Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Indigenous Storytelling As Decolonial Praxis, Ceremony And At Colby, Georgia Goodman

Honors Theses

This thesis seeks to amplify Indigenous lifeways, diplomacies, sciences, diplomatic relations, and the power of storytelling. This is not a piece analyzing Indigenous culture. Rather, this thesis returns the gaze to the settler colonial state, specifically its storytelling ideologies, to show that systemic practices of inequity in storytelling can be disrupted and decolonized through a recentering of Indigenous ideologies. For example, reciprocity with lands and animals, reflection on positionality and decentering colonial understandings of time and place.

The Museum As A Mirror: Reinterpreting And Delinking American Landscape Art From Colonial Narratives, Blythe C. Romano

Honors Theses

Art museums have recently been looking at their existing collections with heightened scrutiny, revisiting their decision to display colonial works uncritically in their gallery spaces, and reconsidering the idea that there is such a thing as a unified art historical canon. These conversations regarding reinterpretation are necessary for all museums that choose to display art with problematic histories, as this information is owed to visitors -- especially within the settler colonial context. The Colby College Museum of Art in Waterville, Maine is one site where such collection and gallery “reinterpretation” has begun to be implemented and discussed. For example, in …

Give Me A Choice: Perceptions Of Freedom And The Anti-Vax Movement In Maine, Louisa Goldman

Honors Theses

While vaccination has proven to be an incredibly effective method of disease prevention, the growing ‘anti-vax’ movement threatens the population-level benefits conferred by widespread immunization. Recent findings indicate that anti-vax beliefs are not, as had been previously assumed, necessarily the result of scientific illiteracy but rather, are likely produced by intertwining social and situational contexts. With these considerations in mind, the goal of this study was to identify potential motivations underlying anti-vax behavior by performing a deep examination of anti-vax rhetoric, coupled with demographic and situational analyses. I focused specifically on the anti-vax community in Maine, with a special interest …

The New White Moderate: Bearing Witness To The Differend Of Race, Ethan T. Ashley

Honors Theses

As Frantz Fanon demonstrates in his text, Black Skin, White Masks, Sartrean existentialism fails to account for differences in racialized existence. Quite simply, the notion that “existence precedes essence” is reversed in the case of the black subject; he/she is living in a world that has rendered the black subject subservient to a predetermined essence. Ultimately, the fact that the white subject exists and may freely determine his/her essence while the black subject may not further demonstrates this gap or a chasm between black and white subjects that calls for further examination. In the first chapter, I will use …

Something Punny To Precede The Colon: Marking Whiteness And Exploring Blackness In Standup Comedy, Andrew Destaebler

Honors Theses

The general goal of this project is to investigate strategies and approaches used by comedians who rely heavily on racial humor in their acts. To do so, I consider the work of Dick Gregory, Richard Pryor, and Dave Chappelle, all African American male comedians. The first chapter focuses on a strategy employed by all three of these comedians called “marking whiteness.” Greta Fowler Snyder coined this term in her essay, “‘Marking Whiteness’ For Cross-Racial Solidarity” (2015), and uses it to describe strategies that force the “hyper-visibility” of whiteness. This happens through the portrayal of “average” white behavior, with the understanding …

Finding Aid To The Collection Of Margaret Wade Deland Materials, Margaret Wade Deland, Colby College Special Collections

Finding Aids

The collection includes correspondence, manuscripts, and first publications of Maine writer, Margaret Wade Deland. The bulk of the collection consists of letters written by Deland to various correspondents between 1884 and 1944. The collection also contains manuscript items of varying length, clippings, published writings, and a few photographic prints. Born Margaret Wade Campbell near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1857, Deland moved to Boston in 1880. She is known principally for the novel "John Ward, Preacher" and her 'Old Chester' books, based on communities where she grew up. She received a Doctorate of Letters from Bates College in 1920, and had a …

African-American Poetry, Music, And Politics, Tyler H. Macdonald

Honors Theses

The 2016 decision to award songwriter and musician Bob Dylan the Nobel Prize in Literature sparked a worldwide debate on the relationship between music and poetry and raised many questions about music’s place in literary canon. However, this debate is nothing new. Questions about the relationship between music and poetry have long been debated. Some scholars believe the two disciplines should be studied separately, while others prefer to consider the connections between the two.

My project begins with a question: if Bob Dylan’s songs can be considered poetry, what other forms of music might also be considered poetry? Rap implements …

Closer To Home, Edwin J. Torres

Colby Magazine

After Colby, a new perspective

The photographs: Edwin Torres ’12 Documents a Life in the Bronx

Futures Of Football, Katherine Parsons, Brian Levinson, Kayla Turner

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

No abstract provided.

Reworking Status In Nfl Football Stadiums, Kyle Mcbrierty, Robbi Melvin, Kellie Walsh

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

No abstract provided.

Futures Of Football, Catherine Powell, Kalu Kalu, Meg Fortier

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

No abstract provided.

Futures Of Football, Kylie Vanburen, Bradley Gaffin, Cameron Price

CLAS: Colby Liberal Arts Symposium

No abstract provided.

Finding Aid To The Collection Of Booth Tarkington Materials., Booth Tarkington, Colby College Special Collections

Finding Aids

This collection contains correspondence, manuscripts, photographs, and other materials relating to the life and work of Booth Tarkington. Booth Tarkington (1869-1946) was a writer from Indiana, well known for his novels of life in the midwest. Pulitzer Prizes were awarded to him for The Magnificent Ambersons and for Alice Adams. He attended Purdue University and Princeton, where he was a well-known literary and social figure. In later life he divided his time between Indiana and his estate, Seawood, in Kennebunkport, Maine, where he became friends with neighbor Kenneth Roberts.

Finding Aid To The Collection Of Waldo Peirce Materials., Waldo Peirce, Colby College Special Collections

Finding Aids

The collection comprises letters, scrapbooks, and manuscript items by Waldo Peirce, an American painter, bohemian, and expatriate born in Bangor, Maine. Waldo Peirce (1884-1970) was born in Bangor, Maine, and educated at Phillips Academy in Andover and Harvard University. He later studied at the Art Students League in New York City and at the Julian Academy in Paris. As an expatriate American, he drove ambulances for the French Army in World War I and led a bohemian life with notable companions such as Ernest Hemingway and John Reed. His later life was spent in Searsport, Maine, and Newburyport, Massachusetts, where …

Making It In Maine: Stories Of Jewish Life In Small-Town America, David M. Freidenreich

Faculty Scholarship

There are countless stories of Jewish life in Maine, stretching back 200 years. These are stories worth telling not only for their enjoyment value but also because we can learn a great deal from them. They reflect the challenges that confronted members of an immigrant community as they sought to become true Mainers, as well as the challenges this ethnic group now faces as a result of its successful integration. The experiences of Jews in Maine, moreover, encapsulate in many ways the experiences of small-town Jews throughout New England and the United States. Their stories offer glimpses into the changing …

Generational Dream: First Generation American Citizens And Their Relationship To The American Dream, Anna A. Mintz

Honors Theses

The term the "American Dream" was coined in 1939 by James Truslow Adams and has undoubtedly become an integral part of the American ethos. This narrative has brought thousands of immigrants to American shores with the promises of prosperity and success for centuries. Yet in 2014, it must be questioned whether this dream still holds significance for the young people of this country. By studying first-generation American citizens, whose parents did not grow up here, it can be ascertained how relevant this narrative still is and the sort of power that it retains. The following research describes my interactions with …

The Boatbuilders: Steve White '77 And Jock Williams '62 Have Built International Reputations Fore Their Classically Inspired Yachts, Matthew P. Murphy

Colby Magazine

In the world of custom-built yachts, Maine boatbuilders Jock Williams ’62 and Steve White ’77 are renowned for their boats’ classic lines and impeccable craftsmanship.

Kibbee, Community And Culture: Lebanese Food And Identity In Waterville, Miles De Klerk

Senior Scholars Papers in Jewish Studies

No discussion of Lebanese food is complete without the mention of kibbee. Whether the discussion is simply a description of the legendary dish in general, an examination of the various methods in which kibbee can be cooked (or not cooked), or the type of meat one uses, if you don’t know kibbee, you don’t know the Lebanese community of Waterville, Maine. Surely this is not to say that this singular dish can encompass Waterville’s entire particular brand of Lebanese identity. Dishes like cabbage rolls and grape leaves compete with kibbee in popularity, and like many other dishes, represent the local …

Edible Activism: Food And The Counterculture Of The 1960s And 1970s, Sandra Johnson

Honors Theses

Food is an essential part of every person’s life. Not only does it provide sustenance, but it also holds cultural value. Throughout American history, food has played a significant role in activism because of its ability to form and express identity, build community, demonstrate allegiance with certain beliefs, and reject the status quo. In 1773, American colonists boycotted the controlling British Monarchy and the monopolistic East India Company by throwing tea into the Boston harbor in what later became known as the Boston Tea Party. During the Jacksonian era of the 1830s, radical vegetarians led by the ideologies of …

“Called Her Women Together” Home Birth In Maine, Margaret Kruithoff

Honors Theses

Nine months ago, I set out to write a thesis on childbirth: hippies having their babies in the woods, hospital politics, and women’s rights. The final product is very different than what I had intended. Instead of finding crazy hippies in the woods, I found a community of kind and skilled midwives and loving, openhearted mothers. I am deeply indebted to these inspiring women for their stories and wisdom, which fill the pages of this thesis. Interviewing these mothers, midwives, and home birth advocates was a tremendously empowering experience for me, a young woman.

Symposium Participants' Bios, Bern Porter

Bern Porter Occasional Symposium Series

Biographical information about presenters and participants of the Bern Porter Occasional Symposium Series: The Bomb, the National Security State and the Advanced Thinking of Bern Porter.

Symposium Program, Bern Porter

Bern Porter Occasional Symposium Series

Printed program of the Bern Porter Occasional Symposium Series: The Bomb, the National Security State and the Advanced Thinking of Bern Porter.

Symposium Flyer, Bern Porter

Bern Porter Occasional Symposium Series

Flyer advertising the Bern Porter Occasional Symposium Series: The Bomb, the National Security State and the Advanced Thinking of Bern Porter.

Betty Levine Kaplan Scrapbook, Wendy Miller, Sarah Miller Arnon, Julie Miller-Soros

Levine Family of Waterville

Betty Ruth Levine was born on April 30, 1903 to Sarah Ida and William Levine. She died November 8, 1995. The scrapbook includes family memories and photographs.

Evelyn Levine Gold Scrapbook, Wendy Miller, Sarah Miller Arnon, Julie Miller-Soros

Levine Family of Waterville

Evelyn Mae Levine was born April 11, 1907 and died on February 6, 1957. She was one of the children born to William and Sarah Levine. The scrapbook includes photographs, family memories, negative copies of grade sheets from Coburn Classical Instituteand Emerson College.

Big House Scrapbook, Wendy Miller, Sarah Miller Arnon, Julie Miller-Soros

Levine Family of Waterville

This scrapbook contains photographs and family memories of the big Levine family house on Ticonic Street, of the Levine family "camp," of going to temple, and of various members of the family.

Pacy Levine Scrapbook, Wendy Miller, Sarah Miller Arnon, Julie Miller-Soros

Levine Family of Waterville

Percy "Pacy" Jerome Levine, brother of Ludy Levine, was born on April 16, 1905 to William and Sarah Ida Levine. He died on November 1, 1996. The scrapbook includes family memorials, a eulogy by Rabbi Krinsky, news clippings, photographs, and a few pieces of official correspondence.

William Levine Scrapbook, Wendy Miller, Sarah Miller Arnon, Julie Miller-Soros

Levine Family of Waterville

William Levine was born on December 25, 1865 and died on July 6, 1946. This scrapbook includes photographs, memorials by family members, obituary, documents such as deeds, and an account book.

Ann Levine Wolff Scrapbook, Wendy Miller, Sarah Miller Arnon, Julie Miller-Soros

Levine Family of Waterville

Ann (Anna Eva) Levine was born on November 12, 1890 to William and Sarah Ida Levine, and died on April 3, 1890. This scrapbook contains family memories, photographs, and an exam book in holograph for a history class in 1936 at Colby College.

Bibby Levine Alfond Scrapbook, Wendy Miller, Sarah Miller Arnon, Julie Miller-Soros

Levine Family of Waterville

Dorothy "Bibby" Adair Levine was born to William and Sarah Ida Levine on April 16, 1916 and died December 31, 2005. The scrapbook contains family memories, eulogy, newspaper clippings, photographs, and announcement of the birth of her son Michael.