Review: Risky Pleasures? Club Cultures and Feminine Identities
| Author | Gurmit Heer |
| Published date | 01 June 2007 |
| Date | 01 June 2007 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/0264550507077248 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
186
Probation Journal
The Journal of Community and Criminal Justice
Risky Pleasures? Club Cultures
and Feminine Identities
Fiona Hutton
Ashgate, 2006; pp 130, £55.00, hbk
ISBN 0–7546–4424–3
Having been asked to review this book, I was intrigued by
the title and what I might learn from research carried out
in Manchester, which has been the hotbed of the club and
music scene over the past two decades.
The author sets the scene well in her introductory chapter,
explaining the need to draw attention to a subject area that is generally ignored,
as women being key players in clubs, or on the drug scene as suppliers, is perhaps
not seen as being as ‘sexy’ or ‘macho’ as men participating in such activity. Distin-
guishing between mainstream and underground nightclubs makes it clear how
this in itself attracts different crowds in terms of gender, age, race and image.
The author goes on to make a distinct correlation between the club scene and
drug use, along with music genre and the type of clientele they accordingly attract.
The following quote illustrates the point well:
. . . undergrounds were defined by female clubbers as places where less sexist and
macho attitudes towards women were encountered. These better attitudes were
associated with the types of drugs used, the lack of alcohol use, the music played
and the style of those attending. (p. 9)
Some exploration of the ‘attitude’ of individuals who go to clubs shows how
this can determine a person’s entrance to a club, interaction with others and the
ability to fit in. This could be developed further as it is clear there are differences
between men and women being allowed into clubs with the former having less
access than the latter, perhaps due to the notion that men create more problems
in clubs than women in terms of violence. In fact the key factor that let this book
down was the little attention given to the problematic environment that women still
can and do encounter when involved in drugs and clubs; for example, there was
no mention of date rape drug problems. Nevertheless, this book positively reminds
us that women are key players in the club, drug and music scene. We are not
passive victims of the social environment but proactive participants within it.
Copyright © 2007 NAPO Vol 54(2): 186–190
DOI: 10.1177/0264550507077248
www.napo.org.uk
http://prb.sagepub.com
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