Suppose the informed reader of Ovid's Metamorphoses were a woman. What difference might it make to posit a female reader for this work of literature? Might a woman reader offer an alternative to the kinds of perspectives employed in received readings of this text? Might a woman read this text differently? The pluralism of feminist literary criticism offers the woman reader a variety of reading strategies and positions to enable her to make a difference to her reading. Rather than assenting to textual biases in which the male perspective is made central and the female perspective is marginalised, women are invited to reread, to resist, to revise, to re-appropriate and to disorder the dominant discourses of texts and their received readings. Rereading focal stories and the narratives that place them in context, this thesis engages these reading strategies to resist received readings of Pygmalion and his puella, to revise the rape of Philomela, and to re-appropriate Echo. Theoretical models adduced here include the work of the French feminist writers Luce Irigaray and Julia Kristeva, who identify Woman as a figure of indeterminacy and disorder, and a scientific model of chaos. Chaos theory challenges the notion that rules and formal systems of interpretation can be relied upon to interpret the dynamics of a complex system such as a literary text. It suggests that the linear perspectives assumed in traditional models of interpretation direct the reader towards the production of readings in which the structural and ideological complexities of a text are smoothed over. Beginning, like the Metamorphoses, with chaos and disorder this thesis will attempt to progress towards stability and order. However, the readings and rereadings of transformation through which this progression will be effected will suggest that order is not a totalising or universal ising condition, but is rather a pattern or state of symmetry in which asymmetries, gaps and unpredictabilities may Occur. While emphasising the impossibility of an absolute or final form of interpretation, it will offer an alternative to the kinds of linear perspectives conventionally employed to read and interpret the complex dynamics of Ovid's Metamorphoses. While seeking to map patterns and connections, causes and effects, it will take into account unpredictability and indeterminacy, plurality and contingency to read the Metamorphoses within an interpretative frame which views contradiction, discontinuity and variation not as sources of critical and textual weakness, but as sources of jouissance.

M.A. / This dissertation explores the possibility of an alternative notion of reason, one that draws on certain values articulated in feminist theory as well as on the opportunities opened up by the historically created relationship between women and reason. Employing certain writings, the initial aim of the argument is to render problematic the conventionally accepted conception of reason by demonstrating the existence of a powerful intellectual current that associates women with, among other things, the bodily and emotional, thereby placing them outside of reason. Because of the immense importance attached to the tenets of reason, this state of affairs profoundly affects the position of women and is, of course, something they have extensively commented on. Thus, following on the problematization of reason along gender lines, women are afforded the opportunity to set out their views on reason and the relationship between it and women. From this it emerges, broadly speaking, that some women want to be integrated into the prevailing standard of reason, while others hold that women have access to some distinct reasoning capability that it sometimes even regarded as being superior to the masculine standard. The points of view outlined above are then, in the penultimate chapter, brought into critical dialogue with postmodernism. This serves two main purposes: it illustrates the flaws in certain feminist views on reason and, very importantly, makes the point that reason cannot be meaningfully separated from questions concerning power, subjectivity and language. In conclusion, and drawing on a range of insights developed through the course of the dissertation, it is said that the conventional single standard of rationality is in large measure fictitious and that it should be abandoned in favour of a more multicentred way of looking at the world. Women are encouraged not to attempt to merely move from their positions at the margins of reason to the centre, but to explore the possibilities offered by the margins, possibilities that might enable them to lead the way in terms of being agents in creating more acceptable standards of knowledge and interaction.

D. Litt. et Phil / My dissertation represents an attempt to relate the phenomenon of rape with a feminist philosophical discourse concerning women’s or ‘feminine’ subjectivity and selfhood, which in turn is contextualised within the history of western philosophical metaphysics. Rape as a phenomenon is analysed through various lenses, including a power-political lens, a historicaletymological lens, and a phenomenological-existentialist lens. This is done in order to philosophically illuminate the phenomenon that is rape – a phenomenon, moreover, which in general tends to evade meaningful analysis – and to provide a background and context that can facilitate the convincing integration of the themes of rape and women’s subjectivity. I show in particular that there exists a dominant symbolic order and frame for the interpretation of rape, based on a hierarchical dichotomy of male active versus female passive sexuality, which obscures the true nature of rape. This hierarchical dichotomy is moreover embedded in the dominant western symbolic frame which is also responsible for the suppression of full female subjectivity, and of the sexual differentiation of the public-political and sociosymbolic domains themselves. Having made this claim, I try, through a Hegelian and phenomenological reading of first-person accounts by rape victims, to unearth or excavate a contestatory understanding of rape, and in particular one that may do justice to the sense of a total annihilation of the self reported by rape victims. In order to start opening up a way out of the denial and destruction of female sexual subjectivity which I detect in rape as well as in the order of western metaphysics, I look with particular interest at the strategies employed by rape victims to re-assemble or create a female self after the experience of rape. In the second part of the dissertation I consider the recent ‘feminine turn’ in continental philosophy as a possible ‘way out’ of the impasse in which the philosophical tradition has placed female subjectivity. Although this movement contains some promising moves, I finally draw the conclusion that it does not really provide much of an answer to the specific question about the status or possibility of women’s subjectivity within western symbolic and political constellations. I then turn to attempts by feminist philosophers to write and otherwise labour a ‘way out’ of this impasse, and in particular do I find Luce Irigaray’s work helpful for the ways in which she proposes that we work to restore the silenced maternal voice. Much of what she says is shown to resonate with the practical strategies of rape victims to rediscover or remake themselves after rape, which on my interpretation is the paradigm case of the type of unmaking or undoing of the female self of which women experience many examples on an everyday level. I show also that, since the female and the male derive their identities from each other, a (new) relationship between the sexes is as much called for as the emergence of full female subjectivity. Finally, I look at some concrete ideas about creating the material conditions for the emergence of female subjectivity, including the idea of the mother as goddess and the idea of loving solidarity amongst women. I return in the very last section of the dissertation to the issue of rape in the light of this provisional, utopian vision, and suggest that in a situation where women are empowered to live in a women’s world, rape would become a pathetic act which would shame only the man who attempts it. / Prof. J.J. Snyman

This thesis is divided into two main parts. The first part establishes the theoretical framework that served as a guide for my English translation of the short novel La débil mental by Argentinian author Ariana Harwicz, and consists of three chapters. Due to the novel’s narrative style and subject matter, my translation approach was centered on the topic of female madness in literature. Therefore, the first chapter examines feminist theories of translation and their relevance to the project at hand. The second examines the topic of madness in literature, and pays particular attention to depictions of women with mental illnesses in literary works. Then, in the third chapter, I will attempt to draw on the previous two chapters to develop an approach to translating female madness, and examine specific choices made in my translation of La débil mental in that light. Finally, the second main part of the thesis consists of my translation of the novel.

Thesis advisor: Mary Troxell / This thesis explores the flaws of classical autonomy in Western healthcare, and alternatively proposes a feminist ethics of care relational autonomy in healthcare settings. It proceeds in four chapters: a brief history of classical autonomy, autonomy's role in healthcare and medical ethics, an introduction to relational autonomy, and relational autonomy's focus on marginalized populations in Western healthcare. It concludes that to address the disconnect in Western healthcare between the patient, provider, and healthcare system, we need to shift to a more relational view of society. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2022. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Departmental Honors. / Discipline: Philosophy.

Bibliography: leaves 83-87. / This paper presents a study of the Exodus tradition of the Hebrew Bible with a critique from the perspective of a Feminist Liberation theology. It is recognised that Liberation theologies in general have adopted the theme of Israel's Exodus from Egypt as a paradigm for liberation from the particular forms of oppression being addressed by that liberation perspective (for example, Black theology, Third World theology, Feminist theology). The appropriateness of such a use of the tradition is discussed for the broad category of Liberation theologies as well as for Feminist theology specifically. We have chosen to view the Exodus tradition as a metaphor. The importance of a metaphorical approach to theology will be discussed in the first chapter. Briefly, we acknowledge that metaphor is an appropriate category for religious language, since it uses what is known in order to describe the unknown. This is most clear in descriptions of the divine: in the case of the Exodus metaphor God may be described as "the Liberator of the oppressed". Likewise, the Exodus narrative may be considered a metaphor of liberation. However, a metaphorical perspective reminds us that religious language is limited since a metaphor cannot be fully equated with the category being described. A further limitation is noted whereby a two-way relationship is established in metaphorical speech, so that the metaphor is given validity by that which it describes. From the point of view of Feminist theology, such limitations are profoundly important, since a refusal to recognise them results in irrelevance or idolatry. Our second and third chapters explore the use of the Exodus metaphor by Feminist Liberation theology and the limitations of the metaphor, respectively.

Bibliography: leaves 108-116. / Part I of this study introduces the problem and the feminist methodologies to be employed in the thesis. The argument is that biblical scholarship and interpretation was based on Western patriarchal androcentric and sexist approach which considered maleness as normative human behaviour. The feminist approach to the parabolic interpretation is introduced as a contrast to the normative male dominated Western scholarship. Feminist theology demonstrates convincingly that the androcentric and misogynist bias of patriarchal tradition is serious. Then again, American, European African women theologians realize the need has arisen to establish alternative norms and sources of tradition to challenge these biases, and women seek a reconstruction or re-envisioning of the theological themes that will free males from these biases. While sharing these concerns I want to discuss these issues from the point of view of the Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians whose founding person is Mercy Oduyoye. These women feel oppressed by their African culture, religion and White domination. The African context will be represented by the Lesotho situation whose areas of similarity in oral mentality, culture and mode of life between the Basotho people and the ancient Jewish culture are close. Part II presents a historical interpretation of the three selected parabolic paradigms. These are: The parables of The Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37), The Lost Coin (Luke 15: 8-10) and The Unjust Judge (Luke 18: 1-8) . This presentation is exposed by a selection of three scholars who typify the approach and views of their generation in the interpretation of each respective parable. Part III focuses on critical analyses of the three parables. The structural, exegetical, hermeneutical and African feminist's analysis will be the burden of this section. The conclusion will be the culmination of the present study.

This study examined the participants' level of jealousy towards their significant other and how it affects the longevity and commitment of their respective relationships. Based on a review of the literature, the research filled the gap of explaining the factor that affects the level of jealousy in monogamous relationships, particularly gender, and sexual orientation. Attachment theory was the theoretical construct that informed the research that addressed the gap in the literature. The research employed a quantitative method that used Rubin's Love Scale, Hendrick's Relationship Assessment Scale and Pfeiffer and Wong's Multidimensional Jealousy Scale. Self-reporting questionnaires and surveys were used to measure the attachment process of all participants who are involved in a romantic, close relationship. Participants were assessed using 2 different methods to determine their level of relationship satisfaction and perceived jealousy they exhibit. The dependent variables were the level of relationship satisfaction and jealousy while the independent variables were gender and sexual orientation. It was hypothesized that gender and sexual orientation can be main determinants to understand the dynamics of jealousy and relationship satisfaction in monogamous relationships. The sample of the study was 132 individuals who were currently involved in a romantic, close monogamous and committed relationship in Colorado. The data from this study were analyzed using MANOVA, correlation analysis, and central tendencies. The results indicated that heterosexual samples had the highest level of relationship satisfaction, and the lowest levels of jealousy. In contrast, the bisexual samples had the highest level of jealousy. Homosexual samples had the lowest level of jealousy and had significantly greater levels of relationship satisfaction. These results and the limitations of the study are discussed.

No description available.

Claude Cahun, born Lucy Renee Mathilde Schwob, was an author, playwright, surrealist photographer and anti-fascist activist who spent most of their lives in France and the Isle of Jersey from their birth in 1894 to their early death in 1954. Throughout their career they went by various aliases and pennames, settling on Claude Cahun in 1917, a gender-ambiguous name in French. While they considered themselves a writer before a photographer it is their photography that they are probably best known for today, becoming popular for their "modern" content that explores gender identity and its presentation. These self-portraits, along with their personal writings, support the conclusion that Cahun was (or could be considered, as they did not have the language of gender and sexuality in their lifetime) a transgender, nonbinary individual, possibly gender fluid. For this reason, throughout this research I will be using the singular they/them pronouns in reference to Cahun as well as their partner Marcel Moore. This thesis will investigate and analyze the photographic work of Claude Cahun as their own personal exploration of their sexuality and gender identity. I will use both the context of their writings, and those of other contemporaries within a framework of early 20th cenrtury culture to better understand their content.