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Pasadena City College’s Critical Theory Club hosted its first lecture of the semester with guest speaker Dr. Ronjaunee Chatterjee on Wednesday night.

Dr. Chatterjee Ronjaunee presents her lecture “From Alice to Dora: The Victorian Girl & The Origin of Psychoanalysis” in Harbeson Hall on Wednesday, Sept. 24. (Concepcion Gonzalez/Courier)
Dr. Chatterjee Ronjaunee presents her lecture “From Alice to Dora: The Victorian Girl & The Origin of Psychoanalysis” in Harbeson Hall on Wednesday, Sept. 24. (Concepcion Gonzalez/Courier)

Chatterjee, who is a graduate of Cornell University, presented a lecture called “From Alice to Dora: The Victorian Girl & The Origins of Psychoanalysis.” Her lecture, which revolved heavily around Freudian psychoanalysis, the complicated figure of Alice from Alice in Wonderland, and how girls are represented today, was the perfect topic for the “forward thinkers” and “changers” that the Critical Theory Club wants to attract, according to the club president Charmaine Chong.

“We’re excited to have Dr. Chatterjee come lecture today because she represents a very different way of thinking… Her theories on girls should be interesting. I think it will encourage us to think bigger,” said Chong.

Even with the audience consisting of mostly females, male audience members seemed to find Dr. Chatterjee’s lecture on girls to be stimulating as well.

“I think Dr. Chatterjee’s young age makes her more personable… Some of the topics would’ve went over my head, but I liked how she talked about current celebrities to make it more interesting,” said psychology student Mike Torhol. “I think her theory on girls also supports the topic of feminism, which is gaining a lot of momentum right now.”

With current events relating to women happening in our society, such as UN Women Goodwill Ambassador Emma Watson’s speech on feminism, the lecture was appropriately timed.

Dr. Chatterjee’s goal, however, was not to force a certain perspective on to her audience members but to instead simply explain her theories on the role of women and her own theory of “girl culture”.

“Girl culture is a notoriously porous term,” said Dr. Chatterjee in an e-mail. “But I am generally interested in ‘girl culture’ as that which designates the visibility of the ‘girl’ to various realms: consumption and consumerism, media and literature, and social and political issues.”

Dr. Ronjaunee Chatterjee is currently a candidate for a PhD in English, focusing on 19th century literature and critical theory, at University of California, Los Angeles.

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