The study explores gender representations in English literature texts used in Tanzanian secondary schools. The aim of this research is to raise awareness of, and contribute to, the general discussion regarding gender equality, and about the meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The goals have been adopted by the government of Tanzania since 2000. The third goal (MDG 3) seeks to promote gender equality and the empowerment of women in all levels of education by 2015. The aim of this thesis was to examine the discourses underpinning the teaching of literature in Tanzanian schools in order to examine the extent to which gender representations within the texts, and as mediated by teachers, supports this discourse of equality. The inquiry is explored through a textual analysis of the texts which were used in secondary schools in Tanzania during observation, using postcolonial and feminist perspectives. The study further involved interviewing literature teachers and students, policy makers and curriculum planners and obtained their views about the representations of gender. Data were collected in six schools in three regions of Tanzania, namely Mwanza, Dodoma and Dar es Salaam. Analytical induction has been used to analyse the data collected from interviews and observation. Findings from textual analysis show that some of the texts selected for study do convey strong messages in favour of demarcation between women’s and men’s traits, roles, and occupations, but others do not. Most of this latter group criticise traditional constructions of masculinity and femininity portraying women as subordinate to men and victims of domestic violence, and traditional African practices such as arranged marriage, female genital mutilation and the denial of educational rights. Findings from observations revealed that the texts were tackled relatively uncritically. Teachers rarely encouraged pupils to engage critically with gender issues arising in the texts. Findings from interviews and observation revealed that teachers are not trained to include the goal in their teaching. The thesis concludes that although some of the literary texts have emancipatory aims as revealed in the textual analysis, the gender equality goal is unlikely to be achieved unless the implicit understandings of gender relations in teachers’ classroom practices are addressed. Recommendations are made on how to promote a more critical engagement with gender issues through the teaching of literature in the Tanzanian context.

While American Girl markets itself as a brand that teaches girls about our nation’s history and empowers girls to "stand tall, reach high, and dream big," this dissertation, "Mis(s) Education: Narrative Construction and Closure in American Girl" challenges this widely held belief. The American Girl Historical Character Series (hereafter AGHC series) is a textual site that writes a history that relies more on national myths of freedom, independence, and the pursuit of the American Dream through struggle. To dig deeper into this book series, I analyze how intersections of power in particular, nation, gender, race, and consumerism are constructed within the pages of the AGHC series. I assert that these books create a narrative construction and closure within the series. In place of a dialogic history that allows the reader to question historical and/or contemporary issues of power, a dominant narrative of history-one that relies on national myths prevails. While AG prides itself as a brand that first and foremost celebrates and empowers girls to become their very best, the historical series also imposes traditional gender roles for girls. It is this "rhetoric of empowerment" that this dissertation uncovers. Such an imagined empowerment is infused with ambivalence. AGHC series readers are also constructed as consumers who are being taught to celebrate consumerism and the Almighty Dollar.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of South Africa, 2001.

This thesis explores the construction and use of the hijra figure in fictional literature. It argues that hijras are utilised as both symbols of deviance and central points around which wider anti-sociality circulates. In order to contextualise these characters and offer a deeper understanding of the constructed nature of their representations, this thesis works with four frames of reference. It draws respectively on Hindu mythology (chapter one), the Mughal empire and its use of eunuchs, which the authors of fiction use to extend their representations of hijras (chapter two), British colonialism in India and its ideological frameworks which held gender deviance to be a marker of under-civilisation (chapter three) and the postcolonial period, in which hijras continue to fight for their rights whilst attempting to survive in an increasingly marginal social position (chapter four). Examining the literary material through the lens of these four frameworks shows, historically, the movement of the hijras in the public imaginary away from being symbols of the sacred to symbols of sexuality and charts the concurrent shift in their level of social acceptance. In terms of their literary representations, it is seen that authors draw upon material informed by each of the four frameworks, but never in simple terms. Rather, they work imaginatively but often restrictively to produce an injurious or detrimental image of the hijras, and they apply multiple historical frameworks to the same narratives and individual characters, with the result of marking them as timeless figures of eternal otherness. The image of hijras as sacred beings in Hindu mythology is recast as them being terrifying figures who are liable to curse binary-gendered citizens if their extortionate demands are not met (chapter one). The political prominence of Mughal eunuchs and their position as guardians of sexual boundaries and purity become treasonous political manipulation through the enactment of secret plots, often involving sexual violence, to impact on political events (chapters two and three). The criminalisation of hijras as a means of pushing them out of public visibility becomes naturalised anti-sociality and a shadowy existence at the social margins (chapter three). Finally, in a public environment which has both seen a major increase in campaigns for hijra rights and acceptance, but which has met with fierce opposition, the hijras are overburdened with associations which render them as hyperbolic and ultimately unsustainable figures (chapter four). Ultimately, these constructions facilitate sensationalised storylines set in the criminal underworld. Whilst the thrilling nature of these stories has the potential to capture a readership, this comes at the expense of the hijra characters, who are rendered as inherent criminals, sexual aggressors and wilfully anti-social. Campaigns to protect hijras as a third-gender category, guarantee their legal rights and end their criminalisation for the first time since 1860 have been publicly prominent since 2001; these campaigns are now coming before parliament and formal decisions are expected imminently. Examining understandings of hijras outside of their communities is thus politically timely and necessary for disrupting the cycle of overburdening them as society's gendered scapegoats, contributing to a project of more nuanced understandings necessary for their social integration.

This thesis investigates how selected Zimbabwean female writers narrate HIV and AIDS. It argues that, generally, the prevailing images of women in Zimbabwean society and literature are incapacitating. Male authors have been portraying women in disempowering ways as loose, dangerous, weak and dependent on men. This unjust portrayal of women has been worsened by the prevalence of HIV and AIDS. Women have been depicted as vectors in the spread of HIV, thus perpetuating sexist ideologies. Presuming that women authors can do better in their depiction of female characters, this research investigates whether female authors differ in their representation of female characters in contexts of HIV and AIDS. The works critiqued are Virginia Phiri’s Desperate (2002), Sharai Mukonoweshuro’s Days of Silence (2000), Valerie Tagwira’s The Uncertainty of Hope (2006), Tendayi Westerhof’s Unlucky in Love (2005) and Lutanga Shaba’s Secrets of a Woman’s Soul (2006). The study further explores the extent to which Zimbabwe female authors sanction, conform, undermine, assess critically or do away with unconstructive images of women in contexts of HIV and AIDS. This study emphasized the possibility of literature to offer a platform for the liberation of women, or a counter- platform for reactionary politics. Predicated on the notion of gender and danger, the study questions whether female authors perpetuate the stereotypes of women’s roles as destructive, or whether some view ‘dangerous’ images of women in literature as liberating. Overall, this thesis argued that contrary to the postulation of female authors being similar in their understanding and depiction of the concept of gender and danger, they are not. It is at this juncture that this study breaks new ground by utilizing the concept of agency to show how different female writers interpret and narrate gender and danger in contexts of HIV and AIDS. This study applies the notion of agency as a means of evaluating the extent to which women employ nonconformist acts in order to undercut patriarchy and other oppressive socially constructed ideologies. / English Studies / (D. Litt et Phil. ( English Studies))

This thesis focuses on the work of two contemporary authors, Ali Smith and Jeanette Winterson, and their treatment of the concepts of history and gender in their fiction. I argue that, by openly speculating about the nature of time and history, and by making their readers think about the origin of these notions, Smith and Winterson uncover the seemingly stable but, in actuality, very fragile roots of the 'truths' we take for granted. They explore the potentiality of the past, which, in turn opens up the present and the future. To support my argument, I turned to Hayden White and his theory of historiography and Paul Ricoeur's philosophy of time and history. The latter part of the thesis deals with gender, as well as biological sex and sexual orientation, and the way in which Smith and Winterson's texts put into practice Judith Butler's theory of gender performativity, and work towards the subversion of gender norms as well as the destabilisation of heteronormativity. Both parts of the thesis are closely connected; history serves to keep the laws that define gender, sex and sexuality intact, and, in turn, these laws are often adhered to solely by the virtue of their historicity. What is more, myth and language are equally exposed to be supporting these norms. The aim of this thesis is to...

The brothel has an important role in Latin American literature and film. The fictional brothel is expected to produce gender in both men and women, but these gendered identities are placed at the extremes within the bordello. This gender extremism creates opposition, or gender transgression, in the characters of twentieth-century Latin American narrative and film. Here I map the brothelized iteration of both genders through prohibitions, taboo, abjection, and violence within various texts and films. Much of the discipline of this cultural production of gender rests on the body. The body must bear the mark of its gender or the character risks violent consequences. Fatness plays an important role in this sexual economy, because fatness destroys gender, pushing the subject toward an androgyny that other characters reject or hate. Though the brothel has been studied before, it has not been analyzed from this gendered perspective. / text

This study sought to uncover gender bias in selected Shona novels and examine the manner in which authors present the subject. The major objectives were to identify the effects of hostile gender relations and assess Shona novel authors’ commitments to promote healthy gender relations which are pre-requisites for national development. The study adopted the dual approach by fusing feminism with Afrocentricity as the literary tool of analysis. These theories served as lenses for exploring gender biases in selected Shona novels. The liberal feminism was the most relevant feminist theory to this study because it advocates more about inclusion and unrestricted participation of women in all spheres of social life. The research was anchored on the qualitative design. The methodology used to gather data for analysis involved interviewing three out of four authors of this research’s selected Shona novels, eight Shona literature lecturers from teachers’ colleges and universities in Zimbabwe as well as five accomplished scholars who have also written their own Shona novels. Questionnaires were administered to thirty two students, twenty from teachers’ colleges and twelve from universities in Zimbabwe. The total number of all participants in this study was forty-eight and purposive sampling was used to come up with the sample. Data was analysed in descriptive form. This study has established that most Shona novelists are not gender neutral. While some authors are championing the emancipation of women others are perpetuating their marginalisation. Basing on the findings of this study, the researcher recommends that Shona authors should be sensitised through workshops, seminars or conferences on the need to pen gender balanced novels if national development is to be realised. This would help the societies who are the consumers of such novels to be gender neutral through emulating the positive portrayal attributed to characters. The Zimbabwe Schools Examinations Council (ZIMSEC), teachers’ colleges and universities should approve gender neutral Shona novels so that students can have appropriate role models to emulate. It is envisaged that this research will be of great benefit to all those who will have the privilege to access it. Gained knowledge will help to extricate women from marginalisation and also promote healthy gender relations. / African Languages / M.A. (African Languages)

This thesis investigates how selected Zimbabwean female writers narrate HIV and AIDS. It argues that, generally, the prevailing images of women in Zimbabwean society and literature are incapacitating. Male authors have been portraying women in disempowering ways as loose, dangerous, weak and dependent on men. This unjust portrayal of women has been worsened by the prevalence of HIV and AIDS. Women have been depicted as vectors in the spread of HIV, thus perpetuating sexist ideologies. Presuming that women authors can do better in their depiction of female characters, this research investigates whether female authors differ in their representation of female characters in contexts of HIV and AIDS. The works critiqued are Virginia Phiri’s Desperate (2002), Sharai Mukonoweshuro’s Days of Silence (2000), Valerie Tagwira’s The Uncertainty of Hope (2006), Tendayi Westerhof’s Unlucky in Love (2005) and Lutanga Shaba’s Secrets of a Woman’s Soul (2006). The study further explores the extent to which Zimbabwe female authors sanction, conform, undermine, assess critically or do away with unconstructive images of women in contexts of HIV and AIDS. This study emphasized the possibility of literature to offer a platform for the liberation of women, or a counter- platform for reactionary politics. Predicated on the notion of gender and danger, the study questions whether female authors perpetuate the stereotypes of women’s roles as destructive, or whether some view ‘dangerous’ images of women in literature as liberating. Overall, this thesis argued that contrary to the postulation of female authors being similar in their understanding and depiction of the concept of gender and danger, they are not. It is at this juncture that this study breaks new ground by utilizing the concept of agency to show how different female writers interpret and narrate gender and danger in contexts of HIV and AIDS. This study applies the notion of agency as a means of evaluating the extent to which women employ nonconformist acts in order to undercut patriarchy and other oppressive socially constructed ideologies. / English Studies / (D. Litt et Phil. ( English Studies))

in English This thesis focuses on the construct of gender in the modernist novel Eva by the Dutch authoress Carry van Bruggen in relation to the individual human subject. The goal of this thesis is to analyse how is gender constructed in the book and how this construct influences the psychic development and decision making of the main character, a woman named Eva. The answer to the main research question What role does the construct of gender play in the life of the main character of the novel Eva? was reached with the help of the discourse analysis, namely the post-structuralist discourse analysis using the deconstructive reading. The thesis is at the same time theoretically anchored in the post-structuralist feminist literary criticism. The theoretical part therefore draws on the ideas of Jacques Derrida, Michel Foucault, Judith Baxter and Judith Butler. As an inspiration for the discourse analysis itself served the discourse analysis dealing with the gender identity that was carried out by Kateřina Zábrodská in 2009. The first step in the analysis stage was to identify the relevant passages of the novel that inform what does it mean to be a man or a woman. The comments on these passages focus on the individual claims about gender, they formulate what kind of duties and limits these discourses...