Angelika Schneider Beautiful as Aphrodite, Wise as Athena, Strong as Hercules and Swifter than Mercury: Feminist Discourses and Female Empowerment during the Golden Age Period of Wonder Woman MASTER THESIS submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Programme: Master's programme English and American Studies Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt Evaluator Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr. Alexander Onysko Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt Institut für Anglistik und Amerikanistik Klagenfurt, June 2020 i Affidavit I hereby declare in lieu of an oath that - the submitted academic paper is entirely my own work and that no auxiliary materials have been used other than those indicated, - I have fully disclosed all assistance received from third parties during the process of writing the thesis, including any significant advice from supervisors, - any contents taken from the works of third parties or my own works that have been included either literally or in spirit have been appropriately marked and the respective source of the information has been clearly identified with precise bibliographical references (e.g. in footnotes), - to date, I have not submitted this paper to an examining authority either in Austria or abroad and that - when passing on copies of the academic thesis (e.g. in bound, printed or digital form), I will ensure that each copy is fully consistent with the submitted digital version. I understand that the digital version of the academic thesis submitted will be used for the purpose of conducting a plagiarism assessment. I am aware that a declaration contrary to the facts will have legal consequences. Klagenfurt, June 19th, 2020 (Signature) (Place, Date) ii For my Grandfather (1922 – 2001) iii Abstract This thesis investigates feminist discourses expressed through language and narration during the Golden Age period of Wonder Woman. The purpose of this study is to analyze and extent existing material on the representation of gender in comics and to highlight feminist discourses expressed through language and narration within William Moulton Marston’s Wonder Woman comics. Additionally, this thesis provides evidence for the claim that Marston’s version of the Amazon princess was progressive in terms of overcoming stereotypical notions of gender. Although a significant amount of researchers have contributed to a better understanding of the correlation between language and gender in popular culture, this study investigates the workings of gendered discourses in comics and provides insight into the depiction of stereotypical femininity in sequential art. Additionally, a thorough analysis of Marston’s version of Wonder Woman will prove that his comics were intended to overcome stereotypical portrayals of femininity in comics. For this study, data is drawn from reprinted issues of Marston’s Golden Age Wonder Woman stories. In order to analyze the comics, a holistic approach is utilized which integrates methods of feminist critical discourse analysis and content analysis. Additionally, a combination of quantitative and qualitative approaches was used to examine gender disparities during the Golden Age period of DC Comics. While this thesis provides evidence for the claim that Wonder Woman as a female superhero challenges traditional gender roles, it also proves that discourses of female empowerment as well as domination and submission within the comics are intrinsic to Marston’s feminist vision. Keywords: Gender, Feminism, Femininity, Language, Critical Discourse Analysis, Popular Culture, Comic Studies, Wonder Woman, Female Characters in Comics, Golden Age of Comic Books, Superheroes iv Acknowledgements Working on this master’s thesis has been both demanding and rewarding for me, and at this point I would like to express my gratitude for the people who have supported me on this journey. First and foremost, I wish to thank my supervisor Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr. Alexander Onysko from the Department of English and American Studies at the Alpen- Adria University of Klagenfurt for his insightful comments and feedback on my thesis. His patience with me and his trust in my ideas, especially during times of unexpected personal challenges, helped me to renew my faith in my research. I have never felt pressured during this process, as Dr. Onysko allowed this thesis to evolve gradually at my own pace. I would also like to thank Mag. Dr.phil. Bakk.phil Stefan Rabitsch from the University of Graz, who has provided me a lot of times with useful and rare resources on comic studies as well as academic publications on Wonder Woman. I am also thankful for the opportunity to present my research at two events organized by the Austria’s Young Americanists network. In 2017, the conference “The Future(s) of American Studies” provided me with the opportunity to talk about the representation of femininity in Wonder Woman during the Golden Age of comics. In the following year I had the chance to present my work at the workshop “Shifting Dynamics of American Studies” on the representation and subversion of gender in DC Comics’ publications. Last but not least, I would like to thank my parents and my partner for their endless support and unconditional love throughout these years. Without them I would have given up many times, but they have always seen the best in me. v Table of Contents Affidavit ................................................................................................................................................ i Abstract .............................................................................................................................................. iii Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... iv Table of Contents .............................................................................................................................. v Tables ................................................................................................................................................ vii Figures ............................................................................................................................................... vii 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 1 2 On the Rise: Developments in Comics and Sequential Art Studies .......................... 4 2.1 Narration in Comics and Visual Language Comprehension ................................................ 6 2.1.1 Narratology and Narrative Drawing in Comics ................................................................ 6 2.1.2 Composition of Individual Panels in Wonder Woman ................................................... 9 2.1.3 Visual Narrative Comprehension ......................................................................................... 11 2.2 A Very Short Introduction to the History of the American Comic Book and DC Comics .................................................................................................................................................................. 14 2.2.1 Birth of Heroes: The Golden Age of American Comic Books ..................................... 15 2.2.2 Troubled Times: DC Comics and Comic Book Censorship ......................................... 16 2.2.3 The Rebirth of Capes and Tights: From Silver to Modern Age ................................. 18 2.2.4 Wonder Woman through the Ages of Comic Books ....................................................... 19 2.3 Mythology, Identit(ies) and Archenemies: Genre Specific Conventions of Superhero Comics ............................................................................................................................................ 20 2.3.1 Myth in Superhero Comics ...................................................................................................... 22 2.3.2 Secret Identity(ies) ..................................................................................................................... 23 2.3.3 Supervillains .................................................................................................................................. 24 3 Gender in Comics: Representation and Subversion of Gender in DC Comic’s Publications ..................................................................................................................................... 27 3.1 Female Stereotypes: Representation of Femininity in DC Comics ................................. 28 3.2 (Secret) Sexual Identity(ies): Male Sexuality in DC’s Superhero Comics ..................... 31 3.2.1 Gender Hierarchy and Normative Masculinity in Comics .......................................... 32 3.2.2 Sexual Relations in Comics and American Comic Book Censorship ...................... 33 3.3 Marginalized Heroines: An Analysis of Gender Disparities during the Golden Age of DC Comics ........................................................................................................................................................... 34 vi 3.4 Possible Developments in Gender Studies and Comics ....................................................... 38 4 Language and Gender Studies: An Interdisciplinary Field Emerges .................... 41 4.1 Changing Attitudes: Feminist Foundations of Gender and Language Studies ........... 42 4.2 New Perspectives: Gender and Discourse ................................................................................