Marriage Has Never Been This Spooky: Marital Expectations, Gender Roles, and Regional Dialect in Sophie Kerr’s “His Mark”

By Riley Dauber ’25 Major: English; Minors: Journalism, Editing, & Publishing, Communications & Media Studies, and Gender Studies Contributor Biography: Riley Dauber is a senior majoring in English with minors in Journalism, Editing, and Publishing; Communication and Media Studies; and Gender Studies. She believes “women’s stories matter” and loves writing about the male gaze and…

Investigating the Limits of Consent and Authority in Charlotte Temple

A Senior Capstone Experience by Emma Reilly Submitted to the Department of English Advised by Dr. Katherine Charles Contributor Biography: Emma graduated from Washington College in 2023 with majors in English and history and minors in journalism, editing, and publishing and gender studies. She worked for three on-campus publications as an undergraduate, serving as editor-in-chief…

Rejections of Patriarchal Authority and Expectations of Female Passivity in Susanna Rowson’s Charlotte Temple

By Emma Reilly ’23 Majors: English, History; Minors: Journalism, Editing, & Publishing, Gender Studies Brief Description: My paper examines agency and authority in America’s first bestselling novel. Close readings and analyses of relevant paratexts position the novel as distinctly anti-patriarchal. I argue that instances of narratorial and character authority encourage a proto-feminist reading of a…