Digital Commons Network^™

Understanding Proxemics Through Restrooms: A "Hands-Off" Approach To Personal Space And Communication, Joshua Westwick

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Numerous methods of teaching nonverbal communication have been well documented in the literature. However, some instructors may struggle to create transformative learning experiences for their students. This teaching activity provides a creative and original way for students to discuss nonverbal communication, specifically proxemics, in a fun, engaging, and memorable learning experience. This exercise asks the learners to reflect upon a previous experience with using a public restroom, critically reflect upon that experience individually, engage in classroom discourse about the experience, and take action by being aware of the space and territoriality choices they make. Students have responded positively to the …

Friends "For Good" - Wicked: A New Musical And The Idealization Of Friendship, Valerie Lynn Schrader

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

This rhetorical analysis explores the relationship between the two main characters, Elphaba and G(a)linda, in the musical Wicked through the interpersonal communication lens of friendship. This article focuses on the role that friendship plays in the musical and suggests that friendship is a relationship that can be stronger than romantic relationships. Through the application of Rawlins’ work on friendship to the relationship between Elphaba and G(a)linda, this analysis suggests that friendship is the most prominent relationship in Wicked. Wicked offers an im-portant message to theatre-goers: Friendship is something to be valued and cherished.

Complete Volume (39)

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Complete digitized volume (volume 39) of Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal.

Creating Community Outside Of The Classroom: Strategies For Integrating Second Life Into The Interpersonal Communication Course, Elizabeth Tolman

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

The educational opportunities for Second Life across various courses have been well documented in the literature. However, instructors new to teaching online may not have explored Second Life as an instructional resource and may perceive using Second Life as overwhelming. For this assignment, students create an avatar and interact with other avatars in Second Life. This assignment can be used in the online or face-to-face communication course. Second Life provides a context where students can participate in interactions with other avatars, their classmates, and the instructor. Students observe and analyze self-disclosure, interpersonal deception, verbal communication, nonverbal communication, and additional interpersonal …

"I'M, Uhh, Sorry": The Influence Of Fluency And Communication Competence On Perceptions Of Apologies, Benjamin W. Chiles, Aileen L.S. Buslig

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

This paper reports the results of an experiment that examined the influence of increasing levels of nonfluency in apologies on audience perceptions. The influence of self-perceived communicator competence (SPCC) on perceptions of apologies was also examined. Favorable ratings of apologies decreased as nonfluency increased from low to moderate levels, but then increased as nonfluency increased from moderate to high levels. For high nonfluency apologies, individuals with higher SPCC rated the apology more favorably than did individuals with lower SPCC. Limitations and directions for future research are discussed.

Tornadoes Of Utterances: A Theoretical Approach To Studying Discourse, Power And Knowledge, Terri L. Russ

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

This paper expands upon our current understanding of the nexus between discourse and power by presenting an alternative theoretical approach to studying the intertextual workings of various discourses and how they work independently and interdependently to create power. Using Bakhtin’s theories of language, the paper first shows how all discourse is heteroglot and intertextually related to other discourses. The paper then shows how this intertextuality works to increase the connection between discourse, power and knowledge as discussed by Foucault. Taking this knowledge, the tornado model of discourse and power is presented as a theoretical and methodological tool to be used …

Complete Volume (38)

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Complete digitized volume (volume 38) of Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal.

"A Land Of Make Believe That Don’T Believe In Me": Dissent By Incongruity In Green Day’S "Jesus Of Suburbia", Jansen B. Werner

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Following the September 11 terrorist attacks there were increased demands in America for patriotism. This attitude of hyper-patriotism, in accordance with the Bush Administration’s appropriation of the American civil religion, precluded many discursive possibilities for dissent. Yet there were some who still utilized the available outlets of public discourse to dissent from Bush Administration policies. Green Day’s 2004 song, “Jesus of Suburbia,” is just such an exemplary dissent discourse. What follows is divided into four sections. First, I analyze the ideological circumstances which preceded the release of “Jesus of Suburbia.” Second, I reflect on the respective conceptual insights of Ivie’s …

Collaborative Theatre/Creative Process, Jimmy Bickerstaff

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Theatre production is a collaborative creative activity. Recent theory and research into group creativity recognizes the relationships between individuals, groups, and the contexts in which creativity emerges. It also suggests that between the interactive creative processes of the collaborators and their work, the work itself becomes a kind of creative entity. In this essay, I explain how all creativity is now seen as collaboration, outline this process, and illustrate the differences between seeing theatre as an aggregate, collective activity and the more integrated view, in which the process is synergistically collaborative. An understanding of the cognitive and behavioral processes of …

Front Matter

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Front matter and table of contents for Volume 38 of Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal.

Authentically African : Arts And The Transnational Politics Of Congolese Culture, Sarah Van Beurden

Ohio University Press Open Access Books

Together, the Royal Museum for Central Africa in Tervuren, Belgium, and the Institut des Musées Nationaux du Zaire (IMNZ) in the Congo have defined and marketed Congolese art and culture. In Authentically African, Sarah Van Beurden traces the relationship between the possession, definition, and display of art and the construction of cultural authenticity and political legitimacy from the late colonial until the postcolonial era. Her study of the interconnected histories of these two institutions is the first history of an art museum in Africa, and the only work of its kind in English.
Drawing on Flemish-language sources other scholars have …

Complete Volume (37)

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Complete digitized volume (volume 37) of Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal.

Using Seinfeld To Enhance Storytelling Speeches, Kelly Soczka Kaiser

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

This classroom activity uses video clips from the sitcom, Seinfeld, in order to provide students with examples of the characteristics of exceptional storytellers and their ability to convey meaning. By applying the Freytag’s Pyramid to storytelling, students have found a tool to assist them in constructing a captivating narrative. These visual skits offer students an opportunity to view how a story is effectively organized, what elements comprise an extraordinary narrative, and how to dramatically display emotion.

Broken Up But Not Broken: Satisfaction, Adjustment, And Communication In Post-Dissolutional Relationships, Stephanie Villella

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

The aim of this study was to examine adjustment, satisfaction, and the frequency of communication that occurs between ex-partners in post-dissolutional relationships. Participants (N = 239) were surveyed on their levels of satisfaction, adjustment to the break-up and communication with their most recent ex-romantic partner as a means to explore the process of redefining romantic relationships into platonic friendships. Results demonstrated that who initiated the break-up influenced levels of satisfaction and adjustment. Adjustment and frequency of communication were affected by whether ex-partners had moved on to a new romantic relationship. Differences were also observed between how males and females adjusted …

Complete Volume (36)

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Complete digitized volume (volume 36) of Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal.

The Story Of 42nd Street, Diane Cypkin

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Book review of The Story of 42nd Street: The Theatres, Shows, Characters, and Scandals of the World’s Most Notorious Street by M.C. Henderson and A. Green.

Giving A Classmate An Award: Ceremonial Speaking Within The Classroom Environment, Heidi Hamilton

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

As citizens we encounter ceremonial speaking occasions throughout our lives, from wedding toasts to retirement dinners to eulogies. While many textbooks offer guidelines for the various types of speaking occasions, these occasions are difficult to create within the classroom environment. Often instructors skip assigning a full ceremonial speech because of this. This activity is designed to provide students with an opportunity to practice some of the basic elements of ceremonial speaking, such as writing a thesis statement, providing supporting materials, and using magnification. Students are paired together, interview each other, and then present original award speeches to each other, thus …

Mask Work And Improvisations: A Classroom Adaptation Based On The French Tradition, Marcia Berry

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Both historically and currently, mask work provides excellent body training for actors and mimes. This article offers a brief history of French mask work as well as step-by-step instructions for a mask workshop that moves students from simple to abstract mask improvisations. The mask workshop also functions as an icebreaker and builds class camaraderie.

Assessing The Public Speaking Course, Roberta Freeman

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

College and high school speech communication instructors know full well how tedious and timeconsuming assessment can be; however, this instructor has found a way to make assessment a more efficient and meaningful tool identifying strengths and weaknesses within the public speaking curriculum. After five years of extensive research, several drafts of rubrics and artifacts, the process has been streamlined and successful in that the data compiled reflects the strengths and challenges of this instructor’s students. This article is intended to provide public speaking instructors the opportunity to replicate part of the Minnesota State Community & Technical College (M State) speech …

Effects Of Personality Preferences And Perceptions Of Others' Conflict Styles Impact On Roommate Satisfaction, Candice Morgan

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

The researcher sought to determine if personality preferences influenced perceptions of others’ conflict styles in roommate relationships. It was hypothesized that perceptions of conflict styles would impact satisfaction. Personality preferences for extraversion-introversion and thinkerfeeler were measured along with perceptions of the roommate’s conflict style and overall satisfaction with the relationship. Surveys were distributed and completed at the end of first semester by 133 first-year students living in college residence halls. Results partially supported the prediction that personality preferences would impact perceptions of roommate’s conflict styles. Consistent with previous studies, participants perceived the conflict styles of integrating, compromising, and obliging to …

"No Day But Today:" Life Perspectives Of Hiv-Positive Individuals In The Musical Rent, Valerie Lynn Schrader

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

This article explores how life perspectives of HIV-infected individuals are portrayed in the musical Rent. A rhetorical analysis of Rent’s script and lyrics reveals that people living with HIV may hold a particular life perspective after learning that they are HIV-positive; they may seek to leave a legacy, to experience life to the fullest or to devote their lives to others. These emergent themes are consistent with those found in previous research. In addition, this analysis revealed one theme that was not consistent with previous research; this theme is connected to the process of grieving. By understanding how people living …

"Brother," Enjoy Your Hypermodernity! Connections Between Gilles Lipovetsky's Hypermodern Times And Post-Soviet Russian Cinema, James M. Brandon

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

In prominent French social philosopher Gilles Lipovetsky’s Hypermodern Times (2005), the author asserts that the world has entered the period of hypermodernity, a time where the primary concepts of modernity are taken to their extreme conclusions. The conditions Lipovetsky described were already manifesting in a number of post-Soviet Russian films. In the tradition of Slavoj Zizek’s Enjoy Your Symptom (1992), this essay utilizes a number of post-Soviet Russian films to explicate Lipovetsky’s philosophy, while also using Lipovetsky’s ideas to explicate the films. Alexei Balabanov’s 1997 film Brat (“Brother”) is examined in the context of Lipovetsky’s work, along with other films …

Complete Volume (35)

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Complete digitized volume (volume 35) of Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal.

Exploring Literary Characters In Classroom Performance, Gerald Lee Ratliff

Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal

Original classroom exercises are an invaluable instructional tool to actively engage students in analysis and performance of dramatic and non-dramatic literary texts. The basic principle of classroom performance emphasizes a critical and creative teaching perspective that stimulates student responses to the aesthetic, emotional and intellectual content of a literary text. Selected exercises that promote a more theatrical impulse in the study and performance of literary texts present meaningful opportunities for students to give vocal and physical visualization to the actions, attitudes and emotions of literary characters and, ultimately, enriches the classroom learning experience.

The Cauldron, 2015, Issue 13, Elissa L. Tennant, Abraham Kurp, Abby Burton, Morgan E. Elswick

The Cauldron Archives

Issue 13 of The Cauldron we discuss the Bernie Sanders rally at the Wolstein Center, winter break extended, professors speak out on course evaluations, 10th International Education Day, business building damaged by high winds, Vikings impresses in home opener, Cavs continue strong, the problem with internships, "Almost, Maine" CSU production, "Mockingjay Part 2" review, "Spectre" review, Broadway star speaks to CSU students, "Fallout 4" review, "Art Angels" album review, Bernie rally at CSU, Black Friday American contradiction, Conference Services needs to step up, praying for Paris.

Spartan Daily, November 24, 2015, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily (School of Journalism and Mass Communications)

Volume 145, Issue 37

The Murray Ledger And Times, November 24, 2015, The Murray Ledger And Times

The Murray Ledger & Times

No abstract provided.

The Daily Gamecock, Wednesday, November 24, 2015, The University Of South Carolina, Office Of Student Media

November

No abstract provided.

"Today's Not Yesterday, And All Things Have An Ending"--Stevie Wonder's Proximate Soul And The Black Arts Movement, Amber M. Hendricks

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

Starting with the album Where I’m Coming From (1970) through Hotter Than July (1980), Stevie Wonder’s music embodies a hero’s cycle, attaching his voice to myths rendered from the the Black experience. As manifestations of Wonder’s unconsciousness, the myths remind the reader of the Black diaspora and project listeners into his musical dreams. Through his music and lyrics, Stevie Wonder defines Blackness as inclusive, resisting the restrictive notions set by both Motown and the Black Power/ Arts Movements. During his mythmaking process, Stevie Wonder enters into a "supernatural" world of the Black Power/ Arts Movement (hereafter BP/AM) that Motown once …

Newsroom, Georgia Southern University

Newsroom (2006-2023)

• Vidalia Onion Oral History Performance opens at the Black Box Theatre