title: Holding Out For a Heroine: Representations of Voice, Silence and Adolescent Girls’ Identity in Young Adult Dystopian Fiction

authors: Wilkinson, Melody Julianne May

subjects: Heroines

abstract: Today, teenage girls are told they can do anything. However, this is not reflected in the images they see and the books they read, which often reinforce messages of passivity, weakness, objectification, and undermine the need for girls to develop a strong voice and autonomous sense of self. This thesis explores these issues through an analysis of heroines in Young Adult dystopian fiction. With its popularity and its exaggeration of real-world issues, this literature is in a unique position to address not only wider political and social contexts but also the lack of representation of young girls.
Using developmental psychology as a frame and Girl’s Studies as theoretical lens, this thesis analyses two popular Young Adult series. The first, ‘The Selection’ series by Kiera Cass, offers an example of a passive heroine in the protagonist America Singer. America is a problematic heroine who embodies deep-rooted tropes of passivity and submission to her male counterparts. In contrast, Katniss Everdeen in ‘The Hunger Games’ trilogy by Suzanne Collins offers a positive example of what it means to find your voice when your world demands your silence.
This thesis has a creative component which seeks to construct a Young Adult dystopian heroine who, like Katniss, is a positive role model of strength and empowerment. However, this heroine is ordinary rather than exceptional, makes mistakes and yet has the courage to fight for herself and others. The Choice specifically addresses many of the themes explored in the exegesis: the toxic effect of the media; the potential for girls to support each other rather than fighting with each other; and the importance of maintaining identity, even if you fall in love.

text: Holding Out For a Heroine: Representations of Voice, Silence and Adolescent Girls’ Identity in Young Adult Dystopian Fiction Today, teenage girls are told they can do anything. However, this is not reflected in the images they see and the books they read, which often reinforce messages of passivity, weakness, objectification, and undermine the need for girls to develop a strong voice and autonomous sense of self. This thesis explores these issues through an analysis of heroines in Young Adult dystopian fiction. With its popularity and its exaggeration of real-world issues, this literature is in a unique position to address not only wider political and social contexts but also the lack of representation of young girls.
Using developmental psychology as a frame and Girl’s Studies as theoretical lens, this thesis analyses two popular Young Adult series. The first, ‘The Selection’ series by Kiera Cass, offers an example of a passive heroine in the protagonist America Singer. America is a problematic heroine who embodies deep-rooted tropes of passivity and submission to her male counterparts. In contrast, Katniss Everdeen in ‘The Hunger Games’ trilogy by Suzanne Collins offers a positive example of what it means to find your voice when your world demands your silence.
This thesis has a creative component which seeks to construct a Young Adult dystopian heroine who, like Katniss, is a positive role model of strength and empowerment. However, this heroine is ordinary rather than exceptional, makes mistakes and yet has the courage to fight for herself and others. The Choice specifically addresses many of the themes explored in the exegesis: the toxic effect of the media; the potential for girls to support each other rather than fighting with each other; and the importance of maintaining identity, even if you fall in love.

year: 2018

title: Keynote speech on freedom of religion

authors: Chevalier-Watts, Juliet

abstract: Keynote speech on religious freedom at the conference titled: Freedom to do, to be, and to become: Enhancing individuals’ opportunities to believe and live as they choose within the framework of the law. The conference was convened by The International Center for Law & Religion Studies at Brigham Young University Law School (United States) in partnership with The University of Waikato Te Piringa – Faculty of Law (New Zealand), The Religious Freedom and Human Dignity Initiative at Brigham Young University–Hawaii (United States), and the J. Reuben Clark Law Society (New Zealand).

text: Keynote speech on freedom of religion Keynote speech on religious freedom at the conference titled: Freedom to do, to be, and to become: Enhancing individuals’ opportunities to believe and live as they choose within the framework of the law. The conference was convened by The International Center for Law & Religion Studies at Brigham Young University Law School (United States) in partnership with The University of Waikato Te Piringa – Faculty of Law (New Zealand), The Religious Freedom and Human Dignity Initiative at Brigham Young University–Hawaii (United States), and the J. Reuben Clark Law Society (New Zealand).

year: 2025

title: E hoki mai nei ki te ūkaipō | Return to your place of nourishment [Gallagher Academy of Performing Arts]

authors: Apiata, Hāwea

abstract: E hoki mai nei ki te ūkaipō | Return to your Place of Nourishment brings together works by four wāhine Māori artists which explore narratives of pakanga|conflict through toi|art. This exhibition aims to create a dialogic space in which the artworks reflect and challenge the current troubled economic and political landscape. In this show, the four artists weave together their unique practices and stories to present a cohesive yet diverse examination of conflicts, with a particular focus on the artists’ own whānau and hapū narratives.

Ultimately, this collection of works interrogates political strategies that have exploited division and discord through carefully curated histories. This collection is also a reclamation of those narratives and histories by descendants who live in the aftermath of their ancestors’ mamae | pain.

text: E hoki mai nei ki te ūkaipō | Return to your place of nourishment [Gallagher Academy of Performing Arts] E hoki mai nei ki te ūkaipō | Return to your Place of Nourishment brings together works by four wāhine Māori artists which explore narratives of pakanga|conflict through toi|art. This exhibition aims to create a dialogic space in which the artworks reflect and challenge the current troubled economic and political landscape. In this show, the four artists weave together their unique practices and stories to present a cohesive yet diverse examination of conflicts, with a particular focus on the artists’ own whānau and hapū narratives.

Ultimately, this collection of works interrogates political strategies that have exploited division and discord through carefully curated histories. This collection is also a reclamation of those narratives and histories by descendants who live in the aftermath of their ancestors’ mamae | pain.

year: 2024