Representations of “leftover” women and men in the Chinese English-language news media: a keyword analysis of similarities and difference

Abstract Although the phenomenon of “leftover” women and men in China has been hotly debated over the past decade, there are few comparative studies investigating similarities and differences underlying media representations of the two groups. To fill this gap, this study employs a corpus-assisted discourse analysis to investigate the discourses of similarities and differences underlying the representations of leftover women and men in the Chinese English-language news media between 2007 and 2017 by building two corpora. The findings indicate a similar discourse surrounding both leftover women and men, which is heterosexual marriage pressure. The findings also reveal two discourses highlighting differences between leftover women and men: while leftover women are represented as A-grade women facing fertility issues, leftover men are represented as D-grade men confronted with the demographic crisis. These discourses have ideological implications for heteronormativity and patriarchy. The study sheds light on non-hegemonic forms of femininity and masculinity constructed by the media in contemporary Chinese society, as well as the usefulness of employing corpus techniques to examine both similarities and differences in gender representations.