Discursive Identity Formation of Suffrage Women: Reframing the “Cult of True Womanhood” Through Song

Abstract

Advocates for woman's suffrage faced significant rhetorical challenges due to gender norms of the “Cult of True Womanhood” (Welter, 1966). This study examines the portrayals of womanhood in thirty-one suffrage songs to understand how the music functioned as a rhetorical device to shape the meaning of member's “womanhood” in relation to the Cult. This analysis identifies three discursive representations of “womanhood” in suffrage music and concludes that suffrage songs generally reified the tenets of the Cult. Finally, this study suggests that maintaining musically relevant styles in protest songs may benefit social movements as a “buffer” to unify, legitimize and energize advocates and create interest among opposition. However, musical styles may also inhibit social movements from conveying complex ideologies or forming the desired collective identity for advocates of social change.