Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Arts and Humanities Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 30 of 62

Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities

Visions Of Inclusivity: A Screenplay Focusing On Women, Sexism And Film During The 1990s, Abigail Hayman Apr 2024

Visions Of Inclusivity: A Screenplay Focusing On Women, Sexism And Film During The 1990s, Abigail Hayman

Master's Projects

In the 1990s film scene, Margaux Archambeau leaves for New York City to uncover the truth about her late mother. This research summary, "Visions of Inclusivity," acknowledges and carefully researches women's struggles and triumphs. This essay intends to share information about the film industry and the inappropriate treatment of women so that men and women in the film industry can support one another.


Georgia Ghosts: History, Folklore, And The Roots Of The Southern Gothic, Katherine M. Mcdowell Apr 2024

Georgia Ghosts: History, Folklore, And The Roots Of The Southern Gothic, Katherine M. Mcdowell

Master's Projects

There is something quintessentially human about ghost stories, yet particular regions tend to be more powerfully associated with haunted folktales than others. One of the regions is the southeastern United States. In fact, these oral traditions appear to have influenced the area's best-known literary subgenre: the Southern Gothic.

Why is the South considered haunted? Are there particular qualities in historical events that make them more likely to engender ghost stories? What makes the South's folkloric spirits so powerful that they appear even in modern literature? Most of all, what connects the region's history and folklore with the Southern Gothic? By …


The Farm, Justin Morris Apr 2024

The Farm, Justin Morris

Master's Projects

Synopsis:

’The Farm’ is a psychological thriller series inspired by the recent folk horror revival. We follow a suburban family who begin to lose their trust in each other as they fall further into peril on a strange isolated farm. When Brian, the patriarch, repeatedly puts his family in danger to satisfy his own ego, he forms a rift between him, his wife Madison, and son Charlie that quickly spirals into delusion, blind accusation, and paranoia. Desperate, they seek the help of Elias, the owner of the farm with his own tenuous grip on reality, and his quiet daughter, Emma. …


Beyond Words: An Exploration Of Research And Writing For Indigenous Land Acknowledgements, Oksana Flores Dec 2023

Beyond Words: An Exploration Of Research And Writing For Indigenous Land Acknowledgements, Oksana Flores

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

This capstone delves into the practical application and importance of land acknowledgments within the frameworks of Critical Indigenous Theory and Narrative Theory. Through the utilization of archival research methods, the project not only offers recommendations for crafting an effective land acknowledgment but also provides the necessary historical foundation for the implementation of such a statement at Kennesaw State University. This effort serves to strengthen the university's commitment to diversity and equity on campus.


Thunderfort, Lever Stewart Dec 2023

Thunderfort, Lever Stewart

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

Thunderfort is a tabletop roleplaying game (TTRPG) that utilizes both synchronous and asynchronous communication in both its rules and its fictitious setting. This project seeks to provide a unique TTRPG experience that is partially or fully digital, played out via text chatting and digital dice rolling. Such a game is also intended to be enjoyed by players without said players needing to worry about game session scheduling conflicts, since a large part of the game is played via digital, asynchronous communication. The full, most up-to-date text can also be accessed at thunderfort.lsflegal.com.


Smoke And Mirrors, Adara London Dec 2023

Smoke And Mirrors, Adara London

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

When a human trafficking ring comes to town, a grieving graduate student must choose between investigating on her own to save her sister or leaving the investigation to her impassive cop boyfriend.


Big Screen Heroes With Paper Voices: A Superhero Adaptation Research Essay, Zachary Green Nov 2023

Big Screen Heroes With Paper Voices: A Superhero Adaptation Research Essay, Zachary Green

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

Superheroes may have taken over your phone, tablet, and television screens through the endless adaptations that pelt us from upon high mouse-shaped ears, but their rich history goes back much further than that; they have gripped the public imagination since their creation in comic strips published in newspapers almost one-hundred years ago. But, why exactly has their effect on popular culture, and their subsequent adaptations in various forms of media been so pervasive in the last twenty-five years? What makes these stories and comic book characters, and particularly Marvel comic book characters, so interesting to modern audiences? This essay demonstrates …


Universal Background Generator 2.0, Konrad Drapela Jul 2023

Universal Background Generator 2.0, Konrad Drapela

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

This project is a backstory generator designed to create randomly rolled information and events that come together to create a short yet detailed background for any character for roleplay games, novels or other such media.


Wronged Women: A Foray Into The Wronged Woman's Mind, Suzanna Poole May 2023

Wronged Women: A Foray Into The Wronged Woman's Mind, Suzanna Poole

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

This capstone is about the wronged woman and how she is the the hated woman, the lonely woman, or the crazy woman. I have been a wronged woman and know countless women in my life that have been wronged in some sort of way; either by a lover, a friend, family, or even herself. This project was created to put a spotlight on these various women. My research covered various mental illnesses that occured after a woman was wronged and the ways these can affect women. I wrote four short screenplays about various women at different ages in their lives: …


The Exile's War, Stephen Edwards Arnold May 2023

The Exile's War, Stephen Edwards Arnold

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

In Gaelwyn, the village of a thousand stories, Katchan receives a powerful ruby and an ancient technique called writing hidden by his grandmother, Maggaline. Jealous of the power Katchan has, the village Elder seeks to destroy him. After escaping the Elder, Katchan must leave his home and traverse a dangerous and mysterious wasteland that will lead him directly into an ancient conflict that lost a powerful empire to the sands of time.


Vinyle Zine: The Execution Of The Pedagogy Of Pro-Blackness, Kandice Fowlkes May 2023

Vinyle Zine: The Execution Of The Pedagogy Of Pro-Blackness, Kandice Fowlkes

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

Vinyle zine, is a Black literary magazine pedagogically driven to increase cultural literacy within the African-American community. In order to do this, this magazine must have the foundation of Pro-Blackness as a driving force towards advancing Black people in the ways this platform can offer its service. Vinyle zine allows Black individuals to practice using writing and any art form as their medium of expression –a tool that has been utilized to extol African American truths and increase cultural knowledge. By encouraging expression in art and provoking cultural knowledge, Vinyle zine will continue to encourage Black artists and writers to …


Georgia, Lesley Brian Bargo Apr 2023

Georgia, Lesley Brian Bargo

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

The Vietnam War cast a massive shadow, both home and abroad. Relationships, morality, and humanity hang in the balance.


Six Stories: Short Fiction From Contemporary Life, Richard Grant Apr 2023

Six Stories: Short Fiction From Contemporary Life, Richard Grant

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

“Six Stories” is a collection of short fiction derived from contemporary life. While most are in a Mainstream context, at least two stories are set in a future time. The stories survey contemporary life and tap into a range of topics that include personal psychology, groups, technology, the media, politics, and celebrity culture. The stories give a perspective on who we’ve become in a broader sense and share a common thread throughout the collection in their depiction of the distances and barriers that arise between people and even the distances and barriers that can exist within an individual person. As …


With The Screenwriter's Pen: An Analysis Of The Representation Of Gifted Children In The Family Film, Sarah Williams Dec 2022

With The Screenwriter's Pen: An Analysis Of The Representation Of Gifted Children In The Family Film, Sarah Williams

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

Family films are something that have been enjoyed for many decades. They often create a fantastic world that will enchant audiences and eventually become beloved stories. A big aspect often seen in these films is a protagonist that possesses some kind of gift. Where does this gift come from? How does it grow? Most importantly, how do the screenwriters who are responsible for bringing these gifted heroes to life go about it?

Using the screenplays of Kubo and the Two Strings, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Encanto, and Coraline, I take a deep dive into the portrayal of …


Tiptoeing Through The Tulips At Seventy: A Memoir, Fran Miele Dec 2022

Tiptoeing Through The Tulips At Seventy: A Memoir, Fran Miele

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

This is a memoir about my lifetime search for clarity about my gender identity. My primary goal for the project was to catalog the steps I took in the sometimes-tortured and confusing path I followed over the course of my life, from childhood to late adulthood, striving to understand who and what I am in terms of my identity and how, once it was clarified in my mind, coming to terms with it and, at the ripe old age of seventy, taking the steps necessary to affirm it by way of the male-to-female transition. A secondary, incidental goal was …


The Cycle Of Book Publishing Through A Queer Lens, Aly Gilmore Dec 2022

The Cycle Of Book Publishing Through A Queer Lens, Aly Gilmore

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

This capstone assesses the current landscape of the publishing industry with regard to Queer authors and stories that have been published within the United States. It will start off with a literature review utilizing secondary research upon the current publishing landscape, as well as the rules that guide how writing craft is constructed and taught. Within this section, I also unpack personal experiences from working in a local bookstore as well as integrating some information from interviews from individuals with connections to the publishing industry. It will conclude with an autoethnography, in which I reflect how my own experiences intertwine …


Reflections, Kiera Baity Jul 2022

Reflections, Kiera Baity

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

"Reflections" explores experiences in my life revolving around my absent father's influence on my choices in men, and how the impact of absence and rejection altered my upbringing and family's dynamic as a whole. There are a lot of women out there like me who’ve blocked out the feelings that come with not having their father around, allowing room for the generations after to be affected. I wanted my story to connect with both childhood and adult women, inspiring them to face their own trauma. Ultimately proving how an unhealthy repetitiveness can be broken.


Batter: A Creative Writing Portfolio, Hannah Newman May 2022

Batter: A Creative Writing Portfolio, Hannah Newman

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

My capstone project, Batter, is a collection of creative writing pieces, consisting of short stories, flash fiction, and two creative nonfiction essays. I decided to do a portfolio because creative writing is simply what I enjoy the most and have been intrigued by since I took my first fiction writing class at Kennesaw State University. Composing stories, imagining how characters could behave believably, their problems and their solutions, all of it combined gives me a sense of creative determination that I have not found in any other area of work or craft. I believe I’ve been rather lucky because working …


Finding Their Chrysanthemum: Linguistic Representation In Children's Literature, Marielena Zajac May 2022

Finding Their Chrysanthemum: Linguistic Representation In Children's Literature, Marielena Zajac

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

Children in America today struggle with finding themselves in the books they read due to societal expectations. From an early age, children are dictated on the correct way to speak and write in “American,” which can leave children and their home languages feeling unseen and dismissed. To help further the conversation and promotion of linguistic diversity in American society, this capstone analyzes dialectal representation in children’s books, with a heavy focus on attitudinal linguistic principles rather than prescriptive mechanics. The secondary research explores current literature and resources that discuss literacy acquisition in adolescents, trends in dialects in America, and childhood …


A Wellbeing@Ksu Journey: Mapw Portfolio, Meghan Cooper Apr 2022

A Wellbeing@Ksu Journey: Mapw Portfolio, Meghan Cooper

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

A process narrative and samples and complete works from my time in MAPW and as a GRA within the health and well-being departments at KSU. The portfolio showcases my journey as a communicator and professional writer and how it has impacted my current career.


Digital Storytelling In Higher Education: An Analysis Of Production Practices, Meagan Lowney Apr 2022

Digital Storytelling In Higher Education: An Analysis Of Production Practices, Meagan Lowney

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

With the recent transition into virtual sharing formats due to COVID-19, it is important to explore the best digital storytelling practices to engage with audiences due to the lack of in-person interactions. By reviewing literature focused on storytelling techniques and the science behind developing a connection with an audience, in conjunction with a digital analysis of videos featuring KSU researchers showcased in the biweekly web series hosted by KSU's Office of Research, and interviews with viewers of the videos, my capstone answers (1) What elements of digital storytelling are effective in increasing audience engagement in an online live environment? and …


Covid-19'S Impact On Communication Practices In The Animal Welfare Nonprofit Sector, Tiffany M. Davis Dec 2021

Covid-19'S Impact On Communication Practices In The Animal Welfare Nonprofit Sector, Tiffany M. Davis

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

Historically, writing and communication practices have been vital components in the nonprofit sector. With the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, the writing and communication practices within the nonprofit sector have been forced to adapt and change for organizations to continue disseminating their missions and continuing fundraising. Specifically, animal welfare nonprofit organizations have had to shift their communication practices in the wake of the virus. This capstone aims to answer questions about the value of writing and communication practices, and also answer research questions about the effects of COVID-19 on the animal welfare nonprofit sector. Through secondary and primary research, in …


A Pin-Up’S Guide To Traveling Like A Local: A Series, Annedra Utley Herring May 2021

A Pin-Up’S Guide To Traveling Like A Local: A Series, Annedra Utley Herring

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

A creative non-fiction article series that includes experience & travel articles following a Pin-up voice & her solo adventures around the country. The series is written for the Pin-up community & focuses on traveling like a local with authenticity & creativity to hidden gems instead of sticking to regular tourist traps.


Life In The Second Youth, Donna Cochran May 2021

Life In The Second Youth, Donna Cochran

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

Six years ago, my mother passed away while my brother and I were still attempting to obtain extra benefits she was qualified for but not receiving from The Veterans Administration. I had spent the equivalent of a full-time job in searching the Internet for assistance with these benefits, long-term care facilities, in-home assistance, and hearing aids and cataract surgery. In this capstone, I will be detailing the website and blog I have begun to build to give senior citizens, their families, and caregivers access to professionals in such topics as insurance, real estate, and legal issues. I will also be …


The Sojourner, Adefolaju Edun Dec 2020

The Sojourner, Adefolaju Edun

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

To me, a sojourner is a person who leaves his or her homeland in search of something only to return after a temporary period of staying in a foreign land. The search for something better led me to the United Kingdom, and shortly after, the USA. Initially, the reason for my travel was to find better opportunities. I have since discovered that my success and progress in life depend on my willingness to harness my greatness. During the process of writing this book, I discovered myself. I left Nigeria in my late teens, and I have been abroad ever since. …


Emily Dickinson: 19th Century Poet In A 21st Century World, Stephanie Merrigan Dec 2020

Emily Dickinson: 19th Century Poet In A 21st Century World, Stephanie Merrigan

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

This capstone will discuss what channels mediate public access to literary content in the case of Emily Dickinson’s poems and letters. The discussion continues with how this was a problem for Dickinson while she was alive due to her reclusiveness and unorthodox punctuation. The capstone then looks at the other aspects of this in the roles that editors, the merchandise now made with lines from Dickinson’s work, and digital technologies play in that circulation, but also how they have played a role in making Dickinson a pop culture icon in the 21st century.


We Are Also Home, Mustafa Abubaker Jul 2020

We Are Also Home, Mustafa Abubaker

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

In the opening scenes of “We Are Also Home,” the novel’s symbolic character Farishtay Mahdi allows a man by the name of Syed Janmohamed into her house. He pays her for sex and counseling. She does not love him. Instead, she loves what he gives her. Syed is not only after Farishtay for sex. He is also driven mad by the commanality found in both Farishtay and his daughter: invisibility. He has heard of Farishtay’s hushed-up condition through the grapevine. His performance, initially informed by societal norms, is almost instantly seen for what it really is by Farishtay. Irony plays …


The Lantern And The Sword, Michael Chisholm May 2020

The Lantern And The Sword, Michael Chisholm

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

A creation myth of a new universe where brother deities of light and darkness battle for dominance. Light creates a Lantern to illuminate all reality and Darkness creates a Sword to help control the extent of the light. The god of light then creates a champion to lead his forces against his dark brother and the war intensifies. In his struggle the champion discovered he could control not only light but the darkness as well. He created a dark fire with great power to match the deities. Light and darkness come together and create peace and a balance. The champion …


Forgiveness, Freedom And The Inmate Issue, Taylor Smith May 2020

Forgiveness, Freedom And The Inmate Issue, Taylor Smith

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

Forgiveness Freedom and the Inmate Issue:

It is no secret that the United States has a mass incarceration problem. The war on drugs, traffic violations, and the Three Strikes Law, are just pieces of the systems being used to repeatedly place people behind bars. What we are facing now as a society is the repercussions of reintegrating under educated, digitally literate, mentally abandoned individuals back into society. In addition to post jail operatives like parole fees, fines and probation scheduling are re-sentencing these individuals into a society they no longer relate to, that socially struggle to adapt to and that …


Equitable Design Through The Urban Museum: Catalyzing Community Revitalization And Environmental Justice In The Sweet Auburn Historic District(The New Apex Museum), Day'zhanera King May 2020

Equitable Design Through The Urban Museum: Catalyzing Community Revitalization And Environmental Justice In The Sweet Auburn Historic District(The New Apex Museum), Day'zhanera King

Bachelor of Architecture Theses - 5th Year

Have you ever heard of the Black Lives Matter Movement, or B.L.M.? B.L.M. was created as a response to the resurgence of racism and xenophobic hate-crimes against Black people and their communities, often at the hands of police. It was the hate crimes plus the scape-goating of Blacks add in poverty rates, the exponentially high Black unemployment rates, and the over policing of Black neighborhoods. B.L.M. is the modern activist response to the continuance of Richard Nixon’s War on Drugs, Bill Clinton’s crime bill and the massive, and the disproportionate incarceration of Black men. B.L.M. is the representation for what …