Date of Award
5-2023
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Rhetorics, Communication, and Information Design
Committee Chair/Advisor
D. Travers Scott
Committee Member
Diane Perpich
Committee Member
Michelle Smith
Committee Member
Clare Mullaney
Abstract
Drawing on theoretical perspectives from lesbian studies, queer theory and studies and, feminist rhetorics while using rhetorical analysis, interviews, and archival research, this project traces the relationships lesbians have had to place, through case studies. To date, research on how space occupancy or land practices have contributed to the constitution of a contemporary lesbian identity in the United States lack scholarly attention. My following chapters ask: how has separatism historically and at present contributed to the constitution of lesbian identity? To answer, I turn to archival evidence of women’s lands in Southern Oregon, Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival, and Olivia Travel. This dissertation argues that spaces self-identified as women-only through separatist principles have contributed to the formation of contemporary lesbian identity.
Recommended Citation
Cooper, Sarah, "“We Felt Powerful and Rebellious”: Contested Spaces, Lesbian Identity, and the Evolution of Separatism" (2023). All Dissertations. 3351.
https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/3351
Included in
Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Gender and Sexuality Commons, Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication Commons, International and Intercultural Communication Commons, Quantitative, Qualitative, Comparative, and Historical Methodologies Commons, Social Media Commons, Speech and Rhetorical Studies Commons