Honoring the late Joyce R. Durham, professor emerita of English, this contest invites submissions of nonfiction essays that explore issues concerning women and/or gender — from the personal reflection to the research paper, or an excerpt from an honors thesis. Essays should do one or more of the following:

  • Examine the intersection of race, class, and gender.
  • Contribute to the revaluing of a female writer, artist, or historical figure.
  • Incorporate feminist analysis.
  • Consider the social construction of gender identities and/or roles.
  • Link the practical with the theoretical, the personal with the political, and/or the imaginative with the critical.

The contest provides the winner with a monetary prize.

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Submissions from 2020

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(In)security: Gendered and Bordered, Mary McLoughlin

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"If You're Ugly, the Blackpill is Born with You": Sexual Hierarchies, Identity Construction, and Masculinity on an Incel Forum Board, Josh Segalewicz

Submissions from 2019

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Bearing Witness to Sexual Violence as a Violation of Women's Rights, Josh Segalewicz

Submissions from 2018

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Gendering Patriotism: Wartime Culture and Propaganda in WWI, Emily Elizabeth Haynes

Submissions from 2017

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Feminist Futures, Julia Nicole Court

Submissions from 2016

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Tripping on All the Faces: The Identity Work of Native American Women Artists, Amanda Dee

Submissions from 2015

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F***** From the Start: Misogyny in Medieval Literature, Amanda Dee

Submissions from 2014

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Gender Disparity within the Employment Sector in Saudi Arabia, Alyssa Bovell and Libby Durnwald

Submissions from 2013

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Dependence on or the Subordination of Women? Examining the Political, Domestic, and Religious Roles of Women in Mesoamerican, Andean, and Spanish Societies in the 15th Century, Christine Alwan

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Joan Jett in "I Love Rock 'n' Roll": Gender Boundaries and Female Address, Megan Colleen O'Mera

Submissions from 2012

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Drag Kings: Performing Masculinity, Lauren Cummerlander

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Extreme Pornography and Obscenity Legislation, Julianne Morgan

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Food and Feminism, Ellie Myers

Submissions from 2011

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The Myth of Choice: The Cultural Shift in Cosmetic Surgery, Kelly Neyer

Submissions from 2010

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The Rhetoric of Writing for a Male Audience, Danielle Black

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Portrayal of Women and Clothing in Domestic Housework Commercials, Julie Brady Ramaccia

Submissions from 2009

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Medieval Romance and British Romanticism: Gender Constructions in Pullman’s "His Dark Materials" and Tolkien’s "The Lord of the Rings", Emily Elizabeth Howson

Submissions from 2007

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Even the Good Guys Are Bad in Sin City, Melanie Woods

Submissions from 2006

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A New Writer Indeed: Gender (Re)Imagined in Jack Conroy’s "A World to Win", Andrew Kopec

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To Abandon Our Culture or Not? A Real Look at Indigenous Guatemalans, Allison A. Kretz