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(ANTI) FEMINIST TESTIMONY Margarethe Mapes Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Mmapes10@Siu.Edu Southern Illinois University Carbondale OpenSIUC Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 5-1-2016 GLOBALIZED BACKLASH: WOMEN AGAINST FEMINISM’S NEW MEDIA MATRIX OF (ANTI) FEMINIST TESTIMONY Margarethe Mapes Southern Illinois University Carbondale, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/dissertations Recommended Citation Mapes, Margarethe, "GLOBALIZED BACKLASH: WOMEN AGAINST FEMINISM’S NEW MEDIA MATRIX OF (ANTI) FEMINIST TESTIMONY" (2016). Dissertations. Paper 1163. This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at OpenSIUC. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of OpenSIUC. For more information, please contact [email protected]. GLOBALIZED BACKLASH: WOMEN AGAINST FEMINISM’S NEW MEDIA MATRIX OF (ANTI) FEMINIST TESTIMONY by Margarethe J. Mapes B.S., St. Cloud State University, 2010 M.A., Southern Illinois University, 2012 A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree. Department of Communication Studies in the Graduate School Southern Illinois University Carbondale May 2016 Copyright by MARGARETHE MAPES, 2016 All Rights Reserved DISSERTATION APPROVAL GLOBALIZED BACKLASH: WOMEN AGAINST FEMINISM’S NEW MEDIA MATRIX OF (ANTI) FEMINIST ESTIMONY By Margarethe Mapes A Thesis/Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the field of Communication Studies Approved by: Nathan Stucky, Chair Suzanne Daughton Nilanjana Bardhan Rebecca Walker Meghann Pytka Graduate School Southern Illinois University Carbondale April 4, 2016 AN ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION OF MARGARETHE MAPES for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in COMMUNICATION STUDIES, presented on April 4, 2016 at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. TITLE: GLOBALIZED BACKLASH: WOMEN AGAINST FEMINISM’S NEW MEDIA MATRIX OF (ANTI) FEMINIST TESTIMONY MAJOR PROFESSOR: Dr. Nathan Stucky Feminisms are oftentimes confronted with dissonance, resistance, and backlash. Invested in criticizing the cultural and institutional emergence of patriarchy and calls to re-order structures of inequality make feminism threatening to status quo power dynamics. “Women Against Feminism”—a social media phenomenon and space for women to post anti-feminist messages— began gaining notoriety in 2013. By 2015, “Women Against Feminism” expanded to multiple social media platforms, gained thousands of anti-feminist submissions, and received ample support and criticism across news outlets. This study explores “Women Against Feminism” as a potential site of 21st feminist backlash, noting nuanced rhetorical strategies that rely on fearing feminism, declarations of interpersonal and intrapersonal love, and co-opting feminist ideology to propagate anti-feminist narratives. I situate backlash as a communicative phenomenon of perception rather than a clear-cut movement reacting toward a stated goal of progress by a social group. In this way, feminist progress functions as an illusory cultural script where backlash reacts toward the perceived enactment of a feminist goal, rather than (although not excluding) the successful feminist execution of that goal. Thus, this study dually investigates what backlash strategies are used while also uncovering how differing audiences perceive feminism. Finally, I set forth a series of suggestive practical methods for feminist engagement across dissonance and difference. i DEDICATION I wish to dedicate this document to my mother, Dr. Jan Kircher, whose scholarly and personal presence has guided me to become the feminist scholar that I am today. Mom, I am indebted to your sacrifices and am forever grateful. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I want to thank my advisor and mentor, Dr. Nathan Stucky, for his intellect, diligence, humor, and being a true beacon of light throughout my studies at SIU and during this writing process. I also want to thank my past advisors; namely, Dr. Elyse Pineau and Dr. Tami Spry, two women who have pushed me as a scholar, challenged my boundaries, and cheered me on through every success and obstacle that arose. Thank you to my committee member, Dr. Rebecca Walker, for her savvy feminist rhetorical insight. Thank you to Dr. Suzanne Daughton for her patient editing and providing caring and loving feedback. Thank you to my committee members Dr. Nilanjana R. Bardhan and Dr. Meghann Pytka for their thoughtful feedback and suggestive research directions—both of which have been vital to the success of this project. Thank you to my fierce Southern Illinois University friends: Diana Woodhouse, Benny LeMaster, Greg Hummel, Nora Klein, and Elena Esquibel. Thank you all for the many hours of listening to my scholarly ramble, providing emotional and intellectual support, and being incredible friends. Thank you to my family: Jan Kircher, Michael Mapes, and Ethan Kircher. I am where I am because of their love. Thank you to my love, Mike Selck—for every brainstorming session, every emotional breakdown, every supportive statement. Mike, you are the seabed to my ocean: strong, foundational, and unrestricting. I love you. Finally, thank you to James Denekas and Sherri Permeswaren, two teachers who taught me what it means to be a feminist, an activist, and a pedagogue. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................................... i DEDICATION ............................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................................................................ iii LIST OF FIGURES .........................................................................................................................v CHAPTERS CHAPTER 1 – Introducing “Women Against Feminism” ..................................................1 CHAPTER 2 – Defining Feminist Backlash .....................................................................27 CHAPTER 3 – Scary Feminism: The Angry Feminist Trope and Anti-Traditionalism ...49 CHAPTER 4 – Postfeminism, Love, and the New Backlash ............................................88 CHAPTER 5 – The Sameness Difference Debate: A Nuanced View of Anti-Feminist Co- Option ..............................................................................................................................115 CHAPTER 6 – Concluding Thoughts and Recommendations for Future Research .......142 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................163 VITA… ........................................................................................................................................175 iv LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE PAGE Figure 1.1 .........................................................................................................................................3 Figure 3.1 .......................................................................................................................................58 Figure 3.2 .......................................................................................................................................72 Figure 3.3 .......................................................................................................................................85 Figure 4.1 .......................................................................................................................................89 Figure 4.2 .....................................................................................................................................105 Figure 5.1 .....................................................................................................................................121 v CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCING “WOMEN AGAINST FEMINISM” I am a feminist. I believe in equity between genders, fair distribution of resources, transgender equality, and the importance of collective action toward change—radical or reformist—to reduce oppression. Growing up with a single mother of three, feminism was not only something that I believed in, it was something that I lived. Because my feminist sensibilities are integral to my individual ethos as a scholar, activist, and person, I became disappointed and enraged by sources declaring that feminism is boring, outdated, and may be reaching an expiration date (Wakefield; Moore). I soon realized that claims of feminisms’ irrelevancy were just the beginning. Laura Bates speculates that feminism has become a modern scapegoat, where “feminism is ruining everything” has become common anti-feminist commentary—commentary that Bates labels as backlash (par. 3). The emergence of these observations—or its presence in my own work—coincided with a secondary phenomenon, the online “Women Against Feminism” campaign. The “Women Against Feminism” campaign is an online forum for women who are unhappy with feminism to voice their concerns. “Women Against Feminism” (hereon WAF) developed its online photo campaign in 2013, and by the summer of 2014, WAF’s online presence had expanded as a virtual space where women declared why they don’t want or need feminism, photographing themselves with their concerns on a poster or placard. For example, one placard reads, “I know the dictionary definition of feminism, yet the words and actions of
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