History Commons^™

When Curiosity Kills More Than The Cat: The Perils Of Unchecked Scientific Inquiry, Jamie Shannon

Pomona Senior Theses

This work analyzes the ecological, physical, emotional and health impacts of the US nuclear testing done in the Marshall Islands in the mid-20th century.

Didn’T My Lord Deliver Daniel? An’ Why Not Every Man? Black Theodicy In The Antebellum United States And The Problem Of The Demonic God, Emma Norman

Pitzer Senior Theses

Introduction Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel? An' Why Not Every Man: Black Theodicy in the Antebellum United States and the Problem of the Demonic God is an ambitious attempt to construct a coherent narrative that spans many centuries and connect numerous historical persons and figures in recent scholarship. I set out to understand how an enslaved person could have faith in the goodness of god despite their oppressed condition. I learned that most enslaved Africans first encountered Christianity when they became the “property” of Christians. Then, in a revolutionarily creative move, the Black community re-signified Christianity from a religious system …

Spiritual Liberation Or Religious Discipline: The Religious Right’S Effects On Incarcerated Women, Eva Delair

Scripps Senior Theses

The history of the prison system in the US is inextricably linked to Christianity. Penitentiary shares its root word, penitence, with repentance. Quakers and Congregationalists started the very first prisons because they viewed the corporal punishment of that time to be cruel (Graber 20). Even today, prisons are required to hire chaplains to make sure incarcerated people have the freedom to practice religion inside of the prison. The largest volunteer group serving incarcerated people is Prison Fellowship, an arm of the Religious Right which began in the 1970s and is now the largest faith based group of its kind1 (Prison …

Calvin And Conciliation, Alexander S. Haines

CMC Senior Theses

The popular conception of John Calvin today is as a divisive figure within Christianity, who vehemently opposed some beliefs while demanding rigid acceptance of others. In this thesis, I intend to investigate the accuracy of that conception by exploring how Calvin approached ecumenicalism theologically and practically. This will cover Calvin's understanding of the Church, his cooperation and disagreements with other Christians, and evaluate what Calvin might contribute to an ecclesiology useful for the Church today. Calvin has gained a poor reputation in modern times both for participation in historical events, including the execution of Servetus, and also for the association …

Hindutva And Anti-Muslim Communal Violence In India Under The Bharatiya Janata Party (1990-2010), Elaisha Nandrajog

CMC Senior Theses

On May 16, 1998, under the directives of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led coalition, the Indian government detonated three nuclear bombs in the Rajasthan desert, near a site called Pokhran.1 If the name of India’s inter-ballistic missile, Agni, the god of fire in the Vedic tradition, is inscribed in antiquity, its symbolism in 1998 was entirely new, reflecting the rise of a political party that emblematizes a chauvinistic, majoritarian stance.2 To celebrate India’s accomplishment, the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP), a sister organization of the BJP, ordered the construction of a temple dedicated to Shakti, the goddess of strength, …

From Disco To Electronic Music: Following The Evolution Of Dance Culture Through Music Genres, Venues, Laws, And Drugs., Ambrose Colombo

CMC Senior Theses

Electronic dance music is a genre that has been long in the making. Starting with disco in the 1970s, dance culture genres evolved into house, acid house, techno, garage, 2-step, hardcore, gabba, san frandisco, electro, and many others. This paper studies the transformation of electronic sound, and the contributing/impeding factors involved. Drug use is heavily related to the creation and enjoyment of music, and features prominently in the history of dance culture. Starting with the use of acid in the 1960s and progressing to the use of acid, Quaaludes, poppers, speed in the 1970s, with MDA featured in clubs toward …

Governing Gambling In The United States, Maria E. Garcia

CMC Senior Theses

The role risk taking has played in American history has helped shape current legislation concerning gambling. This thesis attempts to explain the discrepancies in legislation regarding distinct forms of gambling. While casinos are heavily regulated by state and federal laws, most statutes dealing with lotteries strive to regulate the activities of other parties instead of those of the lottery institutions. Incidentally, lotteries are the only form of gambling completely managed by the government. It can be inferred that the United States government is more concerned with people exploiting gambling than with the actual practice of wagering.

In an effort to …

Interpretations Of Medievalism In The 19th Century: Keats, Tennyson And The Pre-Raphaelites, Shannon K. Wilsey

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis describes how different 19th century poets and artists depicted elements of the medieval in their artwork as a means to contradict the rapid progress and metropolitan build-up of the Industrial Revolution. The poets discussed are John Keats and Alfred, Lord Tennyson; the painters include William Holman Hunt and John William Waterhouse. Examples of the poems and corresponding Pre-Raphaelite depictions include The Eve of Saint Agnes, La Belle Dame Sans Merci and The Lady of Shalott.

Short Term Strategies For Long Term Power: The Rise And Potential Fall Of Hugo Chávez, Linden E.S. Schult

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis explores the route to power of Venezuela's President Hugo Chávez and the methods by which he has remained in power throughout his presidency. Also, it explores the potential for Chávez to lose power, given the current economic and political situation in Venezuela. The importance of the oil industry, Chávez's suppression of the opposition and control of the media, and constitutional changes and reforms are all discussed as keys to Chávez's continuance in power.

The Foundations And Early Development Of Mormon Mission Theory, David Golding

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This study seeks to answer a fundamental question facing missiologists and historians of Mormonism: given their sustained preoccupation with converting others to Mormonism and their thriving tradition of missionary work, how do Mormons conceive of their mission? By focusing on the theoretical frame in which Mormon missionaries imagined the non-Mormon world, prepared for missionary engagement, and derived their expectations for their mission work, this study aims to illuminate the development of Mormon missionary activities and explain the processes by which Mormons fashioned for themselves a missional character. Beginning with Joseph Smith and the emergence of his missional thought and ending …

Selling Its Future Short: Armenia's Economic And Security Relations With Russia, Ian J. Mcginnity

CMC Senior Theses

It is necessary and desirable for Armenia to retain close relations with Russia in both the short and long term. However, recent concessions to Russia for good relations in the short term may have potentially harmful repercussions for Armenia in the future. These concessions have in part resulted in the Russian dominance in the economic sector, over-dependence on Russia for Armenia’s energy needs, and the perpetuation of Armenian submissiveness to Russian interests. Armenia should, therefore, maintain good relations with Russia while simultaneously securing long-term paths that focus on actual strategic partnership and not dependence. In short, Armenia should return to …