The Paternity Test and the Cultural Logic of Paternity
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WHO'S YOUR DADDY? THE PATERNITY TEST AND THE CULTURAL LOGIC OF PATERNITY by Kathalene A. Razzano A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of George Mason University in Partial Fulfillment of The Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Cultural Studies Director Program Director Dean, College of Humanities and Social Sciences Date: );! Spring Semester 2012 George Mason University Fairfax, VA Who’s Your Daddy?: The Paternity Test and the Cultural Logic of Paternity A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at George Mason University by Kathalene A. Razzano Master of Arts The Pennsylvania State University, 1997 Bachelor of Arts University of Maryland, College Park, 1995 Director: Timothy Gibson, Professor Department of Communication Spring Semester 2012 George Mason University Fairfax, VA This work is licensed under a creative commons attribution-noderivs 3.0 unported license. ii DEDICATION This is dedicated to those I’ve lost along the way; my teachers, mentors and friends Joe L. Kincheloe, Peter Brunette, and Jeanne Hall; my step-mother Linda Razzano; and my Pop, Gabriel Razzano. I miss each of you but carry you on with me. I also dedicate this dissertation to my Grammies, Audrey Razzano. She’s been waiting for me to (finally) finish so that she can call me “Doctor.” iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the many friends, relatives, and supporters who have made this happen. Since I’ve been doing this a while, I have a number of people to thank. First, I must thank my dissertation chair Tim Gibson who has been unbelievably supportive, helpful and productively critical. I’m happy to say that I’m a charter member of the Tim Gibson fan club. My two other committee members Debra Bergoffen and Nancy Hanrahan made my dissertation committee the best one in the history of the world. This is no exaggeration. Collectively, their support, patience and insights as committee members, teachers and mentors have made me a better scholar and I want to be just like them when I grow up. My family has been an well-spring of support and encouragement. I could not have done this without Dan Sosnosky who always has faith in me. He’s my partner in this adventure of life and I wouldn’t have it any other way. My twin sister Christy, aside from being all- around amazing, was also a crucial part of the final stages of dissertation writing. She created order out of chaos—and by that I mean she did my footnotes and formatting. My parents Shirley & Dan Cooke and Ron & Linda Razzano and my in-laws Joe & Marlene Sosnosky always knew I could do it, even when I was not sure myself. I also must thank my sister Kelly Razzano-Morris and brother-in-law Anthony for moving back to the U.S. to take care of our grandparents. They took over a heavy load I had been carrying when I needed it most. Being one of seven sisters means I have an incredible support system. So I must thank Lara Sosnosky, Maria Witles, Jennifer O’Connell, and Laura Jorgensen and their families for keeping me laughing and feeling loved. Also, I could not have done this without my other “sisters.” Tanja Pilzak, Karen Gordes, Wanda Knight-Griffin, Britt Marder and Anita Shankar. They have faith in me, keep me grounded and also make me feel loved. I have been fortunate to have a number of fellow travelers on this intellectual adventure. Loubna Skalli and Christine Quail have been with me from the start. My intellectual collaborations with them have been as rewarding as my deep friendship with them, and for that I am truly thankful. I was lucky enough to have Tracy McLoone as my peer mentor when I entered the program. She has been an amazing help, especially these past few months. Her helpful, funny comments got me through my final edits with a sense of humor. Fan Yang has been my fearless adventure companion. We’ve literally stood above the clouds together. I knew she was something special from the very beginning. Pia Møller has been my dissertation writing buddy beyond also being a member of my writing group. She’s been with me in Dissertationland making the mad dash towards the iv finish line. I was so happy to know she was there with me. Sean Johnson Andrews, Lia Uy-tioco, and Leah Perry have been my conference buddies and have probably heard my work more than anyone else, and I’m the better for their feedback and their friendship. Over the years, I’ve needed support, encouragement, fellowship and mentorship. I’ve received that from Lynn Constantine, Cynthia Patterson, Molly Dragiewicz, Wendy Burns-Adorlino, Michelle Meagher, Rachel Delgado-Simmons, Ludy Grandas, Rob Carley, Chris Sutch, Ellen Gorman, Jaafar Aksikas, Joanne Clarke Dillman, Rob Gehl, Olga Herrera, Tara Sheoran, Michael Lecker, Richard Otten and Elaine Cardenas. They have all enriched my scholarship with their suggestions, thoughts and conversation. And, I could have never imagined a virtual place called Dissertationland if it weren’t for Sabrina Starnaman. It was her brain-child. I was just happy to join in. Michelle Carr gets her own paragraph. She makes our program function and I would not and could not have finished without her. I am also in the Michelle Carr fan club. And, I must give her credit for me using “Who’s Your Daddy?” in my title. It was her idea, and a very good one. I have also had a number of professors help light way in one form or another. Joe Kincheloe—I just don’t have the words. He was a special man, a kind and generous educator and mentor, and he remains a beacon of light for many of us. The world is a better place because he was here. Peter Brunette was also an amazing mentor and friend. He could always point me in the right direction and make me see sense. He also loved to gossip and I miss him. This project developed out of a paper I wrote for Paul Smith’s course on Culture, Communication and Technology. What I learned in his courses continues with me today. My scholarship definitely has a Smith-ian slant. I am also grateful to Katrina Irving, Dina Copelman, Roger Lancaster, Carol Gould, and Shirley Steinberg for their words of wisdom, guidance and direction. And it will come as no surprise to those that know me when I say that I also have my medical team to thank: Dr. George Cavanagh, Dr. Joan Cantero-Lakhanpal, Dr. Shivani Narasimhan, Dr. Elizabeth Streeten, Dr. Ramesh Khurana, Dr. Lynda Crawford, Dr. Michael Wells, and Tracy Soltesz, LAc, MAc, ADS. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page List of Figures.................................................................................................................. viii List of Abbreviations ......................................................................................................... ix Abstract............................................................................................................................... x Introduction: The Paternity Test and the Cultural Logic of Paternity ................................ 1 Paternity Testing and the Policy Focus of Fatherhood: A Brief Introduction ................ 2 Background of the Problem .......................................................................................... 10 Literature Review.......................................................................................................... 15 Media and Paternity .................................................................................................. 17 Science, Gender and the Family................................................................................ 21 Fatherhood Resurrected............................................................................................ 23 Conflicting Consequences for Women....................................................................... 25 Role of Justice: Child Support and Criminalization ..................................................... 27 Filling in the Gaps......................................................................................................... 29 Theoretical Framework ................................................................................................. 32 Foucault, sexuality and governmentality .................................................................. 35 Feminist Social Theory and Historical Materialism ................................................. 38 Feminist Social Theory and Justice, Citizenship and Welfare .................................. 41 Methodology ................................................................................................................. 45 Review of Legislation—Discourse Analysis .............................................................. 47 Textual Analysis......................................................................................................... 48 Outline of Chapters ....................................................................................................... 49 Chapter 1—Breaking Through the Baby-Momma Drama: Paternity, Television and Families............................................................................................................................. 54 Talk Shows as “Vulture Culture”.................................................................................. 59 Illuminating the Subject: Trust, Truth and Betrayal ..................................................... 63 Illuminating the Subject: Complicating the Science of Paternity ................................. 69 vi “My Baby Looks Just Like Him”..............................................................................