Women Political Candidates and the Paradoxes of Rhetorical Style: The Effects of Gender and Status on the Rhetorical Style of Barbara Boxer's, Carol Moseley -Braun's, and Patty Murray's 1992 and 1998 Senate Campaigns
Pierce, Amy Jo
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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/87567
Description
Title
Women Political Candidates and the Paradoxes of Rhetorical Style: The Effects of Gender and Status on the Rhetorical Style of Barbara Boxer's, Carol Moseley -Braun's, and Patty Murray's 1992 and 1998 Senate Campaigns
Author(s)
Pierce, Amy Jo
Issue Date
1999
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Swanson, David L.
Department of Study
Speech Communication
Discipline
Speech Communication
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Biography
Language
eng
Abstract
The analysis suggests that the expectations and obstacles presented by candidate status create difficult if not irresolvable rhetorical problems for women senatorial candidates. Two rhetorical techniques are revealed which explain how the female candidates studied attempted to reconcile the incompatibilities in their political image and discourse which arose mainly from their status as incumbents. The candidates constructed complex, androgynous campaign images in order to respond to stereotypes, repair their images, and emphasize those traits most valued by voters. Moreover, the candidates modified their images and responded rhetorically to their status as incumbents and challengers across election cycles, and within election campaigns as their standings in the polls fluctuated. The implications of these results are threefold: rhetorical style is individual and dynamic; narrow conceptions of style focused on single attributes of candidates are limited; and, the consequences of adopting a particular rhetorical style cannot be generalized. Limitations of the study are also discussed.
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