LADY TALK : A critical discourse analysis of the representation of women over 50 in fashion and lifestyle magazines

Sammanfattning: The complex concept of the ageing woman must be viewed in relation to both what it means to be a woman and what it means to age. Both women and the elderly are discriminated against in different respects; therefore it could be argued that the ageing woman is discriminated against in a double sense. This study investigates how women over the age of 50 are portrayed linguistically in fashion and lifestyle magazines with the aim to reveal the underlying attitudes as well as social and cultural ideologies regarding the topic today. Based on Wodak (2001), I employed critical discourse analysis (CDA) methodology, with a particular focus on terms of address and attributes identified in selected fashion and lifestyle magazines. The findings revealed that although the women were addressed mainly in terms of their professional titles, the emphasis was put on them as ageing women by a continuous mentioning of their age, their past and physical consequences from the process of ageing.        Further, personality traits and emotional and physical attributes were evaluated in terms of negative and positive associations, revealing positive attitudes (e.g. happy, curious, experienced) regarding emotions and personality traits, but negative associations (e.g. weight gain, grey hair, old) in relation to their ageing bodies and their appearances.