A Life of Her Own: Exploring the Cultivation of Feminist Language on the Subject of Girlhood
Presentation Type
Textual Analysis
Release Option
Metadata Only
Description
The genesis of feminism has no linear path, but instead, is a culmination of various historical events and literature coalesced to form our contemporary understanding. The Victorian Era, 19th-century England, is rich with early women’s suffrage and the cultivation of Eurocentric, gendered language. This essay begins its analysis with a Victorian text from a popular magazine The Girl’s Own Paper, which marketed itself towards young women seeking advice. My specific area of interest was the early feminist language on girlhood that is explored in an issue of The Girl’s Own Paper: “Between School and Marriage.” This work defines girlhood as a time of independence for women outside of their families or husbands. My research explores how the attitudes surrounding girlhood have shifted over time and endured. I explore a thematic longing for girlhood introduced in “Between School and Marriage” that reminisces with Adrienne Rich’s poem “Snapshots of a Daughter-in-Law” and Taylor Swift’s song “Nothing New.” Each work is representative of girlhood within its time while remaining interconnected. To understand the progression of girlhood is to understand an elemental part of feminism; therefore, asking the question of how far we have come and how much farther we have to go.
Faculty Mentor
Jane Rago
Department of Primary Presenter's Major
Other
Symposium Year
2024
A Life of Her Own: Exploring the Cultivation of Feminist Language on the Subject of Girlhood
