This dissertation is a situated rhetorical analysis of four women's organization websites: the Federated Women's Institutes of Canada, the National Federation of Women's Institutes in England and Wales, the Associated Country Women of the World, and the General Federation of Women's Clubs in the United States. These four organizations have similar histories which date back to the late 1800s and early 1900s. Each offers social, educational and activist opportunities to its members.
Research for the study followed two phases: direct contact with members and staff of each organization to interview them along with close reading of the website texts. The collected data analyzes the websites based on design and format, interactive opportunities, photographic images and rhetorical language and seeks to comment on the persuasive potential and rhetorical traces of identity found for each organization through its website. The study is restricted to specific dates when the websites were observed; it is further limited by the opportunities for contact with organization members and staff who were willing to participate in the research.
The online presence created by the four organizations and its significance to them contributes to the development and growth of each organization by promoting the work and activities the women engage in. The websites offer evidence of an important community to which the members belong and gives the women information on opportunities to meet together, support issues which are important to them and their communities and work to improve the lives of others. However, the sites are primarily used for promotional purposes, advertising activities and campaigns at a national/international level rather than offering direct engagement and interactive opportunities for members. Finally, this dissertation contributes to the study of women's rhetoric, particularly women writing on the web.