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Community As A Force Of Action In Lorraine Hansberry's "Les Blancs", Lily Jensen

Criterion: A Journal of Literary Criticism

This paper explores Hansberry’s philosophy of community in her 1970 play, Les Blancs. The paper analyzes Hansberry’s use of complex characterization in this text to show the wide reach of the colonial power structure and to show what is required of a community to push for effective action. The paper also analyzes the National Theatre’s 2016 production of Les Blancs, and how this production incorporates and enhances Hansberry’s philosophy of community through the characteristics afforded through theatre as a medium.

Preface, Christopher Oscarson

The Thetean: A Student Journal for Scholarly Historical Writing

Quite often, we take writing for granted. The sublime simplicity of mere symbols or scratches on a page escapes our attention as we search for more significant sources of meaning in a memory that can be only fleeting and fragmentary at best. But what could be more fundamental to our source of self and community than language and, by extension, writing? Human beings could not be saved from living in an eternal present if they lacked the ability given them by language to reflect. Community with others can be formed only if there is a means of preserving and sharing …

Pursuing Mosiah’S And Madison’S Commonsense Principle In Today’S Divided Politics, Keith Allred

BYU Studies Quarterly

It is hard not to despair over the dysfunction in American politics today. The chaos created by the partisan rancor is continually before us. Angry tweets, bitter protests, and personal attacks are increasingly the norm, while civil discourse about sound policy is rare. No republic ever effectively managed its challenges this way.

“Truth Is The Only Ground” How Journalism Contributes To Good Government, Edward L. Carter

BYU Studies Quarterly

Growing up in the years after Watergate, I became a true believer in the power of the press to make society better by reporting on government’s corruption, lies, ineptitudes, and inefficiencies—as well as genuine public service, improvements, and accomplishments. In junior high school, I wrote a letter to the editor of the local newspaper critiquing the city garbage trucks in my neighborhood that left a trail of trash in their wake. In high school, I reported for the school newspaper about events and people as well as things I thought could be improved. I worked as a journalist during and …

Shurooq, Shurooq, Brandi Kilmer, Sherianne Schow, Nicole Taylor, Sasha Sloan

TSOS Interview Gallery

Shurooq fled Iraq and came to the United States when she was 12. Iraq was a beautiful place full of family and celebration. Her brother passed away from leukemia 1 1/2 years prior to coming to the States. Prior to his death, their father took him to Syria to for treatment. He passed in Syria. Although the family had applied for a medical visa to the United States, upon Shurooq’s brother’s passing, they received threats and knew they could not stay. The call came for the visa and all but her mother were able to come. Thankfully her mother arrived …

Ziba, Ziba, Sherianne Schow, Brandi Kilmer, Heather Oman

TSOS Interview Gallery

Ziba, a promising medical student, fled Afghanistan in 2018 due to instability and for her safety. Life was difficult upon arrival in the United States. In Afghanistan Ziba was involved in national and international poetry, math and science competitions. Ziba went from having everything to starting completely over in a new country. Her anxiety and depression became extremely difficult to deal with She reminded herself who she was, what her passions were and in January 2019 started medical school while working part time as a cashier. Her hope for future arriving refugees is to have a mental health network established …

Personal Puzzles: Exploring Meaning In A Printmaking Workshop, Sally Jayne Rydalch

Theses and Dissertations

In an effort to assist self-guided artists in constructing meaning and creativity through the technique of printmaking, the author has compiled a curriculum to engage these artist/students in thoughtful research, discussion, art-making, and critique. In this qualitative case study there are eight participants from age 14 to 79, with varying educational and art experience, who enrolled in a relief print workshop with no recompense other than participation. The particular benefits of learning relief printing are described. The author's goal is exploration of student responses to a curriculum centered around constructing meaning and engaging in introspective and informed discussion. In fostering …

Jeanusnat, Jeanusnat, Tsos

TSOS Interview Gallery

Jeanusnat’s father, who was chief of a Nigerian community, was murdered by an enemy community. The murderer intended to kill Jeanusnat and his mother as well, but they fled to neighboring Niger. There, Jeanusnat parted ways with his mother, who stayed at the church with a family, and Jeanusnat crossed into Libya in the back of a truck. But once in Libya, danger persisted. He was confronted by some robbers who stabbed him with a knife and beat him, leaving injuries on his legs and shoulder. In Tripoli, a man offered him temporary refuge, where Jeanusnat stayed until he decided …

The Star-Spangled Banshee: Fear Of The Unknown In The Things They Carried, Mckay Hansen

Criterion: A Journal of Literary Criticism

In this paper I discuss the nature of the fear that worked upon many of the soldiers of the Vietnam War, concentrating on a fear of the unknown. Drawing upon Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried as its central focus text, my analysis suggests that the fear of the unknown is a product of communities’ efforts to distance themselves from a cultural Other. As such, I posit that those in positions of societal influence employ fear to reinforce racial stereotypes and maintain domestic unity. Perceiving ethnic and linguistic misunderstandings as forces that cultural leaders often evoke deliberately, I claim that …

Discovering Self Together: An Art Teacher Exploring Her Role In Helping Adolescent Students On Their Journey To Self-Awareness, Rachel Jayne Romney

Theses and Dissertations

A case study of a junior high and high school art classroom that examines students' development of identity and self-awareness through reflective practice in a caring community. This project considers what the role of teaching is and how working through vulnerability to create caring relationships can inspire teachers and aid adolescent students, within an art curriculum, to discover their true selves.

Refiguring The Wild West: Minerva Teichert And Her Feminine Communities, Deirdre Mason Scharffs

Theses and Dissertations

Minerva Teichert (1888-1976) was a twentieth-century American artist, who spent most of her life residing in remote towns in the West, earnestly balancing the demands of family and ranching, and painting scenes of her beloved Western frontier. Her steady and significant production of art is remarkable for any artist, and particularly compelling when one considers her time constraints, inaccessibility of art supplies, distance from other artists and art centers, and lack of public attention. The success of women artists during the first half of the twentieth-century was dependent not only upon their artistic aptitude, but also upon external forces, such …

Social Narrative And Sustainability Of A Danish Diaspora Community In The American Midwest, Craig A. Molgaard, Amanda L. Golbeck

The Bridge

This longitudinal study (1972-2015) focuses on the largest Danish American speech community in the United States of America, which is in Audubon, Cass, Pottawattamie, and Shelby Counties in western Iowa (the towns of Elk Horn, Kimballton, Audubon, Harlan, Exira, and Atlantic). The sociolinguistic mechanisms (code switching, speech acts, storytelling) of Danish social and cultural narrative are identified and examples are provided. We examine the social aspects of sustaining identity and heritage in a now globally linked community, and note lessons learned for other communities seeking to sustain their heritage in a healthy and productive fashion.

We Heard Our Voices With The Hyenas And Other Stories: The Community Of Strangers, Rebekah Washburn Olson

Theses and Dissertations

Community is often defined by the familial or residential relationships we have, such as family, neighbors or coworkers. But there is another vital and often unobserved community among strangers. These relationships are often haphazard, temporary relationships formed in a moment of necessity—customers trapped in a convenience store by a storm, orphaned runaway teenagers who band together for safety on the streets, miners trapped in the rubble of a collapsed mine, etc. These communities are spontaneous and often undefined, but have the potential to reveal more about our insecurities, reflexes, and emotional capacities than almost any other relationship. For many, they …

Documenting Tensions In Communities: Three Films By Eduardo Coutinho, Ryan James Norris

Theses and Dissertations

This project analyzes three documentaries that explore the inherent tensions and difficulties in building a sense of community in three different settings in Rio de Janeiro. The documentaries Boca de Lixo (1993), Santo forte (1999), and Edifí­cio Master (2002) by Eduardo Coutinho present an in-depth look at the tensions inherent in developing communal identity based on vocation in Boca de Lixo, religion in Santo forte, and location in Edifício Master. Through these documentaries, Eduardo Coutinho presents the difficulties faced by different groups of people in Brazil as they explore the development of a sense of community. Boca de Lixo endeavors …

Gathering To La'ie, Riley M. Moffat, Jeffrey N. Walker, Fred E. Woods, Steven C. Walker

BYU Studies Quarterly

I stayed in La'ie last winter, a stone's throw from the temple, which is within easy walking distance of Brigham Young University-Hawaii, which is next door to the Polynesian Cultural Center--all the major landmarks of the town within an easy ten-minute circuit. It is surprising to see how compact a place has earned so expansive a reputation. This book surprised me in the same way. There's a lot going on in this history of the little town--Gathering to La'ie traces how the sleepy village wrought dramatic influence on Hawaii, managed the miracle of melding diverse factions into a united …

"Lightning Out Of Heaven": Joseph Smith And The Forging Of Community, Terryl L. Givens

BYU Studies Quarterly

Several weeks ago I received an email from someone who identified himself as a BYU student doing a research paper on the Prophet Joseph Smith. He asked, “Would you be kind enough to share with me what you feel the impact of Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon on the world has been?” This was an important question, so I took time framing my reply. I wrote, “It was big.” However, upon reflection, I decided against sending that email. I did not want to do most of his work for him. I thought perhaps I would now revisit that …

The Christmas Tree And The Two Churches, Johannes V. Knudsen

The Bridge

Part of the Danish American heritage is the fact that there were, unfortunately, some believe, two separate Danish American Lutheran Church groups. Because of theological differences (and perhaps personality conflicts, as well) between these two groups, they remained separate entities from their complex beginnings in the latter half of the nineteenth century until mergers took place with a number of other ethnic Lutheran church groups in the early 1960s, culminating in the formation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in 1988. The histories of and differences between the two synods, the American Evangelical Lutheran Church and the United Evangelical …

Reconsidering Solidarity In The Mormon Village, Todd L. Goodsell

Theses and Dissertations

In what became a classic rural community study, Lowry Nelson concluded in his first Mormon village series in the 1920's that the Mormon village is characterized by an extraordinary sense of solidarity. He claimed that this strong solidarity can be primarily explained by four factors of the social group: leadership, conflict, cooperation, and ideology. After resurveying the Mormon village in 1950, he concluded that solidarity had declined. However, a few problems become apparent to the present researcher looking back upon Nelson's findings. One of them is that Nelson never had a clear definition of solidarity to begin with. Another is …

Dancing The Buckles Off Their Shoes In Pioneer Utah, Larry V. Shumway

BYU Studies Quarterly

Endorsed by Mormon leaders as a healthy and uplifting activity, dancing served the important functions of revitalizing the pioneers' spirits and nurturing their sense of community.

Impediments To The Cultivation Of The Folk School Spirit In A North American Context: The Case Of Grand View College, Dennis Bielfeldt

The Bridge

In the 1995-96 academic year Grand View College will

celebrate its first hundred years of life. In anticipation of

this milestone, suggestions have been made to designate

1994-95 the "Year of Grundtvig," and to formally observe

with the entire Grand View community the influence of

the great Dane upon the college and its educational philosophy.

What, after all, could be more fitting for a college

whose most recent Academic Mission Statement proudly

declares its founding "by Danish immigrants who sought

to give the educational vision and ideals of N.F.S.

Grundtvig an institutional presence?"

The Dream Is Ours To Fulfill, Bruce C. Hafen

BYU Studies Quarterly

No abstract provided.

Danebod Family Recreation Camps, Otto G. Hoiberg

The Bridge

"The family that plays together , stays together !" Implied conversely in this generalization , one finds at least a partial explanation of the troubled waters presently navigated by the family in America. Whereas in years gone by , much recreational activity was enjoyed jointly by the various members of a family , in this day and age each member tends to go his own way to satisfy his leisure time needs and desires. After the dinner hour , Dad has a bowling engagement , Mom goes to a meeting of her Study Club , Susie heads for a Girl …

Conclusion: Chicago And The Evolution Of The Danish Community

The Bridge

As contemporaries and historians noted, the development of the ethnic American depended upon a unique blend of two cultures. This study has illustrated that fact, beginning with the sources of immigration. We found that immigration resulted from a complex interplay of European and American factors, which influenced not only the immigrant and his community, but the old culture as well. For example, the existence of plentiful American farmland led to an immigration to American farms. As American produce then rose in volume, more was exported to Europe, contributing to an agricultural crisis in Denmark. That in turn generated a new …