From Female Masculinity to Hegemonic Femininity: Evolving Gender Performances of Turkish Women Diplomats

Abstract

This article analyses the gender performances of Turkish women diplomats through in-depth interviews. Building on Morison and MacLeod’s performance-performativity approach, we highlight the need to take into account the different meanings and significance of gender performances under different political and social conditions. We find that a shift and the diversification of gender performances are under way among Turkish women diplomats, from female masculinity being the dominant form towards hegemonic femininity becoming more common. We note that this change is associated with the increasing valorisation of femininity in diplomacy and the changing priorities of the feminist movement and foreign policy in Turkey. We caution, however, that the enactments of hegemonic femininity are not necessarily empowering women diplomats and may inadvertently provide a basis for undermining the role and status of women in the increasingly anti-feminist political context in Turkey.