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This project explores the narrative arcs of strong female characters in Young Adult (YA) fantasy literature. Taking up Rosemary Jackson’s assertion that fantasy literature can ‘subvert patriarchal society,’ this thesis examines the fantasy ‘legacy code’ of strong and subversive female characters who settle into a stereotypical performance of gender after finding fulfillment in the heteronormative roles of lover, wife, and mother. This pattern is exemplified by Lady Éowyn of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Two Towers (1954) and The Return of the King (1955), and reproduced by Hermione Granger of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series – consisting of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (1997), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000), Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003), Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005), and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007). In contrast Keladry of Mindelan in Tamora Pierce’s Protector of the Small series – consisting of First Test (1999), Page (2000), Squire (2001), and Lady Knight (2002) – demonstrates the impact ‘refactoring’ fantasy ‘legacy code’ has on the narrative conclusions of female characters. Using Judith Butler’s theory on the performative nature of gender and building on Farah Mendlesohn’s computer programming analogy of ‘legacy code,’ this thesis illustrates the ways in which fantasy literature often fails to be the literature of subversion Jackson envisions, and demonstrates how refactoring aspects of a female character’s narrative exemplifies subversive narrative conclusions for young adult readers of fantasy literature. / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA) / This thesis examines the ways in which a heteronormative ‘legacy code’ – exemplified by Lady Éowyn in J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings – has been perpetuated in literature marketed towards young adult readers by Hermione Granger in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series and ‘refactored’ by Keladry of Mindelan in Tamora Pierce’s Protector of the Small series. Starting with Rosemary Jackson’s analysis of fantasy literature as a genre with subversive potential and with Judith Butler’s assertion that gender is performative, this thesis analyses the narrative arcs of Éowyn, Hermione, and Kel and demonstrates how the continual representation of strong female characters finding fulfillment in the roles of lover, wife, and mother is limiting, and highlights the subversive potential in ‘refactoring’ heteronormative ‘legacy code.’

This qualitative study delves into the intricate relationship between gender equality policies and work-life balance in the Swedish professional landscape. Thematic analysis of narratives from four respondents reveals insights into "Perception of Gender Equality Policies," "Key Challenges in Balancing Career and Family Responsibilities," and "Organizational Practices and Cultures." Aligned with Herzberg's Balance Theory and Feminist Theory, the findings highlight the positive impact of gender equality policies, fostering inclusivity and challenging norms. Challenges persist, including gender role conformity, family prioritization stigma, and glass ceilings for women. Organizational culture and leadership play pivotal roles, with resistance varying across departments. The study extends discourse on policy effectiveness to Sweden, emphasizing nuanced considerations in the evolving work landscape. Resonating with prior research, it underscores the necessity of future studies on individual experiences, evolving work paradigms, and intersectionality to enhance gender equality policy implications. A vital step in understanding Swedish work dynamics, this research offers insights for policymakers, organizations, and scholars, aiming to inform policy improvements for a more equitable work environment.

Recently, the implementation of feminist foreign policy (FFP) has gained traction in the Global South. The trend is most visible in Latin America, where Mexico, Chile, and Colombia have announced their commitment to the policy. Nevertheless, FFP has been dominated in the Global North sphere as Sweden pioneered the policy in 2014. Establishing the policy outside the Global North raises the question of how a Western-based policy will be adapted to the Latin American context and understanding of feminism. This study has aimed to investigate the feminist understanding and contextualization present in Mexico's, Chile's, and Colombia's FFPs. Based on previous research, this study has developed a framework of a Global North and Global South feminist discourse to analyze the foreign policies through feminist theory. A discourse analysis focusing on the policy texts' implicit and explicit representation of the central concepts of feminism: Structures, Oppression, and Change has been conducted. The policies include central aspects of feminist thought. The Global North feminist discourse dominates the FFPs, but distinctive elements of the Global South feminist discourse are present and adapted to international norms. However, this study also finds that the FFPs lack an explicit aim to address the fundamental causes of structural inequality and oppression. While the FFPs can still be a unifying framework for governments to promote gender equality internationally, the findings of this study raise questions about the possibilities of state-centered institutions to address the root causes of unequal societies since foreign policy tends to contain oppressive structures in itself.

The primary goal of development organizations is poverty reduction, but their initiatives have in recent years also been recognized as a potential tool in empowering women and raising their status. Previous knowledge on the topic is largely based in an understanding of empowerment that seems to miss or overlook limitations and impacts of initiatives which authors with a more feminist view on empowerment address. Thus, this thesis aims to increase the understanding of women’s empowerment in relation to development initiatives. A case study focusing on women who had previously participated in the business training and microcredit program of an NGO in Nairobi, Kenya was conducted. The study shows that through development organizations’ various initiatives women can be empowered on a personal and a collective level. For instance, the women’s self-confidence has increased and they see themselves as entitled to do things on their own, such as running a business. Further, through coming together as a group they gain access to new spaces and agency to act on their collective interests. However, little evidence of women’s empowerment on a relational level is seen. The study also shows that there are economic and gender-related barriers constraining the empowerment process. / Utvecklingsorganisationers primära mål är att minska fattigdom, men deras initiativ har på senare tid också kommit att erkännas som ett potentiellt verktyg för att främja kvinnors egenmakt och höja deras status. Tidigare kunskap om kopplingen mellan egenmakt och organisationers initiativ utgår i stor utsträckning från en förståelse av begreppet egenmakt som verkar missa eller förbise vissa begränsningar och effekter av initiativen, som andra med en mer feministisk syn på egenmakt lyckas belysa. Syftet med denna uppsats är därför att öka förståelsen för kvinnors egenmakt i förhållande till utvecklingsinitiativ och den har utförts som en fallstudie fokuserad på kvinnor som tidigare deltagit i ett entreprenörskaps- och mikrokreditprogram hos en ideell organisation i Nairobi, Kenya. Studien visar att genom organisationers olika initiativ kan kvinnors egenmakt stärkas på ett personligt och ett kollektivt plan. Bland annat har kvinnornas självförtroende ökat och de ser sin rätt att göra saker på egen hand, såsom att driva ett företag. Genom att samlas som grupp får kvinnorna dessutom tillgång till nya utrymmen och möjligheter att agera på sina kollektiva intressen. I studien ses emellertid svaga tecken på kvinnors egenmakt inom äktenskapet. Slutligen visar studien att det finns ekonomiska och könsrelaterade barriärer som begränsar utvecklingen av kvinnors egenmakt.

We all have stories to share, to build, to pass around, to inherit, and to create. This story - the one I piece together now - is about a Thai-/Bengali-/Muslim-/American-/Feminist looking for home, looking to manage the tension and conflict of wanting to belong to her family and to her feminist community. This thesis focuses on the seemingly conflicting obligations to kinship on the one hand and to feminist practice on the other, a conflict where being a good scholar or activist is directly in opposition to being a good Asian daughter. In order to understand how and why these communities appear at odds with one another, I examine how the material spaces and psychological realities inhabited by specific hyphenated, fragmented subjects are represented (and misrepresented) in both popular culture and practical politics, arguing against images of the hybrid body that bracket its lived tensions. I argue that fantasies of home as an unconditional site of belonging and comfort distract us from the multiple communities to which hyphenated subjects must move between. Hyphenated Asian-/American bodies often find ourselves torn between nativism and assimilationism - having to neutralize, forsake, or discard parts of our identities. Thus, I reduce complicated, difficult ideas of being to the size of a thimble, to a question of loyalty between my Asian-/American history and my American-/feminist future, between my familial background and the issues that have become foregrounded for me during college, between the home from which I originate and the new home to which I wish to belong. To move with fluidity, I must - in collaboration with others - invent new stories of identity and belonging.

This thesis aims to analyze Dorothy Cross’s sculptural, installation, and video works in relation to Ireland’s Post-Conflict struggle with its cultural and global identity. Throughout the course of history, Ireland’s identity has always been in question, sparking new interest over the last thirty years in producing an Irish identity discerned by “hybridity, multiplicity, and mobility.”[1] Declan McGonagle states that the traditional Irish constructs of gender and sexuality were primarily challenged by Dorothy Cross during this period of rapid sociopolitical change.[2] Cross consistently deconstructs pre-Christian Mother Ireland and patriarchal Catholic Ireland in her early sculptural works, and ultimately transitions towards communicating a collective identity rooted in loss and desire. [3] The constructions of gendered, cultural, and collective identity are dismantled across multiple media throughout Cross’s oeuvre, which can be analyzed through a synthesis of poststructuralist, postmodern, and French feminist theory. In evaluating Dorothy Cross’s destabilization of identity, I will expand the literature on contemporary Irish art during the nation’s turbulent time of globalization, which has been underemphasized in the study of contemporary European art. [1] Robin Lydenberg, “Contemporary Irish Art on the Move: At Home and Abroad with Dorothy Cross,” Éire-Ireland: a Journal of Irish Studies 39, no. 3/4 (2004): 145. [2] Declan McGonagle, Fintan O’Toole, and Kim Levin, Irish Art Now: From the Poetic to the Political (London: Merrell Publishers Ltd., 1999): 19. [3] Enrique Juncosa and Sean Kissane, eds, Dorothy Cross (Milan: Edizioni Charta, 2005), 16.

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