The male gaze, imperialist narratives and political conflicts in Sudan

Nada Ali

Chapter 18 in Research Handbook on Gender, Violence and Law, 2026, pp 299-314 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter uses feminist film theory to explain how the international community contained rather than bolstered the demands of the December Revolution's (2018–2019) for radical political transformation in Sudan. Applying feminist insights on gender and power relations, I explore international law and international relations narratives on conflicts in the Global South. I use Anne Orford's theoretical framing of humanitarian intervention to demonstrate that the international community's response reflects a story of Sudan infused with Western prejudice and a distorted self-image that sees political action as the exclusive domain of Western countries. Drawing analogies from feminist theorizing in cinema, I argue that the oversimplification of Sudan's story and conflicts entrenches international law's colonial logic. I show how the use of gender as an analytical tool offers emancipatory possibilities for the Global South.

Keywords: Feminist Film Theory; International Law; Democratization; Conflict Resolution; Sudan December Revolution; The Male Gaze; Post-colonial Theory; Psychoanalysis and Law (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035319398
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