Master of Science

thesisComic books are beginning to be recognized for their impact on society because they inform, channel, and critique cultural norms. This thesis investigates how comic books interact and forward postfeminism. Specifically, this thesis explores the ways postfeminism interjects itself into female superhero team comic books. These comics, with their rosters of only women, provide unique perspectives on how women are represented in comic books. Additionally, the comics give insight into how women bond with one another in a popular culture text. The comics critiqued herein focus on transferring postfeminist ideals in a team format to readers, where the possibilities for representing powerful connections between women are lost. Postfeminist characteristics of consumption, sexual freedom, and sexual objectification are forwarded in the comic books, while also promoting aspects of racism. Through utilizing the methodologies of close textual and close visual analysis to study the team comics, the moments and arguments of postfeminism in the comic books come to light. Furthermore, close textual analysis is utilized to understand the critical response to the comic books, and how that response often overlooks aspects of postfeminism. The comic book companies argue that women are receiving fairer representation because they are shown in teams, but the team format provides a greater platform to further objectify women. Overall, the comic books argue the further marginalizing of women in popular culture through the ideals of postfeminism

Bangkok is Burning: Queer Cultural Productions of Thainess in Diaspora.

Ph.D. Thesis. University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa 2018

Enchufad@s : representations of the internet and new technologies in queer Latin American literature

textThis dissertation explores themes of identity, desire, and connection as represented in three literary texts authored in Spanish during the first decade of the 2000s. The literature in question -- novels No quiero quedarme sola y vacía (2000) by Ángel Lozada and Keres cojer? = Guan tu fak (2005) by Alejandro López as well as Cristina Peri Rossi's poetry collection, Playstation (2008) -- relies on queer aesthetics and themes in order to convey the experience of three unique individuals who, through the utilization of Internet and new technologies, navigate Latin America and the ever-globalizing world beyond. The protagonists and poetic voices in question use the Internet as a means to reject hegemonic norms, to reinvent the Self and/or, quite literally in some cases, to reconstruct the body. Using Judith Butler’s theory of performativity, Donna Haraway's "Manifesto for Cyborgs", Henry Jenkins' theory of convergence culture, and a heavy-handed dash of diva studies, this dissertation explores how Internet spaces as represented in the novels and poems serve to enhance as well as hinder human connection, while also making the readers more aware of their Internet dependence.Spanish and Portugues

Women in American Pop Music: Christina Aguilera’s impact on cultural narratives

Pop music as a mainstream medium is often more enjoyed than critically studied. Former studies and literatures point out a major issue that many American female pop music artists face. These artists are often confined in a box that reduces their full human-being attributes to a narrowed view, where their identity is portrayed in a diminishing and inaccurate way. Despite this narrowed narrative of what a woman should be, this box has become a norm that many female artists must adhere to in order to achieve mainstream success. This paper responds to this phenomenon by analyzing Christina Aguilera’s music, spanning from 1999 to 2018, to understand the cultural narratives of her music in response to the findings in literature. This paper argues that Aguilera’s music explores multi-dimensional aspects of life and womanhood, challenging the limited portrayal of women in the mainstream music industry. With a focus on lyrics, this paper identifies five themes and examines the cultural relevance of these themes in her music, including (1) romance and love, (2) introspection of vulnerability, (3) gratitude for support, (4) empowerment, and (5) sexual liberation. These themes are culturally relevant in a way that they challenge and reach beyond the dominant narrative of womanhood, by offering a view that captures women’s multi-dimensional identities and experiences

Bitches Be Like...: Memes as Black Girl Counter and Disidentification Tools

Memes are a popular source of online media. As such, they become tools that can distribute racialized and gendered narratives. While memes are often a source of shaming and devaluing Black girls, my research also explores how they can be used as tools to counter and disidentify with narratives. Using Hip-Hop feminism and trap feminism as frameworks, I analyze several memes to not only exemplify the hegemonic narratives of Black girlhood that circulate via memes, but to illuminate the possibilities for resistance and transformation via this technology

Still Dreaming of You: Selena\u27s Discourse with and Continuing Impact on American Musical Culture

Selena Quintanilla Perez continues to circulate in popular culture, including MAC cosmetic lines, a Netflix series, and podcasts. As a result, her cultural influence continues to be passed on and shared with future generations. This thesis focuses on three aspects of Selena and Selena y Los Dinos: Selena’s music, Selena’s performance aesthetic, and Selena’s fandom today. Chapter 1 focuses on Selena y Los Dinos’ American musical influences, particularly studying the songs “Enamorada de ti,” “Missing my Baby,” and “Fotos y Recuerdos” and the presence of American genres of new jack swing, R&B, and rock within them. Chapter 2 focuses on Selena’s crossover album Dreaming of You. Within this chapter Selena’s self-presentation is studied and categorized as representing two parts: Selena’s “personaje” or performance character and Selena’s “persona” or personal presentation. The songs “I Could Fall in Love” and “Dreaming of You” are studied to identify how a Mexican American Latina was marketed to a non-Latinx American musical market. Through musical analysis and reception study, these songs reveal that Selena was marketed as a stereotypical “Latin lover” to non-Latinx American audiences. Chapter 3 explores Selena’s digital fandom and the use of digital fan labor to preserve Selena’s legacy in popular culture. Through ethnographic study, four creators of Selena tribute social media accounts are interviewed to explore the world of Selena’s internet. Selena’s fans utilize digital fan labor both as “worker” and “entrepreneur,” as Selena is no longer alive to continue her career. Selena’s fandom allows for fans to showcase both sides of Selena’s self-presentation as well as participate in Selena’s commercialization, including circulating information regarding Selena’s memorabilia through fan meeting events, Selena tribute Facebook pages, group chats, and vlogs. Her legacy lives on through her family and her fans, who continue to advocate for Selena to be remembered not because of her music, or her beauty, but because of who she was