Dead Trees And Dollar Bills: Are We Prepared For An Automated Future?,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
Dead Trees And Dollar Bills: Are We Prepared For An Automated Future?, Alfred Michael Wing Iii
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Alfred Michael Wing III is a Political Science major from Monroeville, Pennsylvania. Al explains that this essay gave him the opportunity to work through a question that had been weighing on his mind for some time: whether modern automation and artificial intelligence can truly give back what they take away. “I wanted to explore the systemic risks they pose,” he says, “not just as technological shifts, but as structural challenges that society is largely unprepared for.” The project was not about fearing technology, but rather about questioning whether the systems we have built are capable of introducing powerful innovations without …
To Speak Is To Survive: Language, Loss And Holding On,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
To Speak Is To Survive: Language, Loss And Holding On, Mathilda Sanon
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Mathilda Sanon is a Psychology major with an English minor from Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Mathilda explains that this essay was deeply personal to her because it is tied to her family, her culture, and her own experiences of language. She thought often of her grandmother, who has lived in the United States for decades but has never let go of Haitian Kreyol. “Watching her speak her language so freely while I have spent years adjusting mine to fit into certain spaces really stuck with me,” Mathilda reflects. She says that she did not want to write about language loss as some …
Baby Fever, Meet Reality Check,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
Baby Fever, Meet Reality Check, Victoria R. Reginaldo
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Victoria R. Reginaldo is a Biology major from Weymouth, MA; she was born in Brazil and speaks Portuguese. Victoria explains that this essay was meaningful to her because it allowed her to think about an idea she has carried with her since she was young, the desire to have children, and how that dream is shaped and complicated by the realities of today’s society. “As I get older and begin to realize that life isn’t so simple, it made me want to research and write about how society influences the decision to have children,” she shares. Victoria notes that this …
No One Really Cares About Ai-Generated Creative Work,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
No One Really Cares About Ai-Generated Creative Work, Ruby Pearlman
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Ruby Pearlman is a Nursing major from Santa Barbara, CA. Ruby explains that her essay was inspired by her frustration with the way artificial intelligence is often compared to human creativity. “Creating art is a big part of my life, and it’s frustrating to spend hours on something I’m proud of just to hear people’s comments about how they could ‘do the same thing’ in seconds with AI,” she shares. For her, this project was a chance to present a clearer distinction between AI-generated content and art made by a real person. At the time she was writing, Ruby was …
The Dystopian Landscape Of Short-Form Content,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
The Dystopian Landscape Of Short-Form Content, Leslie Payne
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Leslie Payne is a Psychology major with a Communications minor from Vienna, Virginia. Leslie explains that when her class began discussing the impact of social media, she immediately knew what her essay would focus on. “It felt like the only possible thing I could write about,” she recalls, noting how strongly she felt about its pervasive effects yet lacking the structured expression to articulate them before this assignment. She was particularly interested in the overlap between short-form content, identity formation, and media cycles, and writing this paper gave her both the research and framework to better understand those connections. She …
Saint Joan Of Arc And The Modern Transgender Liberation Movement,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
Saint Joan Of Arc And The Modern Transgender Liberation Movement, Nick King
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Nick King is a Classical Languages and History major from Haverhill, MA. For Nick, this essay became a source of both comfort and empowerment, particularly within the context of our current political climate. He explains that “being a trans person is hard, and we need more role models of resilience,” and this writing project allowed him to give voice to those complexities. Written during his second semester of college, Nick notes that the atmosphere of political strife pushed him to pour even more passion and conviction into his work. This essay is especially meaningful to Nick because it reflects the …
Unraveling Labor: Crafting Between Hobby And Work,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
Unraveling Labor: Crafting Between Hobby And Work, Samriddhi Khemka
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Samriddhi Khemka is a Nursing major from Natick, MA. Samriddhi explains that her essay was inspired by memories of crafting with her mom on the living room floor. “Whether it was making flowers out of pencil shavings, flower pressing without proper kits, or painting rocks, my mom undeniably taught me the art of creativity,” she recalls. More importantly, her mother taught her how to see possibility in scraps and to turn what others might throw away into something meaningful. She reflects: “Nothing was ever wasted if it could be remade.” One thing that stood out to Samriddhi while writing this …
Compelled By Darkness: Batman, Mental Instability, And The Blurred Line Of Heroism,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
Compelled By Darkness: Batman, Mental Instability, And The Blurred Line Of Heroism, Chloë Lucien
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Chloë Lucien is a Music major with a Dance minor from Mattapan, MA. Chloë explains that this essay was deeply personal because Batman’s story has always been more than a comic book origin to her. “Batman himself has become a mirror I could look into, a reflection of my own journey from pain to purpose,” she shares. Writing about Bruce Wayne allowed her to explore how mental wounds can coexist with, and even fuel, acts of courage, challenging the simplistic “hero-versus-villain” narrative while bringing self-acceptance to her own ongoing work of healing. For Chloë, the essay became more than an …
Comforts With The "S",
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
Comforts With The "S", Reese Smith
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Reese Smith is a nursing major from Quincy, MA. She says that she has come to realize how as a society we have very little comfort in our everyday lives and “often live a robotic lifestyle day in and day out, without taking much time to appreciate what is around us and incorporating comforts into our daily routines.” When writing this essay, Reese felt that she was able to take her own research and apply it to her daily life by taking time to infiltrate comforts (with an “s”) into her own routines. Her research is special to her since …
Femininity On Social Media,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
Femininity On Social Media, Allison Peguero
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Allison Peguero is a biology major from Malden, MA. The inspiration for her research is having often “witnessed the hate women receive when sharing their interests and passions online.” Allison feels that this conduct has been “normalized” online and in social media. She also finds it interesting to witness the way people conduct themselves online versus the way they truly are offline. This juxtaposition inspired her essay “to not only explore this topic further, but to analyze how this connects with the misogyny that I and many other women have experienced online.” The freedom to pursue her interest in this …
Film's Depictions Of Mental Illness,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
Film's Depictions Of Mental Illness, Mandy May
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Mandy May is a psychology major from Canton, CT. Mandy’s purpose for writing her essay was to spread awareness of the impact that negative portrayals of mental illnesses in the media have on audiences. She shares that, as a psychology major, she has always been “hyper-aware of the way films exaggerate and emphasize unrealistic stereotypes surrounding mental illness.” Mandy feels that this essay gave her the opportunity to “finally research more about the reality of these depictions, and to hear about how people with mental disorders are affected by negative portrayals.” With a growing interest in child psychology, fueled by …
Music And Mental Health,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
Music And Mental Health, Yelena Hernandez Bonilla
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Yelena Hernandez Bonilla is a public health major from Chelsea, MA. As an undergraduate student, Yelena began reflecting on her school experience and noticed how much music has helped her “whether feeling happy, stressed, overwhelmed, or just needing a moment to unwind.” She decided to write this essay because she sees how important music is for many students. Apart from just listening to music, Yelena has played the piano and guitar for many years. Her music has served as a crucial outlet and has become “a major part of who I am because it is something I love and enjoy …
Writing Is Really Really Scary,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
Writing Is Really Really Scary, Brian Coughlin
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Brian Coughlin is a biology major from Melrose, MA. He believes that “everyone has the capacity to write something beautiful, but so many people are turned off of it because they think of some boring English essay they had to write about The Catcher in the Rye in eleventh grade.” Brian’s goal in this essay is to show that writing is “so much more than cracking open a thesaurus to impress your teacher.” This piece of writing is important to Brian because it was one of the first essays he wrote while trying to break away from the conventional writing …
Leaving Brushstrokes On The Page: Writing That Grabs You And Demands Attention,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
Leaving Brushstrokes On The Page: Writing That Grabs You And Demands Attention, Lauren Brown
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Lauren Brown is a biology major and film minor from Firestone, Colorado. She “adores writing” and enjoyed the freedom in experimentation with voice in this essay. She says, “I loved being exposed to different forms of writing a paper that all fell under analysis or research. There are so many ways to be flexible with style and incorporate your own voice that I was able to see, analyze, and try myself.” Lauren also wanted to explore “how education often sucks the joy out of writing as an artform and makes it into something easily replicated by a site like ChatGPT.” …
A Conversation Amongst Trees,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
A Conversation Amongst Trees, Bella Brown
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
Bella Brown is an environmental science major and a biology minor from Glastonbury, CT. Bella says that she is “super passionate about nature and finding new ways to preserve and understand it” and when she was presented with the task of writing a research paper she knew that she wanted to further explore a podcast episode about trees communicating through fungi, or “talking trees.” She says it “seemed like a huge breakthrough on understanding how our forests function as complex ecosystems.” Bella also notes that one thing she loved about writing this paper was the freedom to choose whatever topic …
2024 Editor's Introduction,
2026
University of Massachusetts Boston
2024 Editor's Introduction, Lauren M. Bowen
Undercurrents: A Journal of Undergraduate Student Composition
No abstract provided.
Shakespeare Adapts,
2026
Western Michigan University
Shakespeare Adapts, Grace C. Tiffany
Selected Papers of the Ohio Valley Shakespeare Conference
No abstract provided.
Shakespeare’S Troilus And Cressida And The Genre Of Comical Satire,
2026
Oberlin College
Shakespeare’S Troilus And Cressida And The Genre Of Comical Satire, Robert B. Pierce
Selected Papers of the Ohio Valley Shakespeare Conference
No abstract provided.
“Shall I Always Keep Below Stairs?”: The Waiting-Gentlewoman On The Margin Of Much Ado About Nothing,
2026
Saginaw Valley State University
“Shall I Always Keep Below Stairs?”: The Waiting-Gentlewoman On The Margin Of Much Ado About Nothing, Daniel F. Gates
Selected Papers of the Ohio Valley Shakespeare Conference
No abstract provided.
A Mouth Too Full: Domination, Consumption, Kitchens And Witches In Macbeth,
2026
The University of Akron
A Mouth Too Full: Domination, Consumption, Kitchens And Witches In Macbeth, Bethany Decker
Selected Papers of the Ohio Valley Shakespeare Conference
No abstract provided.
