Women And The Epistemologies Of Pleasure: An Analysis Of Female Sexual Appetites And Practices At Bucknell University

Using an epistemological and feminist lens, this thesis analyzes the political and social forces that actively construct both knowledge and ignorance around female sexual pleasure. It draws from interviews and a focus group, all conducted at Bucknell Unviersity to explore the journeys that women take to gain knowledge about sexual pleasure, and how the sources and cultural mores that women in the twenty-first century rely on or go up against in order to gain such knowledge are often limited, unauthorized or phallocentric. This aids in the construction and perpetuation of ignorance. This thesis looks at how women feel shame or enact self-censorship, regardless of their assertion of knowledge concerning their sexual appetites, which results in consequential ambivalence. For this reason, it concludes that more informed and educational conversations between peers, parents and partners need to take place. These conversations will help to ignite change and to raise awareness about the knowledge and ignorance surrounding female sexual pleasure, which would allow for more pleasurable experiences to take place generally and with a brief over view on Bucknell's campus specifically.

Women's Athletics at Mansfield University in Historical Perspective

Mansfield University, founded on January 7, 1857 as Mansfield Classical Seminary, has an overwhelming history of persistence. Along with the institution, the women’s athletic programs also have a strong past. This paper outlines the history of women’s athletics at Mansfield from the establishment of the school in 1857, to the first women’s athletic program starting in 1900, and through the present day. It is organized according to the eras the institution went through and the athletic opportunities given to the women at that time. The focus of each chapter reflects the major accomplishments of both the institution and the women’s athletic programs, events, and issues that transpired during each time period. Research was conducted by reviewing yearbooks, memorandums, and reports in the Mansfield University archives, school newspaper articles, and the university website, along with several other supplemental materials. Personal interviews also accompanied the documentary research to give a first-hand historical viewpoint of several eras. It was concluded that the women at Mansfield University have fought for, and created athletic opportunities for over 100 years. In comparison to other Pennsylvania state universities, women’s athletics at Mansfield are under-funded and on the low end of receiving athletic scholarship monies. The future of women’s athletics at Mansfield is uncertain due to budgetary factors that are unknown at this time.