Arts and Humanities Commons^™

The Sense Of The Past In Saint Antoninus Of Florence's Summa Historialis, Brian Nathaniel Becker

Masters Theses

This study examines Antoninus of Florence’s Chronicles for the presence of a "sense of the past.” Through the careful examination of those sections of the Chronicles that are original to Antoninus and the utilization of important scholarly works on medieval and Renaissance Italian literature, it is shown that the Chronicles is characteristic of both a history written in the traditional "medieval” style and the increasingly modem style of historical writing that was coming into vogue during the later part of his life in mid-fifteenth century Florence. By defining a "sense of history” as containing, and organizing the three body chapters …

Memory And History In The Modern French Novel: Patrick Modiano And The New Orientation, Julie D. E. Hendrix

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Floating Away Or Staying Put: Finding Meaning In The Poetry Of William Wordsworth And Robert Frost, Mary Mcmillan

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine and articulate in philosophical terms the inherent differences in the poetics of William Wordsworth and Robert Frost. This work differs from many other critical works that have considered the two poets’ similarities and differences in that it considers these concepts from a philosophical standpoint. The study looks at the specific philosophical backgrounds of the two poets and utilizes vocabulary and concepts from these to describe the poets’ different poetical movements in describing similar subjects.

John Locke’s concepts of modes and substance ideas are used to describe the other things that appear in …

The Social Roles Of The Early Irish Monastery Of Kildare And Its Paruchia Within The Kingdom Of Leinster, Bridgette K. Slavin

Masters Theses

Monastic settlements in early medieval Ireland were active: politically, socially, economically, and spiritually. While an ascetic life was ideal, these communities were in fact often lively participants in the secular affairs around them. Yet, detailed studies of ecclesiastical social structure and its economic and political influence on early Irish society have been, for the most part, not attempted while disagreements concerning organization continue to haunt scholars of the early Irish church. Moreover, as Colman Etchingham aptly points out in his recent publication, Church Organisation in Ireland, AD 650 to 1000, detailed studies of individual religious communities will bring to …

Frontier Hopkinsians: New School Theology In East Tennessee 1797-1861, Ronald Russell Ragon

Masters Theses

This thesis seeks to define the role that the theology of New England theologian Samuel Hopkins played in the development of frontier East Tennessee. Early educators Hezekiah Balch and Charles Coffin introduced the work of northern benevolence societies to Tennessee in the early nineteenth century. These societies encouraged the spread of Hopkinsian theology and caused those Presbyterians in East Tennessee who held to New School thought to clash with other Presbyterians in the area who were influenced by popular revivalist efforts. Because of differing theologies, Two Presbyterianisms emerged in East Tennessee before the Civil War and remained until the1980s.

The Artist’S Loving Hand: The Travel Letters Of Emily Eden, Isabella Bird, And Mothercatherine Mcauley Written To Their Sisters In 19th Century Britain And Ireland, Holly Elizabeth Ratcliff

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to observe the qualities of and techniques enlisted by British and Irish women travel writers corresponding with their sisters who remained at home. Some of the most vivid and telling works regarding the travels of extraordinary women are contained in the letters that they wrote to their families. These letters often involved brief factual commentaries; detailed descriptions of friends, other family members, or strangers encountered on a journey; advice and encouragement for life continuing on as normal back at home; and pictures or paintings that could serve as postcards to capture visions of people …

Powwows As An Arena For Pan-Indian Identity Formation, Megan L. Macdonald

Masters Theses

This study investigates the powwow and its role in pan-Indian identity formation. Powwows are regional gatherings that simultaneously employ sacred and secular rituals, and as such, they provide one arena for the negotiation of American Indian identity in the modern world. Through a discussion of the history and general format of the powwow, I will demonstrate that the powwow is a dynamic locus of cultural transmission through which both reservation and non-reservation Indians are able to construct and maintain identity on tribal as well as inter-tribal (pan-Indian) levels.

To illuminate the process of identity formation within the powwow, this study …

Interpretation Of 1 Peter 3:18-22, Jason Hauffe

Masters Theses

This thesis is an extensive exegetical work on 1 Peter 3:18-22. It proposes a much-needed new interpretive scheme that adequately explains the many exegetical, grammatical, and theological mysteries within this notoriously difficult passage. Verse 18 is interpreted as an example of the principle of verse 17 that if it is God's will, it is better to suffer for doing good than for doing wrong. Christ is given as the example par excellence of one who was righteous but suffered in the flesh. He suffered for sinners in order to bring many to God. He was put to death physically, but …

The History Of The Music Therapy Program, Western Michigan University; Its Origin And Development To 1980, Cynthia L. Goodson

Masters Theses

The histories of music therapy programs at colleges and universities in the United States have not been widely researched and documented. The purpose of this study was to examine the history of the music therapy program at Western Michigan University from its origin and development until 1980. Specifically, the author was interested in learning what conditions existed that were favorable to the creation of a music therapy program, the chronological progress of the music therapy program (including the individuals responsible for the program's inception and development), and development and changes in curricula that demonstrated responsiveness to music therapy practice and …

Richardson, Property, And The Virtuous Female, Audrey Evelyn Tinkham

Masters Theses

This thesis explores the literary, legal, economic, and cultural mechanisms at work in the eighteenth century formulation of feminine gender ideology as it pertains to the negotiation of settlements for married women's separate property. Within a feminist-historicist critical framework, fictional narratives of the eighteenth-century reveal a tension between economically-motivated self-interest and an ideology of sentiment, a tension that is related to the modern reluctance to discuss prenuptial agreements. The marriage contract itself as interpreted by eighteenth-century social theorists allows and encourages the creation of gendered spheres of activity and distinctly gendered behavioral models. The eighteenth century's distinctive configuration of these …

There Arises Light: A Work For Orchestra In One Movement, Michael S. Taylor

Masters Theses

There Arises Light is a work for orchestra in one movement. It was written in part to fulfill the requirements for the Master s degree in music composition, and is the primary subject of this thesis. Inspiration for the work was drawn from the composer's own experiences as well as from Psalm 112. The composition was completed in February, 2001 by Michael S. Taylor, using a KORG N264 Music Workstation, an iMac™ G3 computer, and Mark of the Unicorn s Digital Performer™ version 2.7. The orchestration and notation of the score were completed in March 2002, using Coda®'s Finale®, …

The Impact Of The Norman Conquest On Christ Church Cathedral Priory And Worcester Cathedral Priory: A Survey Based On Library Holdings, Toruko Ishihara

Masters Theses

Book collections reflect the intellectual climate of the period. This study examines the important area of intellectual life in the English church between 700 and 1130. It will show how the Norman Conquest affected the intellectual life of the Anglo-Saxons. I chose the libraries of Christ Church, Canterbury and Worcester Cathedral Priory for their large collections of surviving manuscripts.

The thesis first analyzes and compares the pre-Conquest and post-Conquest collections as a whole. This comparison shows slight, but important differences in the tastes of collecting between the two libraries. It also demonstrates the changes in the library holdings caused by …

"A Conflict Of Truth With Error": Southern Preachers, Their Worldview, And Sectional Tensions, 1830-1865, Timothy A. Ehrhardt

Masters Theses

White evangelical preachers of the antebellum era presented the American South with a cosmology that was rooted in the Bible as God's revelation to all humans, with God as sovereign over a strict social hierarchy that placed the white male as household head, and women, children, and black slaves (in that order) as subordinates. This cosmology contributed to sectional tensions, as southern pastors were at the forefront of advocating a proslavery worldview, and supported secession from the Union and war as an act of purification from northern infidels who did not endorse the ministers' brand of biblical literalism.

Southern clergymen …

John Irving, Female Sexuality, And The Victorian Feminine Ideal, Tara Coburn

Masters Theses

In an interview about The Cider House Rules, John Irving states, "It is never the social or political message that interests me in a novel" (qtd. in Herel, para. 18). However, in book reviews, jacket blurbs, literary criticism, and Irving's own writing, readers and critics and Irving often assert that he is a neo-Victorian novelist, and the Victorians were a notoriously political bunch. Though Irving does not admit to the political nature of his writing, the way he treats feminist politics in his fiction has drawn particular notice by the media, who often label him as a feminist writer. …

Women's Heart Of Sorrow: Versions Of The Truyen Kieu In The Works Of Duong Thu Huong And Le Ly Hayslip, Vi Tran

Masters Theses

Nguyen Du's Truyen Kieu or Tale of Kieu has arguably provided a life model for Vietnamese females. The poem's influence extends in important ways to contemporary Vietnamese writers as well, including those as politically and artistically diverse as Duong Thu Huong and Le Ly Hayslip. In Novel Without a Name, Paradise of the Blind and Memories of a Pure Spring, Duong Thu Huong transforms the terms of Nguyen Du's poem to those of Vietnam during its revolutionary period and today. As an overseas Vietnamese who had earlier experienced prostitution and the moral chaos of war, Le Ly Hayslip's …

Birth Of A Paradigm: Digital Technology And Its Effect On Literary Studies, Chad Michael Verbais

Masters Theses

Digital technology is changing the landscape of literary studies. In essence, the proliferation of computer technology and hypertext is forcing literary scholars to look at how the expanded role of the visual in our society is influencing the way we read and disseminate texts, especially hypertexts, while they also come to a better understanding of the role of the reader in a digital environment and the overall value of electronic literature. Literary studies is witnessing the birth of a new paradigm through digital technology in textual production and dissemination that will not only raise new questions, but further examine age-old …

This Man's Heart: Masculinity In The Poetry Of E.E. Cummings, Willis John Whitesell Iii

Masters Theses

"This Man's Heart: Masculinity in the Poetry of E.E. Cummings" explores changing masculinity in the life and poetry of E.E. Cummings. The relationship between Cummings and his father, his first male role model, became strained when Cummings was a teenager finding his own male identity. As he rebelled against his father, a Unitarian minister, he began writing poetry in a modernist style under the direction of a new mentor, Ezra Pound.

Cummings' early modernist poems criticize conventional male roles and configurations of masculinity as outdated. As Cummings continued to grow as a man and writer, he confronted new realities which …

The Snow Queen: An Opera In Three Acts Based On A Story By Hans Christian Andersen, Elaine Fine

Masters Theses

This is the analysis portion of my thesis The Snow Queen, an opera based on an 1845 story by Hans Christian Andersen. This analysis examines the opera from a structural standpoint and focuses on the harmonic language, the functions of melodic and rhythmic motives in the opera, and the relationship between the original story and its adaptation as an opera.

In addition to the structural analysis I include a discussion of literary and philosophical elements connected with the opera and elaborate on the incorporation of material from Norse mythology, contemporary Finnish poetry, and the work of the 19^th-century …

Searching For The Hero's Code: Questioning (White) Hero Formation In Contemporary American Film, Amanda D. Mckay

Masters Theses

The desire for heroism never wavers in the imaginations of the movie-going public. When we go to the movies, we long to see a strong character, poised to save the world (tights and cape optional, of course). However, we rarely question what the hero looks like. Hollywood perpetuates an archaic form of heroism because that is what the audience has formed long ago in their collective imagination. Much of American culture is generated by the desire to see self-starters making it in the direst of conditions.

With such a narrow construction of heroism, Hollywood has become void of equal representation …

American Kitsch: Dreams Of Vegas And Apollo Beyond Aporias, Daniel Gerling

Masters Theses

Aside from a recently published compendium of happy stories by Dan Rather and a few real estate agencies in Florida, the American Dream has been considered dead. The most common poison deemed responsible for this death has been, not the lack of success, but, the "kitschiness" of the reward. Postwar novels such as Henry Miller's The Air-Conditioned Nightmare and Edward Albee's play The American Dream declared that the Dream was no longer genuine and, therefore, no longer functional or valid.

Horatio Alger's blueprint for American prosperity began to lose its momentum to a generation of skeptics who rejected the idea …

Marty On The Edge, Bill Feltt

Masters Theses

Marty Kaden can fly. A champion Taekwondoist with serious hopes and a good chance of making the United States team, propelling him all the way to the Olympic Games one day, he takes his chosen martial art seriously. Trouble looms on the horizon, however, and soon brings Marty down to Earth. After suffering defeat at the hands of an arch-rival, Marty spins out of control. Worse, his master instructor disappears under what Marty believes are mysterious circumstances. Yet no one will take him seriously—the police, his mother, his master's assistant. None of them shares his concern. Marty's despair sends him …

Saxo Grammaticus: History And The Rise Of National Identity In Medieval Denmark, Christopher L. Bailey

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Rural Public Television System: The Paradox Of Identity And Role, James C. Jones Jr.

Masters Theses

The American television broadcasting system is preparing for it's greatest upgrade since color television. This change will not only effect commercial television it will also effect our community public television stations.

Since it's inception in 1967 the public television system has been the innovation leader in the broadcast industry for using new technologies to benefit education and servicing the public. Public television was the leader in satellite programming distribution, descriptive television services and closed captioning. Public television has defined and demonstrated its role as a technology leader. This research study was undertaken to define from the public's perspective what it …

Changes In Female Athletes' Physical Self-Esteem Across A Competitive Cycle And As A Function Of Athletic Identity, Michelle C. Reed

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine if female athletes' physical self-perceptions are different when comparing their Physical Self-Perception Profile (PSPP) scores within their competitive season with their scores during the off-season. The second purpose was to determine if physical self-perception varied as a function of their athletic identity. A secondary objective was to evaluate female athletes' physical self-esteem in an individual sport setting compared to a team sport setting. Eastern Illinois University female collegiate athletes in six different sports, track (n=15), softball (n=16), soccer (n=11), tennis (n=3), volleyball (n=5), and rugby (n=19) were given the Athletic Identity Measurement …

Keyboard Basics: A Comprehensive Group Approach For Adults, Brenda Siefferman

Masters Theses

Keyboard Basics is a beginning level group course for adults in a classroom setting, using electronic keyboards. The course was born of necessity, because no existing textbooks fully meet the needs of this particular group of learners. It is designed for non-music majors with little or no previous musical experience. The goals of this text are to: 1. introduce students to the world of music and its language; 2. give students several musical experiences to help develop a love and appreciation of music; 3. enable them to think and play musically and with expression; 4. teach students to read music; …