POSSIBILITIES of FEMINISM by NICOLE EMILY HURT
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OVEREXPOSED AND UNDER-EXAMINED: CULTURAL RHETORICS OF BREASTS AND THE (IM)POSSIBILITIES OF FEMINISM by NICOLE EMILY HURT (Under the Direction of Celeste M. Condit) ABSTRACT This dissertation project takes a tour of three different breasted scenarios in order to answer the question, when breasts come to matter—both physically and rhetorically—how do they? Based on the assumption that breasts are just as rhetorical as they are biological, my goal in this project is to add to the collective understanding of how certain breasts gain meaning in and through public discourse. In addition, I contribute to the conversation about the possibilities for feminist visions of bodies already existing within mainstream discourse. In order to better understand how breasts come to matter, or are made significant, I examine various breast-based texts, including breast cancer awareness campaigns, mammography rhetorics, and public breastfeeding debates, and ask how these texts encourage certain ideas about women, bodies, and breasts while constraining others. In each case study, I highlight both the troubling aspects of the discourses as well as the productive opportunities the discourse offers feminist politics. In the conclusion, I argue that the three case studies are united by three troubling themes—breasts as biological objects, the erasure of women, and personalizing rhetorics—that pose an obstacle for a feminist politics from the breast. In order to address these rhetorical problems, I suggest that a feminist rhetoric of the breast might denaturalize breasts, politicize the breasted body, and encourage embodiment and situated knowledge of breasted bodies. In addition to describing these criteria, I also begin to imagine how the texts I analyzed could adopt these principles. I end on a tentative, yet, hopeful note for the future of both feminism and breasts. INDEX WORDS: rhetoric, women‘s bodies, feminism, breasts OVEREXPOSED AND UNDER-EXAMINED: CULTURAL RHETORICS OF BREASTS AND THE (IM)POSSIBILITIES OF FEMINISM by NICOLE EMILY HURT BA, Gustavus Adolphus College, 2004 MA, Colorado State University, 2006 A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY ATHENS, GEORGIA 2011 © 2011 Nicole Emily Hurt All Rights Reserved OVEREXPOSED AND UNDER-EXAMINED: CULTURAL RHETORICS OF BREASTS AND THE (IM)POSSIBILITIES OF FEMINISM by NICOLE EMILY HURT Major Professor: Celeste M. Condit Committee: Kelly Happe Tricia Lootens Edward Panetta Roger Stahl Electronic Version Approved: Maureen Grasso Dean of the Graduate School The University of Georgia May 2011 DEDICATION This project is dedicated to Isabella Sophia and Michaella Lee. You give me hope for the future and inspire me, as a feminist, to work hard to make sure you have the opportunity to live the fullest, richest, freest lives possible. This project is also dedicated to my grandmother, Gladys Elaine Jones, without whom so much of what has been possible for me to think, see, and feel, would never have been. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Writing a dissertation is hard. I can only imagine how much harder it would have been had I not had the constant support and guidance of my advisor, Celeste Condit. Celeste was the reason I chose to attend Georgia for my graduate work and that decision has proved to be the best one I‘ve perhaps ever made. I have to thank Celeste a million times over for her constant encouragement and understanding. I‘ll always treasure our office chats. You have not only provided me with the confidence I will need to do good work, but you have also given me a model—both as an academic and a person—to strive for. Thank you My committee members have also been influential in this endeavor. Thanks to Kelly Happe, Tricia Lootens, Roger Stahl, and Ed Panetta for your generosity and collegiality. In addition to your thoughtful comments on my work, you‘ve also given me role models for how I‘d like to be as a professor. Thank you for your kindness both with my work and with me. Even though writing feels like an isolated practice, I have always known that I am surrounded by a community of peers, of which I am quite positive are the best. To my graduate school colleagues—both those long since gone and those new ones just beginning—thank you for the rich discussions and debates we‘ve shared throughout seminars and happy hours. You‘ve shaped my intellectual (and social) development in ways impossible to detail. An especially large thank you to those who supported me throughout these five years, including David, Betsy, Eric, Bethany, Blake, Lisa, Jamie, and Erin. I feel lucky to have such a vibrant grad school family. I also count my best Athens buds, Sam and Marc, among my community of supporters. In addition v to proof-reading drafts of this manuscript at the drop of a hat, these two have nourished me with good food and company. Without you two, I never could have finished this. Thank you forever. Conspicuously absent from the above list is my academic soul mate, Kristen L. McCauliff. Without Kristen, I would have never stayed in graduate school nor have ever made any friends. She initiated every interaction we had those first several weeks of school and for her dedication and perseverance, I am eternally grateful. Kristen has been my cheerleader and best friend throughout all of the ups and downs. She has given me a lifetime full of warm and happy memories. She has also brought Drew into my life, who has been invaluable in the development of my sporty consciousness. I look forward to continuing to share our lives both as academics and best friends. Although I end my graduate career poor in cash money, I am beyond rich in friendship. I am indebted to my best friends—the monkeys—who have supported me throughout each and every turn of this wild road. Your phone calls and witty cards have kept me connected to our group and have given me a sense of grounding. I love our annual reunions and I so look forward to our next one when I can happily check in with ―I‘m no longer in school.‖ An extra special shout-out goes to my soul mate, best friend, dog‘s godmama, Jena. I‘m speechless when I think about the honor it was to have you at my defense. Thank you, Jena, for being exactly who you are and for believing in me more than I ever could. My family surely deserves acknowledgement for their support. Thank you brothers and sisters, nieces and grandparents, parents and uncles, aunts and cousins for not always asking about school and for allowing me to feel like part of the gang. I know that each and every one of you loves me and supports me. I am especially indebted to my darling sister whose frequent phone calls and visits have reminded me how lucky I am to have a sister. Thank you for that. vi Thank you, Dad, for visiting each year. I love how you took the time to get to know my life in Georgia. And, I must thank my sweet pooch, Gabby. Thank you for always jumping on me when I get home from a long day of school (even though jumping is against the rules), for wagging your tail excitedly each morning when I wake, and for making me leave the house every day for one of our walks. And finally, my biggest acknowledgement goes to my mom. Not long ago, I was on the phone with her trying to convince her that this project would never get done. I just could not do it. Thank you, mom, for not believing me and for always believing in me. Your love sustains me. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................................................................................v LIST OF FIGURES .........................................................................................................................x CHAPTER 1 BREAST DISCOURSE AND THE (IM)POSSIBILITIES FOR FEMINISM..............1 Introduction ..............................................................................................................1 Why Breasts? ...........................................................................................................3 Feminist Body Work ................................................................................................9 Why Rhetoric? .......................................................................................................26 Chapter Previews ...................................................................................................35 2 BREAST CANCER DISCOURSE PRODUCES BREAST, BODIES, AND WOMEN ............................................................................................................40 Introduction ............................................................................................................40 Breast Cancer: Past, Present, and Pink ..................................................................43 Analyzing Breast Cancer Awareness Rhetoric: Background and Method ............50 Depoliticizing Health, Erasing Women, and Objectifying Breasts .......................57 Conclusion: Encouraging Embodiment and Conscious Reflection .......................73 3 FRAMING MAMMOGRAPHY: THE RHETORICAL FLATTENING OF BREASTS AND WOMEN ..........................................................................................81 Introduction ............................................................................................................81 viii A History of Controversial Surveillance................................................................83 USPSTF‘s Rhetoric: Benefits Outweigh Harms ....................................................90