ABSTRACT ...coming out of darkness, moving toward the light... -- Maya Angelou The following are the questions at the very heart of this dissertation. What is mothering and what are the roles and duties that mothering entails? Who defines mothering? What is hegemony and what are the constraints that hegemony places upon mothering within both the individual and systemic realms? How are the roles of motherhood and mothering affected by hegemony? How do people mother when they are under the constraints of hegemony? To what means and resources do people turn in order to mother in the face of hegemony? In sum: what is hegemony and how does it affect mothering on both systemic and individual levels? To answer these questions, this dissertation explores hegemony and mothering as they are represented within the work of two feminist novels and their respective motion pictures. Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale (1985) is a dystopian tale of patriarchal-state rule where state agents forcibly render female humans "national resource" breeders. Toni Morrison's novel Beloved (1987) is the story of one woman and her quest to protect her children from the atrocious physical, sexual, emotional, and psychological abuses of white supremacists. This dissertation exposes and theorizes various phenomenal and elemental components of hegemony, thus filling a gap in the current critical discourse; the dissertation then reveals how hegemony constrains mothering in both novels and their filmic adaptations. As I argue that collusion is a main ingredient in the life-force of hegemony, it is relevant and necessary to explore collusion. I examine how the characters within the novels--as well as how, at times, the authors themselves--unintentionally collude with socially existent hegemonies in their artistry via internal colonization. I argue that, if the harms of internal colonization had been less and that also if the authors had been more aware of defaulted language and the importance of avoiding it, their novels may possibly speak more powerfully than they already do. I go on to compare the difference in severity of collusion between the novels, while also engaging with canonical and recent criticism of these texts. The majority of criticism has tended to collude with the problem I have identified; not only authors but also critics are trapped in defaulted language. In addition, I theorize another hegemonic self-preservation phenomenon, which I entitle the wolf-in-sheep's-clothing effect. This effect is a powerfully covert function of both individuals' thought and of macro-societal perceptions and it is made all the more effective by being nearly undetectable. Ultimately, while the examination of hegemony specifically pertains to the novels, it is worth considering that this theorization can be applied to all forms of hegemony. I make the case that hegemony, no matter the form it takes (nationalism, patriarchy, white supremacy, etc.), has the same underlying formula. In order to destroy hegemony, we must destroy it in all of its manifestations. / A Dissertation submitted to the Program in Interdisciplinary Humanities in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2014. / July 10, 2014. / Defaulted Language, Feminism, Hegemony, Liberation, Motherhood, Mothering / Includes bibliographical references. / Celia Daileader, Professor Directing Dissertation; Joyce Carbonell, University Representative; Linda Saladin-Adams, Committee Member; Eric Walker, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_253602 |
| Contributors | Brackins, Genevieve (authoraut), Daileader, Celia (professor directing dissertation), Carbonell, Joyce (university representative), Saladin-Adams, Linda (committee member), Walker, Eric (committee member), Program in Interdisciplinary Humanities (degree granting department), Florida State University (degree granting institution) |
| Publisher | Florida State University, Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource, computer, application/pdf |
| Rights | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them. |
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