A Semantic Analysis of the term “Pagkalalake” through Radio

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Luab, Kyriss Misyhane

Rico, Hanna Mae
Tabua, Ainie
Torralba, Aubrey Dynise

A partial fulfillment for the requirement in ENG- (English Semantics)

May 2019

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 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Masculinity has certain characteristics assigned to it by our culture. Men are primarily
assigned and secondarily socialized into believing certain characteristics are definitive in
determining their manliness and masculinity. As a socially constructed identity, men learn
“appropriate” gender roles in accordance to the masculine expectations of the given society. All
men are influenced by their upbringing, experience, and social environment which play a big role
in determining one’s view of masculinity and manhood. This means that just like love,
masculinity is subjective and is going to be different for everyone. According to Tough Guise:
Men, Violence and the Crisis in Masculinity (1999), “Hegemonic masculinity” is the highest
form of masculinity that is represented by several characteristics: distance oneself from feminity,
restrict emotions, tough and aggressive (avoid vulnerability), and lastly our chosen topic, can be
seen as highly sexual with women.

According to Wilkinsons, it starts with identifying what we really need in our lives to feel
like men. Next, we must realize that society is trying to sell us a bill of goods as false substitutes
for true masculinity. (Wilkinsons, 2009). Many wonders what it means to be masculine, and if
we can really assign a definition to such one-sided term. Do individuals view determine what
constitutes as masculine?

Men’s masculinity is often stereotype in the basis of their sexual dominance. Men’s
masculinity is base upon their superiority and is often referred as “toxic masculinity standards”
of the people. According to Suzannah Weiss,“Toxic standards of masculinity hurt men’s sex
lives- and everyone’s- just as much.” When people are held to gender expectations in the
bedroom, everyone misses out on living their authentic selves and connecting with their partner’s
authentic
selves. One of the toxic masculinity standards of the people is that sex revolves around a penis
and men’s sexual value lies in what their penises can do. This myth is behind profitable
industries geared toward increasing penis size and making erections last longer, often on the
grounds that these two things are instrumental for female pleasure. But the fact is, they're
actually fairly irrelevant. “Most women don't orgasm through penile thrusting. Toxic
masculinity's overvaluing of the penis both makes men unnecessarily insecure and perpetuates
the prioritization of acts that don't give women much pleasure.” (Jones, 2003). Along with the
idea that the penis is the centre of sex comes the notion that if a man does not please a woman,
he is not a real man. One study in the Journal of Sex Research found that in a hypothetical
scenario where a woman did not orgasm during intercourse, both men's and women's greatest
concerns were the man's ego. This puts a lot of pressure on men to automatically know what
pleases their partners, and it puts a lot of pressure on women to behave as if they are enjoying
themselves for the sake of their partners, rather than pursue acts that actually please them.
While it is great to care about your partner's pleasure, a problem arises when someone makes
their partner's pleasure about themselves.

The sexual advertisements about energizing intimate sexual intercourse or activity

continuously arise because of the toxic masculinity standard and that it must have something
to do with the satisfaction of men about their masculinity. There are various radio
advertisements promoting products that foster the masculinity of a man. It might be a sexual
energizer or enhancement of sexual body parts that will render the qualities of a real
masculine man. The researchers wanted to explore how these advertisements create
constructive meaning about masculinity, its characteristics, and mannerism to people.

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1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

A lot of studies have been drawn upon the idea of masculinity but very few or none have
been curious enough to tackle one of the most powerful and persuasive use of language we see or
hear everyday in our lives, which is advertisements more specifically radio advertisements.

What’s more interesting about these advertisements is that it seeks to gave us an idea of how
important such issue as masculinity is in our society. Many may ask, what really is masculinity
and how can we get its idea from this kind of radio advertisements? Such is this problem that
piqued the interest of the researchers.

1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

Primarily, this study is sought to answer such objectives.

 To determine words and phrases associated with masculinity.

 To Analyze the meaning of pagkalalake base on selected phrases from the radio
advertisements.

1.4 SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The focus of this study is on the idea of masculinity that can be drawn upon the different
radio advertisements, also on how meaning is constructed from it.

To make the study manageable, the researchers have to limit the scope of the study by choosing
only 3 radio advertisements that focuses on products about sexual enhancers for men. In
analyzing the meaning of the term “Pagkalalake”, the researchers only chose phrases that is
ambiguous and at the same time draws its meaning from the idea of pagkalalake.

Also, in choosing what phrases to analyze using the Conceptual Blending Theory, the
researchers see to it that the chosen word will fit the framework.

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1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The results of this study are expected to help future researchers who might be interested in
the same or related field. The framework used in this study can also be used as reference by other
researchers who would want to study meaning construction. It can also challenge and address
issues related to masculinity.

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 CHAPTER II

LITERATURE REVIEW AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

1.2 MUSCULINITY

Masculinities studies is a vibrant, interdisciplinary field of study broadly concerned with

the social construction of what it means to “be a man.” Masculinities scholars study the social
role and meanings of masculinities. “Masculinity” refers to the behaviors, social roles, and
relations of men within a given society as well as the meanings attributed to them. The
term masculinity stresses gender, unlike male, which stresses biological sex. (Kimmel, 2011).

One popular approach to understanding traditional masculinity, rooted in feminist

theoretical perspectives, is the masculine gender role norms approach (Mahalik et al., 2003).
According to this perspective, masculine gender role norms are guidelines and ideals that direct
and restrict men’s behavior. Masculine norms are learned by boys and men through typical
socialization processes, such as being told what unacceptable and acceptable behavior is for men
and observation of what men in general and popular men, in particular, do in social situations
and interpersonal relationships (Adler, Kless, & Adler, 1992; Witt, 2000).

As socially constructed identities, boys and men learn “appropriate” gender roles in
accordance to the masculine expectations of their given society. This means that from very early
on boys get messages on what it means to be a boy. Boys and men learn conventional gender
roles from family and friends. In most homes, boys are told that “boys don’t cry” and to “man
up”. These colloquialisms are ways of relaying the message that as a member of a certain gender,
there are rigid expectations. If these expectations aren’t fulfilled then one will be subject to
ridicule and even violence. All men are influenced by their upbringing, experience, and social
environment which play a big role in determining one’s view of masculinity and manhood. This
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means that masculinity is going to be different for everyone. Some particularly influential
factors in shaping one’s idea of manhood are race, class, ability, sexual orientation, and gender.

Social justice advocates view these social identities as the most salient factors in society
that determine who has power and privilege and who faces societal oppression. Men who are
oppressed in one or more ways within this structure embody “marginalized masculinities”, which
are ways of being men that are seen as less than or ridiculed by more privileged men as a means
of constructing their own identities as men. There are an infinite number of ways to be a man
which exist within a hierarchy of manhood. The most dominant form of manhood is called
“hegemonic masculinity” which is characterized by several key tenants: 1.) distance oneself from
femininity; 2.) restrict emotions; 3.) be tough and aggressive (avoid vulnerability); 4.) Be seen as
highly sexual with women; and 5.) Prove one’s heterosexuality via homophobia. (Thompson,
et.al)

Sexual objectification theory postulates that women are nonsentient beings that are often
treated as objects and used by men for their sexual utility (Fredrickson & Roberts, 1997).
Therefore, it seems likely that men who score high on the playboy, power over women, and
violence masculine norms will be more likely to treat women as objects and engage in sexually
objectifying behaviors toward women. The association between these particular masculine ideals
and likelihood to sexually objectify is consistent with previous research on masculinity, attitudes
toward women, and sexual violence and is an extension of this research.

Physical appearance can be an important, and often distress producing, part of self-
concept for sexual minority men (Kaminski, Chapman, Haynes, & Own, 2005; Yelland &
Tiggemann, 2003). Although there is considerable variability within groups of sexual minority
men (e.g., gay, bisexual, queer, same-gender loving, and men who have sex with men [MSM]),
theorists posit that there is a dominant appearance- and body focused cultural norm that is
powerful and omnipresent within the broader community; thus, body image and resultant stress,
may be pervasive concerns for sexual minority men (Signorile, 1997). Compared with their
heterosexual counterparts, sexual minority men may experience a greater pressure to conform to
a “culturally desirable” body type, body shape, and/or size that meets the standard of
attractiveness set forth by this unique culture (Halkitis, Green, & Wilton, 2004; Kaminski et al.,

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2005; Kimmel & Mahalik, 2005; Levesque & Vichesky, 2006; Siever, 1994). However, with
regard to “preferred” body types for sexual minority men, data Some studies suggest that—akin
to heterosexual women—they feel pressure to be thin (e.g., Kaminski et al., 2005), whstudies
find that sexual minority men are driven to gain bulk and have more defined musculature
(Morgan, 2008; Yelland & Tiggemann, 2003). Sexual minority men may internalize standards of
attractiveness stemming from traditional masculine body ideals, which emphasize
simultaneously being slim and muscular (Martins, Tiggemann, & Kirkbride, 2007; Pope et al.,
2000). Such pressures may increase vulnerability to body dissatisfaction and behaviors
associated with disordered eating, steroid use, and/or compulsive exercise (Parent & Moradi,
2011; Wiseman & Moradi, 2012011; Wiseman & Moradi, 2010)

2.2 MEANING CONSTRUCTION

Gilles Fauconnier in Mappings In Thought and Language define Meaning Construction as

the high-level complex mental representation that apply within and across domains when we
think, act or communicate. The domains are also mental and they include background cognitive
and conceptual models as well as locally introduced mental spaces.

In the study, Understanding Reality: The importance of Mental Representation by

William G. Huiitt, he quoted what Frankl (1985) and Wong (2012) said that human beings have
an innate ability and desire to understand the world in which they live. As they interact and
organize their experiences with the world, they do so through the construction and use of mental
representations (Markham, 1999) or mental models (Johnson-Laird, 1983). These are cognitive
representations of the real or imagined world as it supposedly exists; they are a map instead of an
exact replica of the territory they represent (Koltko-Rivera, 2004) Because they are merely
constructed representations, they are not necessarily accurate nor do they include all of the
critical features of reality. However, they are very useful in that they serve to highlight important
features of experience and facilitate the use of one’s intelligence to adapt, to modify, or select
environments in which one lives (Stenberg, 2003)
 In the article ‘Blending and Coded meaning: Literal and figurative meaning in cognitive
semantics’, Coulson & Oakley (2005) hypothesized that literal meaning plays an important role
in guiding the construction of blended cognitive models. Interpreting these blended cognitive
models, however, requires the recruitment of a large stock of extralinguistic information,
including background knowledge, knowledge of conceptual metaphors and local contextual
information.

Conceptual Blending Theory and Mental Space Theory

Conceptual Blending theory offers a general model of meaning construction in

which a small set of partially compositional processes operate in analogy, metaphor,
counterfactuals and many other semantic phenomena (Coulson and Oakley, 2000; Fauconnier
and Turner, 1998) In this theory, understanding meaning involves the construction of blended
cognitive models that include some structure from multiple input spaces models, as well as
emergent structure that arises through the processes of blending. Blending theory describes a set
of principles for combining dynamic cognitive models in a network of mental spaces
(Fauconnier,1994), or partitions of speakers’ referential representations.

Mental spaces contain partial representations of the entities and relationships in any given
scenario as perceived, imagined, remembered, or otherwise understood by a speaker. Elements
represent each of the discourse entities and simple frames represent the relationships that exist
between them.

One virtue of mental space theory is that it explains how the addressee might encode
information at the referential level by dividing it into concepts relevant to different aspects. By
partitioning the information however, the method also creates a need to keep track of the
relationship between counterpart elements and relations represented in different mental spaces.
Consequently, the notion of mappings between mental spaces is a central component of both
mental space theory and conceptual blending theory. A mapping or mental space connection, is
the understanding that an object or element in one mental space corresponds to an object or
element in another. Once elements in mental spaces are linked by mapping, the access principle

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allows speaker to refer to an element in one space by naming, describing or referring to its
counterpart in another space.

The central insight of mental space theory was that radically different types of domains
functioned similarly in the way they licensed the construction of mental spaces. For example,
temporals, beliefs, images, and dramatic situations all prompt for the construction of mental
spaces, and are all subject to the same principles of operation at the level of referential structure
(Fauconnier, 1994). The access principle then allows speakers to refer to an element in one space
by describing its counterpart in a linked mental space. It operates similarly whether the linked
spaces are a belief and a reality space, a past and a present space, or a picture and a reality space.

Conceptual blending theory is a development of mental space theory intended to account

for cases in which the content of two or more mental spaces is combined to yield novel
inferences. Conceptual blending processes proceed via the establishment and exploitation of
mappings, the activation of background knowledge, and frequently involve the use of mental
imagery and mental simulation. Blending processes are used to conceptualize actual things such
as computer viruses, fictional things such as talking animals, and even impossible things.
Interestingly, even though cognitive models in blended spaces are occasionally bizarre, the
inferences generated inside them are often useful and lead to productive changes in the
conceptualizer’s knowledge base and inferencing capacity.

Although conceptual blending theory was motivated by creative examples that demand the
construction of hybrid cognitive models, the processes that underlie these phenomena are
actually widely utilized in all sorts of cognitive and linguistic phenomena (see Coulson, 2000 for
review). At its most abstract level, conceptual blending involves the projection of partial
structure from two or more input spaces and the integration of this information in a third,
blended, space. When the information in each of the input spaces is very different from one
another, this integration can produce extremely novel results. However, there are many cases that
involve the projection of partial structure and the integration of this information that yield
predictable results.
Grounding and conceptual blending

The coded meaning model of blending we use has a Presentation space, a Reference space,
and a Blended space. The term Blended space derives from Fauconnier and Turner (2002), while
the terms Reference and Presentation spaces are inspired by Brandt and Brandt (2002). Thus
conceptual blending involves at least two input spaces in which one, the presentation space,
elicits a mental scenario that functions to evoke the other reference space. The presentation space
is akin to the notion of source domain in conceptual metaphor theory, and as Brandt (2002)
specifies, often serves as an ‘‘immediate object of wonder’’ (2002: 53), especially in language
judged figurative. The reference space represents a facet of the situation that is the present focus
of attention of the discourse participants. Essentially, this nomenclature is intended to capture the
fact that language users consider some inputs to the blend to be more important than others in
terms of their consequences for the on-going activity.

One ready-made device for modeling local contextual aspects of meaning construction
comes from Langacker’s notion of ground.1 Langacker (2002) uses the term ground to refer to
the speech event, its participants, and the surrounding context. Further, he notes that the ground
figures in the meaning of every expression because ‘‘speaker and hearer are likely to be at least
dimly aware of their role in entertaining and construing the conception evoked’’ (Langacker,
2002: 318). In his discussion of cognitive grammar and discourse, Langacker introduces a
slightly expanded notion of ground he calls the Current Discourse

Space (CDS) that he thinks constitutes a mental space. For Langacker the CDS is ‘‘the
mental space comprising those elements and relations construed as being shared by the speaker
and hearer as a basis for communication at a given moment in the flow of discourse’’ (2001:
144). Brandt and Brandt (2002) employ a similar construct which they dub the semiotic space,
arguing that it is an obligatory rather than an optional element of the blending model. For Brandt
and Brandt, mental representations of the on-going discourse, and the presumption that the
speakers’ and hearers’ mental grounding is sufficiently aligned (though never identical) are
fundamental prerequisites for meaning construction to occur. Thus the semiotic space that
emulates the immediate situation can account for some very basic factors (some would say
‘‘pragmatic banalities’’) that guide meaning construction, and greatly influence the content of

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each mental space developed thereafter (Brandt and Brandt, 2002). A number of aspects of local
context are important in mental space theory. First, the ground might involve the
conceptualizer’s mental models of the on-going activity as represented in a semiotic or a current
discourse space. It might also include mental models made accessible through symbolic or
gestural deixis, as well as the ‘‘background cognition’’ that allows the conceptualizer to set up
mental spaces, structure them, and establish mappings between them. As noted above, all
sentences rely importantly on contextual assumptions that vary in their transparency to speakers
and hearers. Indeed, some philosophers have argued that background assumptions are indefinite,
and can vary greatly from one sentence to another, ranging from explicit assumptions to tacit
knowledge to cultural skills and biological abilities (e.g., Searle, 1991). In order to discuss the
role of implicit and explicit assumptions in meaning construction, we include a grounding box in
our diagrams of conceptual integration networks. The grounding box is not a mental space, and
indeed may not even be representational in the way that other spaces in the integration network
are presumed to be. The grounding box contains the analyst’s list of important contextual
assumptions – assumptions that need not be explicitly represented by speakers, though they
influence the way that meaning construction proceeds. When those assumptions are explicitly
represented by speakers they are represented as models in mental spaces in the integration
network. In order to model the way that contextual assumptions and concerns affect meaning
construction, the grounding box can be used to specify roles, values, and experiences that ground
speakers’ subsequent representations.

The article has echoed previous scholars in noting that the critical factor is the activation
of conceptual structure from two or more domains. Given the importance of background and
contextual knowledge for the interpretation of literal and figurative language alike, it proposes
that blending theorists need to devote more explicit attention to grounding. Moreover, the goal of
this work (most notably Fauconnier and Turner,2002) has been to reveal the commonalities
amongst a vast range of examples with the ultimate goal of inducing generalizable principles.

In another study entitled “Making sense of a Blend” by Line Brandt and Per Aage Brandt,
they suggested the view of Conceptual Blending Theory as something that translates source and
Target Domains into Input Spaces—a ‘space’ or ‘mental space’ being:
 “….a partial and temporary representational structure which speakers construct when
thinking or talking about a perceived, imagined, past, present, or future situation. Mental Spaces
(or ‘spaces’ for short) are not equivalent to domains, but, rather, they depend on them: spaces
represent particular scenarios which are structured by given domains.”

Gilles Fauconnier and Mark Turner in an article Conceptual Integration Networks come to
define Conceptual Integration-“blending”- as a general cognitive operation. It is dynamic, supple
and active in the moment of thinking. In blending, structure from different mental spaces is
projected to a separate mental space. Frames according to them structure our conceptual and
social life. As shown in the work of Fillmore, Langacker, Goldberg and others, they are also, in
their most generic and schematic forms, a basis for grammatical constructions. Word are
themselves viewed as constructions and lexical meaning is an intricate web of connected frames.
Connected Mental Spaces account for reference and inference phenomena across wide stretches
of discourse but also for sentence -internal multiple readings. Mappings at all levels operate
between such spaces, and like frames are not specifically linguistic. Connectors and conceptual
connections also operate at all levels, linking mental spaces and other domains for coreference
(Nunberg, 1978) and for analogy and metaphor (Turner 1991, Sweetser 1990)

Mental Space are the input structures, generic structures and blend structures in the network.
They are small conceptual packets constructed as we think and talk, for purposes of local
understanding and action. Mental spaces are very partial assemblies containing elements and
structured by frames and cognitive models. They can be used generally to model dynamic
mappings in thought and language.

In trying to understand the meaning of a given text or utterance, one must also take into
consideration what a Denotation and Connotation is. The Denotative meaning labels the
connections between meaningful items of language and aspects of the world-real or imagined-
that language users talk ad write about (Griffiths, 2006). Connotation on the other hand refers to
the idea or a quality that a word makes you think about in addition to its meaning. It is the
meaning of a word apart from the thing it explicitly names or describes. It is both an implication
and a significance of a word.

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 Along with meaning construction is the representation it carries with it. Hall (1997)
briefly define it as the production of meaning through language. The shorter Oxford English
Dictionary suggests two relevant meanings for the word:

• To represent something is to describe or depict it. To call it up in the mind by

description or portrayal or imagination; to place a likeness of it before us in our mind or in the
senses.

• To represent also means to symbolize, stand for, to be a specimen of, or to

substitute for.

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 2.3 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

PRESENTATION REFERENCE
SPACE SPACE

GROUNDING BOX

BLENDED SPACE

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 CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

3.1 RESEARCH DESIGN

The research design deemed appropriate to utilize in this study is the Qualitative research
design. According to Bergs (1989:2) Qualitative Research refers to the meaning, concepts,
definitions, characteristics and definition of things. This study is made by Qualitative research
design because it observes what Fraenkle, et al (1932: pp,426) said as characteristics of
Qualitative research which are:

 The natural setting is the direct source of data, and the researcher is the key
instrument in Qualitative research

 Qualitative data are collected in the form of words or pictures rather than numbers

 Qualitative research is concerned with process as well product

 Qualitative researchers tend to analyze their data inductively

3.2 DATA USED

The term data refers to the kind of information researchers obtain on the subject of their
research (Fraenkel, et al, 2011: 111)

In this research, the data used by the researchers are radio advertisements, specifically Sexual
Enhancer capsules namely P-max, Birada capsule and Ener-plus capsule.

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3.3 DATA COLLECTION TECHNIQUE

This research uses content analysis, where the content of the data is in the form of words.
Fraenkel et al define content analysis as follows:

Content Analysis is a technique that enables researchers to study human behavior in an

indirect way through an analysis of their communications. It is just what its name implies: the
analysis of the usually, but not necessarily written contents of communication. Textbooks, essays,
newspapers, novels, magazine articles, cookbooks, songs, political speeches, advertisements and
pictures can be analyzed.

In this research, these are the techniques used in collecting the data used in this study.

Step 1: The researchers looked for Cebuano sexual enhancer

products in radio advertisements

Step 2: The researchers then downloaded the advertisements

and listened to it.

Step 3: The researchers then transcribe the advertisements and

wrote it down in a piece of paper.

3.4 DATA ANALYSIS PROCEDURE

For the data analysis procedure, the researchers take into consideration Miles Theory
(1992:20). It follows a three-step of data analysis in a Qualitative research which are the
following:

 Data Reduction- It means the process of selecting, simplifying and transforming the
raw data.
 It is in this procedure that the researchers classified words and phrases that can
be associated with the term ‘Pagkalalake’ They have also classified the context
where the words and phrases are uttered.

 Data Display- Refers to organizing the information which allows the researcher to
draw the conclusion.

In this procedure, the information was analyzed using the Conceptual Blending
Theory as its framework making use of figures to classify the denotative, connotative,
the blended meaning and context.

 Conclusion/Verification- The last step is drawing out the conclusion as the result of
the research.

It is in this procedure that the researchers have verified and finalized the
conclusions based on the research objectives which can be shown Chapter IV Results
and Discussions. The Data Reduction and Data Display also are deemed very
necessary in drawing the conclusion

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 CHAPTER IV

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

4.1 To determine words and phrases associated by the term “Pagkalalake”

The following are the words and phrases determined by the researchers to associate
the term Pagkalalake.

 Birada Capsule Radio Advertisement

From this Radio Advertisement alone these are the words and phrases
associated by the Pagkakalake:

‘Maypa imong ulo gahi’ ‘Immune Booster’

‘Kusog og Kaisog’ ‘Sexual Enhancer’

‘Energy Booster’

 Ener-Plus Capsule Radio Advertisement

From this Radio Advertisement alone these are the words and phrases
associated by the Pagkakalake:

‘Aktib jud kaayo’ ‘Kondisyon kaayo akong lawas’

‘Manginit akong lawas’ ‘Mag pinsing-pinsing sa akong asawa’

‘Lami kay ididang-didang’ ‘Daw moabot ang tinta’

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  P-max Capsule Radio Advertisement
From this Radio Advertisement alone these are the words and phrases associated
by the Pagkakalake:

‘Mura kag si Superman gabie’

‘Standing Ovation akong performance’

It is also important to note that these words and phrases are the researchers’ basis for
choosing phrases and analyzing its meaning using the Conceptual Blending Theory though the
researchers only limit their choice of phrases into 5.

4.2 Analyze the meaning of pagkalalake base on selected phrases from the ads.
The following are the analysis of the researchers in terms of constructing the
meaning of the selected phrases/statement in view of the Conceptual Blending Theory.

2.1
 Mura jud kag si Superman gabie
 You were like Superman last night

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 The statement “Mura jud kag si Superman last night” (You were like Superman last
night) is taken from the radio advertisement P-max. We could have a clear understanding to this
statement except for the term ‘Superman’ which was used to describe the husband. The term
somehow made the statement ambiguous in terms of understanding its full meaning. For all have
probably known Superman as the famous hero created by American writer Jerry Siegel and
Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1993. He was called Superman in the short science
fiction fanzine “The Reign of the Super-man” published on 1933 and was made popular through
comic books and movies. He is seen as the superhero that uses immense solar-fueled powers and
defends mankind against all manner of threats while championing truth and justice (Comic
Vine,2018).

With all facts mentioned above in mind, we then begin to think of why an ordinary man like the
husband being called as Superman by the wife to think that the husband does not possess any
superpowers at all. In order to derive the full meaning that the statement conveys, the researchers
used the Conceptual Blending Theory as developed by Fauconnier and Turner as shown in
Fig.2.1.

In the analysis, the Grounding Box must first be established. The researchers listed both the
participants of the communicative event which is the husband and the wife. Next is the forum
where the conversation happened and that is the bedroom. More importantly is the circumstance
or the situation which is in the morning after waking up, the wife was happy and humming and it
is also when the statement was uttered. This Grounding box in general serves as our Context.

After the Grounding Box is established, the researchers then identified the denotative definition
of the term Superman and placed it in the first mental space which is the Presentation Space.

The Merriam Webster Dictionary define Superman as a superior man of extraordinary or

superhuman power and achievements. From here we get the idea of what Superman is, however
it doesn’t capture the thought of a husband as a Superman because he lacks extraordinary
superhuman power and achievement. So, we have to set up another mental space which is the
Reference Space. We have to identify ideas that would connote or is somehow related to the term
Superman. Vocabulary.com gave us connotations of what Superman is as the one who prevails
by virtue of being a ruthless egoist of superior strength, cunning and force of will. Demarest
(2010) in her paper Superheroes, Superpowers, and Sexuality noted what the anthropologist
Horace Miner write in the satirical “Body Rituals of The Nacerima” that Americans are
notoriously obsessed by physical appearance that they used it partly to verify and identify
sexuality. Such is the case of Superman depicted as the perfect body, perfect man every woman’s
obsessed with sexually. It is indeed true that Physical appearance can be an important, and often
distress producing, part of self-concept for sexual minority men and even men in general
(Kaminski, Chapman, Haynes, & Own, 2005; Yelland & Tiggemann, 2003)
The Superman Syndrome—The Magic of Myth in the pursuit of Power notes that in the struggle
for dominance and power those who succeed in seductions have increased sexual energy and
become more and more of what they are—dominant Alpha Males. The converse is also true.
Decreased Sexual energy accompanies defeat (Campbell, 2010). In an article published last
August 27, 2018 by Dr. Harry Fisch entitled ‘Are you Superman or Clark Kent in the Bedroom?
Sexpert on Male Sexuality Dr. Harry Fisch Weighs In’ talks about male sexuality and
performance concerns on sexual experiences by partners. Also, in the book ‘The Intimate Male:
Candid Discussions About Women, Sex and Relationships’, it notes that Superman has been the
unconscious and sometimes conscious role model, modeling men’s sexual self-concepts with
men finding its image suffocating for them because of its emphasis on power, control, perfection
and incredible strength. It has also been a bit problematic to their sexual image as women tend to
set their standards the superman way (Levine&Barbach)

After setting up both the presentation and reference space in the speakers mind, a mapping or
mental space connection activated by the access principle will then work to allow the speaker to
refer to an element in one space (Presentation space) by naming, describing or referring to its
counterpart in another space (Reference Space).

After which, the Blended Space can then be derived, we not get a fully derived meaning of the
utterance that is to say that the husband performed like Superman in bed last night because he
shows extra strength and effort in the performance while being cunning, active and has the force
of will to make the wife happy. It can also be derived that the husband has shown dominance in
the pursuit of power by an increased sexual energy and control thus making him the dominant
Alpha Male. This performance impressed and made the wife happy and satisfied, thus he was
called Superman of the night.

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 2.2

 Standing Ovation akong Performance gabie

 My performance last night was a standing ovation

The second utterance “Standing ovation akong performance last nigth.” Is the husband’s
response to the wife when she said that he was like Superman last night. Basically, this second
statement is a continuation of the first one. So, what then makes this statement ambigous? At
first, one might say that the word “standing ovation” is that something that makes meaning

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unclear yet one can argue that it is not because it is use in its literal interpretation which is
according to Merriam Webster Dictionary, it is an occurrence in which people at a play, an event
or a perfomance stand up and appluad to show approval or appreciation. However, the term
“Performance” is used in the utterance without proper specification. One can then think of what
performance the speaker is trying to mean which gave him a standing ovation that night.

Analyzing the meaning is much like the process employed in the first statement. First, ,the
researchers build up the context of the event which is what is inside the grounding box in Fig. 2.2.
The participants which is the husband and the wife, the forum which is the bedroom lastly is the
circumstance which is in the morning after waking up, the wife is happy and humming then she
uttered the expression “Mura jud kag si Superman gabie” followed by the husband’s response,
“Standing ovation akong performance gabie.” After the Grounding box is established, the
researchers then begun to define the word ‘Performance’ in its denotative meaning as the
presentation space of the study. It has been defined by the Merriam Websters Dictionary as “the
act of doing an activity or an execution of something” It can mean then that Performance denotes
an action of doing an activity or even something. From here it can mean that it has a very broad
interpretation so to narrow this up, the researchers then looked for the possible connotation of the
term which then served as its Reference Space.

It is by no surprise that it connotes a lot of activities from all forms of dancing, singing,
theatre plays, sports and even in an employee’s performance in his or her job and etc. but what
there is only one performance that seems to fit in the requirements set by the grounding box
which is the Sexual Performance.

In the article ‘Starting the Conversation Around Sexual Performance by Dr. Harry Fisch a
Clinical Professor of Urology and Reproductive Medicine last August 27, 2018, he said that
when it comes to man’s performance in the bedroom, most men either don’t realize they have a
problem, they are just too embarrassed to talk about it or they don’t understand that the problem
they have is also experienced by a lot of people which is Impotence. Healthline an online health
advice website also published ways on how to improve Male Sexual Performance which stresses
out the idea that if a man is looking for something to maintain his sexual activity with her partner
in bed all night, he is not alone because many men are looking for ways to enhance their sexual

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performance. This can include improving existing problems or searching for new ways to keep
their partner happy. Though there are plenty of male enhancement pills on the market, there are
many simple ways to stay firmer and last longer without having to visit a pharmacy and which is
mainly just the same with how you keep your heart healthy because both works samely on blood
pressure. There is also a thing called Sexual Performance anxiety in which men constantly worry
on how well they’re doing it can actually lead to problems like Erectile Dysfunction
(Langendoerfer, 2013)

After setting up both the presentation and reference space in the speaker’s mind, a mapping
or mental space connection activated by the access principle will then work to allow the speaker
to refer to an element in one space (Presentation space) by naming, describing or referring to its
counterpart in another space (Reference Space).

With all things in mind, the Blended Space can then be derived. That is to say that the Husband
is very much proud to say that his Sexual Performance in bed with his wife is excellent and
highly applauded that is to say Standing Ovation.

It can also be seen why the husband feels so much pride to say that his performance
deserved a standing ovation because as stated above many men are suffering from impotence,
sexual anxiety and erectile dysfunction among others. It must have been a privileged and pride
for men to give an Superman like performance to make their partner satisfied and happy.

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2.3

 Pwedi nako mag pinsing-pinsing sa akong asawa

 I am now ready to be in a bedroom battle with my wife

The statement “Pwedi nako mag pinsing-pinsing sa akong asawa” is uttered by a

man/husband in an interview after being asked about his body’s reaction to the sexual enhancer
capsule that he has taken.
In this utterance the researchers identified a lexical ambiguity understanding it’s the meaning it
wants to convey because of the term “Pinsing-Pinsing”. Basically ot is something less familiar to
the Cebuano Language and as observed is somehow not appropraitely used in the statement. So,
to begin the analysis, the researchers estabished the Grounding Box of the contex of the
communcative event which are the followin—Participant is the husband/man, Forum is in an
interview and the Circumstance is After taking Ener-Plus Capsule, a sexual enhancer it was what
the husband feels towards his wife he said the utterance.

After the Grounding Box have been established, the next to look into is the Denotative meaning
of the term which is defined by Cebuano-English Dictionary as—to fight or duel using swords.
From this definition alone, one can really attest the inappropriateness of its use in the sentence
because it would be odd to think of a man who is ready to fight or duel with his wife using sword
after taking a sexual enhancer capsule. It doesn’t make sense unless the husband has an extreme
grudge and anger towards the wife which is most unlikely to happen given the conditions set by
Grounding Box. So, the next step is to look for its Connotative Definition as place it in its
Reference Space. The researchers found out that the term “Pinsing-Pinsing” connotes to a game
played by children using sword toys and even knights and soldiers. It also connotes to the idea od
Bedroom Battle between a husband and a wife normally done in the bed. From the conditions in
the Grounding Box, the researchers find the idea of Bedroom Battle more appropriate to use in
the statement.

Tingletouch published an article about Bedroom Battle saying that it is sex game for couples
where they lay against each other to win rewards in the form of sexy challenges. Couples will
decide which sexy challenge to enjoy, how quickly to heat things up, ang how long the game
lasts. It even says that sexual preference does not matter as long as one likes sex, the game is for
that person.

In a more direct and realistic interpretation, ‘Pinsing-Pinsing’ or Bedroom Battle could mean
exactly as a Sexual intercourse. It would then employ characteristics of a duel or fight where it is
intense, it uses streght and it needs endurance. There is also that person that controls or
dominates the activity much more like what a Sexual Intercourse between couples are. In an
article entitled ‘A Man’s view about Sex’ published on March 16, 2010, it states that for an
average man, sex is more of a physiological and basic need that a pure drive for sex. The
physical need to release is apparent in so many ways. Sex for a man releases tension, allows him
to rid himself to pent-up stimulants that are aching to be gone out of his body.

After setting up both the presentation and reference space in the speaker’s mind, a mapping or
mental space connection activated by the access principle will then work to allow the speaker to
refer to an element in one space (Presentation space) by naming, describing or referring to its
counterpart in another space (Reference Space).

With all things in mind, the Blended Space can then be derived. That is to say that the Husband
after taking a sexual enhancer capsule, feels ready to engage in an intense bedroom battle or
sexual intercourse with his wife.

It can also be drawn from the idea above that men really give so much importance to sex that it
has become more like their physiological need. Also that Sex shouldn’t be used as a bonus
system for a good behavior, it should be used as a critical tool of success that is equally shared in
a relationship.

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27
2.4

 Lami na kaayo ididang-didang

 I feel so delighted and excited to flirt

The statement “Lami na kayo ididang-didang” was uttered by a husband after being asked
about his experience or his body’s response after taking Ener-Plus Capsule, a Sexual Enhancer
known to men. Cleary, the statement has a lexical ambiguity in the word “Ididang-didang” itself.
It is a Cebuano term yet is still ambiguous and not known to the researchers. So, the quest for
finding out what it is and to fully derive the meaning of the statement the researchers begun by
setting out the Grounding Box or the Context which the utterance occurred. The participant for

29
this statement is the husband, the forum is in an interview and the Circumstance was that after
the man has taken up the capsule, his body reacted to the caspsule thus making him said the
utterance.

After setting up the Grounding box, the next to establish is to define the term which made the
statement ambiguous in terms of its Denotative definition. Binisaya.com define the word
“Didang/Ididang-didang” as a verb which means scavenge or to make clean by removing dirt,
filth or unwanted substances. It could also mean salvage which is to collect discarded or refused
material. This is now then the Presentation Space of the Analysis. However, with these
definitions in mind, it cannot satisfy the meaning that is to yield by the utterance. One cannot
normally do such thing as scavenge and salvage after taking up a Sexual Enhancer capsule. So,
to further support the analysis, the researchers then looked for possible connotations to the word.
They found out Philander, Womanize, Romance, Flirt or dally with someone’s emotions are
some of those that connotes the term Ididang-Didang according to Binisaya.com

With the Grounding box in consideration, the researchers find it appropriate to use the term
“Flirt” as a connotation to the term, still it fits the purpose and conditions set in the context.

Psychology Today published an article about Flirting saying that is a time-honored way of
signaling interest and attraction, to say nothing of mutual awareness. It is kind of silent language
spoken by men and women around the world. Flirting is part of the behavioral repertoire we
come equipped with to meet nature’s most basic command—find a good mate and multiply. It is
also not a trivial activity; it requires many skills: intellect, body language, creativity, empathy. At
its best, flirting can be high art, whether the flirter is vying for a soul mate, manipulating a
potential customer or just being playful.

The process of flirting allows us to signal interest to another in small increments which is
specially appealing to a partner enables both parties to gauge the interest level of another. The
gestures and movements used in flirting provide reliable clues to biological and psychological
health.

As cited by Vanderlin (2013) in her study ‘Flirting Style and Sexual Orientation’ , Flirting is an
important social behavior that is influenced by both evolutionary and cultural factors and men
and women flirt in different ways (Moore, 2010) Differences such as these are probably due to

30
both different reproductive constraints associated with being male or female, as well as
culturally defined gender roles.

Hall et. al. (2010) argued that how flirting behaviors are performed depends on a person’s
communication style and intent.

After setting up both the presentation and reference space in the speaker’s mind, a mapping
or mental space connection activated by the access principle will then work to allow the speaker
to refer to an element in one space (Presentation space) by naming, describing or referring to its
counterpart in another space (Reference Space).

With all things in mind, the Blended Space can then be derived. That is to say that the Husband
or say the man interviewed felt ready and excited to flirt or romanced with his wife. Normally
since the capsule is a sexual enhancer, the researchers included the feeling of arousal as a the
body’s response and signal to flirt.

It can also be drawn from the idea above that men are really specified to certain roles that they
must met and observed. Some psychologist even argue that the way a person flirts may depend
on biological constraints described by the evolutionary theory (Moore, 2010) Such is the case of
men in terms of the society’s sexual expectation to them.

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 CHAPTER V

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

Masculinity has long been a major issue when it comes to understanding what really is it
that makes a man. Many scholars in the field have also been interested in this and thus have
explored different domains from which the idea of masculinity can be defined and characterize.
Even culture and the society have its part to say in molding the norms and gender roles that must
be played and observed by men. It has been become much more like men are being put by
burden to carry the responsibility of satisfying and filling up their roles to be free from
judgement and discrimination.

What is more interesting about Masculinity is that it has influenced most of what people see,
hear or notice in their everyday living. A once sensitive and censored topic has reached the
internet, the television and the radio—all of which are means of communication. From this the
idea can be drawn that somehow Masculinity or Pagkalalake is trying to communicate
something.With that in mind, the research is made to examine the idea of Masculinity by
exploring Radio Advertisements more specifically Sexual Enhancers.

Sexual Enhancers are capsules that are just few of the booming products in the market today
because sexual performance specifically by men as become a major issue as one basis of being a
man. So, the researchers find it appropriate and interesting to explore such field in determining
what it really is that define Pagkalalake. This study uses 3 radio advertisements—P-max, Ener-
Plus Capsule and Birada Capsule.

With a Qualitative Research design, the study will be answering two objectives and that is first 1)
To identify words and phrases associated with the term ‘Pagkalalake’. The researchers then
found out a number 13 phrases and sentences that can be associated with the term. Most of the
identified phrases make use of metaphors and symbolisms so in order to understand what these
means and how they contribute to the idea of ‘Pagkalalake’, the second objective is made which
is 2) To Analyze the meaning of pagkalalake base on selected phrases from the radio
advertisements. In order to meet this objective, the researchers use the Conceptual Blending

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Theory as its framework in deriving the meaning of some ambigous statements and even those
with unclear semantic content.

Conceptual Blending theory offers a general model of meaning construction in which a small
set of partially compositional processes operate in analogy, metaphor, counterfactuals and many
other semantic phenomena (Coulson and Oakley, 2000; Fauconnier and Turner, 1998) In this
theory, understanding meaning involves the construction of blended cognitive models that
include some structure from multiple input spaces models, as well as emergent structure that
arises through the processes of blending. Blending theory describes a set of principles for
combining dynamic cognitive models in a network of mental spaces (Fauconnier,1994), or
partitions of speakers’ referential representations. The mental spaces being referred here is the
Presentation Space utilized in this study as the Denotative Meaning of the ambigous word and
the Reference Space which is its Connotative Meaning. The access principle will then allows
speakers to refer to an element in one space by describing its counterpart in a linked mental
space taking into consideration the Grounding box which is the communicative context from
which the utterance is spoken. With all of these established, the blended space or the meaning
can then be derived.

Having analyzed the data and constructed the meaning the researchers found out 3 interesting
concepts in results than can be associated with the term ‘Pagkalalake’.

1. The analysis has found out The Superman Syndrome—The Magic of Myth in the
pursuit of Power which notes that in the struggle for dominance and power those who
succeed in seductions have increased sexual energy and become more and more of
what they are—dominant Alpha Males. It can be understood that men are expected to
be dominant and powerful towards their submissive wives even in terms of Sexual
Performance because it is what their biological upbringing and the role that society
thinks of what a man is.
2. It is in their pride and part of their self-concept to be good sexual performers. It is not
just doing it simply to satisfy their wives but also more to feed their ego. With the
pressing issues on sexual anxiety, erictile dysfuntion, impotence and many other
problems related to their sexual performance, it has become more like a pride to them
to performed in a standing ovation in bed.

33
 3. It has been mentioned that sex has become more like a physiological need for men to
release rather than just the pure drive for sex. Part of this is what was cited by
Vanderlin (2013) in her study ‘Flirting Style and Sexual Orientation’ in which she said
that Flirting is an important social behavior that is influenced by both evolutionary and
cultural factors. In Thompson’s Hegemonic Masculinity he said that one of the factors
to be called a man is to be seen as highly sexual with women thus given the fact that
they are to play expected roles and observe norms to prove that they are man enough.
Men are pressed to play this part and it can be highly seen in how they live in the
society. It is not like men are raised to be maniacs but it is actually what the standard
that they have to meet.

It is also very important to note that literal meaning plays an important role in guiding the
construction of blended cognitive models. Interpreting these blended cognitive models, requires
the recruitment of a large stock of extralinguistic information, including background knowledge,
knowledge of conceptual metaphors and local contextual information. One will really find it very
hard to analyze the meaning of certain words and phrases if one will not consider the context of
the communicative event.

The researchers further acknowledge the weakness of the framework in that it cannot be
used in all statements like “Maypa imong ulo gahi” because this type of statements requiers an
emerging structure and even a background understanding that the Denotative/Presentation and
Connotative/Reference Space cannot suffice.

Even so, the researchers would want this study to be an additional literature to the existing
studies in the field chosen with hopes that some who are interested in this field can actually use
this as their reference. Also, they recommend that it would be a good to study this time the idea
of “Pagkababae” in terms of Sexual Enhancers.

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 Merriam Websters Dictionary
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