The Dolphins and the Bodily Arts: Swimming as a feminist rhetoric and pedagogy at the Detroit, Michigan Women's City Club Pool, 1924 to 1975

Authors

Liz Rohan, University of Michigan-Dearborn

Abstract

This micro historical case study introduces US progressive-era feminist swimming pedagogy as a “bodily art.” It showcases the interplay between culture, rhetoric, feminism and pedagogy during a boom time in the city of Detroit when female athletes competed in the city’s open waters and discourse about women’s swimming was circulating nationally. It suggests that historical cultural constructs can be models for future culture building.

Author Biography

Liz Rohan is a Professor of Composition and Rhetoric at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. With Gesa Kirsch she is the editor of Beyond the Archives: Research as Lived Process (Southern Illinois Press, 2008). Her research that reflects her ongoing interests in pedagogy, feminist research methods and America's progressive era have appeared in journals such as Rhetoric Review, Composition Studies, Pedagogy, JAEPL, Reflections, Composition Forum, Peitho and also in several book chapters.

Recommended Citation

Rohan, Liz (2020) "The Dolphins and the Bodily Arts: Swimming as a feminist rhetoric and pedagogy at the Detroit, Michigan Women's City Club Pool, 1924 to 1975," Journal of International Women's Studies: Vol. 21: Iss. 6, Article 16.
Available at: https://vc.bridgew.edu/jiws/vol21/iss6/16