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Graduate Thesis on “Third Gender” Named
Finalist in International Competition

Los Angeles, CA — A groundbreaking thesis by recent California State University, Los Angeles graduate Deborah Hanan (Los Angeles resident) has been named one of six finalists in the prestigious 2004-2005 Western Association of Graduate Schools Thesis Award competition.

“My life’s mission is to be an agent of change,” says Hanan, who returned to school at the age of 40 to pursue her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Cal State L.A. after a successful career as a recording artist and art director.

Her thesis, “Unmasking the Invisible: The Construction of Gender Variant Characters in Late 20th Century American and British Cinema (1992-2002),” breaks new ground by examining the re-emergence of third gender representation in American culture. The thesis crosses three disciplines—communication studies, history and anthropology—and examines third gender character construction in three films: The Crying Game, Orlando, and Hedwig and the Angry Inch.

“The multiple methodologies Hanan uses make this thesis an exemplary work of scholarship,” says Judith Hamera, acting associate dean of the University’s College of Arts and Letters. “The thesis raises the bar for master’s scholarship in the critical humanities and social sciences across multiple fields.”

In her thesis, Hanan advances pioneering theories about social identity construction. “The characters in these films don’t fit comfortably into binary categories,” Hanan explains. “They’re part of an emerging movement in American popular culture to re-introduce the concept of third gender to mainstream audiences.” The thesis also offers a comparative analysis of the marketing of the films in the United States and the United Kingdom, and an extensive textual and visual analysis of the devices these films used to communicate the unnamed (non-male, non-female) third gender.

After completing her master’s degree in American Cultural Studies at Cal State L.A. in June, Hanan began an internship for a prominent visual studies scholar at USC, where Hanan hopes to earn her Ph.D. before returning to Cal State L.A. as a professor. Hanan notes, “My mother went back to Cal State L.A. at 40 and received her master’s degree in Art Education and a teaching credential. Hearing about her experience encouraged me to go back to school. I immediately felt welcome at Cal State L.A.—it was an incredibly warm and supportive environment.”

Hanan has received numerous honors, including the 2003-2004 Sally Casanova Pre-Doctoral Scholarship, the CSULA Alumni Association’s Undergraduate Scholarship, and first place in the Humanities and Letters Graduate Division of CSULA’s 11th Annual Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity Symposium. She continues to be active in the CSULA Alumni Association, serving on its board of directors and as former chair of its scholarship committee. Hanan has also published several articles, served as a graduate assistant and guest lecturer in several classes and the University’s Rockefeller Humanities Fellowship Program, and participated in several academic conferences and seminars.

“The Western Association of Graduate Schools includes top-tier universities such as Stanford, UC Berkeley, USC, as well as numerous high-ranking Canadian universities,” says Hanan. “So I’m excited and honored to have been named a finalist and represent our excellent University.”

WORKING FOR CALIFORNIA – California State University, Los Angeles: A comprehensive university at the heart of a major metropolitan city. The 175-acre hilltop campus is located five miles east of Los Angeles’ civic and cultural center. Since 1947, Cal State L.A. has been a leader in providing quality higher education. Today, the campus comprises a faculty of internationally recognized scholars and artists, and more than 20,000 students with a wide variety of interests, ages and backgrounds that reflect the city’s dynamic mix of populations. Cal State L.A. is one of 23 campuses in the CSU system.

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