Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Revolutionaries In Space? A Counter-Review Of Interstellar, Bryant William Sculos

Class, Race and Corporate Power

Should the radical Left interpret the Nolans' Interstellar as a tribute to (neo)liberal expansionism or should we view it as a cautionary tale about a future that is just around the corner, which won't be solved by worm holes or time travel? This review takes the latter position against the recent Jacobin review, which argues the former. Here, I show that Interstellar can be productively reinterpreted as a film about a series of things that will NOT save us from our-late-capitalist-selves.

The Experience Of “Bottoming”: Considerations For Identity And Learning, Craig M. Mcgill, Joshua Collins

South Florida Education Research Conference

Bottoms—Gay men who prefer to be penetrated, sexually—are more stigmatized than other gay men, and may develop and experience identities differently than other gay, bisexual, or heterosexual men. This paper explores intrinsic dispositions and extrinsic motivations that may lead bottoms to perform and embody psychosocial and sexual identities in intimate, interpersonal, and social contexts.

Increasing The Amount Of Time That Students With Significant Cognitive Disabilities Are Authentically Engaged During Art Instruction, Keri P. Porter Mrs.

South Florida Education Research Conference

No abstract provided.

The Efficacy Of San Lazaro And His Manifestations: Divine Mediators Of Health Within Miami's Cuban-American Santeria Community., Marisol Cribeiro

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the origins, evolution and influence of the tradition of San Lázaro as it currently pertains to the Cuban-American Santeria community in Miami. The main argument of the study is that in the context of the contemporary religious culture of Santeria in Miami, San Lázaro is a hybrid spirit. Many manifestations of healing entities have come to merge in the person of this spirit. Though practitioners identify with specific manifestations of this spirit, the processes of transmigration have blurred the lines of deep-rooted faiths and created a fusion of meanings from disparate traditions, making San Lázaro an ambivalent …

Surviving And Thriving In A Hostile Religious Culture, Michelle Mitchell

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The present study explored a minority oppositional religious culture, which continued practicing despite overt hostilities to their practices. The qualitative research project utilized interviews and observations of the Gardnerian Wiccans in Broward County, Florida. The narrative data were transcribed, coded, and categorized into three themes related to the following research questions: Why would individuals create a secretive religion? Given they had to practice in secret, what about this religion had people seeking out information and joining Covens? What would keep this group together despite opposition from dominant culture? As a microcosm for religious conflict in society, the study showed differences …

Gnosticism, Transformation, And The Role Of The Feminine In The Gnostic Mass Of The Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica (E.G.C.), Ellen P. Randolph

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Gnostic Mass of the Ecclesia Gnostica Catholica (E.G.C.) suggests a heterosexual gender binary in which the female Priestess seated on the altar as the sexual and fertile image of the divine feminine is directed by the male Priest’s activity, desire and speech. The apparent contradiction between the empowered individual and the polarized gender role was examined by comparing the ritual symbolism of the feminine with the interpretations of four Priestesses and three Priests (three pairs plus one). Findings suggest that the Priestess’ role in the Gnostic Mass is associated with channeling, receptivity, womb, cup, and fertility, while the Priest’s …

Gender Benders: Shakespeare's Rosalind And Woolf's Orlando, Katrina Armenteros

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

English Renaissance playwright, William Shakespeare and twentieth century modernist author, Virginia Woolf’s works, “As You Like It” (1599) and “Orlando” (1928), respectively posit a vision of gender that transcends the physical sex of the body. The play’s heroine, Rosalind, and the novel’s protagonist, Orlando, each challenge the stability of the binary categories of male and female, demonstrating how gender is not absolute but rather a constantly adapting and evolving construct. This thesis traces the development of Rosalind and Orlando by analyzing and comparing both protagonists’ journeys towards concordia discors, considering how gender transformation plays a pivotal role in helping …

Juanita's Statue, Department Of Theatre, Florida International University

Department of Theatre Production Programs

November 7-16, 2014. Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Center, Black Box Theatre. Written by Anne Garcia-Romero. Directed by Michael Yawney. Costume Design by Lena Rodriguez. Scenic Design by Paul Steinsland. Lighting Design by Jordan Vera. Sound Design by Mario Alonso.

Two Gentleman Of Verona, Department Of Theatre, Florida International University

Department of Theatre Production Programs

April 8-17, 2016. Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Theatre. Weritten by William Shakespeare. Directed by Wayne E. Robinson, Jr. Lighting Design by Gabi Diez. Costume Design by Caroline Frias. Scenic Design by Alexandra Hess. Sound Design by Mario Alonso.

La Representación De La Masculinidad Y La Violencia De Género En La Novela Española De La Posguerra, Alfredo M. Pastor

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

While it may be argued that aggression against women is part of a culture of violence deeply rooted in Spanish society, the gender-related violence that exists in today’s Spain is more specifically a legacy of Franco’s dictatorship (1939-1975). Franco’s Spain endorsed unequal gender relations, championed patriarchal dominance and power over women, and imposed models of hegemonic and authoritarian masculinities that internalized violence by rendering it a feature inseparable from manhood and virility.

This dissertation provides a comprehensive analysis of masculinity and gender violence in Franco’s Spain, by analyzing the novel as the primary cultural vehicle of social criticism and political …

La Tentación Del Abismo En Armonía Somers: Entre El Expresionismo De Vanguardia Y El Gótico Postmoderno, Anamaria Lopez-Abadia Laya

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Armonía Somers (Uruguay 1917 – 1994) ha sido clasificada dentro de la llamada Generación del 45 de Uruguay, sin embargo, muchos críticos aseguran que su obra difiere de la estética del período en que escribió. Mientras Ángel Rama sugiere que la narrativa de Somers pertenece a la tradición de los raros y malditos, que desciende del extraño linaje del Conde franco-uruguayo y poeta Lautréamont, otros la colocan en el ámbito de la narrativa imaginativa y de lo fantástico. La crítica contemporánea se aproxima a la obra de Somers a partir del concepto de lo extraño o “Unheimlich”, abordando las novelas …

Ficción Extrema: Deslizamientos En La Realidad A Través De La Relación Entre Arte Y Literatura (Max Aub, Leonora Carrington Y Enrique Vila-Matas), Adriana Herrera

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Si el siglo XX creó una extendida conciencia sobre las variantes de la intertextualidad en la ficción literaria, hoy enfrentamos transformaciones en la naturaleza de la ficción y sus relaciones con otras formas discursivas y/o creativas como el arte, y con la misma realidad, que es posible designar con el concepto de ficción extrema. Desde “Don Quijote” o “Las meninas” hay incursiones en la metaficción y/o autorrefecividad. Pero a partir de las vanguardias modernistas y de modo creciente en los estertores de la postmodernidad nos abocamos a un singular tipo de hipertextualidad que desbordando lo literario se apropia de prácticas …

Hispanic Orientalism: The Literary Development Of A Cultural Paradigm, From Medieval Spain To Modern Latin America, Svetlana V. Tyutina

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation offers a novel approach to Hispanic Orientalism, developing a dynamic paradigm from its origins in medieval and Renaissance Iberia during the process of the Christian Reconquest, to its transatlantic migration and establishment in the early years of the Colony, from where it changed in late colonial and post-Independence Latin America, and onto modernity.

The study argues that Hispanic Orientalism does not necessarily imply a negative depiction of the Other, a quality associated with the traditional critique of Saidian Orientalism. Neither, does it entirely comply with the positivist approach suggested in the theoretical research of Said’s opponents, like Julia …

Out Of View: Stories, Justin Bendell

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

OUT OF VIEW is a collection of stories set in the American Southwest about people coping with loss—the death of parents, children, ideals, innocence.

The characters in this collection reap or resist lessons of life as they struggle to find their place in the world. In “First Rain,” 15-year-old Tessie struggles with the loss of her father and the demands of her mother as she navigates the rocky terrain of adolescence. In “Monsters,” middle-aged Maury has to choose between a new relationship and protecting the well-being of his 4-year-old ‘daughter.’ The stories are influenced by the Western realism of Maile …

The Saints Of Banias, Jennifer Maritza Mccauley

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

THE SAINTS OF BANIAS is a novel set in a fictional slavetown during the Reconstruction Era. The work seeks to blend myth, magic, and history to create a world that is both believable and otherworldly. The novel follows Beah, an ex-slave girl travelling to the town of Banias in hopes of finding her mother; Prophet Moon, an itinerant vision-seer who offers to help Beah with her goal; and the founder of the town, Claude Banias, who struggles to protect Banias from bloodthirsty radicals. As the characters’ lives intertwine, they face more challenges and secrets.

THE SAINTS OF BANIAS is loosely …

An Ideal Husband, Department Of Theatre, Florida International University

Department of Theatre Production Programs

September 26-October 5, 2014. Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Center, Mainstage Theatre. Written by Oscar Wilde. Directed by Phillip M. Church. Choreography by Crystal Patient. Costume Design by Marina Pareja. Scenic Design by Samantha Llanes. Lighting Design by Ainex Carmona. Sound Design by Erik Rodriguez.

Simply Genre Films: Extracting “King Lear” From “House Of Strangers” And “Broken Lance", Sophia G. I. Funk

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis is to evaluate and refute Yvonne Griggs’ claims that the films “House of Strangers” (1949) and “Broken Lance” (1954) are as Griggs deems “genre-based adaptations” of William Shakespeare’s “King Lear.” I argue that the films, although they have some essential elements of “King Lear,” lack intentionality and reception, pivotal components in determining viability as a Shakespearean film adaptation. Using Griggs’ book as my critical background, I will show that these films are better classified under their respective genre categories, Western and film noir, not as “King Lear” genre adaptations. I will …

Spatial Articulations Of Race, Desire, And Belonging In Western North Carolina, Latoya Eaves

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The sociocultural mythology of the South homogenizes it as a site of abjection. To counter the regionalist discourse, the dissertation intersects queer sexualities with gender and race and focuses on exploring identity and spatial formation among Black lesbian and queer women. The dissertation seeks to challenge the monolith of the South and place the region into multiple contexts and to map Black geographies through an intentional intersectional account of Black queer women. The dissertation utilizes qualitative research methods to ascertain understandings of lived experiences in the production of space. The dissertation argues that an idea of Progress has been indoctrinated …

Alternative Theatre Festival 2014, Department Of Theatre, Florida International University

Department of Theatre Production Programs

June 19-August 2, 2014. Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Center, Black Box Theatre. Gizmo Love by John Kolvenbach. Directed by Wilfredo Cabrera. Catherine's Wheel by Jean C. Sanchez. Directed by Michael Yawney. Play On by Rick Abbot. Directed by Marina Pareja.

Life In The Penit: Framing And Performing Miami's Graffiti Subculture, Victor M. Merida

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the tradition of the Birmingham School of cultural studies, this thesis focuses on Miami’s graffiti subculture and the conflicts between market economies and economies of social meaning. As a reference point, I consider Miami’s “Penits”: the name given to the seemingly abandoned buildings where graffiti is performed. Short for penitentiary, the term derives from the 1980s after a large building rumored to be a prison was defunded midway through its construction. After this first reclamation, every other graffiti heterotopia in Miami has been similarly recoded as spaces that mock structures of discipline and industry.

Through Michel Foucault’s biopolitical framework …

Investigating Miami English-Spanish Bilinguals' Treatment Of English Deictic Verbs Of Motion, Erica Verde

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This investigation focused on the treatment of English deictic verbs of motion by Spanish-English bilinguals in Miami. Although English and Spanish share significant overlap of the spatial deixis system, they diverge in important aspects. It is not known how these verbs are processed by bilinguals. Thus, this study examined Spanish-English bilinguals’ interpretation of the verbs come, go, bring, and take in English.

Forty-five monolingual English speakers and Spanish-English bilinguals participated. Participants were asked to watch video clips depicting motion events and to judge the acceptability of accompanying narrations spoken by the actors in the videos.

Analyses showed that, in general, …

Images And Perceptions Of Muslims And Arabs In Korean Popular Culture And Society, Maria M. Jamass

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Interest in Muslim and Arab societies has been on the rise in South Korea, especially since 2001, with many books and various documentaries being published on the subject. Since 2005 there have been a number of television shows and documentaries that include Muslim, and sometimes Arab characters. This study will examine how images of Muslims and Arabs are presented in Korean popular culture through the analysis of various dramas and variety shows, as well as how these images fit into the context of Korean ethno-nationalism and the history of Islam in East Asia. In addition to this analysis this study …

Hegel's Critique Of Contingency In Kant's Principle Of Teleology, Kimberly Zwez

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research is a historical-exegetical analysis of Hegel’s reformulation of Kant’s regulative principle of teleology into a constitutive principle. Kant ascribes teleology to the faculty of reflective judgment where it is employed as a guide to regulate inquiry, but does not constitute actual knowledge. Hegel argues that if Kant made teleology into a constitutive principle then it would be a much more comprehensive theory capable of overcoming contingency in natural science, and hence, bridging the gap between natural science and theology. In this paper I argue that Hegel’s defense of the transition from natural science to theology is ultimately …

Mothers And Their Children: Harry Potter And Melanie Klein, Kristina Mur

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis analyzes the mother-child relationship in the Harry Potter novels by using Melanie Klein’s object-relation based theory. I argue the mothers and their relationship with their offspring represent fragments of a whole complicated psyche. The characters are not analyzed as individuals, but instead as pieces, sometimes multiple pieces, of a whole psyche. When these characters and novels are taken together, a whole, multi-faceted person comes into view. Rowling depicts both good and bad mothers, and children who characterize different positions according to Klein. These positions are the paranoid-schizoid position with Harry Potter and the depressive position with Sirius Black …

Post-College Transition: A Study Of Evangelical Spirituality In Emerging Adulthood, Katharine R. Pals

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the question: How are the spiritual lives of evangelical Christian FIU graduates affected during the two to four years following their college graduation? In twenty mini-case studies participants describe their patterns in prayer life, devotion, community service outreach, and ways that they understand their own growth process as evangelical Christian emerging adults.

A total of twenty FIU alumni from the classes of 2009-2012 between the ages of 23 and 34 were interviewed in this study. The sample population of evangelical Christian FIU alumni was identified by the graduates’ previous membership in on-campus Christian organizations, including Campus Bible …

Vocal Synthesis And Deep Listening, Chelsea A. Bruno

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

My composition, Maitreya, combines vocal synthesis techniques with the theoretical concept of Deep Listening. This essay discusses developments in vocal synthesis and digital signal processing (DSP) software that can be performed in real-time and contributed to my composition. Deep Listening involves meditative practices to make one more aware of sounds that are both audible and inaudible. The composition utilizes recordings of male and female voices that recite poetry, chant, and are phase-vocoded.

The composition also features various DSP techniques, and a custom-built modular synthesizer. The composition has three sections that were compiled and edited in Ableton Live 8.2.2.

Anti-Romance: How William Shakespeare’S “King Lear” Informed John Keats’S “Lamia”, Shelly S. Gonzalez

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis is to analyze John Keats’s “Lamia” and his style of Anti-Romance as informed by William Shakespeare’s own experimentation with Romance and Anti-Romance in “King Lear.”

In order to fulfill the purpose of my thesis, I explore both the Romance and the Anti-Romance genres and develop a definition of the latter that is more particular to “King Lear” and “Lamia.” I also look at the source material for both “King Lear” and “Lamia” to see how Shakespeare and Keats were handling the originally Romantic material. Both Shakespeare and Keats altered the original material by subverting the …

The Progressive Catholic Church In Brazil, 1964-1972: The Official American View, Sigifredo Romero

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the American view of the Brazilian Catholic Church through the critical examination of cables produced by the U.S. diplomatic mission in Brazil during the period 1964-1972. This thesis maintains that the United States regarded the progressive catholic movement, and eventually the Church as a whole, as a threat to its security interests. Nonetheless, by the end of 1960s, the American approach changed from suspicion to collaboration as the historical circumstances required so. This thesis sheds light on the significance of the U.S. as a major player in the political conflict that affected Brazil in the 1964-1972 years …

Jesus As The Son Of Man In Mark, Andres A. Tejada-Lalinde

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Scholars have often seen the interpretation of the Son of Man as crucial in discovering Jesus’ self-understanding, given that the expression occurs so frequently and almost exclusively on Jesus’ lips. After ascertaining the authenticity of the Son of Man sayings, I carry out the exegesis in the Gospel of Mark using a methodology consisting of examining Biblical passages within the context of the Bible as a whole and of historical-critical and philological perspectives. Also, the narrative context of the saying is taken into account. I show that the Son of Man is a Messianic title derived from Daniel 7:13, and …

Death Rituals In The New Diaspora: Funerals In The Lives Of Ghanaians In South Florida, Evelyn E. Arhin-Sam

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis addresses the lack of attention to practices that take place in settings not considered primarily religious, such as life-cycle rituals in the growing body of literature on religious practices of recently emerging African diaspora communities in the West. It argues that these practices are not only filters for indigenous African religious beliefs but also furnish for African migrants contexts that perform functions similar to those performed by the formal African diaspora religious institutions. Using ethnography, the study investigated the role of death rituals in the lives of Ghanaian members of the United Ghanaians Association of South Florida. …