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Full-Text Articles in Arts and Humanities

Taylor Swift As Religion: The Deification Of An International Pop Music Superstar And The Ramifications Of Fame, With A Comparison To Vox Lux, Jessica Cotturone Apr 2024

Taylor Swift As Religion: The Deification Of An International Pop Music Superstar And The Ramifications Of Fame, With A Comparison To Vox Lux, Jessica Cotturone

Religion and Film

This paper explores the ways in which the culture surrounding pop music superstar Taylor Swift is a religion. Taylor Swift has had an indelible impact on her fans, who are known as Swifties, and this paper brings attention to the ways that she establishes a strong connection with her fans such that they come to view her as a religious figure. Definitions of religion proposed by scholars Clifford Geertz and Meghan Johnston Aelabouni are used to analyze how this popular music culture can fit into a broader conceptualization of religion. Special attention is given to the deification of celebrities in …


Bisexuality In 21st Century Media, Bethany Abrams Apr 2022

Bisexuality In 21st Century Media, Bethany Abrams

Audre Lorde Writing Prize

This paper sets out to examine bisexuality in 21st century media in order to highlight the importance of good bisexual representation. Media that perpetuates harmful stereotypes only adds to the discrimination that bisexual individuals experience. This paper begins by discussing stereotypes and types of discrimination that are particularly relevant to the bisexual community. After this, pieces of media are analyzed thoroughly for how they portray bisexuality. The three main pieces that are analyzed are Alex Strangelove, Atypical, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. After analyzing each piece, the paper continues to examine audience reactions and discusses the implications of representing bisexuality …


Challenging Faith And Gaining Power: Women In Film Who Reject And Subvert Religion, Annika Murrah Feb 2021

Challenging Faith And Gaining Power: Women In Film Who Reject And Subvert Religion, Annika Murrah

Religion and Film

This paper examines the ways that women seize power through rejection and subversion of religion by relating women in film to the real world. Rejection of faith is exemplified by characters in the films The Little Hours (2017) and The Miseducation of Cameron Post (2018). Subversion of faith is understood through the films Whale Rider (2003), Jennifer’s Body (2009), and Transparent (2014). Narrative analysis of these films is contrasted with studies of orthodox religion as examined by Dr. Brenda E. Brasher and Dr. Mary Gerhart. The importance and effect of women’s newly-gained power is applied to social change as recorded …


When Atheists Become Deities: How Vox Lux Shows The Intersection Of Secularism, Religion, And Pop Stardom In Consumer Society, Lindsay Saulsberry Mar 2020

When Atheists Become Deities: How Vox Lux Shows The Intersection Of Secularism, Religion, And Pop Stardom In Consumer Society, Lindsay Saulsberry

Religion and Film

An examination of Christian concepts in relation to secular pop stars though an analysis of the film Vox Lux (2018) and the significance of celebrity worship within the context of consumer society. Includes notable ideas from Talal Asad, Kent Brintnall, René Girard, John Lyden, Rupert Till and Emilie Townes.


Wonder Woman: Classical Hero, Modern Superheroine, And Feminist Figure, Victoria A. Karnes May 2018

Wonder Woman: Classical Hero, Modern Superheroine, And Feminist Figure, Victoria A. Karnes

Celebration of Learning

Wonder Woman, an Amazonian princess and superheroine who has been inspiring women since her comic debut in 1941. From her origins to the villains she faces, Wonder Woman’s stories and character are wrapped up in allusions to famous myths and figures of Greek and Roman literature. In my Senior Inquiry, I investigate Wonder Woman’s Classical connections and compare the ancient portrayal of Amazonian women to their portrayal in the comics and the recent films Wonder Woman (2017) and Justice League (2017). Also, in my Senior Inquiry, I analyze Dr. William Marston’s complicated and problematic feminist views which inspired his creation …


Explicar El Fracaso: Casa De Mi Padre (Piedmont, 2012), Liam Baldwin Jan 2017

Explicar El Fracaso: Casa De Mi Padre (Piedmont, 2012), Liam Baldwin

Spanish: Student Scholarship & Creative Works

No abstract provided.


“Καλὸν Ἀνθρωπίνου Βίου Κάτοπτρον”: Popular Culture As A Pedagogical Lens On Greco-Roman Antiquity (Essays In Honor Of Kirsten Day), Kirsten Day, Benjamin Haller Apr 2014

“Καλὸν Ἀνθρωπίνου Βίου Κάτοπτρον”: Popular Culture As A Pedagogical Lens On Greco-Roman Antiquity (Essays In Honor Of Kirsten Day), Kirsten Day, Benjamin Haller

Classics: Faculty Scholarship & Creative Works

No abstract provided.


Introduction To Celluloid Classics: New Perspectives On Classical Antiquity In Modern Cinema, Kirsten Day Jan 2008

Introduction To Celluloid Classics: New Perspectives On Classical Antiquity In Modern Cinema, Kirsten Day

Classics: Faculty Scholarship & Creative Works

No abstract provided.


"What Makes A Man To Wander?": The Searchers As A Western Odyssey, Kirsten Day Jan 2008

"What Makes A Man To Wander?": The Searchers As A Western Odyssey, Kirsten Day

Classics: Faculty Scholarship & Creative Works

This paper looks at John Ford's 1956 film The Searchers as a literary, cultural, and ideological heir to Homer's Odyssey. Each work centers on a morally ambiguous protagonist on a mission to preserve the integrity of his household and his own honor, a quest made urgent by the sexual threat posed by a woman. While Homer's story explores issues of Greek identity and the ethnic anxieties generated by trade and colonization, Ford's film addresses racial and Cold War tensions prevalent in1950s America. Both works ultimately destabilize the categories of "us" and "them," encouraging audiences to reconsider this dichotomy.