Rhetoric Review Oct 2013

Changing Perceptions, Changing Conditions: The Material Rhetoric of the Red Hat Society

Jamie White-Farnham University of Wisconsin–Superior

Abstract

The Red Hat Society, an international social club for women over age fifty, offers its members a social outlet during aging. Departing from a common focus on members' emotional health, a rhetorical lens on the red and purple hats and costumes the women wear offers a new consideration of the groups' value. Particularly, the creation and donning of “regalia” by members of a Rhode Island chapter constitute instances of material rhetoric, or texts that challenge public perceptions of aging women and provide rhetorical opportunities that aging women take to change the conditions of their own and other women's lives.

Journal
Rhetoric Review
Published
2013-10-01
DOI
10.1080/07350198.2013.828552
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Topics
rhetorical criticism gender and writing body and rhetoric
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