Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons^™

Queer Alchemies: Radical Futurity In The Shell Of The Now, Elizabeth R. Canfield

Theses and Dissertations

This work operates at the intersection of academics, art, and activism. Within queer studies there is a tension between assimilation and liberation, sometimes situated as between pragmatism and utopia. This work re-examines Frankfurt school Marxist views of utopia through a queer theoretical lens in order to employ the radical imagination and queer futurity to examine new ways of practicing liberation. Drawing from theorists like Judith Butler, Jose Esteban Munoz, and Gloria Anzaldua, this work uses art (film, writing, zine-making, and sound) as a way to envision and enact a better world situated in the present.

Learning To Read (Gender): Children’S Animation And The New Heterosexism, Kaelyn Flowerday

Anthós

This paper examines and compares two American animated productions targeting elementary and middle school children, and in doing so aims to elucidate the handling of gender in similar television programs and feature films of the past three decades. These animated works are treated here as a Foucauldian apparatus, one predicated on the force of systematically structured observation, which functions to manipulate power relations in the favor of hetero- and cis-male order. The Disney feature Beauty and the Beast supplies a case for investigating the heterosexist discourses of these contemporary animated media. However, as will be shown, comparatively feminist animated works …

Gender Differences In Pay Expectations At Three Career Stages, Elijah Rogeay Seay

Honors Program Theses

Major and Konar (1984) found a difference between genders in pay expectations, but no difference in the perceived fairness of expected pay. In my study, I evaluated pay expectation differences in gender at three career stages. In previous studies, researchers have only looked at what individuals earn at the beginning and peak of their careers. I specifically examined both men and women and asked them to indicate their expected pay at the beginning, middle and end of their careers. In this study the main effect for gender was significant such that males had higher pay expectations than females. In addition, …

The Rainbow Effect: Exploring The Implications Of Queer Representation In Film And Television On Social Change, Maya S. Reddy

CMC Senior Theses

In this thesis, I explore how specific films and television shows use the preexisting structure and mechanics of narrative film in order to create queer characters and stories that defy their otherness and stereotypes, thus creating a profound cinematic experience. Not only does the manipulation of these structures and mechanics heighten the realism and depth of the narrative at hand, it also enhances audience identification by allowing queer viewers to find themselves and straight viewers to understand the “other.” In this manner, the New New Queer Cinema and television have had lasting effects on the modern gay rights movement, changing …

The Development Of Personal Status Law In Jordan & Iraq, Kelsey Cherland

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis explores the historical development of personal status law, which governs a person’s marriage, divorce, and custody rights. It is significant because it is part of a framework that has defined women’s rights for centuries. I will argue that personal status law is a patriarchal framework that has been reinforced over time, leading up to the creation of nation-states in the Middle East. As such, this is the “institution” of personal status that will be traced using historical institutionalism theory. In this thesis I will argue that personal status has undergone a critical juncture, or crucial moment of potential …

Incongruent Premodern And Modern Beauty Ideals: A Case Study Of South Korea And India's Reconciliation Of Current Beauty Trends With Foundational Religious Ideals, Minger Bropleh

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis is an in-depth analysis of beauty ideals in South Korea and India. These two countries have recently turned to skin lightening and cosmetic surgery in order to achieve their new beauty standards. Not only do these two countries share a propensity for those two trends, but they also have an overwhelming majority of the population that identifies with a specific religion; Hinduism in the case of India and Confucianism in the case of South Korea. However, it is not clear that the current beauty ideal in each country aligns with the beauty ideal set out in the respective …

Amongst Women”: O’Brien, Beckett, And The Magdalen “Réamhscéal, Tiffany N. Manning

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

It is hard to escape the portrayal of what twentieth century life might have been like for a penitent living in one of Ireland’s Magdalen Laundries. With its saturation in contemporary pop culture, the morality of these Irish Institutions has been called into question through blockbuster films and best-selling books. However, some believe that the many public representations of the Magdalen Laundries fail to tell the whole story. As tension surrounding Magdalen Laundries, as well as Church and State involvement in them, has continuously grown over the last couple of decades, many citizens of Ireland and, indeed, the world have …

Islamist And Secularist Women In Egyptian Politics: Convergence Or Divergence?, Ahmed Bekhet Mr.

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Islam oppresses women and has many restrictions on women’s participation in politics. Women have fewer rights under the Islamic Shari‘a (law). Is this true or not? Does Islam really exclude women from political participation? Are Islamists, who have their political agenda, supporting or oppressing women? Are Islamist feminists, who are a contemporary phenomenon especially in the Middle East, politically active or inactive? Are liberal or secular women in Egypt more democratic than Islamist women or the opposite? Such questions will be addressed in the following research with emphasis on examining the role of women in Egyptian politics during Ikwhan’s - …

The Impact Of Islam As A Religion And Muslim Women On Gender Equality: A Phenomenological Research Study, Sonia D. Galloway

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine and explore the meanings, structures and essence of the lived experience of Muslim women via an Islamic theoretical (Kalam) framework. The study's goal was to describe a detailed and comprehensive description of how Muslim women use Islam to promote gender equality and improve treatment within their daily lives. The critical importance of gleaning a better understanding of Islam and the perceived invisibility of Muslim women motivated the researcher to undertake this study.

The research study included a qualitative phenomenology research approach. Data were collected from multiple sources: observations, semi-structured individual interviews and …

Strategic Deployments Of ‘Sisterhood’ And Questions Of Solidarity At A Women’S Development Project In Janakpur, Nepal, Coralynn V. Davis

Faculty Journal Articles

Linguistic uses of ‘sisterhood’ provide a window into disparate understandings of relationality among virtual and actual interlocutors in women’s development across vectors of caste, class, ethnicity and nationality. In this essay, I examine the trope of ‘sisterhood’ as it was employed at a women’s development project in Janakpur, Nepal, in the 1990s. I demonstrate that the use of this common signifier of kinship with culturally disparate ‘signifieds’ created a confusion of meaning, and differential readings of the politics of relationality. In my view, ‘sister,’ as used at this project, was a multivalent, strategically deployed, and divergently interpreted term. In particular, …

Misusing Freud: Psychoanalysis And The Rise Of Homosexual Conversion Therapy, Jonathan Barrett

Psi Sigma Siren

Current ideas of conversion therapy often focus on extremist religious groups that wish to cleanse the world of what they view as an immoral abomination, homosexuality. However, conversion therapy started out as mostly scientific curiosity. Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic research on human sexuality helped set the standards on psychosexual study in the twentieth century. Unfortunately, his views on homosexuality became distorted in the 1950s when psychoanalysts and psychiatrists used his methods of therapy but ignored his conclusions on homosexuality and sexual nature itself. Such distortions led to the destruction of many lives within the homosexual community.

Reparative therapy on homosexuals exploded …

Marriage And Citizenship In The United States, Shanella Gardner

Psi Sigma Siren

Most countries associate being a citizen with having certain legal rights and being born in that country, although this has not always been the case, especially in the United States. When writing the U. S. Constitution, the founding fathers were thinking of white, male landowners to be given the legal rights as citizens. This would leave the remaining population of women, African Americans and other people of color to fight to be recognized as citizens. The Naturalization Act of 1790 was the first legislative act that defined who could be citizens in the United States. It allowed citizenship for immigrants …

Male-Female Wage-Gap: A Comparison Of Different Employment Classes, Richard V. Foster, Jeffrey Waddoups, Heather Lynn Lusty, Thomas Mike Carroll

McNair Poster Presentations

This study is being conducted and presented in two parts. The first part, this report, is a statistical examination of the male-female wage gap. By evaluating the average (mean) differences between men and women within the workplace, pay differential trends can be ascertained and examined to support the need for additional study. The second stage, to be conducted Fall 2014 at the University of Las Vegas, Nevada, will use regression analysis to differentiate between explained and unexplained portions of said pay-gap to better understand how the remaining gap is related to discrimination. The data analyzed will establish baselines for both …

Women's Research Institute Of Nevada Newsletter, Joanne Goodwin, Women's Research Institute Of Nevada

Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Mothers, Daughters, And The Intent To Breastfeed, Aquila Brooke Mendez-Valdez

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

The decision to breastfeed is a deeply personal one for every woman. There are often factors such as family and medical support that are outside a new mother's control and can influence her in how she views the nourishment of her infant. Previous studies have documented the effect doctors, nurses, and lactation consultants have on breastfeeding success. Less popular, however, is investigating how familial support and interpersonal communication plays a role in encouraging or discouraging the practice. This study examines how mothers and daughters communicate about breastfeeding, and the role it plays in both Mexico and the United States in …

A Post Feminist Look At Hbo's Girls: A Critical Analysis Of Characters, Career, Gender, And Sexuality, Aaliyah A. Miller

Communication & Leadership Dissertations and Theses

Television plays an integral role in the lives of Americans, regardless of class, ethnicity, gender, race, or religion. Despite the fact that viewership on the major networks has decreased over the years, television continues to be a dominant cultural and informational force that does more than just entertain us -this medium has the power to influence and alter our attitudes, behaviors, perceptions, and actions. Gender bias as a result of gender stereotypes found in television has been an issue of concern for feminist, politicians, and social researchers. Research studies have found that gender stereotypes found in television negatively influence women …

The Cookie Jar Dilemma, Kelcy Dolan

Faculty Curated Undergraduate Works

This article explores the possibilities in both men and women’s refusal to take responsibility in the war against rape as well as rape culture. Beginning with Zerlina Maxwell’s viral criticized appearance on the Sean Hannity’s talk show, the article questions not only why responsibility is not taken for rape throughout society, but who is responsible and how. It then moves through this question citing several specific articles, an interview and media sources. The article contemplates whether, patriarchy, masculinity, or even instinctual and primitive thought processes dictate the assumptions and responses to the responsibility in the war against rape.

An Engineering Journey: A Transcendental Phenomenological Study Of African-American Engineers' Persistence, Kristy Somerville-Midgette

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This transcendental phenomenological research study examined the perspectives and lived experiences of African-American female engineers related to the factors that led to their persistence to enter, persist through, and remain in the field. The study was guided by four research questions: (a) How do K-12 experiences shape African-American female engineers' decisions to enter the STEM field? (b) What persistence factors motivated African-American female engineers to enter the engineering profession? (c) What are the factors that shape African-American female engineers' persistence to progress through postsecondary engineering programs? (d) How do professional experiences shape African-American female engineers' persistence in the field? Cognitive …

Adversity Influencing Regard For Education In Northern Uganda: A Phenomenological Study Of Langi Mothers' Value Of Learning, Pamela Pryfogle

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study explored the Northern Ugandan Langi mothers' regard for education in the aftermath of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) conflict and occupation and in the on-going experience of adversity. As both targets and victims of LRA savagery, the Langi and Acholi people have endured over 22 years of war, displacement, and devastation. This phenomenological study specifically identified 9 Langi mothers who were survivors of LRA perpetrated atrocities and live today in adverse village environments. The study used guided interviews and art with storytelling/narrative to elicit a rich, thick, essence of lived experience and to answer the question: How have …

Female Identity And Experience In Abc's Lost, Jennifer L. Reichart

Masters Theses

This thesis is an analysis of the female characters and their roles as mothers, daughters, and lovers in the television series LOST (ABC, 2004-2010). During its original runtime, the series presented intriguing yet complex women whose personal experiences were revealed in flashbacks. With the move from these flashbacks to flashforwards and flashsideways, the series further complicated both its form and its content by demonstrating how individual identity and experience informed each female character's decisions, motivations, and agendas. In this way, the series deconstructs various stereotypical roles women are placed in such as single mothers, pampered princesses, and imprisoned women. Oftentimes, …