Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Darkness Is Your Candle, Office Of Arts + Cultural Programming, Peak Performances At Montclair State University

2013-2014 Raise the Bar

World music supergroup East of the River has a very different type of holiday concert in store this upcoming season. With a focus on the winter solstice, family, and new beginnings, Darkness Is Your Candle explores music of the Mediterranean, Balkans, Armenia, and the Middle East, presenting the earliest songs of those extraordinary cultures. Taking its name from the work of Persian poet Rumi, the program shifts from a lunar atmosphere in the first half of the program into rebirth and daylight in the second half, creating a unique and unforgettable musical journey for the New Year.

Milton, Zanchius, And The Rhetoric Of Belated Reading, Jeffrey Miller

Department of English Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

No abstract provided.

Jain Endangerment Discourse, Ezra Rashkow

Department of History Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Is Jainism an endangered religion? This article considers the various ways in which Jainism has been projected to be in decline, under threat, and/or in need of protection; and it assesses the steps taken as a result of such perceptions. Examining Jainism’s position as a minority religion in India and abroad, this asks why authors and pundits have often expressed concern for the survival of the Jain community, and if such fears are at all founded. It will also look at some recent attempts at preservation.

Tragedy Of A Friendship, Office Of Arts + Cultural Programming, Peak Performances At Montclair State University

2013-2014 Raise the Bar

Inspired by Richard Wagner’s 13 operatic masterpieces, Jan Fabre is putting his own shocking spin on the composer’s 200th birthday, documenting the friendship and dramatic feud between Wagner and philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. Racing from humor to horror across the span of Wagner’s works, the piece features extremely graphic imagery and standout vocal performances from tenor Hans Peter Janssens and soprano Lies Vandeweghe. In collaboration with writer Stefan Hertmans and German composer Moritz Eggert, Jan Fabre has constructed a stunning piece of art that is part opera, part theater, and not for the faint of heart.

Motherland, Office Of Arts + Cultural Programming, Peak Performances At Montclair State University

2013-2014 Raise the Bar

Winding its way through airbrushed beauty, boob jobs and Botox, victim blaming, slut shaming, the might of motherhood and the challenge of childlessness, Motherland is a funny, moving show about having it all. With universal appeal and a potent mix of live music, theater, and dance, Motherland is a call to arms: one that raises a finger (guess which one) at the shallow hypocrisies of our time and asks “where are we now?”

Shanghai Quartet With Miró Quartet, Office Of Arts + Cultural Programming, Peak Performances At Montclair State University

2013-2014 Raise the Bar

The Shanghai Quartet is celebrating their 30th anniversary with two concerts taking the group’s sound to new places. In the fall, the group joins forces with the Miró Quartet to become an octet supergroup, performing works by Shostakovich (Two Pieces for String Octet, Op. 11) and Mendelssohn (Octet in E-flat major, Op. 20). The highlight of the afternoon is the regional premiere of Dan Welcher’s Museon Polemos, described by the composer as “a ballet without dancers.”

Open City, Office Of Arts + Cultural Programming, Peak Performances At Montclair State University

2013-2014 Raise the Bar

Vijay Iyer, one of the most celebrated young jazz pianists and composers of his generation, is thinking big with this world premiere concert event. Featuring two dozen musicians and artists, OPEN CITY will include spoken text performed live by rap artist Himanshu Suri and Teju Cole, whose 2012 award-winning novel of the same name inspired this wide-ranging work.

Fold Here, Office Of Arts + Cultural Programming, Peak Performances At Montclair State University

2013-2014 Raise the Bar

Initially inspired by Raymond Carver’s short story Cathedral, in which a sightful man’s hand is guided by a blind man’s heart in drawing a cathedral, Fold Here unfolds in an implausible universe filled with empty cardboard boxes as the basic units of all existing matter. In pursuit of the boxes’ elusive essence, the performers explore the physical, sensorial, and spiritual properties of human beings–as parallel contents and containers of existence.

Glacier, Office Of Arts + Cultural Programming, Peak Performances At Montclair State University

2013-2014 Raise the Bar

Liz Gerring’s glacier, a new dance work featuring an ever-evolving 360-degree soundscape by composer Michael J. Schumacher, explores the nature inside nature and sheds light on a raw, elemental state of existence. Over the past few years, Gerring’s unfettered physicality has garnered attention from audiences and critics alike. Her company’s signature style – athletic, precise action with an ever-rising, unstoppable momentum – is on full display in this, her largest-scale work to date.

The Best Practices For Teaching Writing To Postsecondary Students With Acquired Brain Injuries, Julianne Candio Sekel

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Because the writing abilities of postsecondary students with acquired brain injuries (ABI) are often determined by the student’s age when the injury was acquired, the severity of the injury, the amount of time that has passed since the injury, and the quality of the student’s writing education before the injury, it is impossible to generalize the best strategies to assist students with ABI in writing. However, through a review of existing literature on teaching writing to students with ABI, the relationship between oral and written discourse, expressive writing, educational intervention, and assistive technologies, this study presents a list of recommendations …

W.B. Yeats's Construction Of India, Ashim Dutta

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

William Butler Yeats’s literary career consists of varied passions and interests. He had a life-long interest in the occult mysticism of the East and the West, and Indian philosophy and spiritual tradition cover a considerable space in Yeats’s mysticism. From 1880s to the end of his life, Yeats cherished a profound interest in the spiritual India which was periodically reinforced by his encounters with three Indian personalities: Mohini Mohun Chatteijee in 1886, Rabindranath Tagore in 1912, and Shri Purohit Swami in 1931. Each of these three Indians left a profound impression on his mind and influenced him substantially. Yeats also …

Redefinitions Of Selfhood: Stan Brakhage, Bob Dylan, And Allen Ginsberg As Thoreauvian Counterculturists, James Anthony Galione

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

My master’s thesis lies in examining the appropriation of Henry David Thoreau’s techniques of authorship within the American 1960’s counterculture. My investigation focuses on how Stan Brakhage, Bob Dylan, and Allen Ginsberg engage in Thoreauvian forms of selfhood, self-government, citizenship, and ecological awareness within the context of the 1960’s counterculture. These three artists take on issues of 20th century materialism, nationalism, sexuality, and racial equality, within their respective medium of expression, as participants in what I will define as “Thoreauvian tradition”. Elements of this “Thoreauvian tradition” include subjective vision, ontological identity, undermining myth, and evolving the medium. These are the …

Strategies To Manage Censorship Issues And Controversies In Museums, Kyle D. San Giovanni

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Museums are poised to educate, engage and entertain patrons, as well as challenge and influence society more now than at any other time throughout the modem history of the museum industry. With thousands of museums throughout the United States attracting hundreds of millions of visitors annually, controversial exhibits and issues of censorship continue to challenge museum industry leaders. Concern surrounding this subject exists in all artistic and cultural endeavors. Topics range from race and religion to war and sexuality, and have occurred in history, science and art museums. This study looks at the best management options available to museum directors …

Les Voix De La Souffrance Dans L'Innommable Et Oh Les Beaux Jours De Samuel Beckett : Une ÉTude Psychanalytique, Isabella Jeanne Dougan

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The literary works of Samuel Beckett have always had great interest for critics, researchers and biographers. Considered one of the most influential writers of the twentieth century, Beckett is much discussed, but some — philosophers such as Jean- Paul Sartre, for instance — have praised him for his treatment of the absurd, while others have done so for his introduction of new novelistic and dramatic forms as well as for the beauty of his language. Many critics have called him the writer of despair and his plays were among the earliest contributions to the “Theatre of the Absurd." Recognizing the …

Religious Practice And The Phenomenology Of Everyday Violence In Contemporary India, Vikash Singh

Department of Sociology Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This article focuses on ‘dread’ in religious practice in contemporary India. It argues that the dread of everyday existence, which is as salient in a biographical temporality as it pervades the phenomenal environment, connects and transfers between religious practices and everyday life in India for the marginalized masses. For such dread, dominant liberal discourses, such as those of the nation, economy, or ego-centric performance, have neither the patience nor the forms to represent, perform, and abreact. Formulated in dialogue with critical theory, phenomenology, and psychoanalytic theory, this article conceives of religious practices in continuum with the economic, social, ethical, and …

Work, Performance, And The Social Ethic Of Global Capitalism: Understanding Religious Practice In Contemporary India, Vikash Singh

Department of Sociology Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This ethnographic essay focuses on the relationship between religious performances and the “strong discourse” of contemporary global capitalism. It explores the subjective meaning and social significance of religious practice in the context of a rapidly expanding mass religious phenomenon in India. The narrative draws on Weber's insights on the intersections between religion and economy, phenomenological theory, performance studies, and Indian philosophy and popular culture. It shows that religion here is primarily a means of performing to and preparing for an informal economy. It gives the chance to live meaningful social lives while challenging the inequities and symbolic violence of an …

2012-2013 Season Brochure, Office Of Arts + Cultural Programming, Peak Performances At Montclair State University

2012-2013 Exceptions Rule: No Compromise

No abstract provided.

Investigating Obesity Risk-Reduction Behaviours And Psychosocial Factors In Chinese Americans, Yeon Bai, Doreen Liou, Kathleen D. Bauer

Department of Nutrition and Food Studies Scholarship and Creative Works

AIM: The purpose of this research was to examine the attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors related to obesity risk reduction in Chinese Americans.

METHODS: A questionnaire was administered to a convenience sample of 300 US-born and foreign-born Chinese Americans residing in the New York metropolitan area, ranging from 18 to 40 years of age. Obesity risk reduction behaviors and psychosocial variables derived from the Theory of Planned Behaviour and Health Belief Model were measured. Acculturation was assessed using a modified Suinn-Lew Asian Self-Identity Acculturation Scale. Frequency distributions were delineated and stepwise regression analyses were analyzed for different acculturation groups.

RESULTS: 65% …

Landfall, Office Of Arts + Cultural Programming, Peak Performances At Montclair State University

2012-2013 Exceptions Rule: No Compromise

Through genre-defying careers with similar philosophies on the invention of new music, it’s shocking that Laurie Anderson and Kronos Quartet have never collaborated before. All that will change in an electrifying season finale as artist/composer Laurie Anderson and the visionary Kronos Quartet perform a new evening-length piece in their very first collaboration. Composed by Anderson and arranged by Kronos Quartet, the piece will include written text and a dozen new songs that herald a new synthesis of sonic invention.

Political Twittoric : The Rhetorical Use Of Twitter By The Obama 2012 Presidential Campaign, Kainat Najmi Abidi

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

With the entrance of the digital age, the Presidential campaign has begun accommodating the growing trend of new technologies. A campaign can reach an audience in person, on the radio, through the newspaper, on television, and on the Internet. In 2008, President Barack Obama broke the limitations of campaigning by going social, which he continued in his run for reelection in 2012. Obama tapped into the popular social network of Twitter to run a portion his 2012 campaign. By utilizing this new network, Obama’s campaign accessed the multimodal quality of Twitter to benefit their goal of winning the 2012 election …

Charles Wright’S Seasonal Poetry : The Inscrutable, Spiritual Landscape And Ars Poetica, Marian Jeanette Kelleher

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This thesis argues that several of Charles Wright’s poems use shifting natural images, fragmented form and metapoetics to comment on the uncertain nature of the metaphysical world. “China Traces” opens the thesis by exploring the adequacy of words to match nature’s completeness. “China Traces” specifically uses the natural image of light, calling on the poetic legacy of Emily Dickinson. Another poem, “Returned to Yaak Cabin, I Overhear an Old Greek Song,” seems to freeze a moment, calling upon mortality and the permanence of art. The final poem in Chapter 1 is “Local Journal,” which, set at the end of November, …

Beneath The Frock And Beyond The Original Plumbing : A Visual Rhetorical Analysis Of Transgender Magazines, Dayna Arcurio

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This thesis studies the rhetoric, visual rhetoric, and visual semiotic potential of the transgender and transsexual community by engaging with its signature rhetorical texts: its print and digital magazines. Designating the transgender/transsexual magazines, Original Plumbing and Frock Magazine as my primary texts for study, I provide three critical lenses through which to view the written and visual expression of the transgender community. The heart of this research seeks to understand how the transgender/transsexual community creates meaning by examining three aspects of its magazines: 1) the trans-rhetorical expression through articles and interviews; 2) each magazine’s aesthetic design through the lens of …

"No Preaching, I Say!" : A Rhetorical Analysis Of E.D.E.N. Southworth's Temperance Motives And Motifs, Janine Marie Butler

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

E.D.E.N. Southworth, while relatively unknown today, was a popular and successful American writer who published over fifty stories throughout the mid- to late nineteenth century, including The Hidden Hand, Cruel as the Grave, The Lost Lady o f Lone, Ishmael, and Self- Raised. This thesis brings together literary, sociocultural, and rhetorical studies to analyze how Southworth instilled her devout Christian morals and temperance messages in a number of sensational stories that were marketed to a general audience of American readers, including many drinkers. This paper primarily utilizes Lloyd Bitzer's rhetorical situation (as detailed in "The Rhetorical Situation," published in Philosophy …

What Is Woman? : Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Ladies Almanack, And Woman's Search For Her Identity In The 1920s, Timothy Coyne

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

In the introductory chapter of her book, The Gender o f Modernity, Rita Felski writes, “If our sense of the past is inevitably shaped by the explanatory logic of narrative, then the stories that we create in turn reveal the inescapable presence and power of gender symbolism” (1). Anita Loos’s Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and Djuna Barnes’s Ladies Almanack are two such stories; however, they both do more than simply reveal gender’s presence and power. These works of literature question the gender ideologies of the early twentieth century, challenging their power and inescapability by producing other, perhaps unknown, unthought of or …

"You Write Like A Girl" : Analyzing The Rhetoric Of Gender Bias In The Literary Establishment And Implications For Student Writing Development, Julie Robin Dalley

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Using Lloyd Bitzer’s model of the rhetorical situation, I have parsed current rhetorical statements made by prominent female authors, such as Jodi Picoult, Jennifer Weiner, Margaret Atwood, Toni Morrison, bell hooks, and Francine Prose, to examine their claim that the literary establishment practices gender bias against women’s writing. The main speakers argue that literary gatekeepers -such as critical review journals, editors, publishers, awards juries, and academic institutions - marginalize women’s writing through systemic patriarchal institutional mechanisms. Joanna Russ, in her 1985 book How to Suppress Women’s Writing, deconstructs the ways in which women’s writing is biased against by literary institutions: …

The Living Dead Austen : Exploring The Zombie Trope In American Culture, Film, And Literature, Katherine Godin

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This thesis explores the origin, rise, and resonance of the zombie trope in American film and literature, focusing on three cinematic stages and culminating in an analysis of Seth Grahame-Smith’s 2009 mash-up novel Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. While many critics have casually dismissed zombies as a trend, this thesis argues that these creatures reflect a variety of Western fears that have surpassed the obvious association with death and decay. Indeed, as this thesis argues, zombies have come to reflect a myriad of anxieties concerning the gendered and racial Others, as well as consumerism, technology, and even, as will be …

Reading War : Modern Warfare In The Age Of Terror And Recent American Literature, Kyle Anthony Kovacs

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

No abstract provided.

Understanding The Benefits Of An Asian Music Therapy Student Peer Group, Yi-Ying Lin

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

As Asian international music therapy students, we shared many experiences and challenges when adjusting to the United States culture. In order to improve each other’s learning experiences and amplify our coping strategies, six of my Asian peers at Montclair State University and I spontaneously formed a group in 2011. The group seemed to have a positive effect on its members. To understand the benefits of the group from multiple facets and identify its role when addressing members’ needs in academic, clinical, and personal domains, I chose to use narrative inquiry and arts-based research in order to allow the participants to …

The Transformative Power Of Voice In George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, Nicole L. Scimone

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion is first and foremost a play about voice, particularly about the voice of flower-girl-tumed-lady Liza Doolittle. Though the voice is not Liza’s true self, it is the way the Liza’s identity can be expressed, and thus an important marker of identity transformations in the play. This work explores three different ways in which Shaw discusses voice in the play: as singing instruction, scientific methods for recording voice, and vocalizing automata and dolls.

First, the play is deeply influenced by Shaw’s background in singing instruction from his childhood. Shaw learned voice study from his mother’s beau, a …

Freedom, Office Of Arts + Cultural Programming, Peak Performances At Montclair State University

2012-2013 Exceptions Rule: No Compromise

In such previous mind-benders as Yesterday, Justitia, and 7734, Jasmin Vardimon has gained a well-deserved reputation in Britain for uniquely theatrical choreography that combines physical theater, innovative technologies, text, and dance with acute observations of human behavior. Freedom, a new full-length dance theater piece, explores notions of what keeps our imaginations free. For the company’s first visit to the East Coast (and second to the U.S.), Freedom promises Vardimon’s trademark physicality and brutally visceral characterizations.