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Abstract
This thesis examines the connection between romance novels and the construction of a female identity by using the concepts and theories of modern rhetoricians such as John Swales, M.M. Bahktin, Lloyd Bitzer, Carolyn Miller, and Anis Bawarshi in conjunction with the texts of romance novels from the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s. Rhetoric and romance novels form a connection in that the novels use a particular discourse to reach a specific audience. By creating an environment aimed specifically at female readers, the novels create a safe place to discuss issues that are important for the construction of a personal and social female identity. Women can take examples from the novels and apply those examples to their lives. However, this connection works both ways, for the readers influence the novels as much as the novels influence them; therefore, the readers help create a construction of the novels' view of a female identity.
