TY  - THES
U1  - Dissertation oder Habilitation
A1  - Price, Jessica Ana Maria
T1  - Transition, Opposition and Engagement in the Contemporary Narratives of Central American Feminist and Revolutionary Women
N2  - Second wave feminism in Central America has been directly connected with the participation of thousands of women in the revolutionary wars of the 1980s in El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Guatemala. After these wars ebbed away, former combatant women’s involvement as radical feminist activists took on new forms sometimes in conflict with previous revolutionary roles and identifications. Seemingly, these women had to re-define their identities going from “combatants” to “feminists” to “NGO activists” in less than ten years. Though it is expected that radical activisms change in post-conflict societies, there is little knowledge concerning how these women “reconstructed” their identities in order to reconcile the conflictual demands of these different roles. The objective of this study is to explore how Central American feminists –and former revolutionaries- from El Salvador, Nicaragua and Guatemala, make sense of their identity by exploring instances of identity transition in their lives, as well as looking at how they “construct” a sense of ‘who they are’ through their personal narratives. On one side, this study aims to look at how these women dealt with identity transition; but also, how these transitions eventually informed ideas of opposition and engagement to the state and their revolutionary organizations. In addition, the study identifies those instances of transition that have yielded identity change. This research draws upon narrative psychology and narrative analysis as a way of looking at the process of change. Though the study is concerned with exploring and analyzing individual stories, it positions itself in the intersection between individual and group meaning creation by identifying ‘inter-subjective meanings’ that emerge from these women’s life story narratives. Methodologically speaking, it relies upon methods used to analyze narratives drawn from narratology, socio-linguistics, philosophy and life course research. These methods yield results that are not frequently seen in studies concerning revolutionary women. One of the most conclusive results of this study is that almost all the women interviewed constructed the feminist life period as a progressive narrative. Another contribution expands on Karen Kampwirth’s idea of “family traditions of dissidence” and looks at how particular family constellations regarding mother-daughter relations may influence a daughter’s decision to join a dissident movement. Finally, another result pertains a connection between feminist activism and psychological resilience. The relevance of this project is that it attempts to shed light in the construction of radical identities in Central America, and in addition, it has implications for peace-building processes as well as the strengthening of women’s leadership in post-conflict societies.
AB  - Second wave feminism in Central America has been directly connected with the participation of thousands of women in the revolutionary wars of the 1980s in El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Guatemala. After these wars ebbed away, former combatant women’s involvement as radical feminist activists took on new forms sometimes in conflict with previous revolutionary roles and identifications. Seemingly, these women had to re-define their identities going from “combatants” to “feminists” to “NGO activists” in less than ten years. Though it is expected that radical activisms change in post-conflict societies, there is little knowledge concerning how these women “reconstructed” their identities in order to reconcile the conflictual demands of these different roles. The objective of this study is to explore how Central American feminists –and former revolutionaries- from El Salvador, Nicaragua and Guatemala, make sense of their identity by exploring instances of identity transition in their lives, as well as looking at how they “construct” a sense of ‘who they are’ through their personal narratives. On one side, this study aims to look at how these women dealt with identity transition; but also, how these transitions eventually informed ideas of opposition and engagement to the state and their revolutionary organizations. In addition, the study identifies those instances of transition that have yielded identity change. This research draws upon narrative psychology and narrative analysis as a way of looking at the process of change. Though the study is concerned with exploring and analyzing individual stories, it positions itself in the intersection between individual and group meaning creation by identifying ‘inter-subjective meanings’ that emerge from these women’s life story narratives. Methodologically speaking, it relies upon methods used to analyze narratives drawn from narratology, socio-linguistics, philosophy and life course research. These methods yield results that are not frequently seen in studies concerning revolutionary women. One of the most conclusive results of this study is that almost all the women interviewed constructed the feminist life period as a progressive narrative. Another contribution expands on Karen Kampwirth’s idea of “family traditions of dissidence” and looks at how particular family constellations regarding mother-daughter relations may influence a daughter’s decision to join a dissident movement. Finally, another result pertains a connection between feminist activism and psychological resilience. The relevance of this project is that it attempts to shed light in the construction of radical identities in Central America, and in addition, it has implications for peace-building processes as well as the strengthening of women’s leadership in post-conflict societies.
KW  - Life Narrative
KW  - Identity Construction
KW  - Feminism
KW  - Central America
Y1  - 2014
U6  - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:gbv:579-opus-1004743
UN  - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:gbv:579-opus-1004743
ER  -