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Cultural Of Authenticity And Commodification: Analyzing The Aesthetic Waves And Collective Culture In The 2010s And 2020s, Stefanny Leung Yu

Student Theses

The “authentic self” is curated, aestheticized, and most notably, commodified. Digital algorithms, likes, views, and engagement are more than just digital metrics, they are the management of performance. For millions of other users — including the author herself — social media is the locus of personal expression. Most notably, sites like Tumblr, where users in the 2010s posted hazy images or overly filtered graphics along with melancholic song lyrics that match the vibe of the moment, expression was earnest and idealized. Today, social media in the 2020s, new creators like Hannah Neelaman, better known as Ballerina Farm, dress in pastoral …

“As If The Devil Was In Her”: Fanny Fern’S Remaking Of Authorship In The Nineteenth Century, Rowan S. Q. Havranek

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Fanny Fern revolutionized nineteenth-century literature with her unapologetically blunt and insightful commentary on social norms, education, women’s rights, and more. As a columnist for The New York Ledger, Fern challenged the conventional boundaries placed on women, blending her personal observations and experiences with sharp social critique. Because of her unflinching style and writings that addressed a wide range of topics, she became one of the most well-paid and widely read authors of her time. Yet, she was also subjected to harsh judgment. The media, particularly in the hands of her second husband, was used to damage her reputation, yet Fern …

“Re-Storying” Anne Shirley And The Adhd Child: A Crip Genealogy Of Anne Of Green Gables, Darian Aleyna Wilson

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This thesis explores the contested nature of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), focusing on its cultural and historical constructions. While ADHD has been included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders since 1980, its legitimacy remains a subject of debate across medical, disability studies, and historical scholarship. Using Eli Clare’s critique of diagnosis as a tool rather than a fact, this project examines how ADHD is both pathologized and re-storied within societal and medical discourses. It highlights the tension between medical classifications and lived experiences of those diagnosed with ADHD, particularly in the context of girlhood.

The central …

The Weaponization Of Medicine In Arkansas Prison Farms, 1960s-1970s, Grace E. Marr

History Undergraduate Honors Theses

The Arkansas State Penitentiary provides a case study for medical care in prisons during a transformational period. Isolation and state non-involvement in Arkansas allowed the creation of an independent culture in which harrowing abuses flourished. Medical providers could be prisoners themselves, operating the hospital and blood bank creating a complicated hierarchy. By examining medical provisions at the Cummins and Tucker Prison Farms during the 1960s to 1970s, this thesis reveals a system where the lines between treatment and torture and medical practitioner and imprisoned were blurred.

"Troublesome Medicine Man": Representations Of The Sword Bearer Incident In Newspaper Coverage, Cara Sue Swaim

History Undergraduate Honors Theses

Newspaper coverage of Native Americans during the nineteenth century had an “artistic bias,” or a tendency to emphasize action, danger, and treachery as a part of the “Indian formula.” This meant that vast amounts of journalistic zeal was spent on instances of conflict and tension between tribes, within tribes, between tribes and white settlers, or between tribes and the U.S. military, while times of peace and instances of cooperation received miniscule amounts of attention. This was largely motivated by a desire to justify American western expansion and the need to “civilize” Native groups. This “Indian formula” was also applied in …

2025 Commencement Program, Columbia College Chicago

Commencement Programs

The commencement program of the 2025 Columbia College Chicago graduation ceremonies.

“Raise Your Keffiyeh:” Headdress As A Lens For Understanding The Arab Revolt In Mandatory Palestine, 1936-1939, Kathryn Kf Butler

All Theses

In the fall of 1938, approaching the apex of the most intensive period of violence during the Arab Revolt against the British government in Mandatory Palestine (1936-1939), a seemingly unassuming change occurred for Arab men in cities throughout the region: they donned a new headdress. Sartorial shifts in the early post-Ottoman period were not unique to Palestine. During the Interwar period, changes in male headgear occurred throughout the greater Middle East in Turkey, Afghanistan, Iran, Syria and Iraq, to name a few. These transformations of dress signaled a shift in something either societal or political and oftentimes both. I argue …

What Role Do Economic Interests Play In Improving Bilateral Relations Between Algeria And Morocco?, Sabrina Laib

International Studies (MA) Theses

Tensions between Algeria and Morocco began after Algeria gained independence from France in 1962, culminating in the Sand War of 1963. Since then, various mediation efforts and economic reconciliation attempts have been initiated, but have consistently been hindered by differing stances—particularly regarding the Western Sahara conflict. I argue that economic interests, especially those in illicit trade, are impactful factors that have negatively affected the bilateral cooperation between Algeria and Morocco. To explain the factors facilitating bilateral relations, this project explores four variables: mediation attempts, regional development schemes, trade, and illicit economy. Qualitative data is used to provide historical-contextual and thematic …

Performative Masculinity In Ducal Literature In Florence (1520-1580), Matthew T. Perkins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Ducal literature of sixteenth-century Florence illuminates the performative nature of gender and sexuality, especially in regard to masculinity. The impetus of this study is Benvenuto Cellini’s autobiography, My Life. While contemporary historiographical studies examine Cellini’s work for its overt misogyny and violence, this work argues that the performative nature of gender, through interdisciplinarity and contextual analysis, offers a highly complex view of masculinity. Cellini’s autobiography directly relates to Giorgio Vasari’s The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects. Vasari’s accounts of Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni and Giovanni Antonio Bazzi, called Il Sodoma, emphasize the importance of fashioned …

In Memoir And Memory: Us Servicewomen Narrating 21st Century Combat, Kelly A. Taylor

War, Diplomacy, and Society (MA) Theses

Over twenty years after the initial invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003, much work remains to uncover the stories of US servicewomen. As the collection of oral histories continues and in the absence of letters, postcards, and other mail for analysis, their memoirs provide some of the first glimpses of the ways 21^st century warfare impacted their experiences in the US military. With shifting “front lines,” the prevalence of improvised explosive devices, and the need for new search tactics, women participated in high rates of combat. Nevertheless, the combat exclusion policy remained in place until 2015. …

Repatriation And Replicas: Finding Impactful Solutions To The Repatriation Question Through Analysis Of Nashville Parthenon Visitor Experiences And Evaluation Of Current Literature, Jesse D. Miller

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Artifact repatriation is an often debated topic within the museum sector. While there have been many arguments for and against the repatriation of cultural heritage objects, none of them consider the implications that artifact repatriation can have on the relationship between a museum and its community. This thesis covers the various arguments surrounding artifact repatriation, the researcher’s personal experience as an intern at the Nashville Parthenon, and analyses visitor responses to a feedback space within the exhibit Repatriation and Its Impact. This thesis uses visitor feedback as the basis for its analysis. The research suggests that use of accurate …

A Secluded Cabin On The Outskirts Of Riverside: A 1937 Trial For Conspiracy To Have Gay Sex, Randall Stoner, Randi Stoner

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

In the early morning hours of Sunday, March 14, 1937, a group of deputy sheriffs and military police surrounded a secluded cabin on the outskirts of Riverside and forced their way inside, arresting everyone on the premises for conspiracy to violate California Penal Code sections 288a and 286: oral copulation and sodomy. Though same-sex relations were outlawed, these men had sought to create a place of privacy for themselves—only to have it surveilled and raided by members of law enforcement. The subsequent trial, People v. Jordan, was a landmark case for the city of Riverside. Many histories of LGBTQ …

The Proverbial Milk And Honey: Frontier, Racial Lines, And The Development Of California Foodways, Ahlys Gandara

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

This thesis proposes that the development of foodways in the state of California occurred concurrently with the development and failures of Americanization and the American frontier. This is done with respect to the fact that California has a much longer history than that of the United States. While foodways are often discussed and examined within the ideas of nationalization, this becomes harder to do within the United States as there is no unifying idea of a national identity and any attempts to do so were hampered by the lack of consensus as to a singular identity. This is especially true …

Pedro Aceves Mfa Thesis, Pedro M. Aceves

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

My Work is about looking at Cruising through a queer decolonial lens. Using multiple mediums such as photo, glass, Augmented reality, and film, I explore these queer histories and aesthetics through not just an anthropological approach but also an artistic epistemological approach weaving together narratives of prehispanic and modern queer Latinidad.

The Hodgepodge Creation: Amalgamated Adaptation In Video Games, Tom Chen, Tom Chen

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Amalgamated adaptation is a concept that involves blending multiple sources into a hodgepodge creation. This practice has become commonplace among game creators in recent years, yet it is neither readily covered nor explicitly mentioned in current video game scholarship. My previous research highlights the profound application of amalgamated adaptation to older texts, particularly myths and sacred texts from various cultures or communities. This method grants creators the autonomy to reinvent these texts in bold and extreme ways, achieved by melding borrowed ideas that complement and, at times, synergize with one another. I argue that single-source adaptations of myths, when reshaped …

A Voice For Unity: The 1947 Freedom Train And Collective Memory Of The American Revolution, Joseph Lewis

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

One element of American Revolution memory is how united the colonists were during the Revolution. Many subsequent political groups, such as the American Heritage Foundation (AHF), utilized this idealistic collective memory to advocate for unity and legitimize their agendas. Through the 1947 Freedom Train, the AHF shaped and reinforced a unified, idealistic, national heritage to unite Americans against the perceived threats of communism, disloyalty, and disunity at home, partially by framing the American Revolution as a united endeavor. Some Utahns and Americans at large, while supporting the pro-capitalist message embedded in the train, applied its message to support the protection …

A Tale Of Two Women, Cassady Brown

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Woman Of Saint-Domingue: Intimacy, Endurance And The Perpetuation Of Saint-Domingue’S Class-Based Social Order In Nineteenth-Century New Orleans, Lillian M. Legardeur, Lillian M. Legardeur

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This microhistory follows Eugenie Peneault (1774-1853) by means of a journal she kept during the Haitian Revolution and her subsequent relocation to New Orleans. Born the daughter of a baker, Peneault advanced through personal connections within the Creole elite to marry a member of the island-born planter class with ties to the minor nobility. With her fellow emigres, she recreated the patriarchal slave society of Saint Domingue in Cuba, then adapted its values to an urban setting in New Orleans, where she and her husband connected with local elites. This woman’s journal sheds light on experiences of pregnancy and childcare …

From Tragedy To Triumph: Maine’S Lgbtq+ History (1984-2005), Aidan King '25

All Student Scholarship

Maine’s LGBTQ+ history may be very rich, but true acceptance was an uphill battle. For decades, queer residents of Maine fought for equal rights in the state. The Stonewall riots in 1969 in New York City were an early sign that LGBTQ+ citizens were not going to continue to let their identities be suppressed, but as the years progressed, so too did the confidence of queer people to be open about their identities, including in Maine. In 1973, at the University of Maine, the Wilde-Stein Club was established, to the deep chagrin of homophobic fundamentalist preachers whose protests against the …

The Rise Of The Soviet Economy: How American Capitalist Corporations Helped Build The Soviet Communist Economic System, Craig A. Helf

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The aim of this dissertation is to examine the depth and scope of the relationship between American capitalism and Soviet socialism during the period of Soviet industrialization in the timeframe around the First Five-Year Plan. The research focuses on the significance of American involvement and how American corporations, personnel, and methods of innovation provided the Soviet Union a comprehensive and robust foundation to build a competitive economy not only to Europe, but to the U.S. as well. An important question of the research examines how two diametrically opposed economic concepts embodied by these respective nations partnered to achieve the goals …

The ‘Monuments Men’ And Art In World War Ii, Sylvester M. Felder

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This research focuses on the 'Monuments Men,’ a group of civilian and military personnel from amongst the Allied Nations in World War II who dedicated themselves to protecting, preserving, and reclaiming Europe's artistic and architectural marvels. The thesis statement is art was highly valued by both sides during the war and fell into their operational and tactical planning and that the 'Monuments Men' were crucial to rescuing looted art and helping to establish some of the finest art institutions of the Western world, aiding in art provenance research and restitution. The dominant research question is why was art sought after …

A Forgotten Incident In A Forgotten War: The Military, Political, And Social Effects Of The No Gun Ri Incident Of The Korean War, Gabriel Robert Evans

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

In late July 1950, a company from the 2nd Battalion 7th Cavalry Regiment fired on a refugee caravan near the village of No Gun Ri, resulting in the deaths of many Korean civilians. The story of No Gun Ri was published by Associated Press reporters on September 30, 1999, prompting Army investigators within the Clinton Administration to spend nearly two years verifying the AP’s claims. While the Inspector General’s No Gun Ri Review confirmed that U.S. troops had killed Korean civilians, it was not a conclusive report. This thesis analyzes the No Gun Ri Incident and the Clinton Administration’s efforts …

The Relationship Between Education And Entrepreneurship Within African American Women’S History As Evidenced By Eight Exemplary Success Stories, Louise C. Mckinney

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The educational and economic achievements of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and other institutions of learning parallel the rise of black entrepreneurial history in the 1900s. They contributed to the historical context of the African American narrative through individual development, political and social changes, educational advancement, and national and regional changes in the concept of black wealth. These institutions provided a new platform for African Americans to rebuild their lives and futures in the post-Reconstruction era. This study analyzes the connection between African American educational leadership and entrepreneurship by assessing the impact of black female educators and leaders who …

Religious Freedom In The Ussr After The Russian Orthodox Church Restoration In September 1943: Us Viewpoint, Eduard Khodun

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article deals with the reaction of American society to changes in the religious policy of the Soviet Union during World War II. After the reestablishment of the Patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in September 1943, assessments of the state of religious freedom in the USSR ranged from optimistic, which considered this event as a relaxation of restrictions or even the beginning of a new type of relationship between the regime and religious communities, to deep skepticism, which was determined by the awareness of the true motives and goals of the Soviet leadership. The Kremlin's decision was seen as …

Ua12/2/2 Talisman: Connection, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

Spring 2025 Talisman:

• Alali, Cecilia & Ragan Harrington. Connection
• Hardesty, Emma. On a Roll – Dungeons & Dragons
• Muscutt, Carson. Grinding Through Life – Molotov Skateshop
• Cox, Kate. Stopwatch
• Harrington, Ragan. 1 Campus, 7 Strangers – Logan Hesse, Nicholas Basile, Spencer Winterbottom, Alliyah Jones, Alex Gehring, Annie McClurg, Rowan Finley
• Vickers, Abigail. Forged in Combat – Mixed Martial Arts
• Wood-Morris, Oli. Survivors to Neighbors – Bosnian Refugees
• Jordan, Shylin. Severed Roots
• Bivens, Emily. Behind the Screen – Social Media
• Dean, Clarissa. Shear Talent – Shake Rag Barbershop
• Sutton, Avery. For the Love of the Old – Thrift Shopping
• Phelps, Maggie. …

Crónicas De Gastronomía Ancestral De La Provincia De Ubaté (Cundinamarca), Johanna Andrea Gil Palacios, Nancy Milena Valiente Triana, Nohora Liliana Agudelo Rodríguez, Carlos Alfonso López Urquina, Cristian Ballén Guarín, John Henry Vásquez Calderón

Institucional

Este libro es un viaje maravilloso que conduce al lector a comprender la estrecha relación entre territorio y gastronomía. Cada accidente geográfico representa un reto de sus pobladores que potencia su creatividad para sobrevivir e implica el esfuerzo para que broten frutos que se puedan llevar a la mesa, en sendas preparaciones que se van heredando entre generaciones. Las personas cuentan llenas de orgullo las gestas que han vivido en torno a la comida, las reuniones familiares, las fiestas patronales, y las convierten en la mejor vitrina de su identidad y la celebración de las cosechas. Es un verdadero placer …

Mobilizing Discord On The United States’ Many Borders: Critical Social Science And Geopolitical Complexity, Margath Walker

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

Attention to the political landscape connecting the United States, Mexico, and Central America has returned with glaring intensity, highlighting the visibly geostrategic elements of bordering practice. Scholars have focused on how state power materializes at multiple scales while at the same time being attentive to the contestable and mutable nature of myriad agentic forces. This talk operates similarly by considering prospects for a frictional and at times ambiguous spatial politics. I extend the notion of discord as a productive lens through which to consider securitization, mobility, and migration. I use two short examples—the border-industrial complex and migrant caravans—to illustrate my …

Author Biographical Notes

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.

Polemik Catra Pada Stupa Induk Candi Borobudur: Kajian Arkeologi Dan Filosofis, So Tju Shinta Lee, Salim Lee

Paradigma: Jurnal Kajian Budaya

This paper explores the profound meaning of the main stupa at Candi Borobudur and analyzes the implications of the proposed catra installation on the monument’s spiritual and cultural values. The interpretation is based on a post-processual perspective that emphasizes the importance of considering context, internal evidence, and internal symbolic relationships rather than seeking externally sourced validation. Through a combination of literature study, observation, and comparative analysis of stupas at Borobudur itself, contemporary Buddhist candis in Central Java, and various types of stupas abroad, this research concludes that the proposal for catra installation on the main stupa of Borobudur lacks …

Arah Baru Politik Kewargaan Etnis Tionghoa Di Indonesia (Studi Kasus Jakarta & Manado), Wasisto Raharjo Jati, Almunauwar Rusli, Rukmana Gonibala, Hendri Gunawan

Paradigma: Jurnal Kajian Budaya

The new direction of ethnic Chinese citizenship politics in Indonesia is marked by a communal revival in non-governmental organizations, media and schools. The past of ethnic Chinese in Indonesia is indeed full of crises, but the future of Chinese citizens in Indonesia really depends on the policies of each ruling regime towards their group. The new direction of ethnic Chinese citizenship politics in Indonesia must be understood as a process of psychological rehabilitation for sentiment and antipathy towards China in the past. The interpretation of social reality and the social movements they carry out on a local scale should be …