Masters Thesis

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[ABSTRACT ONLY; NO FULL TEXT] This thesis is a one-act play which depicts a female protagonist who is harassed and cyberstalked by an unknown person. The play proceeds from my interest in feminism, the public backlash against women in fields typically reserved by and for men, and the ways in which society supports gendered harassment or hinders victims' attempts to receive justice because of inadequate processes and laws. In addition to these interests, the play was inspired by research about female journalists' complaints of harassment, along with increasing incidents of misogynistic rhetoric aimed at female political candidates and women in general who opposed the leading male contender for the presidency during the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election. This spectacle presented American patriarchy and sexism in full view, highlighting its misogynistic rubric for female worth as humans and leaders, one that is reductive to physical attractiveness, pleasurable tone of voice, stamina, and perceived lack of morality. In the piece, a female journalist contends with an online stalker who harasses her with gendered, sexually-violent emails and text messages in response to her work product. This harassment extends into her physical world via her phone and intrusions into her residence. Her life is upended and consumed by these constant invasions into her privacy. Finally, the play also portrays the journalist's efforts to seek relief through her employer, law enforcement, and individually through her own investigative abilities. The relief is inadequate and reveals law enforcement's limitations, which hinder a victim's ability to contend with digital stalking. The aesthetic motivations for the piece are not only to depict the journalist's struggles but also to sever the play from naturalism through the use of a large computer monitor on which threats and other related cultural artifacts are projected. These projections serve as a Brechtian technique to remind the audience it is watching a play, and that gendered harassment will continue to occur via increasing technological advancements unless the audience leaves the theater with the desire to change society. Furthermore, the play utilizes surreal moments of indeterminacy and ambiguity which reinforce the journalist's psychological state and lack of control.

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