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The Evolution Of Madness: The Portrayal Of Insanity In Opera, Courtney Miller Oct 2015

The Evolution Of Madness: The Portrayal Of Insanity In Opera, Courtney Miller

Honors Theses

Insanity has always been a fascinating topic in the arts, including opera. Many scholars have analyzed individual operas and their representation of insanity, but limited work has been done on the overall use of insanity in opera. Comparing representations from different periods, one can detect an apparent shift in how opera has portrayed madness. The reason for the change is not immediately obvious, leading to the main question of this study, which considers what might have caused an evolution in operatic portrayals of madness. In an attempt to find an explanation, this project evaluates both the general perception of insanity …


A Queen’S Reputation: A Feminist Analysis Of The Cultural Appropriations Of Cleopatra, Chamara Moore May 2015

A Queen’S Reputation: A Feminist Analysis Of The Cultural Appropriations Of Cleopatra, Chamara Moore

Honors Theses

While there is no doubt that Cleopatra is considered a notable historical figure and popularly regarded character throughout modern media, there is a distinct pattern in her portrayal throughout time as a woman whose power is defined by her sexual promiscuity. Even throughout periods of powerful female monarchs, political change, and social progress her prowess as a leader has been assumingly attributed to her affairs with Julius Caesar and Marc Antony. The purpose of this study is to examine how literature and media has contributed to this sexualized reputation of a queen who yielded authority over such a prosperous nation. …


Transgender Identity And Media In Historical Perspective, Melanie L. Bilbrey May 2015

Transgender Identity And Media In Historical Perspective, Melanie L. Bilbrey

Honors Theses

Despite recent advances in the public sphere, the transgender community remains vulnerable and underrepresented in daily life. While the media has been fascinated with transgender stories since the 1930s, these stories have been skewed in ways that undermine what it truly means to be a transgender person living in the contemporary United States. The disconnect between dominant media narratives and the daily lives of transgendered people is harmful, because it shields the mainstream from the harsh realities of every day life for these individuals and allows violence, discrimination, and transphobia to continue. This study analyzes the growing visibility of the …


Queering The Production Of Sexual Knowledge: Narrative Strategies, Gender Politics And The Promise Of Feminist Focus Groups, Madeline J. Hunsicker Jan 2015

Queering The Production Of Sexual Knowledge: Narrative Strategies, Gender Politics And The Promise Of Feminist Focus Groups, Madeline J. Hunsicker

Honors Theses

Dominant public discourses structure our interpretations of sexual acts in decidedly gendered ways, shaping our understandings of sexual experiences and embodiment. As a result, current understandings of term such as “virginity” evoke cultural standards of womanhood, whiteness, monogamy, and tradition that both reflect and reinforce contemporary society’s hetero-patriarchal relations of power. The narratives available for girls and women to make sense of the first sexual experiences are policed by dominant sexual discourses that privilege male pleasure (Kozma, 56-59), which can limit the narratives of actual sexual experiences and subjugate gynogentiric discourses of sexual knowing (Medley-Rath 26). In the absence of …


Expanding The Literary Enterprise: How We Experience The Texts Of The Advanced Placement English Literature And Composition Curriculum, Molly Ostrow Jan 2015

Expanding The Literary Enterprise: How We Experience The Texts Of The Advanced Placement English Literature And Composition Curriculum, Molly Ostrow

Honors Theses

How we read the texts of the Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition curriculum.