LE3 .A278 2010

2010

Moore, Barbara

Acadia University

Bachelor of Arts

Honours

Sociology

Sociology

This thesis examines the cases of two Canadian female criminals Penny Boudreau and Karla Homolka. Boudreau and Homolka are women who have been defined as both sociopathic and psychopathic. Both women were responsible for the torture and murder of someone in their immediate families. The central question that will be explored in this thesis is, does patriarchy contribute to the crimes Homolka and Boudreau committed? In order to find the answer to the central question, I used 1) content analysis and secondary analysis; 2) theories of feminism and criminology; 3) analysis of popular culture materials. Maria Mies and Catherine MacKinnon are two feminist theorists whose knowledge of patriarchal society contributed to this thesis. It is important to understand and explain why women will go to such lengths as murder to maintain a romantic, heterosexual relationship. Many women are under the impression that their lives are not complete unless they are one half of a heterosexual couple. Some women who are single believe they have not truly lived until they have experienced heterosexual love. Societal organizations are responsible for these thoughts by women about how life should be lived. This thesis ends with suggestions for further research.

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https://scholar.acadiau.ca/islandora/object/theses:679