A Study of Gender Representation in Californication

By analysing contemporary media texts we can achieve a greater understanding for our specific culture and time. The ambition of this text is to discuss some messages that the media convey about gender and the possible effects of this representation. I have therefore chosen to analyse the Showtime production Californication. This study uses critical discourse analysis to examine Californication from a gender perspective to answer the following questions: How is the world in Californication represented? What identities and relationships are constructed for those involved in the text Californication? How is gender representation presented in the text? The analysis shows that while Californication is in many ways a series based on liberal and experimental representations of masculinity and femininity, a closer study reveals that the production at the same time actually promotes traditional ideals and a return to conventional family values