Feminist theory

This study uses Karlyn Campbell's concept of feminine rhetorical style as a theoretical framework for analyzing the rhetoric of Barbara Bush's 1990 Wellesley College commencement address. Through a systematic evaluation of Barbara Bush's speech, this study reveals that her rhetoric exemplifies feminine rhetorical style. The analysis also concludes that Barbara Bush's personal tone, specifically her use of narrative and humor, is the most useful and effective characteristic of her feminine rhetorical style. Using feminine rhetorical style, Barbara Bush successfully dissipates some of the tension she faced prior to the graduation ceremony at Wellesley College. Therefore, this study reveals that feminine rhetorical style is an attractive alternative for speakers seeking to build identification in hostile situations when identification is, or appears to be, lacking.

Since her creation in 1941, cultural critics have cited Wonder Woman as an emblem of femininity. In 1972, the American mainstream feminist movement--through Ms. magazine--officially accepted the character as a representation of feminism. When writers at Ms. criticized changes in the character, in which she abandoned her costume and superpowers, they neglected to consider Wonder Woman's history as American World War II propaganda. In doing so, they allowed the re-vamped 1973 version of the character, and her subsequent incarnations, to ignore the duality of her existence as both a feminist icon and a reinforcement of dominant American ideologies.

The issue of sexual exploitation of children occurs in various forms and across socio-economic, racial, and cultural classes. Children experience abuse at the hands of authority figures who are family members, friends, and sometimes strangers. The discussions on this social issue tell the stories of children who have experienced abuse along with the processes and outcomes that arise in providing assistance to help them cope with these unwanted experiences. Discourses in the fields of psychology, social work, medical sciences, and law have in their own unique style, taken different measures to highlight and address this social problem. However,there is remarkably little discussion held on the institutional changes that are required to stop this practice of child sexual abuse and public discourse and response is not reflective of the urgency required to address the issue. I argue that to address the issue of child sexual abuse requires addressing all the elements entrenched in the institutions of patriarchy and compulsory heterosexuality that fosters and promotes the subjugation of women and children, which is a topic best addressed through feminist theory.

In his article, "The Kentucky Fried Rat : Legends and Modem Society", Gary Alan Fine suggests that American society is a folk community in which urban legends play the role of negotiating changes in social structure and other aspects of daily life (Fine 2005). Fine's argument, however, is limiting in that it only considers urban legends within the United States and fails to encompass those from abroad. As such, this thesis expands Fine's original argument to a global scale by examining urban legends, crossculturally, that involve instances of women being brutalized and objects or people being contaminated. Ultimately, the thematic elements and grotesque imagery that are used in these two categories of legends are a symbolic expression of tensions surrounding the movement of women out of the home and the increased global spread of urbanism.

In this thesis, I argue that all bodies are material-semiotic entities, produced by both natural and cultural processes. Western anti-FGM discourse is predicated upon the belief that the body must be kept in its "natural" or "pristine" state, and that any practice which violates the body's natural "perfection" is mutilation. Implied by this discourse is the false notion that Western bodies are given and left unaltered. By drawing comparisons between Western genital practices and non-Western genital practices, I undermine the ideology that erases the working of culture on Western bodies while highlighting the "mutilating" powers exercised on the bodies of Others. Current imperialist hegemony perpetuates the view of African women as passive victims of barbaric tradition in need of rescuing by Western liberated women. We must, instead, work toward theories that account for differences in experience and history, rather than those which posit universal understandings of patriarchy and domination.

This thesis will investigate the ways in which Hillary Rodham Clinton, former First Lady of the United States and the Junior United States Senator from New York State, appropriated strategies of liberal feminism in her political career as the first modern, working mother to serve as First Lady. A feminist First Lady, Clinton broke through the social expectations placed upon that role in an unprecedented manner by taking an active part in the political strategy and substance of her husband's administration. Her successful campaign for the United States Senate in 2000 as the first former First Lady to hold such an office proved that she has her own political clout independent of her husband. Hillary Rodham Clinton has all the marks of a liberal feminist success story: a strong political background and educational credentials, unfettered ambition, mastery of public discourse, her own political identity, and a real commitment to tough policymaking and representation in Washington. Yet despite this success, liberal feminism presents problems for the women's movement generally. After mapping the history of Hillary Rodham Clinton as a feminist political figure, I will examine whether liberal feminism is adequate in challenging patriarchal structures and other related forms of domination.