Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Exploring Narrative Strengths In Animated Storytelling, Amelia Kretzer

Honors Theses

This thesis explores tactics for effective narrative development for animation through the analyses of key works of strong animated films synthesized with literature discussing narrative frameworks. This research resulted in a shortlist of animated storytelling best practices—six principles to reflect on in the creation of effective stories for animation. Additionally, an original 2D animated short film was created utilizing the principles on the shortlist in its development as an outpouring of this research.

On Narrative Approaches To Conspiracy Theory, John Hydrisko

Honors Theses

This thesis handles narrative approaches to conspiracy theory. It provides an overview of conspiracy theory and narrative before affirming a relationship between the two. It then introduces Fenster’s work on conspiracy narrative before engaging with the considerations therein. After discussing the tradition of visualizing narrative structure, it applies these practices to conspiracy narrative. This application allows for a discussion of recent innovations within conspiracy narrative. By using the QAnon as a case study, the paper investigates the emergence of protagonism and non-narrativism within the genre. Ultimately, this investigation suggests that contemporary conspiracy narrative is both better suited to the modern …

Story And Sorority: How Sisters Shape The Novels Of Jane Austen, Morgan Elizabeth Reid

Honors Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to examine the impact and use of sisters and sorority in the novels of Jane Austen, answering the question of how they are shaping the narratives of the stories. Focusing in particular on Pride and Prejudice, Persuasion, and Sense and Sensibility, I highlight the ways that Austen’s writing crafts plots that rely upon sisters to function. Austen also uses sister figures to reveal the characteristics of her main protagonists and to express the themes she is most concerned about within each story. I also show Austen’s pattern of affirming the value and importance of …

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 …

Genesis: A False Start, Tate Kollar

Honors Theses

Genesis is the first book of the Bible. As the starting block for humanity and creation, Genesis holds incredible weight. Genesis is the beginning of God’s foundational text for his people. Intuitively, one would expect the content of the narratives in Genesis to reflect this weight. One would expect models for human behavior. One would think it would be the first step on the path to redemption from the Fall in the garden. One would expect God to help his people in creating safe, efficient, supportive, functional communities and families. Contrary to these expectations, a majority of the Genesis narrative …

Two Makes A Couple: Fictions On Intimacy, Alyssa C. Conner, Jessica Richardson

Honors Theses

This portfolio of fictional short stories was created through the inspiration from constraints drawn from various published short stories. Constraints are a literary technique in which the writer is bound to certain elements or inspires a pattern within a work of writing. Each short story takes place in contemporary society and within the pieces, intimate moments between two individuals are explored throughout. This portfolio, through symbolic language, examines the relationship between our identities and our closest alliances, whether those are our romantic partners, platonic partners, or siblings.

Acting Hysterical: Analyzing The Construction, Diagnosis And Portrayal Of Historical And Modern Hysterical Women, Gillian Singer

Honors Theses

Hysterical women’s stories from the 19th and 20th centuries have all too often been ignored and furthermore, invalidated through the capitalization and spectacularization of hysterical women’s experiences. “Acting Hysterical: Analyzing the Construction, Diagnosis and Portrayal of Historical and Modern ‘Hysterical’ Women” aims to acknowledge hysterical women’s narratives by studying the visual documentation of hysterical women. Visual documentation of hysteria began with the photographing of Dr. Jean-Martin Charcot’s “hysterical” female patients and extends to modern cinematic representations from the last two decades of historical and modern hysterical women.

Medical Muses, a book based in years of research by Asti Hustvedt served …

You Tell The Tale: Interactive Retellings Of The Myth Of Orpheus, Christopher Mclean-Wheeler

Honors Theses

The thesis retells the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice in an interactive narrative style. The interactive medium encourages readers to take an active role in storytelling by deciding what the protagonist does at key moments in the plot; each decision branches out into alternate story paths, allowing the adaptation to draw from multiple versions of the myth, particularly Ovid's The Metamormopheses and Virgil's The Georgics. The content chosen for inspiration is based on how it can offer new interpretations of and insight into this retelling of the familiar story.

An Experience Like No Other: A Case Study On Summer Camp Culture, Sarah E. Rhett

Honors Theses

In “An Experience Like No Other: A Case Study on Summer Camp Culture,” I consider the stories of individuals as they remember experiences and encounters they had while at summer camp. As a camper, counselor, and staff member, I have experienced many sides of camp. Recognizing my own tendency to describe the camp experience with claims about how “camp relationships are the best” and how “camp is great,” I decided that I, and others, would benefit from a study that considers and critiques these commonly recited stories about camp as a master narrative. Indeed, as the number of summer camps …

The Magic Of Books: A History Of Medieval Magic And Literature, Ana Maria Lavado

Honors Theses

Narrative binds people together with a common language and experience. It provides a singular manner for communication and interaction. Without this interaction, there would be no society or culture to speak of; with no way to articulate and control sounds, humans would be forced to communicate through the use of motions and gestures, deprived of the beauty and magic of language. Words can somehow capture pain, joy, beauty, awe, sadness, excitement, emotion and the very thrill that comes from being alive in a way that nothing else can. Language can inspire and influence as much as it can inflict pain …

Discovery Of Timbuktu: Geopolitical Rivalries And Myths, Katherine Van Meter

Honors Theses

This thesis examines the exploration and discovery of Timbuktu primarily focusing on the travels and narrative of René Caillié the first European to publish his successful journey to Timbucku in 1828. Timbuktu since the thirteenth century had become a romantic mystery for Europeans and stimulated massive interest in its discovery by major geographical Societies. Through a mixture of primary and secondary sources I am able to analyze the geopolitical rivalries and myths surrounding Timbuktu that would instigate the travels of twenty-five English, fourteen Frenchmen, two Americans and one German which the majority of resulted in death. Examining Caillié’s published narrative …

Ordinary Explorations, Amelia M. Endo

Honors Theses

In her poem “Poetry” Marianne Moore gracefully states the physical reactions people experience as a result of reading poetry, such as eyes dilating and hair rising. Moore asserts, “these things are important not because a/ high‐sounding interpretation can be put upon them but because/ they are/ useful”. For this reason, I not only read but also create poetry. I wrote this collection of poems intending to trigger reactions from my readers that would be “useful” to them. I decided that the most tactful way to do so was to write about my own personal experiences. Inspired by notable poets such …

Sex Text And Screen: Kubricks Adaption Of Sexually-Explicit Scenes From Text To Film, Elsa A. Perushek

Honors Theses

Over the course of Stanley Kubrick’s career, he adapted three controversial novels into three of his most successful films. Lolita, A Clockwork Orange, and Traumnovelle are all full of sexually-explicit content which, when adapted to film, caused even more controversy. Print and film are fundamentally different, and Kubrick faced a unique challenge by choosing source texts that were often uncomfortable for their audiences to read. Sexually explicit scenes in film are much more potent than those in novels; thus, for Kubrick to be successful he must find a balance between recreating the scene’s effect from the novel and allowing the …