“Women need not apply”: Sylvia Earle, binary oscillations, and the ecofeminist rhetoric of Mission Blue

Abstract

Despite its relative compatibility with contemporary approaches to criticism and flexibility in application, few media studies scholars have “taken up” ecofeminism as an analytical framework. This study marshals insights from ecofeminist theory and critical rhetoric to analyze the Netflix documentary Mission Blue. Through its depictions of renowned oceanographer Sylvia Earle, the film points ecofeminists and media scholars toward an alternative theoretical position capable of deconstructing power binaries. More specifically, we contend Mission Blue makes use of “binary oscillations.” These oscillations invite viewers to experience shifts between the extremes of a binary when depicting Earle in the film, thereby resisting the urge to see her as fitting into one side of a dualism. Implications of this critical ecofeminist approach and the notion of a binary oscillation are discussed, in addition to the limitations of the film itself in supporting intersectional feminist commitments.