Phallic metaphors and metonyms: Emerging meanings of Viagra and masculinity in news media

Abstract

When Viagra was first introduced, it was presented as a new pharmaceutical with potentially revolutionizing effects in various forms of media across the globe. While it is no longer a new pharmaceutical, it still continues to find its way into news media. This article explores the continuous circulation of Viagra in news media over time, pointing to a global impact of the relationship between pharmaceutical advertising and news media, which play into reconfigurations of masculinity. Through an analysis of Danish news articles mentioning Viagra in different times, it is argued that Viagra is not only made news-worthy as a pharmaceutical; it has penetrated our language as a phallic metaphor and metonymic concept through which human and non-human actors become valorized as im/potent in different ways. This is further discussed as a potential indication of how gendered processes of medicalization can affect our understanding of the capabilities of the human body, and by extension the language we make use of to grasp the world we live in, as well as ourselves.