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The research focuses on 'alternative' femininities through the participants' narratives about their clothing, appearance, and body modifications. It examines how these are used to signal continuing resistance to certain traditional notions about femininity and how this resistance links to wider discourses about gender, categorising traditional and unconventional femininities, and anxieties about the possibilities of ageing 'differently'. The research is empirically-based, with data collected via a leaflet and 'snowball sampling, using semi-structured taped interviews with twenty participants who self-identified as resisting traditional sorts of appearance associated with femininity. Interviews were carried out in South and West Yorkshire in 1997 and 1998. The study contributes to existing work in fashion theory and subcultural theory by bringing ideas about gender identities and resistance into relationship with theorising the body. The research is an analysis of narratives about femininities, and examines the many paradoxes and tensions managed by the participants in constructing and maintaining their appearance. The research found that resisting some elements of traditional femininity did not mean that the interviewees saw themselves as unfeminine and, in fact, they used 'recuperative' strategies in order to define themselves as feminine. The participants enjoyed many of the pleasurable aspects of femininity whilst also strongly disputing the idea that they were in any way 'fluffy' or 'girly'. Even though the women located themselves in discourses of non-conformity they simultaneously attempted to 'normalise' in other ways particularly when related to narrowing gendered boundaries of age.

This thesis argues for incorporating a radically increased awareness and understanding of the experiences and opinions of people who actually watch films into any film theory or criticism genuinely concerned to analyse, evaluate or otherwise interpret films and/or those who watch them. In particular, it suggests there is a need to re-think the status of film experiencers as informants who are participant in rather than objects of study, and that an ethnographic approach should be taken to narrow the gap between film studies and film experiencers. Initially, I investigate ways in which film "viewers" and "audiences" have been and continue to be theorized, analyzed and represented, with emphases both on how film theory and criticism have treated film experiencers, and on the impact of the recent "ethnographic turn" in film and cultural studies. I then investigate pertinent ethnographic theories and methods in the context of recent debates about knowledge production and reflexivity, looking particularly at postmodern and anti-patriarchal critiques. I also consider the relationship between ethnography and cultural studies, and how both these areas impact on the study of film experiencers. Ultimately I suggest particular ways in which ethnographic theories and methods might be used in film studies to inform investigations, understandings and therefore representations of film experiencers. I outline and consider how my case study uses such approaches before setting out the case study itself. The case study sets out what sixty-seven participant-informants had to say and write about martial arts action films, and is in large part intended to "give voice" to film experiencers. But while the emphasis is on citing participant-informants' own words, I recognize that there is no description without interpretation and reflect on this in the conclusions I draw from the case study "data" and my theoretical work.

Metal music has existed in one form or another for about half a century. While the musical style and the culture started out in a relatively unified way, with the 'extreme turn' of late 80s and 90s, metal culture stratified. Doom metal, being one of the oldest styles in this newly formed structure, became even more fragmented. Through amalgamations with other music styles or as further alterations on these amalgamations. I call these styles extreme doom. Death/doom is such a style. These smaller styles in metal culture have so far been investigated hierarchically. However, the implication that a hierarchy has is problematic in this context. Metal music studies is a budding field, so, we need to think more critically about the way we conceptualise the history of metal academically in these early years. Yet, so far, this stratification, with its hierarchy, has not been challenged or even discussed in detail. Scholarship often mentions these so-called 'sub-genres' uncritically. In order to challenge this idea, there needs to be a new model. However, because of the size and breadth of metal culture, one single work cannot come even close to covering the styles existing today. In this thesis, I attempt to draw boundaries around only death/doom to propose a way of modelling a new metal history. To achieve this, I define these newer and smaller styles as marginal styles using marginality idea of Park. Following this idea, sociology of music comes to rescue with Crossley's music worlds. Music worlds, because of its emphasis put on the musical style -it is central-, is an intriguing perspective to look at the fragmented nature of metal music. A metal music world is a social construction performed by the participants, including musicians, fans, engineers, managers, label executives, and the press, around a metal musical style. These smaller styles, then, become ideal candidates for the application of this theory. This thesis treats death/doom in such a way using ethnographic, historical, and musicological methods.