstract carriers of a system of beliefs and values linked to a hegemonic masculinity based on domination as a source of power. Through the aesthetic and narrative reinterpretation of the stormtrooper, an iconic character from the Star Wars saga, it seeks to reflect on the impact of these references on young adult men, and how they affect the way they assimilate and live their gender identity. The reflections obtained from the approach of this project are a counter-hegemonic contribution to the cultural products that support binary gender roles in popular entertainment culture, and a way of demonstrating the way in which narratives can define our gender identity, through consumption.