University of Wisconsin Oshkosh senior Corissa Mosher, of Marshall, incorporated her life as a dancer into her research for last week’s UW Oshkosh Honors Research Symposia, which highlighted 15 student scholars who have conducted research for at least two semesters.
Mosher, a journalism major with an emphasis in media studies and a minor in political science, is not only a college student but also a bubbly and bold individual who spent a year and a half looking inside herself, researching and internalizing the issue of ecofeminism through her experiences as a ballerina.
Mosher’s adviser Jerry Thomas, an assistant professor of political science at UW Oshkosh, urged her to pursue an unconventional research route. This route had Mosher ambitiously digging through her most personal memories and experiences. This narrative adds a piece of the puzzle to the ecofeminism discussion, which Mosher hopes will be a small contribution to help boost the movement forward.
“I describe what it is like to be a woman, what it is like through my experiences as a ballet dancer, because that is where the environment and myself meet,” Mosher said.
Mosher formally practiced ballet for 15 years. Dancing has always been a monumental piece of her life. Through conducting research, she has discovered that her ballet really empowered her and made her think about femininity and masculinity in a different way.
“When you look at me at first glance there is a lot of femininity there, but that is only at first glance. As a ballerina in order to dance with grace and elegance you have to gain a lot of muscle,” she said.
Mosher points to her leg and giggles,“I have huge calves, that is a masculine aspect”.
She owes her research success to the life skills and rigorous training of ballet.
“Being a ballerina has given me the confidence to go out, and not only show myself as a dancer, but present myself as a person, which is why I was comfortable with doing this sort of project.” Mosher said.
Mosher hopes to continue her political science education in graduate school. She is intrigued with how government affects the voices of the public and wishes to keep pursuing that topic.
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