“There’s no reason he needs to come in on that”: Defining territory marking by watching Australia’s Bachelor in Paradise

ABSTRACT

This article examines the gendered nature of territory marking. Territory marking, for this discussion, refers to the practice that entitles men to claim ownership over a woman who they are involved with romantically by threatening other men who appear to be ‘making moves on’ or flirting with her. Despite it being a recognised practice in society, feminist scholarship—and more broadly, sociological research—on territory marking is scarce. This gap in scholarship is concerning as the practice itself speaks to engrained gendered dynamics that enable men to oppress women by not only controlling who they can interact with but also by objectifying them as objects to be fought over. It is therefore important to find opportunities when this practice materialises, in order to document not only what it looks like but also to interrogate the gendered rules that surround it. This article does this work by using depictions of territory marking within Australia’s Bachelor in Paradise to offer new definitions of how this practice takes form and develops. While this analysis does not claim to provide a definitive account of territory marking, it offers scholarship a deeper understanding of the gendered elements that can make up this practice.

KEYWORDS:

• Hegemonic masculinity
• territory marking
• (hetero)romance
• male peer violence
• reality TV
• Bachelor in Paradise

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Notes

1. For the Australian version of Bachelor in Paradise, “Paradise” is located on a secluded Pacific Island.

2. Not all contestants enter Paradise at the beginning of the season: While Ivan arrived in Paradise in episode four, Tenille did not arrive in Paradise till part way through episode six.

3. As part of the storyline, some contestants will be given a Date Card by the producers of the show, meaning that they have to choose another contestant to take on a date that same day.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Christina Vogels

Dr. Christina Vogels research is underpinned first and foremost by a passion for violence against women prevention. Her research interests also include interrogating gender representations within young adult fiction/film and exploring the popular romance. E-mail: [email protected]