As women began to establish themselves in the United States workforce in the first half of the twentieth century, one especial group of career women, women writers, began to use the space of their self-authored life writing narratives to inscribe their own understanding of themselves. Roundly criticized for not adhering to conventional autobiographical standards, these women writers used purposeful political strategies of resistance to craft self-authored life writing works that varied widely from the genre of autobiography. Rather than employ the usual ways critiquing autobiographical texts, I explore a deeper understanding of what these prescient women sought to do. Through revision of the terminology of the field and in consideration of a wide variety of critics and approaches, I argue that these women intentionally employed resistance in their writings. In Dust Tracks on A Road (1942), Zora Neale Hurston successfully established her own sense of herself as a black woman, who could also comment on political issues. Her fellow Southerner, Eudora Welty in One Writer’s Beginnings (1984), used orality to deliberately showcase her view of her own life. Another Southern writer, Lillian Smith in Killers of the Dream, employed an overtly social science approach to tell the life narrative of all white Christian Southerners, and described how she felt the problems of racism should be overcome. Anzia Yezierska, a Russian émigré to the United States, used an Old World European understanding of storytelling to refashion an understanding of herself as a writer and at the same time critiqued the United States in her work, Red Ribbon on a White Horse (1950). Mary Austin, a Western woman writer, saw Earth Horizon as an opportunity to reclaim the fragmentation of a woman’s life as a positive, rather than a negative space.

In a heteronormative society where hegemonic masculinity prevails, beauty is often synonymous with, and presented as, feminine. For example, pictures of tall, thin women with perfect teeth and perfect skin gloss the covers of magazines and other forms of media as representative of some beauty ideal. This “ideal” is the barometer by which, on many levels, all women are judged. While some women may choose to ignore these messages, few women can always escape comparison. Our society constantly informs us that appearance matters. More specifically for women, a feminine physical appearance is often considered “ideal.” But what exactly does this construct, feminine, signify? Fundamentally, femininity is not static. To speak of it as a logical, simple construct is problematic for it means different things and is expressed in different ways in different environments. Furthermore, to assert one definition by which all others will be measured is difficult in that it presumes a homogenous population and/or idealizes one specific representation. In this research project I conducted in-depth interviews with 43 non-heterosexual women to discern how they constructed “femininity.” What did it look like? What meanings did it connote? When was it important and how was it negotiated? Applying a cognitive sociological lens and using grounded theory methods, I describe what femininity, or arguably femininities, look(s) like within this subpopulation. This project contributes to and extends the literature on gender, sexuality, and appearance. It does this by demonstrating the importance of analyzing non-heterosexual women’s experiences and understandings of femininity within a patriarchal society that valorizes hegemonic masculinity. Most literature contemplating appearance and related misogynistic messages emphasizes a heteronormative perspective. However, feminine and femininity uniquely impact non-heteronormative women. Non-heterosexual women must negotiate both misogynistic and heterosexist messages concurrently. By simultaneously addressing this “double” subordination or marginalization, this research endeavors to provide a more comprehensive overview of meanings and ramifications of appearance choices.

This qualitative dissertation in Counseling Psychology considers the open secret, an under-researched phrase describing an interesting phenomenon that is experienced by some, but not all, LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) people when their sexual orientation is known or suspected by family members, friends, and/or coworkers, but not discussed. A review of the literature notes how the essence of the open secret appears to be about knowledge that is not acknowledged, while it may also create a space of grace, allowing people to coexist, where they might not otherwise be able to do so easily. Participants (N = 11) were either current or past members of the U.S. military who served before or during the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy. Interviews were analyzed using James Paul Gee’s linguistic approach to narrative, from which three major findings emerged: (a) sexual and homophobic harassment, whereby historically homophobic attitudes within the military drive the need for secrecy surrounding LGBT sexuality; (b) acceptance and support, whereby the open secret seems to create a space of grace; and (c) empowerment and honesty, whereby LGBT people seem to have a new sense of honesty that empowers them toward a new sense of agency. Discussion includes examination of how the three findings may relate to the open versus secret parts of the open secret, as well as how the open secret and the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy may represent a gestalt attempt at balance that may now be moving toward a gestalt dynamic of completion, suggesting the possibility of a new Discourse of openness and honesty for LGBT people that appears to be on a proleptic edge of possibility.

同志身分常常是許多同志鎖在衣櫃裡的另一面貌，同志污名標籤令同志在日常生活中，必須管理有關同志身分的身分訊息，以免他人以偏見看待。然而衣櫃卻也有著男櫃與女櫃的差別，女同志在社會中承受的污名處境與男同志並不相同，所擁有的資源與權力也不一樣。相較男同志，女同志有著女性與同志的雙重弱勢身分。 近年來世界各地出現愈來愈多透過臉書賦權的例子，臉書使人們更容易自行組織動員，賦予人們更多政治權力上的能動性。在各式各樣透過臉書賦權的行動中，亦包含少數族群污名化標籤的去除與對抗歧視。對於在主流異性戀社會體制處於性別弱勢的女同志族群來說，藉由臉書反轉污名標籤，或是試圖在臉書上管控自身的同志身分訊息，皆使得女同志在日常生活中與他人的互動，有了別於以往的改變。 本研究從日常生活中的人際互動秩序切入，探究女同志的臉書使用策略。企圖理解臉書如何成為女同志族群遊走權力縫隙的工具，甚至被女同志使用者挪用作為抗衡異性戀主流霸權的策略。研究的目的在於挖掘女同志族群使用臉書的期待、想法與使用感受；以及女同志族群如何透過臉書達成使用臉書的目的――有著哪些使用策略、挪用與棄用的情形。 研究採用質化研究取向，使用深度訪談法，並蒐集紀錄同志的臉書使用文本，交互分析論證。以日常生活理論中Lefebvre的節慶狂歡概念與de Certeau弱者的力量，闡述臉書女同志使用者，如何透過戰術創造機會，並對結構展現出自身的能動性。 研究發現臉書作為呈現日常生活樣貌的平台，反映的是日常生活中綿密交織的各式權力秩序。臉書的女同志使用者在多元的臉書使用策略中，展現與社會監視機制抗衡的企圖，並試圖對異性戀霸權結構秩序形成擾動。女同志族群透過臉書平台具有的隱私控制系統，作為策略使用的主要機制。以臉書上的朋友名單篩選與分類臉書朋友、曖昧模糊的文字內容、大量按讚與轉貼分享偷渡同志議題等方式，自行定義生命中的重要事件與場景，讓詮釋、定義女同志的權力，下放至女同志手中。 / Because of the homosexual stigma, LGBT have to hide their sexual orientation to keep away from discrimination. Lesbians and gays face different social stigmas and the power and social resources they enjoy are not the same. Lesbians, as women and homosexuals at the same time, are more disadvantaged than gays in the society. There are more and more people who empower themselves through Facebook. The empowerment movements on Facebook include reversing the stigma and combating against the discrimination. Lesbians use Facebook as a tool to reverse the stigma against them and they could decide whether to reveal their social identities on Facebook. Thus, Facebook has changed lesbians’ daily interaction with others. Based on the theories about ‘everyday life’ suggested by Lefebvre and de Certeau, this study will explain how lesbians use Facebook to overcome limitations in their daily lives. The findings suggest that, rather than breaking the social norms, lesbians establish a ‘Friend List’ on Facebook to categorize their friends. By using this strategy, lesbians try to undermine the heterosexual hegemony which governs their lives. The tatics that applied by lesbians while using Facebook are not only influenced by the features of Facebook, but also affected by the social and cultural context and power relations.

This study focuses on the nature of university instructors' beliefs and attitudes toward gay and lesbian content in the university Gender course curriculum. It was intended to provide a better understanding of factors such as academic freedom, societal influences, personal opinions, curriculum, and institutional influences that might affect attitudes and thus undermine the inclusion of discussion about Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) issues. Participants in the study were seven instructors from the faculties of Social Sciences, Faculty of Education, Applied Psychology, and Educational Psychology at the University of Alberta, the University of Calgary, and the University of Lethbridge, in the province of Alberta, Canada. The study revealed that although there was only a slight diversity of beliefs and attitudes about the topic among the participants, a majority of them felt positively toward inclusion of information in the university curricula. the positive attitudes were expressed as a willingness to teach about the subject matter, and a belief that LGBT content should be integrated throughout the general curriculum. The implications and the challenges of incorporating LGBT issues into the curriculum were also discussed. Participants discuss that LGBT issues are not adequately represented in the curriculum, that there is a need for more public awareness and education about homosexuality, a need for greater inclusion of gay and lesbian issues in university programs, a desire for less marginalization of the LGBT topic, and a vow to provide more respect for LGBT persons. / ix, 173 leaves ; 29 cm.

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This thesis performs a textual analysis of two for-profit science fiction texts in which the authors implanted queer content: Bryan Singer's X-Men films and James Robert's Transformers comic series, "More Than Meets the Eye". The argument incorporates queer (referring to attraction and gender variance) media representation and western identity politics lenses into its critique. By interrogating reality through the masquerade of an impossible universe, science fiction affects how subversive a text can be. When authors designate the natural and the unnatural in a strange universe, they designate what and who belongs in our society. Whatever they imagine has an effect on our reality.

Det här examensarbetet tar avstamp i metaforen ”att komma ut ur garderoben” och som blivande lärare intresserar jag mig för hur verksamma lärare som inte är heterosexuella väljer att agera i frågan om öppenhet. Syftet är att synliggöra ickeheterosexuella lärare genom att analysera och tolka tre lärares berättelser om sin yrkesvardag samt att diskutera resultatet ur ett didaktiskt perspektiv. Min empiri bestod av cirka 7 timmar videodokumenterade intervjuer med tre lärare från grundskola, gymnasium och vuxenutbildning. Som en del av intervjun tittade vi på min film, Garderoben, där jag undersökt garderobsmetaforen med min kropp. Filmen är även en del i min konstnärliga gestaltning. I uppsatsen finns också bilder från när jag använder min konstnärliga undersökningsmetod i ett klassrum med en garderob. Det här examensarbetet befinner sig i fältet för livsberättelseforskning och har en socialkonstruktionistisk ansats, samtidigt som jag menar att språket inte kan skiljas från det materiella, det kroppsliga. Min metod har varit temabaserade intervjuer. I uppsatsen presenteras delar av intervjuerna som poetiska narrativ, dels som en kollektiv biografi och dels som korta enskilda berättelser. Jag analyserar dessa med hjälp av queerteori och sexual difference-teori. Studiens resultat går i stort i linje med tidigare svensk forskning inom området, det vill säga att det inte är lätt att vara öppen med en ickenormativ sexualitet i svensk skola. Men min studie fördjupar och breddar fältet. Jag diskuterar även didaktiska konsekvenser. Avslutningsvis diskuterar jag vad som bör göras och sammanfattningsvis föreslår jag att detta är ett område som bör utforskas mer. Diskussionen om skolans normering genom läraren bör väcka större pedagogiskt intresse. / This thesis begins with the metaphor "to come out of the closet". As a future teacher I am interested in how practicing teachers who are not heterosexual choose to act on the issue of openness. The purpose is to highlight non-heterosexual teachers by analyzing and interpreting three teachers' stories about their everyday professional life and discuss the results from a didactic perspective. My empirical data consisted of about seven hours of video documented interviews with three teachers from primary, secondary and adult education. As part of the interview we looked at my movie Garderoben (The Closet), where I examined the ”coming out of the closet”-metaphor bodily. The film is part of my artistic figuration. The thesis includes pictures which show how I test my artistic method of examination in a classroom with a wardrobe. This thesis belongs to the field of life story research and has a social constructionist approach, but I mean that language cannot be separated from the material. My method has been theme-based interviews and I presented parts of the interviews in form of poetic narratives – one collective biography and six individual short stories – which I analyzed using queer theory and sexual difference theory. My overall result is in line with previous Swedish research, namely that it is not easy to be open with a norm breaking sexuality in a school in Sweden. But my study deepens and stretches the field. I also discuss didactic consequences. In the final discussion, I discuss what should be done and come to the conclusion that this is an area that should be more explored. The discussion of the school's norms through the teacher should bring greater educational interest.

This study examined the attitudes and perceptions of resident assistants towardgay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered (GLBT) students. Attitudes and perceptions of floor environments, hall environments, and the campus community were looked at. The original intent of this study was to find a relationship between resident assistants' attitudes and perceptions toward GLBT individuals and its relationship to the environment created on the RA's floor. The sample of GLBT students was too small to make reference to it in this study.A significant difference was found between hall staffs' attitudes. The study suggests that their hall environment can influence RAs' attitudes and perceptions. Consistent with past research, male resident assistants (RAs) had more negative views toward gay men and lesbians than female RAs. Inconsistent responses were found to individual questions, which suggests a lack of education on GLBT issues. The majority of RAs believed there should not be more GLBT material integrated in the classroom, however they felt they didn't have adequate training on GLBT issues. RAs felt that GLBT students experience less harassment and discrimination in the residence halls then on campus and in society. / Department of Secondary, Higher, and Foundations of Education

With the aim of increasing practitioner competence, this dissertation provides marriage and family therapists and mental health service providers with insight into the experiences of legally married same-sex couples. Specifically, the inquiry's objective was to elicit narratives of strength and agency from these couples who navigated the oppressive circumstances of an anti-gay amendment campaign situated within the debate over the extension of marriage rights to same-sex couples. Fourteen couples were interviewed in order to respond to the dissertation's overriding question: How do the lesbian and gay couples and families who are among those who were legally married in California before the passage of Proposition 8 narrate their experiences of their marriages? Through portraiture (Lawrence-Lightfoot & Davis, 1997), a method of inquiry situated within a postmodern, social constructionist framework, a narrative was produced which evolved through five emergent themes: 1) Our Commitments Have Rich Histories -- the symbolic and legal ways in which these couples commemorated and brought definition to their commitments, in the absence of a nationally-sanctioned and collectively-recognized state of legal marriage; 2) Not a Simple Matter: The Complexities of Language Choice -- their contextual language choices, which reflected the absence of representative and collectively-recognized language options for their relationships after their legal marriages; 3) The Battle Metaphor -- the couples' experiences of California's political debate over the extension of marriage rights to same-sex couples; 4) Support Shaped Lived Experiences -- the impact of support from friends, family, and community; and lastly, 5) Legal Marriage Shaped Individual, Relational, and Social Identities -- individual, relational and social shifts that occurred for the couples through the experience of being legally married. A follow-up focus group further validated the theme Support Shaped Lived Experiences, and examined more deeply the tensions that occurred when important persons were silent about and/or did not recognize the legitimacy of the couples' legal marriages, and/or the discriminatory context in which their legal marriages were situated. In addition to its contribution of the experiences of legally married same-sex couples to the family therapy literature, the dissertation concludes with important implications for affirmative therapeutic practice, research, education, training, advocacy, and social policy.