ABSTRACT
In this chapter I explore the ways the rules outlined in Chapter 2 are enacted differently by gender. Gender is embedded in the work teens do and in their social spaces and therefore it affects both the presentation of their narratives and the enactment of the social rules presented in Chapter 2. What these teens present visually are enactments of gendered scripts and roles, particularly those that emphasize traditional presentations of masculinity and femininity. This heightened awareness of gender is consistent with the theoretical constructs of gender role development, which point to adolescence as a time when gender identity is solidified (West and Zimmerman 1987). I argue that the gender narrative is present in the self-preparation work of image creation and curation (i.e., images that emphasize femininity or masculinity) as well as in the experience of evaluating the image (i.e., the likes, comments, and other forms of feedback) after it has been posted. I first present the ways the girls adhere to gender norms and then turn my attention to the boys’ experiences. These heteronormative social media performances create gendered categories of worth around the traditional norms of masculinity for boys and femininity for girls.
