Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Diabolus Ex Machina? A Comparative Case Study To Test Whether Automatic Weapons Can Disproportionately Benefit Irregular Forces, Harrison Durland

Honors Theses

Researchers in the field of irregular conflict have observed that irregular forces such as insurgents and guerrillas have been victorious or forced draws in a greater percentage of conflicts over the past century compared with the century prior. More generally, researchers and practitioners have sought to better understand why seemingly weaker, irregular forces are able to win some wars against enemies who have significant material and other conventional advantages. This thesis engages with some of the literature in this field and focuses on what appears to be a particularly understudied issue: the potential role of shifts/innovations in military technology. Specifically, …

On The Basis Of Sex: Personal Status Law Reforms And Economic Growth, Kylie Bring

Honors Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to analyze how law reform toward gender equity has an impact on economic growth in Arab countries in the Middle East. Personal status law reform granting women economic, social, and personal freedoms is spreading across the region and showing substantial change. Using case studies of major PSL reforms in Tunisia and Morocco, this thesis outlines qualitative and quantitative evidence to support the case that gender equity benefits the economic growth of the given country.

Country Fun: A Cultural History Of Opryland Usa, Nashville, And The Suburban South, William C. Nieman

Honors Theses

This thesis centers around the history of Opryland USA, a theme park and “musical showplace” that existed from 1972 to 1997 in the suburbs of Nashville, Tennessee. Using a variety of primary sources including park ephemera, newspaper articles, and songs, I show how, over its twenty-five years, Opryland became a country music theme park after initially presenting a seemingly diverse picture of American popular music. I reveal that, despite local businessowners’ and musicians’ reluctance to embrace Opryland at first, the park was accepted by many Nashvillians to the point where it is now nostalgically mourned. Then, putting those primary materials …

You Were There : An Exploration And Analysis Of The Filmmaking Process, Regan Emfinger

Honors Theses

This thesis explores the process of writing, shooting, and editing my short film You Were There. My process involved scriptwriting with several revisions, shooting with a cast and crew, and editing the raw footage. This paper will not only serve as a timeline leading up to the final product of the film but also will explain the function of each artistic choice. This paper will also outline the biggest lessons I learned about fictional narratives, and discuss the successes and failures of the film as a whole. I also plan on discussing how those lessons will further my academic and …

Syrian And Lebanese Identity In The American South, Caetlind Moudy

Honors Theses

For Americans of Arab descent, identity can present a number of difficulties to define within the existing ethnic and racial categories of the United States. While several scholars have looked at the ways that Muslims American of Arab descent navigate these categories, less attention has been paid to the complex self-identification Christian Arab Americans, many of whom come from Lebanese and Syrian backgrounds. It is the objective of this thesis to explore how Americans of Syrian and Lebanese descent understand their ethnic, racial, cultural, and national identities as well as how these identities both inform and are informed by religion. …

Who Has A Voice: Issues Of Free Speech At The University Of Mississippi From 1955-1970, Neale Grisham

Honors Theses

Amidst the upheaval of American society in the 1960s, the University of Mississippi’s administration found itself in a precarious position. A long-standing institution that prided itself on its ties to the Old South, the university was being challenged by integrationists and liberal notions of equality and social justice. The university was forced to decide between abetting the alumni that padded university pockets and the tides of change that were rippling through the university campus. Their main way of combatting this was through the surveilling of students and the vetting of potential guest speakers who may spread “controversial ideas.” While students …

The Differences In Talk About Violence And Terrorism: A Case Study Of Northern Ireland And The Basque Country, Mcclellan Davis

Honors Theses

The Northern Irish and Basque conflicts have been studied throughout the years, as both serve as examples of conflicts involving ethnonationalist terrorist groups and successful disarmaments. While there are similarities, there are also distinctions between the two conflicts. The Irish Republican Army (IRA) and Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA) both fought for independence from a larger government, inflicted horrific pain on populations where they considered themselves members, but ultimately both ended without accomplishing their goal of separatism. This thesis seeks to understand the differences within these conflicts and their subsequent peace processes/disarmaments, which I believe contribute to the differences in ‘talk’ …

That Belongs To Me, Ellie Anne Greenberger

Honors Theses

A collection of fictional short stories and a novella that explores family relationships, specifically female family relationships that span across generational lines and what we inherit from our families whether intentional or unintentional. (Under the direction of Tom Franklin)

Art Of Darkness, Sarah Roper

Honors Theses

This paper describes the process, production, and explanation of Art of Darkness, an artistic expression of the struggle with anxiety. All of the work is inspired by literature and art from the English Romantic and Victorian eras, and focuses on quotes about the mind, emotions, and other thought processes. As each piece highlights a different aspect of anxiety, it also portrays the struggles of anxiety through color palette, printing process, and symbolism. These printed pieces consist of letter-press printed materials, with ink-wiped backgrounds and hand-stitched details. Also included are large-scale prints with silkscreened foregrounds, a selection of bookmarks, a …

Ulster, Georgia, And The Civil War: Stories Of Variation, William Loveless

Honors Theses

Ulster, Georgia, and The Civil War: Stories of Variation explores the lives of 13 men from Northern Ireland who immigrated to the American South and fought for the Confederacy. The author pursues the stories of each man’s life in order to have a more thorough understanding of what life looked like for Irish/Ulster immigrants in the South during the 19^th century. By looking at the lives of the men in Ulster, their first experiences in the United States, their experiences in the Civil War, and their lives following the war, the author identifies more variation than consistent trends.

Sobremesa: The Time Spent Savoring Food And Friendship, Rosa V. Salas Gonzalez

Honors Theses

Sobremesa is the culmination of five different ceramic sets handcrafted and uniquely made as a way to enhance the experience of eating and sharing food. This work honors the Latino and Hispanic tradition of Sobremesa, which is the time we spend sharing special moments with friends and family after eating. I explore the relevance of sharing meals as a member of a Venezuelan family and how these memories of my childhood before moving away to another country relates to the way in which I approach the creation of my functional vessel’s aesthetic and conceptual background.

The pieces that make up …

Little Girl In The Country: A Children's Book, Holly Mcginnis

Honors Theses

A Work of Children’s Literature to Address Realities of Childhood in the Southern United States

This thesis investigated the intersection of life’s realities and children’s literature. Representation is an oft-talked-about area of children’s literature. It is coming to light that many groups are underrepresented in writings for children, and recent works are attempting to broaden the types and backgrounds of characters to represent the diversity of readers and authors. This thesis is the author’s attempt to accurately represent the types of students she encountered in student teaching experiences in the Oxford-area. Using inspiration from her own childhood and knowledge of …

Queering Secondary Education: An Inquiry To The Necessity Of Queer Studies For All Students, Ashlign D. Shoemaker

Honors Theses

In the current state of secondary education, queer studies are appallingly underexposed. The subject matter is often completely disregarded due to a perceived discomfort around themes and content regarding LGBTQ+ sexualities. This process of elimination is a disservice to all students as they continue their education and move on to the adult world. Queer studies must be included for all students to ensure a society of empathy and understanding. Including the queer identity in the secondary education, classroom gives LGBTQ+ students the usable past that is essential to their wellbeing and mental health, and it provides exposure and understanding for …

When Worlds Collide: Charlie Hebdo And Islam In The 21st Century, Mildred Morse

Honors Theses

Caricatures are entrenched in French socio-political identity. That identity has shifted due to internal and external forces, but the most important event for the socio-political identity of France in the 21st century is the attacks at Charlie Hebdo in January 2015. The event and the responses to it reignited the ideas of incompatibility of France and Islam, furthering the schism between French society and the integration of Islam. The nature of the memory of Charlie Hebdoand its effect on the perception of Islam before January 2015 and after necessitates the question, “How does Charlie Hebdo reveal contradictory ideas of …

A Nonanthropocentric Response To The Cosmic Perspective Problem, Eveanne Eason

Honors Theses

This paper responds to issues that have been raised for environmental philosophy in light of developments in astrobiology and exoplanet science. In recent years, we have moved much closer to confronting evidence of life beyond Earth. Pairing such a discovery with a certain theoretical understanding of the universe, we might be motivated to address a question: with knowledge of abundant, potentially infinite alien life on Earth-like planets, why must we save our planet? In anticipation of this discovery, we can use this scenario, the Cosmic Perspective Problem, to refine a widely-held position with substantial implications for our environmental ethics. The …

Who Will Do The Good Works?: The Troubling Case Of Secularization And The Failure Of The Welfare State In England And Perú, Gabrielle Anna Schust

Honors Theses

This study examines the contribution and impacts of the social service works done by nuns in the UK in the 1950s and 1960s, and in Perú within the last five years. Specifically, it investigates the relationship between nuns as providers of social services and other providers such as the government. Drawing on existing literature on theories of secularization, and a close examination of the historical evolution of the British and Peruvian welfare state apparatuses, this study contextualizes the social service work of nuns in contemporaneous social, economic, and political circumstances. It finds that the population of nuns is on a …

Liberté, Égalité, Manifester: Explaining The Yellow Vest Movement In France, Brady L. Cole

Honors Theses

Les Gilets Jaunes, or the yellow vests, is a movement of protestors that have had a large presence in France since 2018. Beginning as an online petition against French President Emmanuel Macron’s fuel tax hike, the movement has quickly amassed several hundred thousand protestors in Paris and other cities across the country. It is the objective of this thesis to examine potential reasons why 300,000 people have felt the need to protest throughout France, apart from the now rescinded fuel tax.

To this end, a sample of data from the Varieties of Democracy database was selected. These variables covered various …

Success And Failure Of Indigenous Social Movements: A Comparative Case Study Of Ecuador And Chile, Jenna White

Honors Theses

This thesis is a comparative case study of the social movements of the Mapuche in Chile and the fourteen indigenous tribes in Ecuador. I study their social movements by utilizing the structural strain theory of social movements. This theory states that people in society experience deprivation, the people recognize the deprivation, a solution is proposed and this ideology is diffused to the society, events occur to begin motion of the movement, the society (including government) need to be open to change, and eventually there will be mobilization of resources in order to form a successful social movement. The dependent variable …

Producing Thacker Jr. A Guidebook To Production & Reflections Of A Student Director, Ava Street

Honors Theses

This narrative documents a student’s preparation and execution of the children’s music and literature program entitled, Thacker Jr. Radio Hour. The author documents and analyzes experiences over the course of two academic years preparing and producing the program. The author describes the process of production including content creation, marketing, budgeting, fundraising, and casting. The author recounts and reflects upon her experience in the role of Thacker Jr. Executive Director and her desire to create student-centric arts programming. Finally, the author evaluates the immediate impact of the program on the LOU community and predicts how her experience will shape her …

Whose Right Is It Anyway? A Study Of Human Rights Language On Both Sides Of The Abortion Debate In Post-Dictatorial Argentina, Ysabella Carmen St. Amant

Honors Theses

In August of 2018, thousands of protestors waited to hear results of the vote on the Voluntary Termination of the Pregnancy bill in the Argentinian Senate. Though the bill failed by seven votes, the near passage of the bill and the outpouring of protestors indicated that the issue of abortion had gained an increasing foothold in the legislature and in public discourse. This project seeks to explore in greater detail the emergence of activism on abortion legislation in the decades following the re-democratization of Argentina in 1983. Particularly throughout the 2000s and 2010s, advocates for both the expansion and repression …

The Marduk Archives: A Take On Thresholds, Christopher Melton

Honors Theses

A fictional screenplay exploring the relationship between absurdity and convention as it pertains to the shifting cultural paradigms of our society. (Under the direction of Beth Spencer)

The Mapuche And Chilean State: An Analysis Of The State Reaction To Mapuche Protests, Mckenna Gossrau

Honors Theses

The history between the Mapuche and Chilean state is long and complex. Since 2000, the conflict between the state and Mapuche has periodically drawn wider public attention as well as public demands for change. In this thesis, I look to examine how the Chilean state has reacted to the demands of the Mapuche since 2000. Mapuche activists have protested violently and peacefully against state policy that has left many rural Mapuche impoverished and landless. This project assesses the impact of protests on state-Mapuche policy. The project also examines how deeply entrenched neoliberal fiscal policies of the state play a central …

Preparing And Performing A Trumpet Recital, Jesse Gibens

Honors Theses

The pieces are examined based on historical context and explained based on the practice notes that I journaled and reflected upon by comparing and contrasting standard recordings of each work. This thesis is divided into nine sections that explore the pieces that are performed, as well as the instruments used to perform them. The thesis also explores my repertoire choices based on instrumentation, style, composer, and genre, as well as how to deal with the challenges of approaching a diverse program. Historical information has been taken from articles, books, and other scholarly writings produced by experts within their fields of …

Etruscan Biophilia Viewed Through Magical Amber, Greta Rose Koshenina

Honors Theses

In this thesis, I explore the usage and purpose of amber objects in burials from Etruria, specifically from the late Villanovan Period (ca. 800-720 BCE) to the Orientalizing Period (ca. 720-580 BCE). I have followed a combination of quantitative and qualitative research approaches as well as visual analysis of amber grave goods. While there has been extensive research on the medicinal and ritual purposes of amber grave goods from excavated Etruscan tombs, I show that there was likely a specific interest in amber that contains organic inclusions likely because of the Etruscans’ interest in nature. I examine the presence and …

Sunset Piracy: The Ends Of Atlantic Piratical Careers In The Age Of Sail, Cory Henderson

Honors Theses

This thesis concerns the careers of pirates in the latest stage of that career, as pirates prepared to end their roving of the seas in order to “settle down.” Though pirates are idolized in modern fiction, their ends are often overshadowed by the highlights of their careers. Here, the goal is to find what motivated pirates to engage in a life as outlaws and then at some point choose to cast that life aside. Conclusions on this are drawn from both primary and secondary sources where pirates gave information pertaining to their view of the world and retirement in it, …

Religion In George R.R. Martin's "A Song Of Ice And Fire" Franchise, Sydney A. Craven

Honors Theses

This thesis is a study of religion in George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire franchise. Specifically, George R.R. Martin's use of medievalisms, his interpretation of the Middle Ages, when creating the religions in A Song of Ice and Fire.

Public Sentiment Toward Migration In A Globalizing World: The Case Of Spain And Its Distinctive Demeanor Toward Its Immigrants, Caroline Thompson

Honors Theses

This thesis discusses Spain's overall public opinion around immigration, exploring factors that contribute to the development of a country's attitude toward its immigrants. Spain exemplifies a particularly distinctive attitude in relation to its European Mediterranean counterparts, displaying an increased receptiveness toward its immigrant population. I examine economic factors, studying whether or not perceived economic competition can lead to significantly increased negativity toward immigrants. However, I find that, specifically regarding the Spanish case, economic competition does not determine the country's attitude toward immigration. Therefore, I focus on this element of authoritarian legacy and its contribution to public opinion around immigration. Following …

"Monsters In Suburbia": Women's Bodies, Monstrosity, And Motherhood In The Mere Wife, Claire M. Bonvillain

Honors Theses

This thesis explores themes of monstrosity in Maria Dahvana Headley's novel The Mere Wife in connection with issues of women's bodies and feminism. It analyzes prominent female characters in the novel and the relationships of their bodies to patriarchal authority, showing how and why bodies are deemed monstrous. It discusses the role that motherhood plays in patriarchal society, as well as explores alternatives that the novel offers to this system.

“We Got More Yesterday Than Anybody”: Child Ghosts And The National Trauma Of Anti-Black Racism In American Literature, Megan Swartzfager

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the roles of haunting in the context of racial violence in three texts: Beloved by Toni Morrison, Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward, and Wolf Whistle by Lewis Nordan. In each of these texts, a parent is responsible for the death of a child. In the former two texts, both by Black authors, a Black parent kills a Black child in what they believe to be a protective act in the face of violence by white people. Wolf Whistle, however, written by a white author, is animated by the ghost of a character based on Emmett Till. …

Cooperating For Charity: The Effect Of Decentralization On French Associations, Ragan Ketrow

Honors Theses

This thesis explored the relationship between the decentralization laws of 1982 and 1983 in France and French associations as well as the resulting lack of exceptionalism in the French nonprofit sector. This thesis explores the claims of the French nonprofit scholar Edith Archambault as she argues that the steep rise in associations in France in the 1980s is due to the legal changes that occured during that same decade. In order to evaluate these claims, I used regression tests to compare the relationship between the growth of associations and other variants including economic growth, disposable income, and government expenditure. In …