Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Power, Economy, And Food Systems In The Confederacy: A Material History Of The Confederate Subsistence Department, John Martin Mcmillan

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation questions how human and non-human actors share power. By exploring Confederate logistics within the Subsistence Department, the collaboration between bureaucrats and the material world is revealed. Contributing to scholarship aimed at expanding the field of Civil War studies, this dissertation not only provides a more complex and interesting view of the conflict, but also an understanding that human beings are not solely responsible for the war’s results. By applying a materialist approach, the causes and outcomes of an event as complicated as a civil war can be better explained and understood. The choice to stockpile food for distribution …

The “Problem Of Motherhood”: Early Soviet Maternity Policy And Reality, 1917 - 1936, Danielle M. Hegarty

All Master's Theses

After the October Revolution of 1917, the new Bolshevik regime sought to reshape the lives of women to fit the new socialist future. In line with Marxist thought, they attempted to draw mothers out of the home and into the public sphere. Through legal reforms and social services, the Communist Party worked to relieve mothers of the double burden which tied women between work and the home. This research focuses on the various methods used by the Bolsheviks in their attempt to reform motherhood in the decade after the revolution. Most importantly, it helps to uncover the impact it had …

Catherine The Great's Impact On Noblewomen: A Study Of Enlightened Femininity During The Russian Enlightenment, Mikaela Phillips

All Master's Theses

Catherine the Great (r. 1762-1796) changed Russia’s social and cultural life, allowing women to use traditional forms of female networks to record their ideas of enlightened femininity. By emphasizing selfless motherhood, Orthodox piety, and responsible morality, female memoirists recorded how the Russian Enlightenment influenced their roles within their families, communities, and court. Eighteenth-century Russian historiography has investigated Catherine’s Enlightenment reforms extensively, particularly her ability to harness masculine and feminine portrayals of her rule to fulfill her ambitions. This thesis focuses on four female memoirists that were impacted by Catherine’s reforms and the rhetoric of enlightened femininity that was introduced into …

Music, Terror, Disaster, Healing, Zuzana Jurková, Oldrich Podebradský, Zuzana Gulová

Journal of Urban Culture Research

On December 21, 2023, a student of Charles University in Prague, one of the safest places in the world, shot dead 14 academics and students. Amidst omnipresent grief and mourning, the process of coping and “healing” started immediately, manifested in particular through a series of events called the “Month for the Faculty.” This text is based on participation in and research of these activities. The theoretical part uses the Durkheim's concept of piacular rites, the aim of which is to “reconfirm [a] community's solidarity.” Following the recommendations of Bin Xu (2016), we investigated who the main agents were in the …

The Figures Of (Sound/Noise) In The Thai Art Context, Haisang Javanalikhikara, Suebsang Sangwachirapiban

Journal of Urban Culture Research

This study explores the evolution of sound art in Thai modern and contemporary art from the 1960s to the present. Early artists visualized sound using traditional elements, while the 1990s saw a shift toward media, video, and performance art, driven by global trends and new art spaces. The 2000s brought international recognition, with artists integrating interactive and conceptual sound elements. By the 2010s, those with music backgrounds introduced sophisticated sound systems and interdisciplinary collaborations. However, challenges persist, including inadequate exhibition spaces, limited funding, and a lack of technical expertise. These constraints slow down innovation and the broader recognition of sound …

Revolutionizing Dance : Advanced Choreographic Trends Of The 21st Century, Dharakorn Chandnasaro

Journal of Urban Culture Research

The study, "Revolutionizing Dance: Advanced Choreographic Trends of the 21st Century," provides an in-depth examination of the contemporary dance landscape. This paper underscores the significance of emerging dance paradigms in the 21st century, artfully blending time-honoured traditions with cutting-edge innovations, promoting artistic ingenuity, stringent discipline, and synergistic collaborations. Central principles highlighted include interdisciplinary partnerships and a heightened awareness of environmental issues, both of which contribute substantially to the broader dance discourse. Additionally, the work accentuates the essentiality of copyright awareness and the diligent deterrence of dance plagiarism, pivotal in safeguarding choreographers' rights and advocating for an ethos underscored by respect …

A Digital Creative Industry, Webtoons : With A Focus On The Thai Webtoon Market, Sueun Kim, Kyungeun Park, Bongchul Kim, Hyeonwook Joo, Yangwon Hyun

Journal of Urban Culture Research

This study aims to explore the current state and challenges of the webtoon industry as a unique creative industry, focusing on the case of Thailand. First, it examines the characteristics and trends of the Webtoon market in Thailand, and how it contributes to the cultivation of a new creative industry. The study’s findings show that there is a dynamic relationship between the entry of major Korean webtoon platforms and the Thai publishing companies aided by an influx of Chinese capital that entered the market and established themselves as latecomers. In addition, the Thai-drama adaptations of Korean webtoons in Thailand have …

Abstraction In Traditional Kazakh Art, Tatigul Samuratova

Journal of Urban Culture Research

The objective of this study is to conduct an analysis of the main tendencies of abstract art in traditional Kazakh art, identify key characteristics and stages of abstraction evolution, and elucidate their impact on artists' creativity. The research employed online surveys, questionnaires, data analysis, and organization. Statistical methods were applied to process and analyze the obtained data, including comparative analysis of mean values and calculation of t-indicators. The results of the statistical analysis indicate a statistically significant difference between the experimental and control groups at a significance level of 0.05. The t-statistic value (4.971) exceeds the critical t-value (1.98), allowing …

Reimagining Public Art In Thailand : Policy, Practice And Sustainability, Pawinee Boonserm, Nantida Chandransu

Journal of Urban Culture Research

This research examines how governments promote public art through funding, mandate spaces and research support using international case studies. However, challenges such as centralized funding and restrictions on artistic expression persist. The study proposes a framework for "public art" within fine arts, emphasizing interdisciplinary collaboration and sustainable practices in Thailand. It underscores the importance of collaborative creativity, community engagement, and policy advocacy for a thriving public art landscape. Findings reveal the potential of public art to address societal challenges, foster social healing, and contribute to cultural preservation and economic development. Recommendations include promoting decentralized, community-led initiatives, establishing supportive policies, and …

The Impact Of War-Induced Trauma On Young Israelis : A Qualitative Examination Of The David’S Circle Project At Koh Phangan, Rachel Lev-Wiesel, Ofra Walter, Yael Rom-Shoshani, Nisara Jaroenkajornkij, Bussakorn Binson

Journal of Urban Culture Research

This qualitative study explores the psychological impact of war-induced trauma on young Israelis who sought refuge and healing in Koh Phangan, Thailand, through participation in the David’s Circle Project. The project provides a supportive, non-clinical space for the October 7th trauma Nova survivors and young reserve soldiers. In-depth, semi-structured interviews and group storytelling revealed common themes of emotional dislocation, mistrust, and existential uncertainty. The findings underscore the importance of alternative, culturally sensitive healing environments for trauma recovery and point to the therapeutic value of grouping in a safe physical and emotional space. Implications for trauma-informed care and post-conflict rehabilitation for …

Creative Thai Art Learning For Urban Society’S Well-Being, Apichart Pholprasert, Soamshine Boonyananta, Intira Phrompan, Suchart Imsamraan, Wanalee Chanrangsri, Priyasri Promchinda

Journal of Urban Culture Research

Lifestyles in crowded, fast-paced urban societies have created conditions that negatively affect physical, mental, and social well-being. This research aimed to develop and implement creative Thai art learning activities to promote well-being in urban communities. A mixed-methods approach was employed in four stages: (1) documentary research and community surveys, including interviews with 5 community leaders and 100 residents in the Rama IV area; (2) development of creative Thai art learning kits; (3) implementation of learning activities with a sample of 500 community residents; and (4) data collection involved satisfaction and well-being assessments and follow-up interviews; the resulting data were then …

Towards A Sustainable Play-Ground : Performance Ecosystems For A Livable Bangkok Neighborhood, Pornrat Damrhung

Journal of Urban Culture Research

This article examines an effort to turn urban research into creative placemaking by using performances to make a livable Bangkok neighborhood more vibrant. Research explored diverse stakeholders of Samyan-Banthat Thong in central Bangkok during COVID-19. This exploration found opportunities to link the neighborhood’s entrepreneurs, students, visitors and property managers, and discovered key characteristics of the complex and changing neighborhood. We used this knowledge to design a small festival bringing performing artists into the area’s main park and to important sites surrounding it for a weekend of live performances, workshops and demonstrations. By using performance to attract diverse publics to the …

Exploring Heritage Significance : A Study Of Traditional Chinese Architecture In Pontianak, Indonesia, Andi Andi, Emilya Kalsum, Zairin Zain, Raja Norashekin Raja Othman, Harun Siti Norlizaiha

Journal of Urban Culture Research

Heritage buildings in Indonesia face increasing threats of extinction due to a lack of public awareness and limited application of formal heritage assessment, especially for privately owned, unlisted structures. This study explores the significance of a traditional Chinese house located along the Kapuas River in West Kalimantan, emphasizing its worth for conservation. The research aims to demonstrate how national heritage criteria can be applied to evaluate such buildings and support their conservation. This study employs observation, site visits, digital documentation, and interviews with the house's owner to understand its usage and spatial arrangement. The study assesses heritage values of the …

Journal Policies, Jucr Staff

Journal of Urban Culture Research

No abstract provided.

Interpreting Literary Heritage : “Lilit Phra Law” Through Dance As Part Of Heritage Interpretation For The 21st Century, Naraphong Charassri

Journal of Urban Culture Research

This article explores how literary heritage can be reinterpreted through creative dance to sustain its relevance in the 21st century. It derives from a dissertation-length study entitled “Interpreting Literary Heritage: Lilit Phra Law through Dance as Part of Heritage Interpretation for the 21st Century.” The research employed six methods: literature review, personal experiential analysis, field studies, media exploration, symposium discussions, and structured interviews. Data collection was conducted in Thailand from March 2004 to April 2024, involving performing arts professionals, music and drama academics, senior practitioners from the Office of Performing Arts, the Fine Arts Department, Ministry of Culture, and both …

Advocacy Across Divides: Attorney Aaron L. Buchsbaum In Savannah, Georgia, 1963-1969, Sydney Jolene Kelly

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This thesis explores the early life and career of Aaron Levy Buchsbaum, a Jewish lawyer from Savannah, Georgia. Buchsbaum's Jewish family upbringing, Southern childhood, and legal education all combined to mold him into an individual who used the profession to support those facing unjust treatment by the Savannah-Chatham County court system. By focusing on three of Buchsbaum's legal cases involving the Civil Rights Movement and his partnership with humanitarian organizations, this thesis contextualizes local conflicts in Savannah in the 1960s. Rather than safeguard the civil rights of all citizens, these cases demonstrate that the authorities, including judges, district attorneys, and …

Guanacos De Corazón, Ana Marcela Sinnett

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This thesis explores the intersections of indigeneity, mestizaje, and decolonial aesthetics through a mixed-media art practice rooted in Salvadoran history and identity. Drawing on ancestral traditions such as indigo dyeing and backstrap weaving, Guanacos de Corazón investigates how materiality, folklore, and handcraft function as forms of visual resistance, meaning art that disrupts dominant narratives, critiques systems of power, and reclaims erased cultural memory.

Through formal analysis, historical context, and interviews with Salvadoran artists, this thesis challenges ideas of mestizaje that promote cultural and ethnic superiority and contribute to the erasure of ancestral beliefs.

How do we rescue ancestral traditions that …

Adopting America’S Future Citizens: The Children’S Bureau And The Plight Of East Asian War Orphans, 1950-1969, Caroline Chen

Harvey M. Applebaum ’59 Award

This essay considers the role of the Children’s Bureau in the transnational adoptions of East Asian war orphans from 1950-1969. World War II and other Cold War conflicts left hundreds of thousands of children in Japan, Hong Kong, and Korea orphaned and displaced. This essay argues that the Children’s Bureau played an important role in the transnational adoptions of East Asian war orphans. The Bureau was the only federal agency involved in these adoptions explicitly devoted to child welfare. Cold War geopolitics imbued the Bureau’s approach. Through transnational adoptions, the agency simultaneously responded to Cold War pressures to help children …

“We Aren’T Dying Yet, But We’Re On The Hospital Bed.” An Analysis Of Scottish Culture And Desire For Independence, Emma Walker

Honors Papers and Posters

Scottish culture has long often been associated with barbaric clans and whiskey; however, there is much more to this culture than meets the eye. After centuries of oppression and pushback on expressing cultural aspects of Scottish identity post the Union of the Crowns in 1603, Scotland has now emerged as a leader in re-establishing its culture and protecting it as well. This paper will aim to analyze how Scotland's cultural pride over time has changed and how this uptick in pride has also led to a political movement for independence. I argue that the aftermath of the Battle of Culloden, …

The Mythic Seeds Of Human Rights, Joshua Mackenzie Luna

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

In this thesis, I propose a causal relationship between ancient societies’ mythic corpuses and their law codes. I begin by presenting the histories and historiographies of ancient Israel and Mesopotamia to highlight important themes in their development. Then, I place their creation and flood myths side-by-side for comparison, yielding key differences in the way each group conceptualizes human form, value, and purpose. Once these key differences have been established, I compare each group’s set of slave laws to demonstrate how each law code remains philosophically consistent with its respective set of myths and diametrically opposed to the set from the …

Preventing Chemical And Biological Attacks: Enhanced Threats Requiring Enhanced Solutions, Alex Elliot Ottoni-Belval

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Chemical weapons (CW) and biological weapons (BW) are becoming more dangerous for experts to employ and more accessible to amateurs. Despite CW and BW attacks throughout history that killed and maimed millions of people, the international community has failed to establish meaningful consequences to prevent them. Agreements such as the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Biological Weapons Convention vow to eliminate and reduce the effects of CWs and BWs but lack respected response precedents and capabilities. The limited and inconsistent enforcement has inadvertently allowed CWs and BWs to become plausible weapons, especially to gain asymmetric advantages, while modern developments exasperate …

From The Battlefield To The Asylum: The Social Construction Of Disability In Italy, 1900 - 1950, Brandie Crisp Robb

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The Italian social construction of disability reflects a complex interplay between social, religious, political, and religious influences present during the first half of the twentieth century. While Western European and American disability discourse remained similar, those influences unique to Italy resulted in the formation of two distinct disability discourses during the early twentieth century: that of the heroic physically disabled veteran who sacrificed everything for the good of Italy, and the eugenically unfit Italian associated with dependency and uselessness. By combining a theoretical framework that includes critical disability theory with historical methodology, the following thesis demonstrates how the emerging disability …

Consumptive Femininity: (De)Constructions Of Gender And Colonization In Korean Diaspora Literature, Jack Kelly

Honors Program Theses

This paper explores how two authors with Korean heritage use similar metaphors to write about the same historical traumas. I engage close readings of two novels—Min Jin Lee’s Pachinko and Yu Miri’s The End of August—to interrogate how each author uses images of food/food preparation as well as images of sexual encounters to draw links between exploited bodies and exploited land. Ultimately, I find that the differences in these two authors’ approaches reflect their distance from modern centers of empire. This reminds us of the importance of having a diverse literary and historical canon that centers on authors who have …

The Creative Front, Aleksandr O. Barrett

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Abstract

In this paper, I will discuss my thesis exhibition, The Creative Front, focusing on my materials, content, and context as they relate to each piece or body of work. This exhibition is the culmination of my work, which centers on my experience with the Russo-Ukrainian war. My work can be interpreted metaphorically, poetically, and directly through sculpture, installation, sound, and film. I am portraying very human stories and experiences from a full-scale war raging in Europe. My work is immersive, placing the viewer in an atmosphere of war, and conveying a sense of urgency and compassion for those who …

Statement From The Indiana Academy Of The Social Sciences And Board Of Directors

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.

Editor-In-Chief's Note, Surekha Rao

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.

Cracking The Quotas: The 1948 New York Fair Educational Practices Act And The Jewish Quest For Color-Blindness, Miyuki Kita

FIU Law Review

This article explores how vigorously Jews pushed to enact the 1948 New York Fair Educational Practices Act to fight anti-Jewish quotas in higher education. The Act was the first state-level legislation to prohibit higher educational institutions from excluding, limiting or otherwise discriminating against persons seeking admission as students because of race, religion, creed, color, or national origin. Seeking a way to overcome discrimination in university admissions, Jews sought to combat it by promoting racially and religiously neutral admission procedures within the broad context of the expansion of opportunities in higher education after World War II instead of directly attacking antisemitism. …

Reviewers And Referees

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.

George C. Roberts Award Recipients

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.

Call For Papers

Midwest Social Sciences Journal

No abstract provided.