Book Title: Innovative Approaches in Multidisciplinary Research and Development (IAMRD)
Chief Editors: Dr. Anil Kashinath Salunke and Dr. Rituraj Pant
Associate Editors: Prof. (Dr.) Sourav Madhur Dey and Dr. Amrutha Satheesan
Co-Editors: Dr. Souvik Sur and Dr. Phakir Singh
ISBN: 978-93-7183-004-1
Chapter: 17
DOI: https://doi.org/10.59646/708/17
Author: Meghna Mohan
Abstract
This paper examines the historical transformation and contemporary commodification of femininity through the lenses of feminist theory, semiotics, discourse analysis, and cultural criticism. Drawing upon the works of Michel Foucault, Carl Jung, Dale Spender, Naomi Wolf, Angela McRobbie, and other feminist theorists, it explores how female sexuality has been regulated and reinterpreted across religion, language, art, mythology, and digital culture. Through symbols such as the yoni, Vesica Piscis, Ichthys, Sheela-na-gig, serpent imagery, and goddess traditions, the study demonstrates how several feminine symbols were gradually absorbed into dominant ideological and religious frameworks. While feminist movements and contemporary discourse have undeniably expanded visibility surrounding female sexuality and embodiment, the study argues that modern capitalist culture has transformed femininity into a consumable aesthetic and marketable identity. Digital trends such as “Clean Girl,” “Coquette,” and hyper-feminine influencer cultures are examined as forms of postfeminist commodification where empowerment itself becomes intertwined with consumerism, self-surveillance, and aesthetic labour. Ultimately, the paper contends that the central issue lies not merely in representation or erasure, but in the ideological structures that continuously reshape female identity according to dominant cultural, patriarchal, and capitalist interests, foregrounding the need to question not only how femininity is represented, but also who benefits from such representations and the power structures they continue to reinforce.
Keywords: Femininity, Feminist Theory, Female Sexuality, Semiotics, Cultural Codes, Collective Unconscious, Patriarchal Language, Symbolism, Vulva Symbolism, Discourse, Commodification, Postfeminism, Digital Femininity, Male Gaze, Representation, Consumer Culture.