Jeremy Bradshaw

Fielding

WRTC 103

Breaking the Glass Ceiling

Margaret Thatcher, Hillary Clinton, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Catherine the Great. Some of

the worlds most influential politicians and leaders. And, obviously, theyre women. But not all

American women are able to ascend to such positions of power as did these examples, despite

their best efforts. One woman, J. Goodrich, addresses this in her 2013 article Women's

Underrepresentation in Politics Should Not Be Blamed on a Lack of Political Ambition, where

she argues that women are subject to misrepresentation and a variety of negative stigma when

running for political office. Goodrich begins the article by successfully citing studies and

references historical figures and making hypothetical propositions and by pointing out the effect

female politicians have on legislation. She appeals to the readers emotions by placing them in

another persons position, and by using demonstrative language to provide the reader with an

image. Finally, Goodrich also challenges the credibility of studies that contradict her assertions,

establishing herself as a credible critic of this issue, and by referencing other experts who have

provided evidence that supports her statements.

Goodrich begins by establishing a precedent; she tells the reader of Darcy Burner,

Madeline Albright, and Carol Moseley Brown, three female politicians, who lived at different
times and worked at different levels, who showed ambition and a desire to succeed. She then

outlines examples of the common idea that women are underrepresented simply because they

lack political ambition. She continues to identify the obstacles women face, including gender

roles, and compares American female lawmakers to those in other countries. Goodrich explains

the benefits of having women win political office, and goes on to describe The Hillary Clinton

Treatment, or, what happens when women in politics defy what is expected of them by a male-

dominated society.

One of Goodrichs primary strategies is an appeal to logic and reason to get her message

across to the reader, including quoting influential figures in female politics, and presenting

intriguing scenarios. She begins by quoting politicians such as former Secretary of State

Madeline Albright, stating that she once said that she wanted to do more than to just maintain

the achievements of earlier Secretaries of State: she wanted to aim higher (Goodrich 3)

Goodrich establishes an important first point; that women have, historically, had great political

ambition and have wanted to surpass even their male counterparts. This is an immediate

devaluation of any argument that tries to prove otherwise, as she is quoting one of the most

influential women in American political history. Goodrich continues with her appeal to logic by

providing an intriguing hypothetical: Suppose that only 16 percent of U.S. Congress people

were male, that only 18 percent of state governors were men, that men were a mere 24 percent of

state legislators and only 10 percent of big-city mayors. Given that nearly 50 percent of all

Americans are men, doesn't that sound pretty unrepresentative to you? (Goodrich 25). The

author gives a possible situation in which political gender roles are swapped, and makes the point

that the underrepresentation is a direct factor of women simply not running. She establishes that,
if men were viewed as lesser politicians, they would be just as underrepresented, and it should be

seen as equally unjust to how women are seen in the real world.

The author also appeals to emotions, and places the reader in the place of others who are

immediate parts of this issue, including causing them to feel as though they, personally, could be

in the same position as the people described. Goodrich taps into the personal story of the

Washington state Senate campaign of Darcy Burner, emphasizing her determination and courage.

She identifies Burners actions as such by making the point that She took a campaign break of

eighteen days. Eighteen days. Now that is some determination! We might even call this political

ambition, a great desire to serve the public no matter what (Goodrich, 2). Goodrich appropriates

this story to the sheer political desire and ambition of women, which establishes her main point.

She maintains that women are absolutely ambitious enough to fight for election, as seen by

Burners example. A further appeal to emotions comes near the end of Goodrichs article, in

which she makes a call to action for all women. Using very vivid and imagery-filled language,

she concludes All this will help to punch holes in those glass ceilings, whether internalized or

not (Goodrich 31). She asserts that, by putting in place the policies she suggests, such as

increased childcare for mothers so they are not paralyzed at the start of campaigns, and

recreating the media persona of female political candidates, the glass ceiling will be broken

and female politicians can be viewed equally.

Furthermore, Goodrich appeals to the readers sense of credibility, or, more specifically,

the lack thereof, by making them question certain studies and researchers ability to accurately

and truly asses the subject. She references studies, such as one by Jennifer L. Lawless and

Richard L. Fox, and then goes on to sarcastically refute and discredit them, saying Never mind

if scientific studies show that things like the genetics of "political ambition" remain science-
fiction; to appeal to biology allows us all not to worry about the effects of, culture or gender roles

in the division of labor. If glass ceilings are internal, then the problems belong to the individual

women and individual women alone (Goodrich 9). Goodrich is establishing that this study

makes the wrong point by ignoring the effect societal standards and personal beliefs can have on

a female politicians level of ambition. She appeals to the reader by challenging the credibility of

the research. In order to reference studies that actually support her argument, Goodrich

references Finnish political scientist Johanna Kantola, who notes that many other countries such

as Finland have much larger populations of female politicians. the very first parliament for

which women were allowed to run (in 1907 Finlandthen a grand duchy of Russia) elected

nineteen women out of a total of 200 representatives. That Finland a hundred years later has a

female president and a parliament that is 42 percent female is therefore not that surprising.

Change tends to happen slowly and cumulatively over timeoften with two steps forwards and

one step backbut imagine what might have happened if some enterprising Finnish journalist in

1907 had written about those nineteen women as a sign of women's lesser political ambition

(Goodrich 16). Goodrich first uses the Finnish parliament to establish a precedent that women

are, in fact, ambitious enough to run for and hold elected offices, and do so in a country with a

very high standard of living. She also makes a claim that this is due to a lack of questioning of

womens political ambitions, stating that, if the same culture that exists in the United States

had existed in Finland, the current parliament would look much more like our government, and

would, as ours does, misrepresent the general population.

Figure 1: Hillary Clinton celebrates winning the 2016 Democratic Presidential nomination, providing a
shining example of a woman succeeding in the political world, and overcoming the stigma and
stereotypes that come with being a woman in politics

In the past half a century, women have begun to prove that they are ambitious enough to

achieve political office themselves. In a 2016 PSA, Lets Put Women On The Hill, this
assertion is provided as a call to action for the American people to abandon social stigmas and

elect female politicians. The author uses a variety of rhetorical appeals to convince the reader of

his message. He appeals to the readers emotions by providing an image of a popular figure

succeeding, with a reach towards a sense of joy. The author further appeals to the readers logic,

providing statistics in an attempt to provide the viewer with concrete evidence towards his point.

Finally, he asserts credibility by linking to a non-profit organization that works towards fixing

the issue, and uses an intriguing and eye-catching slogan.

The author appeals to pathos and the readers emotions in his use of a well-known female

figure, Hillary Clinton. The image shows Clinton in the moment she captured the 2016

Democratic Presidential Nomination. The reader sees a smiling woman, surrounded by adoring

supporters in a joyous occasion. It is an attempt to show what can happen if women ignore

societal standards and put themselves on the stage, to be seen by all. By providing visual

evidence that women can be ambitious enough to reach the top of the political game, the author

shows that the feeling that any woman can and could feel, should they succeed, is shown to be

awe-inspiring. The author also uses vivid language in making an attempt to invoke a sense of

duty in readers, asking them to Help fight underrepresentation! He creates a call to action for

viewers of the PSA to want to do something to help the issue he is addressing.

In his use of sobering statistics describing the United States Congress and its makeup,

the author appeals to the readers logic by providing the straight numbers to be analyzed. He

states that Women make up less than 20% of Congress. In doing this, he is adding solidified

and categorized evidence to his assertion of negative stigmas being an impeding factor on

women running for office, which he attempts to prove can be achieved. The author is placing in
front of the audience an example of the concept he is trying to combat; underrepresentation of

women in government.

Finally, the authors strongest appeal is that to ethos, as he creates a strong and persuasive

image by using a unique slogan. In another call to action, the author urges the reader; Lets Put

Women On The Hill! In doing this, he is insisting that it is imperative and necessary to get

women involved more in politics, and to make sure they are elected. Utilizing colorful lettering

in the colors of the American flag, the author invokes the common sense of patriotism and love

of country many, if not most, Americans share. He also uses a minor sense of humor, including a

nickname for the main figure on the poster, Hillary Clinton, as part of his message, The Hill.

This creates a unique and intriguing concept that is bound to attract the attention of readers.

Additionally, the author includes the logo of and links to She Should Run, a non-profit

organization that helps women run for elected office across America. By using this organization,

he increases his credibility by providing an actual way for viewers of the PSA to channel any

desire to contribute they may receive. In using personal branding and a credible, helpful non-

profit, the creator establishes a strong sense of credibility and substance to go along with the

other appeals involved in the image.

In both Goodrichs article and the PSA, one assertion is clear: women are politically

ambitious enough to run for and, most importantly, win elected office at all levels in all areas of

the country. Each instance provides statistics and facts to support their claim, and both use

campaign slogan-esque lines such as internal glass ceilings and the more blatant Lets Put

Women On The Hill to persuade readers to consider their arguments. The PSA provides a

unique image and a persuasive call to action that accentuates the ideas of the article. While the

article does a better job of convincing the reader through research, comparisons, and analytics, it
works hand in hand with the PSA to prove that women are not slaves to societal standards and

poorly reflected stigmas; simply put, women can win.

 Works Cited

Goodrich, J. "Women's Underrepresentation in Politics Should Not Be Blamed on a Lack of

Political Ambition." Women in Politics, edited by Debra A. Miller, Greenhaven Press, 2013.

Current Controversies. Opposing Viewpoints in Context,

link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/EJ3010837224/OVIC?u=viva_jmu&xid=3215566c. Accessed 25

Feb. 2017. Originally published as "Do Women Have an Inner Glass Ceiling?" AlterNet.org, 30

July 2011.

Oliphant, James. "Hillary Clinton claims Democratic presidential nomination." The M&G

Online. Mail Guardian, 08 June 2016. Web. 25 Feb. 2017.