Adrianne Wadewitz (January 6, 1977 – April 8, 2014) was an American
feminist
Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...
scholar of 18th-century
British literature
British literature is from the United Kingdom, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islands. This article covers British literature in the English language. Anglo-Saxon (Old English) literature ...
,
Wikipedian
The Wikipedia community, collectively and individually known as Wikipedians, is an online community of volunteers who create and maintain Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia. Wikipedians may or may not consider themselves part of the Wikimedia m ...
, and commenter upon
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free content, free Online content, online encyclopedia that is written and maintained by a community of volunteers, known as Wikipedians, through open collaboration and the wiki software MediaWiki. Founded by Jimmy Wales and La ...
, particularly focusing on gender issues. In April 2014, Wadewitz died from head injuries from a fall while
rock climbing
Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending climbing routes, routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are documented in c ...
.
Early life and education
The only child of Betty M., a nurse and attorney, and Nathan R. Wadewitz, a
Lutheran
Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
pastor, Adrianne Wadewitz was born on January 6, 1977, in
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...
.
She graduated from
North Platte High School in 1995. Wadewitz studied
English literature
English literature is literature written in the English language from the English-speaking world. The English language has developed over more than 1,400 years. The earliest forms of English, a set of Anglo-Frisian languages, Anglo-Frisian d ...
and received a degree in English from
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
in 1999.
In 2011, she obtained a
Ph.D. from
Indiana University Bloomington
Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, IUB, or Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana, United States. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana Univer ...
and became a
postdoctoral fellow
A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). Postdocs most commonly, but not always, have a temporary academ ...
at the Center for Digital Learning and Research at
Occidental College
Occidental College (informally Oxy) is a private liberal arts college in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1887 as a coeducational college by clergy and members of the Presbyterian Church, it became non-sectarian in 1910. It is ...
. She was chosen as a Mellon Digital Scholarship Postdoctoral Fellow and a
HASTAC scholar.
Academic career
Education
Wadewitz graduated ''
magna cum laude
Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...
'' from
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
, and later received her
master's
A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...
and
doctoral
A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...
degrees in British literature with a minor in 18th-century studies from
Indiana University Bloomington
Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, IUB, or Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana, United States. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana Univer ...
. She completed both a
master's thesis
A thesis (: theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: D ...
, ''Doubting Thomas': The Failure of Religious Appropriation in The Age of Reason'' (2003), and her
doctoral dissertation
A thesis (: theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: D ...
, Spare the Sympathy, Spoil the Child:' Sensibility, Selfhood, and the Maturing Reader, 1775–1815'' (2011).
Her dissertation combined her research interests in archival work, children's literature, and gender studies. In it, Wadewitz studied the use of language and discursive strategies such as
embedded narratives in children's books by
Mary Wollstonecraft
Mary Wollstonecraft ( , ; 27 April 175910 September 1797) was an English writer and philosopher best known for her advocacy of women's rights. Until the late 20th century, Wollstonecraft's life, which encompassed several unconventional ...
,
Anna Laetitia Barbauld
Anna Laetitia Barbauld (, by herself possibly , as in French, Aikin; 20 June 1743 – 9 March 1825) was a prominent English poet, essayist, literary critic, editor, and author of children's literature. A prominent member of the Blue Stockings ...
,
Charlotte Smith,
Maria Edgeworth
Maria Edgeworth (1 January 1768 – 22 May 1849) was a prolific Anglo-Irish novelist of adults' and children's literature. She was one of the first realist writers in children's literature and a significant figure in the evolution of the novel i ...
, and others. She argued that through such reading, the child was supported in the construction of a "sympathetic self" that was "collective, benevolent, and imaginative."
[Wadewitz (2011), p. vi] She also argued that the kinds of subjectivity displayed in late eighteenth-century children's literature challenged "the dominant Lockean model" by drawing upon "Rousseau's theory of education and the discourse of sensibility to construct a 'sympathetic self.'
..Significantly, this 'sympathetic self' was available to both sexes and to children. Unlike other versions of the self based on sensibility, it was not predicated upon femininity. Moreover, maturation did not depend on age, but rather on one's state of mind; any person educated through this sympathetic literature could be an adult and participate in civic society through, for example, charitable acts."
Moreover, through its analysis of "how childhood reading informed the reading of 'adult' novels by
Jane Austen
Jane Austen ( ; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for #List of works, her six novels, which implicitly interpret, critique, and comment on the English landed gentry at the end of the 18th century ...
," it argued that "contemporary readers of Austen would have read her novels 'didactically' and followed the structural patterns of the children's literature they grew up reading rather than seeing the irony we value today."
Digital humanities
In 2009, Wadewitz began putting ''
The New England Primer'' online, culminating in a permanent online exhibit in 2012, with text and annotated transcriptions.
She published on topics including 18th-century children's literature, ambiguity in historical scholarship, and use of Wikipedia in the classroom.
[Selected Works of Adrianne Wadewitz]
OxyScholar Digital Repository
Occidental College. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
Writing about the use of Wikipedia in education, she argued that in addition to traditional writing and research skills, students should develop skills in media and technological literacy. Reflecting on the construction of knowledge, she emphasized the need to assess sources; distinguish between fact-based and persuasive writing; and be aware of authority and legitimacy. She promoted the development of curricula that included collaborative writing, development of writing skills in the context of a "community of practice", and writing for a global readership.
[
]
Wikipedia editing and advocacy
Wadewitz made her first edit on Wikipedia in 2004, and went on to create articles on female writers and scholars, several of them becoming featured articles
Feature article may refer to:
* Feature story, a piece of non-fiction writing about news covering a single topic in detail
* English Wikipedia#WikiProjects and assessment, English Wikipedia § Wikiproject and assessment, article quality on the Eng ...
. She originally edited anonymously for several years before revealing her gender. She made nearly 50,000 edits in all.[
As a major promoter of getting more women to edit Wikipedia to help end ]systematic bias
Systematic may refer to:
Science
* Short for systematic error
* Systematic fault
In engineering, a fault is a defect or problem in a system that causes it to fail or act abnormally. An example of this is the Windows fault screen, commonly r ...
, she said, "We need more female editors, more feminists (who can be editors of any gender), and more editors willing to work on content related to women. The single most underrepresented group
An underrepresented group describes a subset of a population that holds a smaller percentage within a significant subgroup than the subset holds in the general population. Specific characteristics of an underrepresented group vary depending on the ...
on Wikipedia is married women of color with children."
She increasingly became seen as an authority on Wikipedia, particularly on the encyclopedia's gender issues, and was cited as such by organizations such as the BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
.
Wadewitz also served on the board of the Wiki Education Foundation.[
]
Climbing
Wadewitz enjoyed rock climbing
Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending climbing routes, routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are documented in c ...
, which she described in 2013 as enabling "a new narrative about herself beyond that of a bookish, piano-playing Wikipedia contributor":
Death
On April 8, 2014, Wadewitz died from head injuries sustained a week earlier in a rock climbing fall at Joshua Tree National Park
Joshua Tree National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, US National Park located in southeastern California, straddling north-central Riverside County, California, Riverside County and part of southern San Bernardino County, ...
. Sue Gardner
Sue Gardner (born May 11, 1967) is a Canadian journalist, not-for-profit executive and business executive. She was the executive director of the Wikimedia Foundation from December 2007 until May 2014, and before that was the director of the C ...
, then executive director of the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. (WMF) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in San Francisco, California, and registered there as foundation (United States law), a charitable foundation. It is the host of Wikipedia, th ...
, described Wadewitz's death as a "huge loss" and said she may have been Wikipedia's "single biggest contributor on ... female authors ndwomen's history".[
Obituaries for her were published in '']The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'',[ the '']Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'',[ '']The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'',[ (republication of the '']Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' article) ''The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, Australia, and owned by Nine Entertainment. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuous ...
'',[ (reprint of '']The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' obituary) and the ''Corriere della Sera
(; ) is an Italian daily newspaper published in Milan with an average circulation of 246,278 copies in May 2023. First published on 5 March 1876, is one of Italy's oldest newspapers and is Italy's most read newspaper. Its masthead has remain ...
'',[ amongst others.][E.g.]
Dr. Adrianne Wadiwitz
Fort Wayne, Indiana Newspapers, April 23, 2014. ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' also republished one of her last blog posts, in which she discussed how engaging with a difficult activity had taught her about helping students with their own difficulties, partly by teaching them to celebrate the little successes on the way to a goal. She wrote that, "Ultimately, nothing was more helpful for me than failing repeatedly" and that she wanted her students to realize that failures could be part of learning and were nothing to be ashamed of. The journa
''ABO'': Interactive Journal for Women in the Arts, 1640–1830
which Wadewitz had worked for from 2011 to 2012, dedicated its March 2014 issue to Wadewitz.
Works
* (M.A. dissertation wit
Hathitrust copy
*
* Order Number 3466388.
*
*
See also
*Gender bias on Wikipedia
Gender bias on Wikipedia is the phenomenon that men are more likely than women to be volunteer contributors and article subjects of Wikipedia (although the English Wikipedia has almost 400,000 encyclopedic biographies about women, men have abo ...
* List of Wikipedia people
References
External links
Wadewitz's blog
on the Humanities, Arts, Science and Technology Alliance and Collaboratory website
*Alex Juhasz and Anne Balsamo
Tribute to Adrianne Wadewitz
The New School
The New School is a Private university, private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for p ...
, FemTechNet blog, April 10, 2014.
Dr. Adrianne Wadewitz
Fort Wayne, Indiana Newspapers, April 23, 2014.
Wadewitz
Google Website.
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wadewitz, Adrianne
1977 births
2014 deaths
21st-century American writers
21st-century American women writers
21st-century American academics
American bloggers
American feminists
Columbia College (New York) alumni
Indiana University Bloomington alumni
Mountaineering deaths
Occidental College faculty
Writers from Omaha, Nebraska
Women encyclopedists
American women bloggers
Articles containing video clips
Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis faculty
American rock climbers
Academics from Indiana
Academics from California
Academics from Nebraska
American Wikimedians
Wikipedia people
American women academics
Sports deaths in California