Julia Kristeva's 1979 essay, 'Le temps des femmes', translated as 'Women's Time' in 1981, most explicitly articulates her approach to feminist thought, addressing women's troubled relationship to patriarchy in terms of time and space. In the essay, Kristeva identifies three distinct positions in the history of feminism: 'equality' feminism, 'difference' feminism; and finally, an anticipated 'third-generation' feminism that will integrate the previous two attitudes, representing what she defines as a new 'signifying space'. The value of the 'third space' is that is offers a method for proceeding beyond the either/or status offered by previous stages of feminist thought and analysis, challenging gender identity per se, and bringing out of the singularity of each individual subject. Women's literature of the interwar period provides a rich source of material in terms of the construction of the gendered subject, as political and military pressures transformed masculine and feminine roles. While literary giants such as Sassoon and Faulkner have committed the experience of the trenches to print, women's writing of this era often explores the effects of the First World War on the community at home, away from the front and its visceral nightmares. This thesis therefore examines the destabilising effect of war on both combatants and civilians as evident in this writing, and each chapter identifies a space in the text where identity is challenged and thrown into debate by the hardships of the War. The resulting signifying space is configured in varying ways, often bringing happiness and personal satisfaction to the protagonist, but it may also represent the darker aspects of Kristevan thought, resulting in negativity and even death.

The following essay describes a study made of eight American films, where the purpose of the study was to analyze how veganism was portrayed in the chosen films. Through a semiotic analysis, the aim was to investigate how views on traditional gender roles are reproduced in the way that the practice of veganism and discourse on veganism is portrayed in modern cinema. The reason for this study was firstly because most vegans are women, with a sizeable margin; close to 80% of vegans in America are women, while almost half of vegetarians are men. The question why so many vegans are women is something worth studying closer. Secondly, there has been very few studies made on this topic. There is a sufficient amount of texts which acknowledge and discuss the correlation between the practice of not eating animals and gender issues. Further there are accounts made on how vegans are typically portrayed in media in a society where the norm is to exploit animals. These accounts demonstrate that vegans are often portrayed unfavorably. However scientific studies made on how vegans are portrayed in film are practically nonexistent. This despite cinema being a large and powerful media tool for reproducing social and cultural values. The discourse on gender and veganism were missing a valuable angle and this was something that this essay aimed to bring to the discussions of both veganism and gender. By searching on internet for films which include either vegan characters or the word vegan, there were eight films found. And through an analysis of these the results concluded that veganism is indeed portrayed negatively in movies as well, however there is also another dimension to this negative perspective towards vegans: these negative portrayals of veganism in film is grounded in archaic views and values on traditional gender roles and equality.

Gender role beliefs of African American women in the United States should be investigated in a manner that considers their unique experiences and the distinct background of her cultural sharing group. In this study, gender role beliefs of African American women were examined by addressing the research question: What are the gender role beliefs of African American women for African American men and women? Eight focus groups comprising 44 African American women were conducted. Women were diverse in terms of age, religion, and socio-economic status. An ethnographic phenomenological approach was used to explore views related to gender roles among African American women. Nvivo 8, a qualitative data analysis software program, was utilized to code transcribed focus group data. Eight themes and 11 subthemes emerged from the data and were divided into three categories: gender role beliefs for women, gender role beliefs for men, and relevant contextual factors. Themes for gender role beliefs about women were 1) Having Multiple Roles, 2) Dedication to Care of Others, 3) Perceived Social Inferiority, and 4) Strength. Themes for gender role beliefs about men were 5) Lack of Commitment, 6) Strength, and 7) Mental and Emotional Immaturity. The theme that captured related contextual factors of gender roles was 8) Personal and Socio-historical Experiences of African Americans. Knowledge of gender role views can help provide a better understanding of human behavior and assist in the development of culturally specific interventions.

Sexism is a widespread social problem that exists throughout the world today. It persists within the dominant culture, as well as in various subcultures, including the punk subculture (Daugherty 2002; Leblanc 1999; McRobbie 1991; Rosenberg and Garofalo 1998). Nijole Benokraitis and Joe Feagin's (1995) theory of sexism posits that subtle sexism is the unequal and harmful treatment of women that is typically less visible than blatant sex discrimination. This particular type of sexism may often go unnoticed, as society has internalized subtle sexist behaviors. Empirical research on subtle sexism has been conducted in various settings, such as the employment, academic, and military sectors of society (Benokraitis 1997). However, this theory has not been adequately applied to subcultural research. This research investigates whether subtle sexism exists within a group of self-identified anarchist punks who contend their primary tenets/principles dictate that they reject all forms of inequality. Moreover, if sexism does exist within the AP subculture, eradication of this problem within this community may be a daunting task -- as sexism may persist in subtle, invisible, and obstinate ways. This exploratory and descriptive research will utilize interviews of fifty men and women to examine if sexism exists, specifically in a subtle manner, and, if so, to illuminate manifestations of sexism within the anarchist punk community. Additionally, this study engages Benokraitis and Feagin's (1995) sexism theory to a non-traditional, subcultural setting.

Thesis advisor: Lisa Cuklanz / For my Communication Honors Program thesis for Boston College, I plan to analyze gender roles and how gender is constructed in recent children’s films produced by Disney. Since the Disney Corporation is so prominent in today’s culture and thus influential to its audience, this topic of study is very important. It impacts many people including its main target audience—children. Existing research proves that children develop their gender schemata early in life. Furthermore, the media they interact with influences children and their concepts of gender. Therefore, the way that Disney portrays gender in its children’s movies is worth analyzing since it can impact the way children develop and view gender and stereotypes. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2013. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Communication Honors Program. / Discipline: College Honors Program. / Discipline: Communication.

abstract: While there is a good amount of research focused on sex offenders as a whole, only a limited number of studies examine variations within these offenders, how people view the variations, and why their opinions may differ. This study focuses on the interconnections among gender norms, rape myth acceptance, and the perception of sex offenders by administering an online student survey. The survey measured rape myth acceptance and adherence to traditional gender roles to see how they affected perceptions of sex offenders. Perceptions were measured using vignettes that were varied by gender and the situation described. Results showed that higher rape myth acceptance would decrease the blameworthiness of the offender, that the offender was seen as more blameworthy when the offender was a male, and that women tended to see the offender as more blameworthy than men did. The type of sexual situation did not have an impact on blameworthiness, nor did adherence to gender roles. The findings support past research that suggests that rape myth acceptance can impact people’s opinions about offenders in sexual situations and specifically that these opinions differ depending on the gender of the offender. With some offenders being viewed as more blameworthy than others, it is necessary to examine sex offense laws to see how they may disproportionately affect some offenders and implement harsher punishments than the public may deem necessary. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Criminology and Criminal Justice 2018

Critics have analyzed Leni Riefenstahl's four feature length films from 1932 to 1954 largely for their depictions of fascist ideals while often neglecting how they represent gender. Viewing Riefenstahl's films using the theoretical gender models of Judith Butler and R.W. Connell provides a greater understanding of gender roles in Germany during both the Weimar and Nazi eras. Beginning with Das Blaue Licht (The Blue Light, 1932), and continuing to Triumph des Willens (Triumph of the Will, 1935), Olympia (1938), and concluding with Tiefland (The Lowlands, 1954), there is a clear evolution of how Riefenstahl understood and represented gender. Riefenstahl's earliest film Das Blaue Licht depicts a strong and independent female protagonist in Junta, but with the rise of fascism in Germany this type of character disappears and evolve into the weak and helpless figures like Martha in Tiefland. This study will look at these films within the cultural context of early-twentieth century Germany and National Socialism to consider how Riefenstahl's films participate in the understanding, articulation, and performance of gender at a crucial turning point in the history of Western Culture.

El objetivo del presente estudio es explorar el esquema de género de un grupo de 5 mujeres feministas. Para ello, se empleó el concepto de esquema de género como marco conceptual de la investigación y se utilizó una entrevista a profundidad para la recolección de información, la cual fue examinada mediante la estrategia de análisis de contenido, bajo el diseño fenomenológico de la metodología cualitativa. Una vez concluida la investigación, se encontró que la construcción y el cambio del esquema de género se da a través de un proceso de construcción de una nueva identidad, basada en la filosofía como mujer feminista y en todo lo que las participantes rechazan en relación al rol social que se le adjudica a las mujeres y los varones. / The objective of this study is to explore the gender scheme of a group of 5 feminist women. For this, the concept of gender scheme was used as a conceptual framework for research and an in-depth interview was used for the collection of information, which was examined through the content analysis strategy, under the phenomenological design of the qualitative methodology. Once the investigation was completed, it was found that the construction and change of the gender scheme occurs through a process of building a new identity, based on the philosophy as a feminist woman and on everything that the participants reject in relation to the social role assigned to women and men. / Tesis

This research explores the relationship between gender role stereotypes and art interpretation. The study focuses on survey results collected from high school students in an art education classroom and undergraduate college students in an art exploration course. The aim of the study was to determine if gender role stereotypes affects the way that individuals perceive artwork as created by a male or female artist. Results show that gender role stereotyping along with the gender of the participant affects the symbolism within the artwork that results in the attribution of artwork being created by a male or female artists. It also demonstrates a perceived decrease in gender role stereotypes of males over the past 42 years.

The purpose of this study was to determine how perceived gender roles developed throughout childhood and early adulthood impacted the career decisions of women in science-related career fields. An additional purpose was to determine if my experiences as I analyzed the data and the propositions discovered in the study would become a transformative agent for me. A multicase framework was utilized so that within and between case analyses could be achieved. Four women who showed early promise in science were chosen as the case study participants. The relationship of gender roles to the career decisions made by the four cases were arbitrated through three areas: (a) supports, which came from parents, immediate family members, spouses, teachers, mentors, and collaborators; (b) opportunities, which were separated into family experiences and opportunities, school and community opportunities, and postsecondary/current opportunities; and (c) postmodern feminism, which was the lens that grounded this study and fit well with the lives of the cases. As seen through a postmodern feminist lens, the cases’ social class, their lived experiences tied to their opportunities and supports, and the culture of growing up in a small rural community helped them develop personas for the professions they chose even where those professions did not necessarily follow from the early promise shown for a sciencerelated career. In addition, as related to my transformation as a male researcher, being a male conducting research in a realm most often shared by women, I was able to gain greater empathy and understanding of what it takes for women to be successful in a career and at the same time maintain a fruitful family life.