Digital Commons Network^™

Wilfred Owen And Shell Shock: The Initial Sympathetic Understanding Of Ptsd, Rachel Eubanks

The Oswald Review: An International Journal of Undergraduate Research and Criticism in the Discipline of English

No abstract provided.

Auden: Body/Mind, Basil Lloyd-Moffett

CMC Senior Theses

On one hand Auden appears the most cerebral of poets. It is said that when he arrived at school, aged eight, he professed himself excited to study the different psychological types, and the cryptic verse that was to emerge over a decade later bears the scars of his reading, psychological or otherwise, as clearly as the relentlessly analytical Dichtung und Wahrheit and other late works.Absorbing and repurposing philosophical, psychological, religious, and scientific works was an essential part of his artistic strategy, and led to credible accusations of plagiarism on a number of occasions.And just as his collaborators and friends mocked …

Andrew Tate, Matt Walsh, And The Discursive Production And Policing Of Gender, Alan J. Bandyk, Alan J. Bandyk

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This thesis utilizes the works of Judith Butler, Simone de Beauvoir, Frederic Jameson, and Edward Said in a discourse analysis of influencers and writers in the right wing "manosphere." The figures analyzed herein are Andrew Tate and Matt Walsh. Their rhetoric aims to create a discursive woman who embodies traditional notions of gender and sex that de Beauvoir critiqued in 1949. The constant adherence and reference to a mythical past exhibits ways of thinking that coincide perfectly with Jameson's own theoretical work with the term and its inherent false nostalgia. Tate's and Walsh's efforts also fall into discursive attempts at …

Echoes Of The Spanish Civil War In Tolkien’S Legendarium, Alexander Retakh

Journal of Tolkien Research

The Spanish Civil War had a profound effect on the literature of the 1930s and 40s; however, it has been almost neglected in Tolkien studies. This article examines both Tolkien's potential views of the Civil War and their effect on his writings of the late 1930s such as the emerging story of Numenor. The dearth of primary sources can be rectified by studying the position on the War taken by other British Catholic intellectuals. Very likely Tolkien viewed the Civil War primarily as a religious conflict and was shaken by the highly publicized cases of anti-clerical violence. The combination of …

Inoculant To Influence: Cultivating Critical Citizenship By Foregrounding Ontology Through Kenneth Burke And Walter Fisher’S Rhetorical Frameworks, Mark Griffin

English Department Theses

Scholars interested in exploring the potency of the writing modality of critical pedagogy for molding students into proactive citizens will find the integration of Kenneth Burke’s Dramatism and Walter Fisher’s Narrative Paradigm instrumental, offering tools essential for cultivating a rhetorical awareness adept at navigating narratives in the 21st century. Synthesizing Burke’s rhetorical dialectic between the nature of reality and our understanding of it with Fisher’s concept that the human condition is a narrative condition yields insights into the critical writing process. This integration fosters a rhetorical awareness, serving as an inoculant to influence, countering the prevailing persuasive elements within today’s …

This Passing Shadow: The Role Of Trauma In Reforming Individual And Cultural Identity In The Lord Of The Rings And Anglo-Saxon Literature, Benjamin C. Benson

English MA Theses

Many scholars focus on J.R.R. Tolkien's personal history and attempt to locate his own trauma in the texts of his works. However, this focus often overlooks the role that trauma plays in the reshaping of individual and cultural identity within the works of Tolkien. Tolkien uses a number of methods to communicate trauma throughout his works, but these methods often have roots in Anglo-Saxon Literature. This study analyzes the various ways that Tolkien adapts Anglo-Saxon works to communicate trauma while simultaneously using the traumatic events to help communicate healing through the interaction of the traumatized with their community.

Mrs. Dalloway As A Window For Understanding Life, Kristen Venegas

English (MA) Theses

Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway may be dismissed as fiction, and fiction consequently is dismissed as fantasy. However, the novel enables readers to practice an intellectual exercise of meta-awareness that extends beyond the pages and onto real world phenomena. Under a cognitive neuroscience perspective, Mrs. Dalloway is a literary masterpiece due to its hyper- realistic execution of the intimacies of life. Through the narrative style of free-indirect discourse, Woolf illustrates what occurs in the minds of characters as they develop their own perceptions of reality and identity, exposes the fear and inadequacies of mankind’s distress in times of chaos and disorder …

Adopting Open-Source Methodology For Improving Business Processes And Public Trust, Lawrence Bosek

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Technology and the Internet have given rise to the availability of information at our fingertips. While the public, particularly consumers, are more commonly described as being the leading users and beneficiaries of electronic information services, businesses and governments are also players in the same information technology resource arena. Technology is also being integrated more in our everyday lives. Important information can now be easily stored on Internet websites for the public, businesses, and other governmental offices to search and peruse when needed. The Internet has also allowed for electronic devices to connect and communicate with each other in ways that …

Tolkien’S Animals: A Bibliography, Kris Swank

Journal of Tolkien Research

Bibliography of scholarly and popular science research on Tolkien’s various animal species includes more than 100 English-language entries from literary, mythological, cultural, historical, philological, psychological, religious, and scientific perspectives. Includes entries on animal sentience/personhood, general surveys of animals, and analysis of specific species: bats, bears (including Beorn), birds, cats, cryptids, deer, dogs (including wolves and foxes), dragons, elephants, horses, sea-life, and spiders.

"Tolkien's Eagles: Aves Ex Machina", Deidre Dawson

Journal of Tolkien Research

Many studies of Tolkien’s Eagles have emphasized their role as a narrative device (the deus ex machina) or spiritual symbol and have focused primarily on their intervention in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. This essay argues for a more comprehensive interpretation, and demonstrates that the Eagles function as essential characters throughout Tolkien’s legendarium, beginning with the earliest stories. The importance of eagles in mythology, folklore and literature is highlighted to show how Tolkien combined his deep knowledge of these subjects with his attention to the biology and anatomy of actual eagles to create his own …

Death In Supernatural: Critical Essays, Edited By Amanda Taylor And Susan Nylander, Martina G. Wise

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

A review of the collection of critical essays, Death in Supernatural: Critical Essays

How To Misunderstand Tolkien: The Critics And The Fantasy Master By Bruno Bacelli, Nancy Martsch

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

No abstract provided.

Mythos To Myth To Mythopoeia: A Cyclical Process, Ashna Mary Jacob, Nirmala Menon

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

The paper predicates the prospects of mythopoeia in the mythical tradition. An authorial construction of mythopoeia, when internalized into the collective consciousness can evolve into mythos. This mythopoeia turned mythos in the course of time and space may regress into myth. The fragments of the myth may then result in the making of another mythopoeia. Mythopoeia to mythos to myth is a cyclical process in mythical tradition. The paper establishes this argument with J. R. R. Tolkien’s conception of mythopoeia. It explores similarities between mythopoeia and conlang. It contends that just as conlang can evolve as language, mythopoeia can also …

“Or Break It”: The Cost Of Silmarils And Sworn Oaths, Alexander M. Bruce

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

As much as J. R. R. Tolkien valued the heroism expressed in “The Battle of Maldon,” with its record of warriors who died to maintain their oath, he challenged the notion of utter adherence to a sworn oath in The Silmarillion. The over-arching narrative of The Silmarillion tells of Fëanor and his seven sons who swear an oath to reclaim the three Silmarils from any “Vala, Demon, Elf or Man as yet unborn, or any creature, great or small, good or evil, that time should bring forth unto the end of days, whoso should hold or take or keep …

The Hen That Laid The Eggs: Tolkien And The Officers Training Corps [Expanded], Janet Brennan Croft

Journal of Tolkien Research

J.R.R. Tolkien, sharing an experience with many young men of his class and education, participated in the Officers Training Corps while at King Edward’s School. Because of this program, Tolkien and many of his fellow junior officers in the Great War were already familiar with the procedures of drill and camp and with basic tactics of war games in all kinds of weather. The atmosphere of the training camps of World War I would not have taken them entirely by surprise, but would have been somewhat reminiscent of the great summer encampments of OTC units from around the country—though of …

Her Precious White Body/Her Tender Black Flesh: The Gothic Link To Black Women's (Mis)Treatment In Real Life And On The Page, Madisty R. Thomas

English Theses & Dissertations

As a work in progress, this thesis explores the interplay between historical and contemporary devaluation of and violence against Black women, materially and discursively, including visual mediums and written text. Specifically, I focus on the gothic novel to illuminate the impact race-based inventions such as chattel slavery and human exhibitions, as well as the generic tropes of the Gothic, have had on Black women’s representation and lived experience via a wide-ranging introduction and close examination of Richard Marsh’s The Beetle. Additionally, the conclusion attempts to suggest how Black women and girls might survive in this antiblack world, thus escape …

Empires Rise: An Approach To Worldbuilding In Modern Fantasy Fiction, Anthony John Rudd

Masters Theses

Worldbuilding is a critical element to storytelling and involves much more than creating a setting for a narrative – it serves to establish a credible foundation on which authors give life to their creation. There are many great authors who have mastered the art of worldbuilding and their creations can serve as a primer for aspiring authors. This thesis explores critical elements of worldbuilding, provides examples from notable fantasy and science fiction authors such as Tolkien, Jordan, King, and others and explores my approach to incorporating those elements into my own writing.

Turning Heartache Into Hope: How Fantasy Reveals Spiritual Truth About Sin, Suffering, And Redemption, Sophia Raffaelle Bricker

Masters Theses

This paper examines the problem of evil and suffering through the literary genre of fantasy. Seminal texts written by Christians in this genre present the problem of sin and death through themes and representative characters but also tempers the reality of suffering with the presence of Christ figures, who bring redemption to the characters and story world through an act of sacrifice. Following the examples of these seminal fantasies and building on my personal experience of loss, I approach the problem of sin and suffering in excerpts from my novel in progress, The Mountain Pass Keeper, by presenting an older …

A Double Time In Romeo And Juliet: Juliet’S Rapid Maturity, David George

Selected Papers of the Ohio Valley Shakespeare Conference

No abstract provided.

Warnings Against The Exploitation Of Children In Young Adult Dystopian Literature, James Henry Lambert

English Theses, Dissertations, and Student Creative Activity

The works of Suzanne Collins, Koushun Takami, and Neal Shusterman present a unique subset of young adult literature in which young adults are forced to kill one another. My thesis argues that the presentation of child gladiators in these stories is a form of weaponization conducted by the fictional governments as deterrent weapons against the parents of these fictional dystopias. This weaponization is accomplished through the creation of spectacular events that are meant to draw the attention to the power of the government, also as a form of deterrence against rebellion. Next, my thesis demonstrates how the human body is …

Paradise And Paradiso: Echoes Of A Fortunate Fall, Kathryn Alley

The Kabod

Presented at the National Collegiate Research Conference at Harvard University, January 2023.

Cloaked In Shadow: The Biopolitics Of Sauron’S Middle-Hell, Journee Cotton

Online Midwinter Seminar (OMS)

This paper considers hellish aspects of The Lord of the Rings through an environmental bioethical framework focusing on the intersection of biopolitics, race, and ecology. Key figures that shall be examined include Sauron, Saruman, Uruk-hai, and the body of Middle-earth. Sauron shall be read as a Hades figure; they share numerous connections, such as their domain is hell, influence over invisibility (Hades’ cloak and Sauron’s Ring), characterization of giver of gifts, possession of dead bodies, and connection to the earth’s fertility (or lack). Sauron’s possession over dead bodies arises from the necropolitical power he incites over bodies in his sphere …

Vol. 57 No. 3 - Whole No. 394, Megan Abrahamson

Mythprint

Mythprint is the monthly bulletin of the Mythopoeic Society, a nonprofit educational organization devoted to the study, discussion, and enjoyment of myth and fantasy literature, especially the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams. To promote these interests, the Society publishes three magazines, maintains a World Wide Web site, and sponsors the annual Mythopoeic Conference and awards for fiction and scholarship, as well as local and written discussion groups.

Vol. 57 No. 1 - Whole No. 392, Megan Abrahamson

Mythprint

Mythprint is the monthly bulletin of the Mythopoeic Society, a nonprofit educational organization devoted to the study, discussion, and enjoyment of myth and fantasy literature, especially the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams. To promote these interests, the Society publishes three magazines, maintains a World Wide Web site, and sponsors the annual Mythopoeic Conference and awards for fiction and scholarship, as well as local and written discussion groups.

Vol. 55 No. 4 - Whole No. 387, Megan Abrahamson

Mythprint

Mythprint is the monthly bulletin of the Mythopoeic Society, a nonprofit educational organization devoted to the study, discussion, and enjoyment of myth and fantasy literature, especially the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams. To promote these interests, the Society publishes three magazines, maintains a World Wide Web site, and sponsors the annual Mythopoeic Conference and awards for fiction and scholarship, as well as local and written discussion groups.

Vol. 52 No. 4 - Whole No. 375, Megan Abrahamson

Mythprint

Mythprint is the monthly bulletin of the Mythopoeic Society, a nonprofit educational organization devoted to the study, discussion, and enjoyment of myth and fantasy literature, especially the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams. To promote these interests, the Society publishes three magazines, maintains a World Wide Web site, and sponsors the annual Mythopoeic Conference and awards for fiction and scholarship, as well as local and written discussion groups.

Vol. 51 No. 4 - Whole No. 371, Megan Abrahamson

Mythprint

Mythprint is the monthly bulletin of the Mythopoeic Society, a nonprofit educational organization devoted to the study, discussion, and enjoyment of myth and fantasy literature, especially the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams. To promote these interests, the Society publishes three magazines, maintains a World Wide Web site, and sponsors the annual Mythopoeic Conference and awards for fiction and scholarship, as well as local and written discussion groups.

Masks And Mirrors: The Authorial Selfhood Of J.M. Coetzee’S Elizabeth Costello And Susan Barton, Emily R. Peters

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This thesis examines the authorial characters of Elizabeth Costello, from the novel of thesame name, and Susan Barton, the protagonist of the novel “Foe,” both authored by South African-born writer J. M. Coetzee, through the ontological concept of the Heideggerian Dasein. Both fictional characters contend with the issues of alienation of Self and the struggle for reciprocal Othering imposed upon them by the social constructs of their authorhood and struggle for an authentic self, specifically in view of the performative nature of their gendered roles and the issue of Coetzee’s male authorhood.

Mythprint Vol. 3 No. 4, Glen Goodknight

Mythprint

Mythprint is the monthly bulletin of the Mythopoeic Society, a nonprofit educational organization devoted to the study, discussion, and enjoyment of myth and fantasy literature, especially the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams. To promote these interests, the Society publishes three magazines, maintains a World Wide Web site, and sponsors the annual Mythopoeic Conference and awards for fiction and scholarship, as well as local and written discussion groups.

Fragments Of A Writer’S Mind: Virginia Woolf In Her Own Words, Baheya Zeitoun

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis provides a thematic reading of select autobiographical and theoretical works by Virginia Woolf. It utilizes Deleuze and Guattari’s philosophy of the rhizome as a methodological framework. The rhizome does not have a hierarchal structure but is rather interconnected. In the same way, the chapters interweave the multi-disciplinary theoretical approaches to connect the disparate factions of the modernist writer’s mind and life.

The early twentieth century saw the rise of post-suffrage writers with narratives that diverged from male-centric values. Woolf is one of the writers who makes a clear distinction between male and female values by championing women’s experiences …