Digital Commons Network^™

Nightmares And Dreams, Abbey Shoffner

Allusions

No abstract provided.

Take My Breath, Abbey Shoffner

Allusions

No abstract provided.

On The Shore Of The Indiana Dunes 7/26/24, 10:22 Pm, Brenna Sobecki

Allusions

No abstract provided.

The Sycamore Tree, Brenna Sobecki

Allusions

No abstract provided.

Words And Stardom: Modernist Poetic Responses To Asta Nielsen, Karl E. Toepfer

Open Educational Resources

This essay discusses how four modernist poets portrayed the Danish movie star Asta Nilesen (1881-1972). German Hans Schiebelhuth (1895-1944) describes the "demonic" power of Nielsen's image to awaken dark aspects of his adolscent personality. For the Flemish poet Paul van Ostaijen (1896-1928), Nielsen's cinematic image provokes a radical shattering of language into extravagant "word-images." Danish writer Rudolf Broby-Johansen (1900-1987) linked Nielsen's image to a radical (Marxist) critique of oppressive sexual politics within a capitalist society. German Franz Behrens (1895-1977) composed a lengthy, expressionist ode to Nielsen from the perspective of one who actually worked as a screenwriter in the German …

The Mercury 2025

The Mercury

No abstract provided.

On The Edge Of Duality, Manuel F. Medrano

History Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Poetry And Fiction Reading From Introduction To Creative Writing, Cara Dees, Conrad Ligasan, Justice Jackson, Hannah Wagner, Sammi Matias, Mathias Stewart, Reagan Lane, Claire Carrillo, Zander Schirmer

SPARK Symposium Presentations

This poetry and fiction reading features several student presenters from "English 2430: Introduction to Creative Writing" – many of whom are performing their creative work to a live audience for the first time. Whether through poetry or prose, these students' inventive use of language and storytelling will hook you from beginning to end.

Tracing The Lines In Comics And Life: Genealogies And My Place Within Them, Audrey M. Loo

Honors Theses

My thesis is a hybrid English Lit/Creative Writing project on comics. The English Lit half is an Artist’s Statement comprised of scholarly research and both analytical and personal writing, and this work will necessarily inform and be informed by the Creative Writing half, in which I create my own comics.

“Women Who Don’T Know How To Stay Married”: The Poetic Afterlives Of The 1927 Bristol Sessions, Aubrey R. Adkins

Honors Theses

This project begins from the understanding that song lyrics can have lasting impacts on the poetic work that proceeds from them, and can and should, therefore, be read as literature. In the cultural context of Southern Appalachia, a historically underserved and academically underrepresented region, this understanding is intertwined with Audre Lorde’s idea that “For women...[poetry] is a vital necessity of our existence.” The women of Southern Appalachia, denied access to particular modes of expression as a result of external circumstances such as poverty and sexism, need poetry, according to Lorde, to take “tangible action” in their lives. What came before …

In Praise Of Dust, Hasler Gomez-Perez

Theses and Dissertations

A desire path is a physical manifestation of where a system has failed, but also where it has been refused, where a new path has been made. The wake exists in the post, it is not a singular, untethered event, but a subtle double entendre that lives in the post-death, but also in the pre-life—not a liminal limbo, but a superposition of dying and waking.

This collection was assembled and composed over the course of two years as I navigated my practice, myself, and others. Present here are my thoughts, my experiences, and in many ways my beliefs. IN PRAISE …

A Witch's Tale: Shadow Of Her Past, Parker Finley

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The following thesis includes a critical introduction and an excerpt from the authors own novel. The introduction analyzes and explored the correlation between characterization and world building in fantasy or supernatural fiction, arguing that character driven narratives are essential for writing stories that balance the fantastical with the real human experience to engage readers at an emotional level. The author accomplishes this by utlizing theorists such as E M Forster, Lubomir Dolezel, Milan Kundera, James Wood, David Corebett, and Stephen King to examine how elaborate settings should not overshadow character complexity. Through understanding their theories, the authors own writing process, …

Discarded People, Amber Harris

All ETDs from UAB

ABSTRACT This is the first chapter of the novel, Discarded People, a character-driven story about a group of young Black friends navigating love, identity, and community. As they form deep connections with one another, they face personal struggles that challenge their sense of belonging and self-discovery. The narrative explores themes of family, friendship, and the search for purpose, while highlighting the complexities of building a chosen family amidst personal and societal pressures. In chapter one, the main characters are introduced; Winnie, Franklin, Jelani, Adanna, Eban and Chance. As the characters prepare for their final year in high school while navigating …

Coffee Shops And Community, Julia A. Franz

Emerging Writers

This paper focuses on the role of coffeehouses as community hubs through a comparative analysis of two locations of a locally owned coffee company in Georgia. It examines how the physical design and values of each shop offer unique forms of social interaction. The St. Simons location encourages spontaneous, intergenerational conversations; while, the Brunswick shop strengthens pre-existing community ties among working families and retirees. The profile explains how, by incorporating local history, sustainable sourcing, and communal spaces, the coffee company shows how design and principles shape social dynamics. This profile highlights how coffeehouses can serve as more than commercial spaces …

How I Fell In Love With Writing, Julia Lee

Emerging Writers

This is a story of being a first-generation student to come to America. This article includes the hardships of my arrival and how my relationship with writing grew because of the support of my English instructor.

The Sword And The Serpent, Gina Dittmeier

Children's Book Writing and Illustrating (MFA) Theses

This project provides insight into the monstrous bridegroom trope in fairytale and its influence in modern fantasy literature. The monstrous bridegroom trope has several different variations, but all of these variations result in a young and innocent woman marrying a monster. Through my critical essay, I look at this trope through a modern feminist lens, exploring the different variations of the trope in fairy tales, modern fairy tale adaptations, and fantasy literature. The essay brings in modern ideas of toxic masculinity and toxic femininity and applies them to the fairy tale inspiration of fantasy literature. The monstrous bridegroom trope and …

Mágico Nunca Se Muere: Una Historia De Un Amor Unconditional And Unstoppable, Belén Silvia Yudess

Scripps Senior Theses

This novella explores how traditions of silence, family dynamics, adolescence and storytelling influence identity formation and self-perception for Mexican-American women. Situated within the AIDS pandemic, this story aims to show how even within a world riddled with grief, hatred, and fear siempre hay espacio para las risas y el amor.

The Dirt Underneath My Fingernails: The American Pastoral And 21st-Century Food System Reform, Annabella Isaacson

Scripps Senior Theses

The following is an amalgamation of my experiences personally and vested interests academically, and is meant to be read as just that. As a thesis that combines Environmental Analysis and Writing & Rhetoric degrees, this project challenges traditional academic forms by integrating creative nonfiction and poetry with academic writing and analysis. This thesis attempts to fuse the academic and personal essay into one cohesive piece. The inconclusive nature of the narratives and explorations that follow are intended to represent my process in grappling with the histories and significance of American pastoral literature through the ways in which this genre has …

Litmag 2025, University Of Missouri-St. Louis

Litmag

Litmag’s mission is to nurture the creativity of the students, staff, and alumni of UMSL by providing a space to showcase the diverse literary and artistic talent on our campus. We aim to provide an inclusive, professional and high-quality publication free of charge to UMSL and the local community.

Dear Reader, Welcome! I am so excited to introduce to you the 2025 edition of UMSL’s Litmag. It was a privilege to serve as the Editor-in-Chief for this year’s publication, and I would first like to acknowledge the diligent hard work of the Litmag staff. From the call for submissions to …

Where Do I Fit In Cuny? A Course Toolkit, Anna Grevenitis

Open Educational Resources

This teaching toolkit was developed as a result of the CUNY 1969 Teach-in that took place in Summer 2025. The assignments here ask students to reflect on and retrace their story of why they are here – freshmen college students at Baruch College, and what needed to happen for them to be sitting in our classroom at this time.

Poetry Is Change: Close Reading In The Context Of Trauma Research, Maeve Cecilia Tobin Flusser

Honors Theses and Capstones

No abstract provided.

Xi: Dwelling Writing Thinking: Traces Of Being Songs Of Elduvík Hölderlin’S “In Lovely Blue…” Remembrance The Ister, Charles S. Taylor

Wine Journey: Tasting Dwelling Learning at The Kitchen Table

Lieblicher Cousin Holz / Beloved cousin Holz, welcome once again to my Gehäus! 1 2Please make yourself comfortable on this bench beside me. Remembered conversations bring us back here. New questions to share. Neither of us has a guess where we will ramble during the adventure. Thinking about your beloved Ister / Donau / Danube flowing through the Schwarzwald / Black Forest we found our way, unexpectedly, to Kant’s Erhabene / Sublime. Only after making a visit north of Norway to Svalbard. Der Ister, begins with you calling for daylight allowing you to carefully, reverently observe what will present itself …

Poetry Reading From The Craft Of Poetry Class, Cara Dees, Lj Towell, Lo Vaezi, Abigail Eaton, Bevan Johnson, Virginia Peppiatt, Rachel Jones, Zach Clar, Yara Ali, Lucy Rivas

SPARK Symposium Presentations

This creative reading from the students of "English 3420: Craft of Poetry" features several student presenters sharing the original poems that they wrote and revised across the course of the Spring 2025 semester. These poems of grief, joy, love, and survival showcase the linguistic brilliance and dazzling creativity of Belmont undergraduates.

Robert Frost And The Myth Of Adam And Eve, Theo Johnson

CMC Senior Theses

What exactly it is about the story of Adam and Eve that fascinated Robert Frost is hard to say. Of course, he is not the first to engage with it in writing – for much of recorded human history, the Genesis account of man’s creation has held a place of unparalleled importance in our understanding of what it is to be human, provoking innumerable exegetic responses. In popular literature, too, it has served as inspiration for some of the most celebrated English and American poems. From the “bloodless myth” of Geoffrey Hill’s “Genesis” to the great theodicy of John Milton’s …

My Happy Neighbor, Ty Rea

Creative Writing Club - Fan Fiction

This is an alternate universe, it is a fanfiction about how Ronald McDonald and Wendy's started their franchise and have had a family-like relationship with each other.

‘‘I Am Not This, Not Here, This Time’’: Claudia Emerson’S Infusion Suite As A Compelling Account Of The Lived Experience Of Cancer, Chris Foss

English & Linguistics Articles

Claudia Emerson’s Infusion Suite section within her poetry collection Impossible Bottle is a significant contemporary literary representation of cancer. In this twelve-poem sequence, Emerson dispenses with the typical martial metaphors so often used to represent this lived experience. Instead, she focuses on more mundane everyday moments in a way that acknowledges and respects the humanity of all those at the treatment center—especially that of the patients. Emerson refuses to airbrush out the daunting, debilitating aspects of cancer, but she also preserves space for light and life.

Climate Goodbyes: Reporting On Loss, Change And The Human Response In Montana, Madeline Jorden

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This portfolio explores how climate-driven environmental change intersects with long-standing tensions over natural resource management, tribal sovereignty, and rural identity in Montana. It consists of three stories: a historically low water year at Flathead Lake that intensified disputes between tribal dam operators and non-tribal waterfront homeowners; the first confirmed presence of invasive smallmouth bass in the Bitterroot River, signaling warming stream conditions and ecological disruption; and a political narrative from Colstrip, where coal industry workers cling to promises of revival amid economic and regulatory decline. Each piece illustrates how climate change acts not only as an environmental force but also …

The Disappearance Of Shannon White, Kathryn J. Limberg

Theses and Dissertations--English

The Disappearance of Shannon White is a Mystery-Thriller novel. The aim of the piece is to explore thematic components including perseverance, socio-economic inequities, the stigmas and medical malpractice of the American mental health system in the late twentieth century, and, ultimately, to entertain. My earliest love in the literary world was science fiction and fantasy. Writers like Robert Jordan, and more recently, Simone St. James, create worlds that test the bounds of reality in a way that I find liberating, and I seek to implement this in my own work. Such authors have taught me that fiction offers freedom to …

Nonfiction Forms In Contemporary Poetry By Black And Asian American Writers, Elizabeth J. Mitchell

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Writers experiment with form inside poetry for various reasons, including a desire for play. Creating poetry is a creative process that involves experimentation. This research highlights poetry that adapts established nonfiction forms into poetry forms, examining poetry published in 2000-2024 by Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander American (AANHPI) writers and Black writers (writers of African ancestry) within the United States. For writers of color especially, nonfiction forms can provide a different way of entering into conversations about race, ethnicity, gender, identity, power, privilege, and authority. This research examines poetry by A. Van Jordan, Franny Choi, Alison C. Rollins, …

Milk Tooth, 2025, Eddie Anderson, Sadie House, Jay Clark, Ravyn Oliver, Edwin Mayo, Joseph Kettelhodt, Kaitlyn Seibel, Daniel Mcnellis, Elise Fladeboe, Ivy Matejcek, Trinity Johnson, Eve Gwendolyn Hansen, Liz Fisher, Emma Niessink, Hannah Lewis

Milk Tooth

"Writings by Bemidji State University Students". Sponsored by the Bemidji State University English Department.