Digital Commons Network^™

Western Christianity And The Origins Of Antiblackness, Eurocentrism, And White Supremacist Ideology., John Chenault

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study investigates the cult(ural) and intellectual history of Western Christianity to address a significant gap in the literature pertaining to the origins of whiteness/antiblackness in the West and its subsequent socialization worldwide. Western Christianity’s seminal role in the social construction of the whiteness/antiblackness dichotomy has been undertheorized, neglected, and ignored. This study finds early Christian theologians categorically imposed conceptual metaphors about Blackness on African people that depicted them as the exemplars of evil to teach Christian doctrine about sin and salvation. It connects these original antiblack discourses directly to the theo-political arguments Western European Christians used centuries later …

The Reading Of Sir Toby Belch: A Queer And Black Exploration Of William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night., Jahi E Bogard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This MFA thesis explores queer, black representation in William Shakespeare’s drama and in the University of Louisville’s Department of Theatre Arts Fall 2021 production of an adaption of Twelfth Night (1601). Directed by Jennifer Pennington, the repurposed script and non-traditional casting targeted a modern audience. Cast as Olivia’s drunk uncle, Sir Toby Belch, I aimed to discover if my identify as a black, queer, cis man could be incorporated into Shakespeare’s text. Sir Toby Belch’s raucous, heterosexual, and sometimes violent, traits are often imagined today as innately masculine. I argue that Shakespeare’s plays can be appropriated by queer, black actors …

Betwixt & Between., Xuanyi Wang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis, I will discuss the process of learning, borrowing, and exploring the fusion between styles that emerged from the exchange of Eastern and Western civilizations. I will also use the process of transformation and merging of motifs to evoke my thoughts on the identity of immigrants. In addition, the essay will also discuss the similarities between traditional Chinese and Western designs metaphorically. This thesis will also explain why I use IUDs for pattern creation and provide views on the body ownership of women in the East and West. I will also consider the evolution and reflection of the …

Meat The Future., Xin Chen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research focuses on the subtle relationship between human life, the environment, and other animals that we live among every day. Under the mainstream social background of capitalism and a commodity economy, animals are the victims of constant consumption and exploitation. However, meat is a basic substance for human nourishment, especially in certain cultures. As a result, meat becomes an important part of the commodity economy in capitalist societies, wherein the supply must be filled to accommodate society’s demand. This research formed an exhibition using glass and ceramic artwork using a playfully satirical tone to offer a crucial alternative: how …

Understanding Appalachian Deaths Of Despair Through A Perspective Of Marxism And Intersectionality, Mackenzie Boughner

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Uneducated working-class individuals in the United States are dying from suicide, drug overdose, and alcoholic-related liver disease at unprecedented rates; a phenomenon economists Anne Case and Angus Deaton describe as deaths of despair. This paper focuses on deaths of despair in the Appalachian region, where mortality rates from these types of deaths are disproportionately higher than the rest of the country. Marxism and intersectionality are two philosophical frameworks that I will apply to Appalachian despair to test the adequacy of their explanatory power. By placing Marxism and intersectionality in the context of the data surrounding deaths of despair, I can …

Cross-Cultural Currents And Syncretism In Early Modern Opossum Iconography, Deniz Martinez

Theses

Opossums (Order Didelphimorphia) are marsupial mammals endemic to the Americas. They are also the first marsupials Europeans ever encountered, over a century before any Australasian species. Because of their unique marsupial characteristics, opossums have historically been viewed as an “anomalous” animal form across both Indigenous American and European cultures, and thus developed a rich and complex transatlantic cultural history. By tracing the development of opossum imagery through the millennia, one can uncover clear patterns of how their distinct features became embedded in iconographies relative to biogeocultural sphere, and how certain iconographic conventions were transmitted through various media both within and …

Creating Better Musicians Through Musicality: A Guide To Building An Instructional Unit, Shelby Leo

Theses

This project provides an in depth focus on how to strengthen an ensemble's approach to musicality through lesson plans, assessments, and activities. The primary focus group of this project is high school aged performance based classes including band and choir. The aim of the project is to provide a music educator with a detailed curriculum to teach musicality that is adjustable to any size ensemble and any score. Furthermore, this project is not a study but instead an explanation to the approach of developing the curriculum unit. The project consists of a four unit curriculum with two to three lessons …

Reconsidering Scales And The Binary In Forensic Anthropology: A Critical Analysis Of Morphoscopic Data Utilized In Sex Estimation Standards., Bailey N. Watson

College of Arts & Sciences Senior Theses

This research explores sex estimation standards used in forensic anthropology in an effort to further the conversation about forensic anthropology's binary-focused language and methods. Discussions regarding sex estimation methodology are important in light of gender variance in the general population. Presently, there is minimal published research on the identification of gender non-conforming individuals in forensic anthropology.

Two researchers individually assigned scores to features associated with sexual dimorphism in the os coxae according to existing methods for 253 individuals, equally represented by self- reported males and females. These data were statistically analyzed for correlation and overlap between features.

Results mainly point …

The Unarticulated Unseen: Britt Bennett’S “The Vanishing Half” And Her Intent On Revealing The Unseen In The Tradition Of Racial Passing, Caroline Maas Rue

All Theses

Throughout the trajectory of passing literature, there have been varying projections of racial identity as it is intertwined with choice and power. Despite the many commonalities between the archetypal passing novel, the differences in the way that passing is demarcated in various novels is indicative of the racial climate out of which it came. This paper considers Britt Bennett’s 2020 novel, The Vanishing Half, as a socio-political artifact of an allegedly post-racial era. In considering Bennett’s novel as a reflection of post-raciality, a comparative study incorporating Nella Larsen’s Passing, Douglas Sirk’s Adaptation of Imitation of Life, and Danzy …

An Analysis Of And Guide To Tamora Pierce’S Protector Of The Small Quartet As Compared To The Established Young Adult Fantasy Canon, Emma Marie Gilbert

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Tamora Pierce’s work has been cited by many Young Adult fantasy authors as a major influence in recent years. Despite this, her work remains relatively obscure among librarians and readers of Young Adult literature. This paper examined one of Pierce’s Young Adult fantasy series, Protector of the Small, by comparing the series to existing works of Young Adult fantasy literature commonly accepted as classic or canonical literature. Among the comparative works were titles authored by C. S. Lewis, J. K. Rowling, and Philip Pullman. Comparison was character-focused, with emphasis on the representation of parents, other sympathetic adults, peers, and …

My Body Is A Question Mark Lit From Within, Lisa Marie Schrad

Graduate Thesis Collection

In her MFA thesis “My Body Is a Question Mark Lit from Within,” Lisa Marie Schrad explores through poetry the body and its different appetites—hunger for justice, for healing, for God, for home, for wonder. Along the way, the poems also make clear that the path toward fullness and satisfaction must inevitably pass through a deep, brave commitment to knowing the full truth about ourselves. When a light shines out from inside the body, what shortcomings are exposed? What goodness is revealed? And how do we live in the world responsibly, kindly, from the space in-between our questions and their …

“Young Adult Books Don’T Realize They Have That Power”: Reader Response To Ideology In Young Adult Dystopian Fiction, Zane Emīlija Sarma

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to find out how readers interact with novels in the Young Adult dystopian genre. I will examine the ways in which readers resist the dominant patriarchal ideological discourses in the YA dystopian novel and how readers submit to this ideology. Through an interaction with the text, the reader produces oppositional, negotiated, or preferred meanings. I will argue that readers’ response to ideology in the YA dystopian novel is affected by their active participation in reader communities such as the Bookish community online.

YA dystopian fiction was highly popular in the early 2010s, but the …

Examining Difference In Social Perceptions Between Women Using Hormonal Contraceptives And Naturally Cycling Women, Caroline B. Johnson

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

The term “stress” refers to a person’s psychological and physiological response to the demands and pressures of the world around them (Farlex, 2021). Past research has shown that stress can have negative side effects on a person’s well-being (Aneshensel et al., 1991; Wunsch et al., 2017; Michie, 2002). Although people experience stress, some people perceive more stress than others. Perceptions are important because the way one understands certain conditions can elicit distinct emotional and physiological responses (Kemeny, 2003). An important factor that has not received a lot of attention is women’s use of hormonal contraceptives. In the United States, 24.4% …

The Effects Of Hormonal Contraceptive Use On Perceptions Of Social Stress In Women, Ashton Jones

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Hormonal contraceptives are widely used due to their efficiency in preventing pregnancy. Although women are often informed of the physical effects of hormonal contraceptives, there is little emphasis on mental effects, such as increased rates of depression and changes in social perception. The current study examined perceptions of social stress among women before beginning hormonal contraceptives, and two months after using hormonal contraceptives. I hypothesized that women would experience increased social stress after beginning hormonal contraceptives, compared to a control group of women who were also assessed twice. Results did not support this hypothesis; there was no difference in interpersonal …

Efficacy And Benefits Of Providing A Screening Clinic For Performing Arts Students, Shaun Bean, Joanna Centeno, Elizabeth Williams

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In past years, University of Nevada, Las Vegas physical therapy students (UNLVPT) have provided UNLV dance students with screening clinics, injury evaluations, and treatment sessions to help address their need for direct and specialized services. Through this project, UNLVPT has worked to help reduce injury risk in dancers and provided treatment and rehabilitation for injuries that have occurred. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, our group was unable to treat dancers in person over the course of the 2020-2021 school year. In response to these limitations, we worked to reformat our screening process to make it practical in a virtual setting. …

Development Of A Model For Affordable Senior Living Community, Nyx Wenlin Zhu

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Objective

An affordable senior living community model must be developed to support the needs of our growing elderly population. Health, safety, and wellbeing depend on equal physical health, social health, and mental or psychological health provisions. As we look at each of these aspects, we must filter physical, social, and mental health based on the abilities of the older population.

Background

The aging population in western societies is one of the biggest challenges of the 21st century and has multiple implications for society, the economy, and other aspects of the community. Aging people who lack family support often require the …

Horse Loose: Essays On Fear And Attachment, Alyse Burnside

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

I began writing my thesis about my grandmother, who lived out the last few years of her life as a new age healer speaking in tongues and believing she was the channel for an ancient Lemurian shaman. We were not close until the very end of her life, and even then I felt far away from her. Not in the least because of her estrangement with the rest of my family. I tried and tried to write about her but always ran up against her mystery. She was not a woman many knew, and if you did know her, you …

The Labor Of Mary: A Comparative Analysis Of The Virgin Birth In The Qur’An And The Gospels, Jessica Leu

Say Something Theological: The Student Journal of Theological Studies

Mary has been called a bridge between Christians and Muslims for centuries. Both religions revere her as the mother of Jesus (Isa) and for her status as a virgin when she conceived him, and both traditions have within them devotees who venerate Mary. But despite this shared adoration for the blessed mother, there are a variety of differences between their understanding of Mary’s role in salvation and of her virginity. While the New Testament Gospels make some mention of Mary in their texts, the Qur’an dedicates an entire surah (chapter) to her story and mentions her with more frequency than …

Climate Change Impacts And Engineering Solutions, Dawson Oakley

Biological and Agricultural Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

With climate change entering the forefront of global issues, the need for sustainable practices that can provide for human welfare, social and economic development, and health has become more urgent than ever. Despite the recent increase in climate change impacts around the world, many people are still unaware of the severity of the situation. Changing public perception of these issues is the first step in enacting change and increasing accessibility to this information plays an important role.

Much of the information people consume today comes in the form of video, and it can be an effective tool to change knowledge …

A Community-Based Participatory Research Project Exploring Skin Cancer Among Native Americans As Presented In Cancer Education, Research And Outreach, Bobbie Mcwilliams, Regina Robbins

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Abstract (up to 250) words: Suzanne, an elder of The Osage Nation, has been diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma skin cancer. Her daughter, Bobbie, a cancer researcher working for the Youth Enjoy Science Research Education Program, conducted a case study to share Suzanne’s story through written narrative and a series of images that present Suzanne’s reflections on cancer prevention and treatment from a holistic perspective. Eight interview transcripts, as well as photographs, drawings, and paintings of Suzanne, were created and analyzed to explore Suzanne’s lived experience of cancer. In her story of living with cancer, …

Medical Ethics: From The Perspective Of Undergraduate Pre-Health Students, Hannah Im

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

The burden of ethical decision-making is a significant contributor to compassion fatigue in healthcare professionals. Due to the impact of moral conflicts, it may be beneficial to reassess the effectiveness of current ethics education and training. While previous studies have surveyed a range of medical professionals and students, it remains unclear if exposure to ethics topics during undergraduate education could better prepare future healthcare workers. Thus, there is a need to identify the necessity of introducing ethics courses into the required pre-health curriculum. The following study took the first step to gauge this by surveying undergraduate pre-health students on their …

The Taxonomy Of Extinction: Brian Jungen’S Tombstone, Jasen Evoy

Theses

This thesis focuses on the recent work (Tombstone, 2019) by Brian Jungen, a Canadian artist of mixed European and Dane-zaa heritage. The work is explored in detail, leveraging concepts present in Jungen’s existing body of work to extract intent and meaning through Jungen’s complex use of space, materiality, and iconography. Tombstone is a large scale, multimedia sculpture consisting of white plastic Rubbermaid stepstools cut and assembled into the form of a turtle or tortoise shell resting on a bank of thirty-seven black filing cabinets. While Tombstone initially presents itself as aesthetically sparse, it is a deeply-layered commentary on inequity, power …

Mythology In Art History: Course Curriculum, Marianna Martino

Theses

The course entitled Mythology in Art History contains a scaffolded curriculum that introduces students to mythology throughout art history by learning how to analyze fine artwork. With each unit, students will demonstrate an increased control of art criticism, analysis, and knowledge as they develop stronger understanding of content. Students will be able to distinguish the elements of art and principles of design through various 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional art pieces from various time periods and cultures. Upon completion of this year-long program, students will demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of art analysis, allegory, and storytelling throughout art history, showing knowledge of the …

The Glass Coffin: Gothic Adaptations And The Formation Of Sexual Subjectivity., Colton T. Wilson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

It is now an almost foregone conclusion that classic depictions of vampirism resonate with contemporary queer audiences. A sympathetic response to the monster’s persecution is often the key factor in these arguments, yet little attention is paid to the textual details that prompt such a process of identification. This study posits that the iconography used to establish a connection between monstrosity and non-normative sexuality has its origins in Victorian Gothic fiction, whose descriptions of vampirism were assimilated into the discourse of the fin-de-siècle medical field known as sexology. Theories that defined homosexuality as an illness with physical and psychological symptoms …

Contemporary Blackface Theatre: Exploring Split Second From An Authentic Black Lens To Combat White Stereotypes., Lamar Alonzo Hardy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This MFA thesis defines Contemporary Blackface Theatre as exemplified in Dennis McIntyre’s Split Second, which was produced in Fall 2021 by the Department of Theatre Arts at the University of Louisville. Cast as Val Johnson, I aimed to find the truth within a Black character created from the white playwright’s limited perspective. In addition to an analysis of Split Second, my study of Contemporary Blackface Theatre examines the racist ideologies from F.M. Alexander’s point of view on black people and how I create truthfulness in my own black body. I detail how I used the Black Acting Methods: …

The Heart Of The Problem: An Art Gallery Installation To Foster Dialogue On Heart Disease And The Privilege Of Prevention, Olivia Eileen Heinecke

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

We are cautioned constantly about various harmful diseases. However, the deadliest disease tends to be overlooked. Heart disease takes the lives of more than half a million people in the United States every year, yet there is a lack of discussion to address the epidemic at hand (Hill). This is largely due to the “blame the victim” stigma surrounding the generally preventable range of complications. While 80% of cardiovascular disease is avoidable, not every individual has the means of achieving a lifestyle necessary in averting the conditions and their symptoms. For this creative art project, I want to encourage education …

Visions Of Science: An Art Historical Exploration Of Medieval Scientific Manuscripts, Olivia Brock

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

The late 16th century saw a new movement in the world of science to push scientific ideas and practice out of academia and into the hands of the layman. No longer were scholars the sole proprietors of science –everyday laborers, craftsman, and artists now had practical scientific principles at their fingertips that they could incorporate into their professions. This new spread of science was facilitated in several ways, including the publication of books incorporating detailed, explanatory images, new utilitarian instruments, and public lectures. Though science was disseminated through a variety of means, I have been particularly interested in the ways …

Neo Development Of The Workplace Environment In Response To Evolutionary Social Changes, Dafne Odette

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study is to identify the needs and wants of remote workers to support their health and well-being in response to evolutionary social changes. Many workers were once tethered to live in the city where their job office resided. Additionally, economic forces have long been a deciding factor in where one lives. The COVID-19 virus of 2020 provided an opportunity for many people to work remotely to control the virus (Latham, Higgins, & Judish, 2020). This has allowed people to retain higher salaries while living in rural areas where the cost of living may be lower. In 2021, some businesses …

The Art Of Nutrition, Kylanna Hardaway

Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

Many colleges and universities offer students access to on-campus food pantries, yet very few students utilize these services despite reporting high rates of food insecurity. Considering the importance of a healthy diet on the developing minds of young adults, it is pertinent that colleges and universities find innovative ways to reach food insecure students. The purpose of this hybrid creative-research project was to creatively address commonly cited barriers of seeking food assistance (i.e., negative stigma, embarrassment, unknown location, awareness of resource, etc.) using public art. A mural was designed to encourage healthy eating behaviors and provide signage for the Jane …

Climate Change: The Final Crisis Of Capital, Walker Daniel Peatross

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

As the body of scientific research on climate change continues to grow it has become undeniable that we live in the midst of an ecological crisis; however, this leaves us with a myriad of secondary questions whose answers are more contentious. In this project, I use a mixture of Marxist and Phenomenological analysis to explore these uncertainties. In chapter one, I will detail Marx's description of capitalism both to demonstrate the inherent irrationality of the system and also to represent the ecological critique implicit in Marxist Theory. In chapter two, I will examine how the ideology of neoliberal political theory …