Susan Romano: "On Becoming a Woman: Pedagogies of the Self" (14)
Fulfilling the prophecies put forth by the other chapters in this section, Susan Romano explores feminist concerns that online electronic communication presents. In her chapter, she examines the archives of different writing positions taken by women in an online writing class that took place at the University of Texas at Austin. Using what she calls the "pedagogies of the self," those means by which teachers of writing encourage students to explore alternative personalities, Romano looks at the practices in online environments which serve to both include and exclude participants (and their alter egos). Women, she notices, must make a conscious decision about how they position themselves within the conversation--as themselves, as women, or as other positions within the community. Though pseudonyms theoretically allow people the freedom to "be themselves" online, Romano questions this commonly held belief, suggesting that women may not experience this kind of freedom online. The women in the online class, in this case mostly Latinas and African-Americans, experienced constant scrutiny by their male classmates, having to choose "to accept, refuse, ignore, or challenge" (255) each statement or question posed to them. It is these decisions, Romano claims, that make online interactions less than ideal for certain class situations and learning environments.
Romano's chapter is everything one would expect it to be--brilliant, insightful, and interesting. As an inexperienced master's student, I feel that my interpretation of this chapter could never do it--or the readers of this review--justice. Readers new to the field may have some difficulty with the density of Romano's work, but they would certainly benefit from her leadership and knowledge in the field.
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