Question 5

5) Discuss the following Flash game in terms of ideology and hegemony. Define each term, and then explain them through the game (100-150 words).
http://gamescene.com/The_Urinal_Game.html

This flash game discusses the “common sense” involved in using the men’s room- the set of socially learned (through the hegemonic structure) expectations that a man has when using a urinal in a public restroom. The first “level” of the urinal game discusses the “maximum buffer zone” required between two men using urinals simultaneously. The hegemonic structure is based on a mutual respect for personal space, and in this instance, is based on the ideology of allowing your “bathroom buddy” a buffer zone. Men adhere to this set of ideas: giving each other adequate personal space, avoidance any kind of eye contact or apparent “connection” (pairing) with any other man at the urinal and location that would provide the quickest “exit” from the situation. The cultural construction of “manliness” and respect for a man’s personal space reinforces the expectation that these ideas will be understood and enacted.