Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2018, English

“Coexistent Ethos: The Rhetorical Practices and Situated Business Writing of American Catholic Laywomen” examines the business writing produced by three lay Catholic women's organizations in Columbus, OH during the late nineteenth- to mid-twentieth centuries: The Catholic Ladies of Columbia (CLC) – a fraternal benefits society incorporated in Ohio in 1897; The Catholic Women's League of Columbus (CWL) – a diocesan-level women's group organized in January 1919 as a descendant of the Catholic Women's War Relief Council; and The Immaculate Conception Women's Club (ICWC) – a parish-level women's group founded in 1945. Despite differences in their organizational structures, mission statements and organizational goals, these groups shared an overarching similarity: the use of business writing to construct, cultivate, and preserve a business ethos that was simultaneously highly professional and deeply Catholic. This coexistent ethos allowed these women to navigate diverse business spheres, domains, and discourses while also carrying out their outreach work that was fundamental to their identity as Catholic laywomen. Drawing on feminist theorizations of ethos from scholars such as Nedra Reynolds, Julie Nelson Christoph, Risa Applegarth, Carolyn Skinner and the contributors to the 2015 edited collection Rethinking Ethos: A Feminist Ecological Approach to Rhetoric (Ed. Ryan, Meyers, Jones), I examine the ways that these women deploy a coexistent ethos in their diverse business writing that is, at every turn, fundamentally grounded in business principles and conventions and Catholic fidelity and charity. To illustrate the dexterity with which the Catholic Ladies of Columbia (founded 1897), the Catholic Women's League of Columbus (founded 1919), and the Immaculate Conception Women's Club (founded 1945) deploy coexistent ethos through their business writing, I provide in-depth framing that situates these women and their work within their contemporary eras. This contextual fr (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Nancy Johnson (Advisor); Jonathan Buehl (Committee Member); James Fredal (Committee Member) Subjects: Composition; Rhetoric

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2013, Communication Studies (Communication)

Using methods from communication studies, performance studies, and anthropology to craft an ethnographic portrait of gusaba no gukwa, I explored the significance of gusaba no gukwa wedding ceremonies. I used an integrated qualitative research design that combines participant observation, in-depth interviews, and rhetorical analysis of themes, tropes, and forms. I attended thirty wedding ceremonies, thirteen of which were gusaba no gukwa ceremonies, conducted formal interviews with three wedding speakers, three married couples, a retired Methodist minister, a Kigali business woman, and I had numerous informal conversations with Rwandans about weddings. Through my exploration of the rhetorical performance of wedding speakers, who present an oral battle of wits designed to challenge and test the groom's family and their ability to remain cool under pressure and the tropes or ritual practices associated with key symbols of beer, cows, and milk, I demonstrate how strong ties of friendship and family are achieved through powerful communicative acts that present daily reminders of social bonds. In the Rwandan context, gusaba no gukwa transforms youth into adults, creates bonds between families, and unifies communities, while simultaneously transforming a single story of Rwanda's genocide into many stories about Rwandese creativity, resilience, and joy.

Committee: Judith Lee (Committee Co-Chair); Devika Chawla (Committee Co-Chair); JW Smith (Committee Member); Stephen Howard (Committee Member) Subjects: African Studies; Communication; Sub Saharan Africa Studies

Doctor of Philosophy, Miami University, 2009, English: Composition and Rhetoric

This dissertation analyzes the American Delsarte movement—a largely white, upper- and middle-class women's performance phenomenon from the 1880s to 1905—as well as Delsartists' work in creating what they called the “New Elocution.” Scholars of rhetorical history such as Nan Johnson and Robert Connors have touched on the Delsartists in their research and have begun the work of analyzing women's participation in the American elocutionary movement; nevertheless, extensive turf remains wholly unexplored concerning women's study of oratory in this era, in particular, considering why these women thought it the most vital discipline to study. My research therefore consists largely of a recovery project, bringing archival evidence to light and arguing that in the midst of what elocutionists called this “oratorical Renaissance,” American women were flocking in surprisingly large numbers to the study of expression and elocution—not as a “social grace,” as Leila McKee, one President of a woman's college of oratory put it in 1898, but as a means of “social power.” Turn-of-the-century women believed that this power was theirs for the taking if they knew how to speak with more eloquence and confidence in public; this motive has been overlooked, I argue, as has the means by which women meant to procure oratorical ability—by the study and practice of what I term “rhetorical performance.” This dissertation defines and analyzes the concept of rhetorical performance as it occurred within three different Delsarte-influenced sites: competition in oratorical contests, the demonstration of elocutionary skill via public recitals, and finally the use of rhetorical drama to advance arguments regarding women's rights.

Committee: Dr. Cindy Lewiecki-Wilson PhD (Committee Co-Chair); Dr. Katharine Ronald PhD (Committee Co-Chair); Dr. Katie Johnson PhD (Committee Member); Dr. Charlotte Newman Goldy PhD (Advisor) Subjects: Education History; Rhetoric; Womens Studies