Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons^™

Casar Auc Community Only Lecture: Men, Women’S Body Autonomy & Gbv Crimes In Egypt, Us & Canada: Why Men Need To Step Up For The Education Of Women's Body Autonomy, The Prince Alwaleed Center For American Studies And Research Casar

Performances, Events, and Presentations

This was a hybrid CASAR AUC community only lecture titled: ‘Men, Women’s Body Autonomy & GBV crimes in Egypt, US & Canada’: Why men need to step up for the education of women’s body autonomy.

This lecture featured Tadwein from Egypt, Women’s Advocates from the US & London Abused Women's Counseling Center from Canada (via Zoom). This lecture was part of course AMST 1091 ‘Exploring Feminist Perspectives in Egypt & the US’ (core curriculum pathways two- American studies) taught by Yasmeen El-Ghazaly, CASAR Assistant to Director & Adjunct Faculty - Wednesday May 15th, 2024

The lecture pondered on the following …

It’S Britney, Bitch, Mary Hyepock

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation engages public rhetorics surrounding pop princess Britney Spears as a case study for examining the rhetoricity of bodily autonomy. Bodily autonomy is commonly understood as the legal right to control what happens to one’s body without external influence or coercion. However, one’s legal access to bodily autonomy is produced, negotiated, and maintained through discourse. In other words, one’s access to so-called “ownership” over their body and agency to make decisions about it is deeply tied to the gendered and racialized symbolic production of citizenship in the United States. Utilizing a reproductive justice framework, I investigate how Britney Spears’ …

Eng 155: Introduction To Literary Studies, Joseph Donica

Open Educational Resources

An OER syllabus covering the ways humans have read and continue to read literature from a variety of critical and theoretical perspectives. An emphasis is placed on the application of critical thought to writing expository essays and responding to readings.

A Foray Into Love: Feminism In The Romance Novel, Kiersten Holland

Honors College Theses

In this paper, I am examining the relationship between the waves of feminism and the evolution of the romance novel, by focusing on themes of sexual identity, financial independence, societal roles, and free thought within the text. The romance genre is overlooked and underestimated, despite it being one of the largest and best-selling genres in publishing, because of its inherent relationship with women. By analyzing it, I hope to educate people about the genre, as well as highlight the key parts of its importance to women’s rights and the feminist movement. By doing a close reading of novels ranging from …

More Than A Punchline: A Comparative Analysis Of Diversity In Dropout.Tv & Collegehumor, Alexander Gluchowski

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

This paper examines the evolution of digital comedy through a comparative analysis of CollegeHumor and its offshoot, Dropout.tv, focusing on how each platform has approached the portrayal of diversity and inclusion. Utilizing a qualitative content analysis, the study contrasts selected episodes from both platforms to explore shifts in the representation of queer and POC comedians, and the thematic treatment of identity issues. The findings reveal that Dropout.tv significantly advances the inclusivity of comedic content, moving beyond CollegeHumor’s earlier reliance on stereotypical and controversial humor. This shift not only reflects changes in contemporary comedy but also highlights Dropout.tv's commitment to fostering …

Old Wives’ Tales: Collections From Beneath The Floorboards, Layla Barnes

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

Old Wives’ Tales: Collections from Beneath the Floorboards draws on the rich tradition of feminist speculative fiction, particularly in the genre of the fairy tale. It responds to Walidah Imarisha’s idea of “visionary fiction,” a kind of fiction which seeks to participate in “the decolonization of the imagination.” Using an experimental fragmentary form, it explores themes of story and counter-story, maternal legacy, female interconnectedness and community, and magic as a form of female empowerment in opposition to patriarchal control and surveillance.

Queerform/Ing, Matthew Solon-Lee Weimer

Art Theses and Dissertations

My artwork is situated within and around vessels and the Queer Homoerotic World and explores sexuality as a Demisexual within them. This is accomplished through the two processes of my creation, Minivague and Queerform/ing: balancing sexual tension and explicit expression, while subverting traditional norms and stereotypes with queerness to distance oneself from stereotypical Gay Art. Altering/emphasizing makes the artwork more romantic, lighter, whimsical, softer, and tender than the figure/s and the situations actually are. The process is also emphasizing what one sees or wants to be seen. The Pink Boy becomes a celebration of intimacy of any form. I discuss …

Fragmented Bodies, Lauren Careese Alexander

Art Theses and Dissertations

Through Memory Webs and fragmented ceramic vessels, I express what it feels like to grow up living in a biracial body. I utilize mixed media to emulate a mixed-race experience. My Memory Webs are fashioned by painting on scraps of canvas and attaching them with crocheted wire and ribbon to speak to how my memory has impacted my identity. My fragmented ceramic vessels are cut up and stitched back together to represent disjointedness and un-belonging. All of my work is contextualized through the novel Frankenstein by Mary Shelley and what the Monster may represent for people of color. I also …

'My Body Is Fertile Ground': Exploring Relational Agriculture Through Gender, Body, And Local Food Policy, Erin M. Tansimore

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This master's portfolio, "'My Body Is Fertile Ground': Exploring Relational Agriculture Through Gender, Body, and Local Food Policy," explores the concept of relational agriculture through multiple forms of practice. It comprises three parts: a personal essay discussing the author's experiences with the land as a young woman with a turbulent relationship with her own body; a literature review on gender dynamics in alternative agricultural spaces; and a survey report and a USDA Census of Agriculture data brief produced during an internship with two local food entities.

The first piece, "My Body Is Fertile Ground," details the author's experience with an …

Queering Tv In The Age Of Tiktok, Greta Reel

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Capstones

This thesis asks how fans have created their own queer representation on the social media platform TikTok. It looks at the tools afforded by TikTok that fans have used to “ship” non-canon woman-loving-woman couples and to “queer” television show characters. It also examines how fans on TikTok have reacted to television plotlines they were unhappy with, such as the “bury your gays” trope. Four shows, all after the year 2000, are used as case studies. These shows are Wednesday (2022-present), Criminal Minds (2005-present), Stranger Things (2016-present), and Killing Eve (2018-2022). Numerous TikTok videos and comments revolving around each show are …

Fatness, Femininity, And The Family: A Critical Analysis Of The Reality Television Show Wife Swap, Jacqueline Hansen

Gender Studies Student Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Parodic Attunement: Contesting Gender Categories Through Kierkegaard’S Knight Of Faith And Butler’S Allegorical Usage Of Drag, Abraham James A. Mata

Undergraduate Honors Theses

What does it mean to appear under a gender identity that fails to convey who you really are? Is it possible to truly be free from prevailing identities even as one contests them? Søren Kierkegaard’s knight of faith and Judith Butler’s allegorical usage of drag may offer clues to re-thinking how our self-conceptions undergo crisis even as they get reproduced. Instead of being entrapped within a particular identity category, the knight of faith and the drag performer show us ways to negotiate established ethical or gender categories through a “parodic attunement”. Is Kierkegaard attempting to bring us into harmony with …

Patagonian Precarity: Extractive Tourism And Subaltern Activism In El Chaltén, Argentina, Kaitlyn C. Sisco

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the relationship between extractive tourism and social activism in Southern Andean Patagonia. Its central goal is to unpack the systems that structurally marginalize subaltern populations and inspire their resistance. Through ethnographic attention to El Chaltén, Argentina, I investigate how extractive tourism generates various forms of social activism that manifest in social dimensions such as class and gender. In El Chaltén’s ecotourism terrain, feminine and dissident experiences have been historically devalued. I argue that El Chaltén is a crucible for subaltern, structurally marginalized activism. The extractive tourism industry—tied to housing/land inequality and gender violence—generates and catalyzes various forms …

Out Of Print: Gay Periodicals And The Psa-Rinting Of A Gay Male World, 1969-1980, Jack Morris

Masters Theses, 2020-current

As the Gay Liberation movement spread across the cities of the United States during the 1970s, one institution bolstered it more than any other: the gay press. This thesis examines the role of the gay press in constructing an imagined community of gay men during the 1970s, uncovering the methods in which it fashioned a gay world that both encompassed and reached beyond the temporal and geographic boundaries of the United States. It argues that writers in gay periodicals built gay community and the Gay Liberation movement in numerous ways, such as reporting on gay history, uncovering foreign gay communities …

With Love, ; An Interdisciplinary And Intersectional Look At Why Creativity Is Essential, Theo Starr Gardner

Whittier Scholars Program

My Whittier Scholars Program self-designed major, Teaching Creativity, is a mixture of Art, Literature, and Education classes. My research and praxis classes have been focused on the ‘how?’s and 'why?’s of creativity, so it felt only right that my project should be a constructivist, generative project. The project I have been working on throughout my time at Whittier, and that has just fully come to fruition on April 11th, 2024, was a solo art gallery/open mic event entitled ‘With Love,’. With Love, was conceptually inspired by the research I’ve conducted on creativity and creative arts education over the past few …

Beyond Bars And Bias: Unveiling Misogynoir And The Prison-Industrial Complex In Contemporary Black Women’S Literature, Abigail Myers, Abigail Myers

Honors Theses

This interdisciplinary thesis examines misogynoir through the lens of contemporary Black women’s literature and the prison-industrial complex, specifically centering on the literary work of Fannie Lou Hamer and Assata Shakur, both formerly incarcerated Black women. Misogynoir, a term coined by Black feminist scholar Moya Bailey, encapsulates the intersection of anti-Black racism and misogyny experienced by Black women, Black girls, and gender nonconforming people. This thesis unites the fields of literary studies, gender studies, critical prison studies, and African American studies to reveal Black women as affected by both misogyny and anti-Black racism in the contemporary prison-industrial complex and beyond. Drawing …

Navigating Global Influence: A Qualitative Exploration Of Funding Dynamics And Stakeholder Engagement In Sexual And Reproductive Health Organizations In Nepal, Jenisha Mainali

Masters Theses, 2020-current

This paper investigates the dynamics of power and influence within transnational advocacy networks (TANs) operating in the realm of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) through qualitative interviews with eight SRHR advocates from Nepal. The research explores the collaborative processes and dialogues and relationship between non-governmental organizations (NGOs) receiving funding from the Global North and international nonprofits. By analyzing the thematic results derived from the interviews, two themes emerged, one being the Duality of Funding Relationship and Domestic Challenges being the other. The findings reveal that participants utilize various communication channels, such as email, WhatsApp, phone calls, and Zoom …

Envisioning Our Ecological Futures. Diffracting Creative Expressions., Mariam Ismail

Masters Theses, 2020-current

This thesis delves into the realm of eco-art, examining its multifaceted role in informing, educating, and mobilizing audiences towards sustainable environmental practices. Through an interdisciplinary lens that intertwines environmentalism, critical explorations of the anthropocene, ecofeminism, Indigenous knowledge, and social justice, this research investigates various themes, approaches, and methodologies employed by eco-artists. Utilizing a diffractive methodology, I acknowledge and respect these concepts’ contextual and theoretical differences while exploring their relationality to one another and to the artworks. By recognizing these entangled relationships, the diffractive framework creates and re-creates ‘research assemblages’ that shift away from conventional anthropocentric or representational methods of interpretation, …

Sex Toys In The City- The Sex Toy Market Vs. Profit, Culture And Education, Abigail M. Jobe

Student Research Symposium

Since the development of sex stores, the product appeal has been directed toward cisgender men and excluded other groups, creating an experience exclusive to the male gaze. With this, products sold at early sex stores often did not appeal to the female population and excluded queer and gender non-conforming individuals altogether. These original sex stores objectified the female body and many of these traditional stores still exist now. However, in the 1970s, feminists began to create sex stores directed toward women and they in turn became hubs for information as opposed to just sex stores where women could shop comfortably …

Beyond Craigslist Personal Ads: Contemporary Usage Of The Label T4t, Madi Lou Alexander

Student Research Symposium

Trans for trans relationships (t4t) are a special type of connection specific to transgender individuals, whether in the process of [re]affirming one’s gender identity and/or finding and building community. Originating from Craigslist personal ads, t4t indicates a trans person seeking out another trans person. What are these t4t relationships like for the trans people involved in them? With this research, I hope to evaluate and define the range of what t4t relationships are, hypothesize how t4t relations foster a sense of connection for the transgender individuals in said relationships, and explain why community amongst those who identify as transgender is …

Seeing Is Believing: Observing Trans Spirituality Through The Smith-Waite Tarot, Phoebe Santalla

MFA in Illustration & Visual Culture

In 1909 the Rider Company published the Smith-Waite Tarot deck which featured 78 illustrated cards by Pamela Colman Smith. With heavy use of appropriated and ambiguous symbology, the Smith-Waite deck became a meditation tool for realizing alternative realities. By observing the history of the deck, analyzing Smith’s approach to illustration, and retracing the counterculture occult explosion in the 1970s, this essay argues that the Smith-Waite deck is an object the reflects the queered body and self. The modern, trans-contentious, Western political climate creates an environment that obscures the fact that transgender people exist beyond the medicalization of their bodies. To …

Goin' Down Swinging: Queer Fury, Mad Green

Graduate School of Art Theses

How can kickboxing uplift a community? How can Queer rage be utilized in community building and artmaking?

As a Queer artist, my work is inspired by my own experiences. Through drawing, printmaking, photography, video, performance, sculpture, and social practice, I dissect my violent upbringing and its lingering threads in my adult life. In this essay, I discuss the two most prominent features of my art practice: Fight and Community. I navigate these ideas through past works, such as a performance piece of me destroying a news article, a short film about institutional homophobia through aliens and immaculate conception, and most …

“4, 24”, And 4c”: The Shared Knowledge Of Hair Terminology And Cultural Pride Among Black Women., Aliya J. Claiborne

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

This paper aims to explain the significance of hairstyles and terms used by black women and seeks to explore how these choices can sway the negative perceptions about black womanhood. Past research has shown that what is “just hair” to others serves as a statement piece and an overall representation of black women. By observing and recording naturally occurring conversations in black hair salons and conducting interviews with black women, I investigated the following question: How do black women use specific terminology to discuss their hair while also constructing identity and reflecting on societal views? I conclude that black women’s …

The Golden Age Of Mexican Cinema, Daniel Galindo

Publications and Research

This presentation is about the film called María Candelaria (1943), a film of the cinema of the golden age of Mexico that shows the lifestyle of the people of that time, more than anything it shows how women were reviled in the macho society. The Golden Age of Mexican Cinema is a period of brilliance in the history of Mexican cinema, which began in 1936-1956.

The Perfect Model: Exploring Gender Differences Within Commercial Graphic Design Preferences, Adeline Roberts

Undergraduate Theses

Personal preferences within graphic design are heavily shaped by social factors, including cultural practices. This project explores the effect of gendered-based experiences on visual design preferences, through investigating men’s and women’s preferences regarding graphic design elements, and the source of these opinions. The data was then used to create two educational images, which mimic contemporary magazine covers, visually illustrating the effects of gendered marketing and experiences on personal design preferences. These images were then attached to an interactive website, so that the findings and pieces from this project can be easily accessed by future audiences.

Ua12/2/1 College Heights Herald: Ways Of The Future, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

Magazine edition of the College Heights Herald for the period April 8 - May 5, 2024.

• Anderson, Alexandria. Letter from the Editor – Science, Technology & Business
• Anderson, Alexandria. Women in STEM Make Advances
• Novoselia, Mariia. Turnover on Fountain Square: Local Businesses Share Concerns & Success Stories
• SOKY Rentals Offers New Apartments
• Walk2Campus: Where Home Meets Community
• Bush, Camden. Can a Baseball Team Reduce Their Goals to a Math Problem?
• Hawkins, Kaylee. Student Business Owners Share Experiences – Gatara Townsend, Andrew Garrett, Brittiny Sadler
• Ivory, Larkin. Bikewalk BG, WKU CHHS Offer Chances for Healthy Lifestyle – Health & Human Services

Neuroqueering Art Therapy: Bringing Neurodivergent Gender Diversity Into The Creative Arts Therapy Room: A Literature Review, Avital Eisen

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Recent research across disciplines has established the significance of the overlap between neurodivergence and gender diversity, a truth long espoused by the community. Acting on this research, some mental health disciplines have begun addressing neurodivergent transgender and gender diverse people as a unified population in their research, but the field of art therapy has not yet followed suit. Theoretical frameworks of intersectionality, queer theory, and disability justice highlight the importance of centering the unique experiences and needs of neurodivergent gender diversity. Using these frameworks, this literature review synthesizes community knowledge with art therapy research on both neurodivergence and gender diversity, …

Coming Out, Letting Go, Getting Naked: A Community Engagement Arts Based Project, Tim Aumiller

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Creating a healthy sexual minority identity remains a challenge in the 21^st century, despite significant advances in social acceptance and civil rights. Sexual minorities are more likely than cis gender heterosexuals to be exposed to traumatic events, and experience shame and mental and physical health symptoms as a result. Despite this, sexual minorities do overcome obstacles to develop resilience. While the coming out process looks different depending on the background of the individual, many gay men find connection and build community through this often difficult process where even rejection may play a part. The author found connection and community …

User Perception Of Gender Studies In Video Games, Quinn T. Gienapp

Honors Thesis

Alongside the increase in video game popularity, a subclass of games was formed that offer very unconventional gaming experiences. These games offer different stories that differ greatly from games made on multi-million-dollar budgets. Many of these types of games exist on the fringes of the industry and portray LGBTQ+ themes through their writing or gameplay. One of these games uses the medium of video games to process their trauma by relaying their own story. The game “He Fucked the Girl Out of Me” is an autobiographical video game that highlights the story of the Author and their experiences with …

Final Master's Portfolio, Ayotunde Afolabi

Master of Arts in English Plan II Graduate Projects

This portfolio explores themes of gender and race, identity representation, and agency within various literary texts. It encapsulates a series of analytical essays that scrutinize how these themes intersect and manifest across diverse literary landscapes, emphasizing the ways in which authors address and challenge societal norms and structures through their narratives. Each essay within the portfolio not only mirrors the engagement with these themes but also showcases the development of a theoretical approach that bridges classical literary analysis with contemporary issues of identity politics and social justice.