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Self- and Other-Reference in Social Contexts: From global to local discourses
Edited by Minna Nevala and Minna Palander-Collin
[Pragmatics & Beyond New Series 342] 2024
► pp. 114–137

Chapter 6
Intragroup marginalization in social media

Self- and other-reference on a plus-size fashion brand’s Instagram page

| University of Helsinki
| University of Helsinki

This chapter discusses plus-size group membership in Instagram (IG) posts published by the fashion retailer Fashion Nova Curve. Moreover, we focus on the ways in which self- and other-reference are used as tools for Intragroup Marginalization (IM). By IM we mean distancing by group members that occurs when a certain individual is believed to exhibit behaviors, values and beliefs that are outside the in-group culture’s norms. Our data consist of 233 Instagram posts published in October 2021, and our critical discourse analysis focuses on those person referential terms that show in-group membership polarization. Our results show that both the models and the customers in the IG posts are marginalized by the commenters in several ways, including critical comments not only from the out-group, but also from the members of the plus-size in-group, as their bodies are constructed as e.g. ‘not plus-size enough’ or ‘the wrong kind of plus-size’.

Keywords: intragroup marginalization, in-group membership polarization, social identity, group membership, plus-size fashion, Instagram, social media discourse
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Background
    • 2.1Intragroup marginalization and person reference
    • 2.2The fashion industry and body positivity in social media
  • 3.Data and method
    • 3.1Fashion Nova
    • 3.2Analytical approach
  • 4.Case studies: Constructing the ‘real’ plus-size woman
    • 4.1Case study 1: Besties
    • 4.2Case study 2: New Sheriff in Town
    • 4.3Meta-comments
  • 5.Discussion
  • 6.Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 14 March 2024
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/pbns.342.06lim
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