English Major | Hanszen College

My name is Ellie Cha, and I am a junior at Hanszen College majoring in English. I have been a part of the Moody Fellows since Fall 2021 and I'm so excited to continue being involved with research and academic opportunities with other fellows! My previous research project was under the instruction of Dr. Amanda Johnson, and we explored the stigmas surrounding obstetric science and gestational surrogacy in the United States. Through the analysis of different literary mediums and films, it is evident that there is a critique of women in the gestational surrogacy industry. My project focused on researching which narratives promulgate the idea of a “bad” surrogate or mother in modern society. Factors of age, education, socio-economic class, and normative values of motherhood come into play when investigating why certain modes of motherhood are acceptable while others are not. Scholastic journals, fiction & nonfiction books, and contemporary films on surrogacy were analyzed to examine how surrogacy processes and public perception have changed over time. I aimed to uncover the mystics of obstetric science in mainstream media portrayals of exploited or exploitative women - particularly those involving power differentials of informed consent.

Research Interests: my research interests include the intersections of race, colonialism, individualism, and femininity.