Digital Commons Network^™

Anniversary Remembrance For E. And J., Jennifer Phillips

The Alembic

No abstract provided.

Turkey Buzzards, Jennifer Phillips

The Alembic

No abstract provided.

The Leisure Class, Craig Kurtz

The Alembic

No abstract provided.

The Cadaver, Bailey Smith

Calliope

No abstract provided.

Acknowledgements

Calliope

No abstract provided.

Full Issue

Calliope

No abstract provided.

Birds Don't Fly Here, Sarah Mcraney

Honors Theses

Birds Don’t Fly Here is a novella that follows Elora Maevry. She spent her life feeling like an outsider in her own home. She felt like her Nanny was her only true family, but when her Nanny passes away, Elora is forced to confront her family issues while struggling with grief. Elora is forced to make a decision. She can keep flying away or finally face the truth that has caged her. This story includes themes like grief, mental health issues, abandonment, love, and the complications of relationships.

Fantasy And Faith: Lewis And Tolkien On Magic In Fantastical Literature, Zion Lang

Senior Honors Theses

Despite biblical warnings against the occult, Christian authors C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien incorporated many kinds of magic into their works of fantasy. These authors had an orthodox view of the occult, but they also believed that fantasy magic differs from the esoteric: its purpose is imaginative, rather than power-seeking, and it is usually part of the imagined laws of the fantasy world. Lewis focused on the mythic side of fantasy and included more ambiguous magic. Tolkien focused on fantasy as eucatastrophic fairy tale, and his works include somewhat divine supernatural forces. Nonetheless, both authors saw fantasy …

The Impact Of Mindfulness-Based Journaling On Psychological Well-Being, Jonah Guthrie

Honors Projects

This study investigated the effects of mindfulness-based journaling compared to free-form journaling on perceived stress, emotion regulation, and mindfulness in undergraduate students. Participants (N = 43) were randomly assigned to either a mindfulness-based journaling group or a free-form journaling group. Both groups journaled daily for two weeks and completed pre- and post-intervention assessments using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), and Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ).

A series of 2 × 2 mixed-design repeated measures ANOVAs revealed a significant main effect of time for perceived stress, F(1, 7) = 28.38, p = .003, …

The Things We Lose And Other Haunted Stories, Michaela Arnice Reed

Fiction MFA Theses

Inspired by Southern Gothic fiction and speculative short fiction, the stories in "The Things We Lose and Other Haunted Stories" explore the realms of otherness, loss, and family relationships. Though not always supernatural, each story contains a ghostly element which haunts the characters, pushing them out of their comfort zones so they may confront and grow from the fears and phenomena which threaten to break them.

I Am Guillotine, Nathanael Joseph Williams

Fiction MFA Theses

63 years after the Mad War, an exchange of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons, a twelve-year old girl wakes up on a train. She has no memory of where she comes from or who she was before the train, but when it stops, there is no doubt that she is now a slave. Brought to the town of Bludgeonburg in chains, she is sold off, along with a boy named Mohawk, to a man named Aabrax as a pit slave. The odd are firmly against Aabrax, and Gilly is not expected to survive, but by a stroke of luck, she …

Green Grass And Sassafras: Finding Place In Middle Appalachia, Cody Austin Hester

Masters Theses

This paper is concerned with grounding poems about Middle Appalachia. The region more plainly focused is Southwest Virginia, where I have lived for 25 years. Through the collection of poems, it is apparent how the culture, history, and nature of Appalachia have informed my poems. My goal for the collection is for someone who has never been to Appalachia to see the beauty of the region and its people. For those who are from the region, I desire that they develop a deeper appreciation for our home.

The critical paper posits that the best way for someone to experience this …

Contributors

Exile

No abstract provided.

Exile Vol. Lxxii

Exile

No abstract provided.

Moonstorm In The Mainstream Or On The Margins?: Constellating St. Louis Lesbian Rhetorics From The Archives, Aurora Blanchard

Theses

Combining rhetorical analysis, oral history collection, and archival study, this multi-genre research project explores lesbian feminist organizing in the 1970s. Moonstorm was a St. Louis lesbian feminist magazine that operated in the 1970s and 1980s. The sample in this research project focuses on the issues of Moonstorm published between 1973 and 1977. Issues of Moonstorm are available for viewing in the archives of the State Historical Society of Missouri. Building on V. Jo Hsu’s theory of constellating, the poems and stories found in Moonstorm serve as sites of both contested and unconditional belonging for modern LGBTQ+ activists. Constellating, specifically in …

The Squeeze, Sam Fletcher

Best Integrated Writing

In this short story, Sam Fletcher gives a glimpse into the world of Army Engineers. Through the lens of an outsider’s perspective, this story showcases the sometimes-tenuous relationship that accompanies working with ally forces during the global war on terror. While this story is a work of fiction, it mirrors the very real connections formed by exposure to danger and shared hardship. It is dedicated to the brave Engineers Fletcher served with who risked their lives to ensure the safety of others.

Middle Eastern Princess, Badia Abdellatif

Best Integrated Writing

This poem reflects the thoughts that cross Babia Abdellatif's mind and soul as she witness the injustices in the world. It brings together a collection of situations that often occupy her thoughts.

How To Make "Peace", Alisia L. Sanchez

Toyon: Multilingual Literary Magazine

No previous publications.

Resonantia Fragoris: Verses From The Margins, Rouhollah Aghasaleh

Toyon: Multilingual Literary Magazine

No abstract provided.

What Will We Do With The Christmas Pudding?: Joy Davidman, William Lindsay Gresham, And "Christmas In The Workhouse", Gabriel C. Salter, Clark Sheldon

Mythlore: A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and Mythopoeic Literature

The poem "Christmas in the Workhouse" archived in William Lindsay Gresham's papers at first appears to be a random transcript in his files. Exploring the work's publication history and Gresham's contributions to War Poems of the United Nations, a book edited by his second wife Joy Davidman, suggests that in fact "Christmas in the Workhouse" is part of the larger story of how they informed each other's work in the 1940s.

After The Play: A Collection Of Creative Nonfiction Short Stories On The Mental Health And Pressures Surrounding College Athletes, Megan E. Konermann

Undergraduate Theses

This collection of creative nonfiction forefronts the often-overlooked mental health struggles and pressures that collegiate athletes face. These short stories explore the usefulness of the genre to engage readers on a deeper level and reveal real experiences. Each of the three stories incorporates nonfiction aspects collected in interviews conducted with current collegiate athletes and creatively models the literary style and technique of a prominent literary figure. In sharing these creative nonfiction short stories, this project works to build a connection between the reader and these athletes, fostering future support, empathy, and understanding.

Understanding Ai’S Potential In Creativity And Research, Chloe Albrecht, Natalie Pradia

Undergraduate Research Conference

We experimented with artificial intelligence (Al) to better understand its limitations, guiding principles, and ethical impacts in creative and academic research and writing. Our project's purpose was to explore if Al can only harm creative endeavors and should therefore remain separate from the arts. Our methodology involved prompting and re-prompting to compose a variety of texts, demonstrating that the use of Al for creative and academic works can involve critical thinking. This process included giving the Als broad-scope prompts and narrowing in on specific tasks with repetitive re-prompting. We applied this method to writing, gathering resources, and providing enough background …

Bleu Pour Toujours (Blue Forever), Macha Petre

Vernacular: New Connections in Language, Literature, & Culture

Since this short story is written in French, the abstract below is available in both English and French.

Bleu pour toujours (« Blue Forever ») is a short story blending poetry and science fiction. In the near future, war, pollution, and human activity have devastated our world. The blue sky exists only in history books or old photographs. Amid this gray, monotonous despair, an unnamed, ageless, and genderless character escapes one evening and makes unsettling discoveries. Something is stirring. Upon waking, they find everyone has vanished, and the laws of the universe have been upended. In place of the sky …

'Culture In Couture' & 'The Elements Of Style', Cooper Mortensen, Riley Williamson

.RAW Journal of Art and Design

No abstract provided.

Full Issue, Erin Robinson, Michaela Velleno

.RAW Journal of Art and Design

No abstract provided.

Unsolved Equations, Alisia L. Sanchez

Toyon: Multilingual Literary Magazine

None of these pieces have been previously published.

Our Liberation Is Wielding Our Fire, Jasmine A. Fortunato

Toyon: Multilingual Literary Magazine

No abstract provided.

Body Of Water, Rachel C.C. Matteri

Toyon: Multilingual Literary Magazine

This work has not been previously published.

Reckoning Mortality, Noah Mitchell

Toyon: Multilingual Literary Magazine

None of the submitted works have been published or circulated in any way. You will be the first to read them.

Mirrors Served Three Ways, Colby A. Kloehr

Toyon: Multilingual Literary Magazine

No abstract provided.