What makes a goddess? A corpus-assisted analysis of ideal femininity construction under the Chinese male gaze

As the largest male-centred social media platform in China, Hupu offers a valuable window into how Chinese males construct and negotiate gender identity and gender relations. Drawing on a corpus-assisted feminist critical discourse analysis (FCDA), this study takes the platform’s highly influential event, the goddess competition, as a case study. By collecting and analysing posts from the latest competition, we examine how ideal femininity is constructed by Chinese male users in the digital environment and seek to uncover the underlying gender ideologies embedded in these discourses. Findings suggest that male users continue to favour traditional gender stereotypes and employ discursive strategies such as the topos of definition, usefulness/advantage, and reality to produce, legitimize, and sustain hegemonic masculinity. This study contributes to broader discussions in gender and digital discourse studies, illustrating how hegemonic ideologies and gender norms shape femininity within male-dominated online spaces. It also offers insights into how patriarchal ideologies perpetuate contemporary Chinese society and constrain the diverse development of women, supporting efforts to promote platform responsibility and build a more inclusive digital environment.