Graduation Year
Spring 2012
Document Type
Open Access Senior Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Gender and Women's Studies
Reader 1
Chris Guzaitis
Reader 2
Susan Castagnetto
Terms of Use & License Information
Rights Information
© 2012 Shayna L. Orent
Abstract
This thesis explores the way popular culture imitates and reinforces a sentimentalized reading of sonogram images that has been established by the conservative Right as the proper way to view this image. It analyzes several popular culture texts to expose the way their use of sonogram images personifies the fetus. It aims to problematize the way this image has become a symbol of fetal personhood and initiate a discussion about our roles as consumers of popular culture and images. Finally, it connects the use of this image to recent legislation surrounding mandatory ultrasounds and personhood initiatives, and argues that the public’s acceptance of fetal personhood is dangerous for women’s personhood and citizenship.
Recommended Citation
Orent, Shayna L., "Fetuses Are People, Too?: How Images of Sonograms in Popular Culture Affect Our Conception of Fetal Personhood" (2012). Scripps Senior Theses. 101.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/scripps_theses/101
