The Representation of the Female Body in Dispute. Feminism and Counter-Feminism in the Fallas of València

Abstract

Neo-traditional festivals such as Fallas are receiving increasing attention for their ability to define roles and thus for their weight when it comes to reproducing or fostering social change. As a result, the representation of the female body in the Fallas festival has become continuously more a battlefield. The study based on observation and discussion groups confirms that there continues to be hypersexualization and machismo in the ninots (sculptures) of the festival, but, at the same time, there is a growing criticism and more inclusive or directly demanding representations of feminism are emerging. However, these changes face the almost absolute control and heteronormative logic from traditionalist sectors that were born in the Franco regime, as well as, at the same time, they have to deal with an anti-feminist reaction in line with the extreme right that tries to redefine the feminist claim as a conspiracy against freedom and that expresses itself with an increasingly open and sometimes aggressive critique posed against the attempts to change the representation of women and their role in the festivity.