Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Uber, The Gig Economy, And African Americans: Digital Anti-Blackness In The New Technological Age, Bill Kaso

Theses and Dissertations

The digital objects and processes of the new technological age have been found to reproduce anti-Blackness, specifically among African Americans, in the United States. To understand and remedy these trends, this thesis looks at digital technology as the product of anti-Black material culture.

Individual Accountability Of Amazon Turk Gig Workers: Comparing English And Mandarin Construct Operationalizations, Cassaday Brennan Ray

Honors Theses

The construct of individual accountability has been tested by two prior studies including Frink et al. (2018), finding that individual accountability is a second-order construct in which the components focus, intensity, and salience are loaded, as well as Verwaeren and Nijstad (2021) who found that individual accountability focus is a two-factor construct (process and outcome). Contrary to these prior studies, I examine the dimensionality of individual accountability in gig work, as gig work is a different context than that of the previous research, which focused on traditional employees. In my research study, I make two competing hypotheses questioning whether individual …

Effectively Using The Hoffmeister Concerto To Give Violists Comprehensive Training In Classical Viola Technique, Kaichao Zhao

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

ABSTRACT

This dissertation presents a three-stage learning process and curriculum for Franz Anton Hoffmeister's 1793 composition, the Hoffmeister Viola Concerto. The curriculum is meant to help students build a solid foundation and understanding of how to learn, practice, and master the viola. The three stages of the curriculum are (1) "RIB," which emphasizes the rhythmic components of the work; (2) "Musical," which highlights the emotional elements of performance; and (3) "Teaching," which teaches students how to teach themselves. The ultimate goal is for students to learn a comprehensive approach to help pupils quickly establish a learning and practice system. The …

Amplifying Tutor Voices: A Qualitative Analysis For Improving Writing Center Tutoring Practices And Pedagogy, Leah Washko

English Department Masters Theses

Within the walls of university writing centers, tutors and tutees collaborate. They discuss writing, but even more than that, they communicate about ideas and theories bigger than themselves, all while discovering their identities. Exploration of how tutors define their authority and agency, while also highlighting the importance of tutors’ voices, is necessary for the continuation of writing center studies. Writing center tutors’ roles may be understood by some, but the mental hurdles, the questioning natures, and the care-giver roles they are emersed into need to be further investigated. Through a study conducted at Kutztown University’s Writing Center, tutors were surveyed …

Aging And Learning: Community Engagemente And Self-Efficacy In L2 Teaching To Elderly Learners, Leticia Rinaldi Souza

Spanish and Portuguese ETDs

The elderly population (60 years or older) has been increasing during the past decades around the world and is expected to reach two billion by 2050 (Scult, Haime, et al 2015). However, the misconception that elderly people are uncapable, or incompetent is still part of the imaginary constructed around such populations (Minichiello and Coulson, 2005). Older adults present powerful functional capacities and social activities lead to better performance and slower decreases in their memory and executive function (Scott, Masser, & Pachana, 2020). Thus, second language learning plays an effective role in enabling active and regular engagement in social and psychological …

Storytelling Through Impressionist Music And American Sign Language: The Engulfed Cathedral, Elise Major

Undergraduate Theses

“The Legend of the City of Ys” is a Breton story of a city’s downfall and curse to be swallowed by the sea. Years later, this tragic tale inspired “The Engulfed Cathedral,” a piano composition for Claude Debussy’s Preludes, Book I, L. 117. Following analyses of “The Legend of the City of Ys” and “The Engulfed Cathedral,” an interpretation of the narrative was created in American Sign Language to be performed with the music. The goal is to focus on inclusivity and accessibility in music for Deaf and hard of hearing individuals, and then expand that to consider how to …

The Wolves' Teeth, Abigail Moore

Honors College Theses

This is a Neo-Noir screenplay examining the femme fatale, mental illness, and the Noir male protagonist.

Soothers, Everett Wall

LMU Theses and Dissertations

When a meticulous chef, who can't eat anything without throwing it up, discovers the cure for his ailment in a recalled antacid from the 1970s, he solicits the help of his in-house taster to hunt down more of the tablets and in the process discovers that she was the cure all along.

There Will Be A Tomorrow, Cameron Webb

LMU Theses and Dissertations

After her young daughter is killed in the aftermath of an apocalypse, a mother travels back in time to save her by stopping the apocalypse from ever happening.

Creativity And Organic Songwriting: A Deconstruction Of Original Songs, Pramuk Mohanlal-Vargas

Composition/Recording Projects

Creativity and organic songwriting define uniqueness and are the building blocks of artistic self-expression. This paper consists of a deconstruction of eight original song recordings including the organic songwriting methods and creative ideas which led to the end result. The formulation of each recording is discussed in chronological order and in detail as well as influential ideas and songwriting styles of well-known contemporary artists such as Damien Rice, Passenger and Bon Iver. Along with individual and psychological approaches to songwriting, production elements are mentioned which indicate how the digital world influenced the final version of each song. This area relied …

Redefining Anger For Sexual And Gender Minorities Using Art As A Visual Voice, Kirsten Ranheim

Expressive Therapies Capstone Theses

Art therapy is an increasingly popular approach for addressing trauma and anger in clinical settings. This literature review explores the connections between art therapy, trauma, gender, and anger, drawing on a range of studies and theoretical perspectives. Background is provided on the history of anger within the context of societal institutions, interpersonal power dynamics, psychiatric nosology, and social justice movements. The review concludes that art therapy is ideally suited as a trauma-informed approach to addressing anger in the therapeutic setting. This is due to the unique opportunities that art making provides for helping individuals express and process their emotions nonverbally, …

A Pastor's Fine Art Collection: From Down-To-Earth To World-Renowned, Lily Hampton

Undergraduate Theses

Art collecting and the methods of acquiring art are constantly changing with the times. While some world-class collections are filled with a wide range of art types-- paintings, sculptures, ceramics, photographs--the public has little knowledge of how these pieces are chosen and accumulated. Competition in the art scene is undoubtedly a factor, but an argument can be made about whether some collectors choose works for highly personal reasons. The subject of this thesis is a local fine art collection, the Mary and Al Shands Collection of the Great Meadows estate based in Crestwood, Kentucky. This stunning in-home art gallery is …

Transcendence: Exploring The Connections Between Transgender/Gender Non-Conforming Identities And Experiences Of Nature Through Art, Mc Jackson

Undergraduate Theses

“Transcendence: Exploring the connections between transgender/gender non-conforming identities and experiences of nature through art” is the written portion of a creative thesis revolving around an immersive art installation and short film. Transcendence, the installation, was created to promote connection by exploring the overlap between transgender and gender non-conforming (GNC) experiences and experiences of nature. Part of this installation is a short film of interviews conducted with transgender and GNC individuals about nature, their gender experiences, and the transcendent nature of the two. The written thesis analyzes existing literature on nature as a restorative, therapeutic, spiritual setting, offers insight into …

Vinyle Zine: The Execution Of The Pedagogy Of Pro-Blackness, Kandice Fowlkes

Master of Arts in Professional Writing Capstones

Vinyle zine, is a Black literary magazine pedagogically driven to increase cultural literacy within the African-American community. In order to do this, this magazine must have the foundation of Pro-Blackness as a driving force towards advancing Black people in the ways this platform can offer its service. Vinyle zine allows Black individuals to practice using writing and any art form as their medium of expression –a tool that has been utilized to extol African American truths and increase cultural knowledge. By encouraging expression in art and provoking cultural knowledge, Vinyle zine will continue to encourage Black artists and writers to …

Feminist Retellings Of Homer's The Odyssey, 2005-2022, Brenna R. Bretzinger

Honors Capstones

Over the past two decades, there has been a significant increase in the number of feminist retellings of Greek mythology. These retellings serve to give voice to the marginalized female characters from ancient stories whose characterizations were deprioritized over their male counterparts. Furthermore, these stories connect the plights of ancient women with modern feminists to champion issues that women continue facing today. This study focuses on retellings of Homer’s The Odyssey, but these ideas and arguments are still largely applicable to other retellings of Greek mythology. Along with discussing The Odyssey, this project also analyzes three feminist retellings: …

Fragmented Relationships, Drew M. Dzurko

Student Projects

Relationships are often viewed through a binary lens. This greatly oversimplifies their intricacy, yet they can be one of the most challenging human experiences to navigate. Drawing on the symbolisms of memories Drew created digital images that embody these memories related to lost relationships. Using a binary image converter Drew created a visually simple image made up of only two colors down to each pixel. He then brought these images into a text editor on a computer which would display the raw code of an image. This revealed long strings of machine learning code that are indecipherable to the human …

Household Heroes: An Examination Of Domestic Workers' Rights In The United States And Mexico, Kaitlyn Sutton

Honors College Theses

Since 2018, worker's rights have become a forefront in the battle to developing a more equitable nation in Mexico, specifically regarding domestic employees. In my honors thesis I compare the rights of domestic workers in both the United States and Mexico using elements set forth in the SA8000 Standard formed by the Social Accountability International Organization in order to analyze which country grants more access to these liberties. I then examine different cross-cultural management styles in the countries as a method for explaining the differences in right. I also discuss advocacy groups still fighting for more freedom as well as …

Biodive, Morgana Faucett

Graduate Theses

Humans exist among an intertwined series of ecosystems and environments. As a species, we curate the spaces, these environments, that surround us to suit our internalized visions of the world. While such curation is not inherently negative, humanity’s industrial process of constructing our visions is not always handled with sustainable methods. This paper analyzes my creative work through the framework of architecture’s role in climate change and human impact, highlighting past and present building practices. Solutions for future practices will also be considered, specifically targeting the questions of construction material, building function, and repurposing of older buildings to achieve a …

Reflections Across Religions: A Historical Examination Of Common Themes In Zoroastrianism, Judaism, And Christianity, Jason Heckert

Graduate Theses

In the sixth century BCE, the largest empire in the world at the time, the Persian Empire, adopted a monotheistic religion that was based on the teachings of a prophet named Zoroaster. As one of the world’s oldest religions, Zoroastrianism impacted the beliefs and traditions of Judaism and early Christianity. Similarities among these religions include the ideas of hierarchy among good and evil spirits, actions on earth determining one’s place in an afterlife, apocalyptic themes, and dualism. Zoroastrian beliefs found their way into early Christian culture. The remnants of Zoroastrianism in mainstream Christianity underscores the influence of that ancient Persian …

Femininity In Medieval Scandinavia: How Paganism Forged Gender Equality, Erin M. Caffey

Graduate Theses

The brutality of the Vikings and the conquests of medieval Scandinavian men have often garnered the majority of interest from the media, the armchair historian, and the scholar alike, with the pursuits and lives of their female counterparts seldom discussed. Medieval Scandinavian women’s lives though, when examined, are just as enthralling as those of the men. And while their stories are not necessarily as full of bloodshed or glory, the lives of women, those seen in both mythology and memory, provide an insight into the secular and religious foundations of medieval Scandinavian communities. Through an examination of various mythological texts, …

Use Of Eeg-Based Machine Learning To Predict Music-Related Brain Activity, Charles Skutt

Graduate Dissertations and Theses

Music has many awe-inspiring characteristics. Some may refer to it as a “universal language” with the ability to transcend the barriers of speech, while others may describe its ability to evoke intense emotional experiences for the listener. Regardless of the description, it is a commonly held view that music can have many profound effects. Studies of music’s effects have found these beliefs to be more than pure conjecture, finding that music interacts with and changes our brains in physical and emotional ways. Music can even have clinical applications, such as music therapy. This type of therapy has been shown to …

Rising Costs Of Universities And The Impact On Teaching Effectiveness And Student Outcomes, Patrick Hanna

English (MA) Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to track the rising costs of attending higher education institutions and the professional development of professors compared to secondary and primary educators. While university and college administrations around the United States enjoyed exponential growth in pay, faculty and staff pay has remained stagnant for over 40 years. The increase in costs of attendance despite the stagnant pay for professors highlights the diminishing return on investment for attaining a higher education degree. By examining the concepts of education production function and extrapolating the findings to apply to postsecondary institutions, the lapse in educator development comes …

Reworking Hospitality: The Social Practices Of Arab Immigrants In Granada, Spain, Sarah Falknor

World Languages, Literatures and Cultures Undergraduate Honors Theses

“Right now, you and me sitting here, this is hospitality.” My eyes darted left and right to the surrounding street for a moment as I took in the feeling of a sticky, metal chair against my legs and thirst settling in my throat. This was not the kind of Arab hospitality I had read about in books -- the extravagant kind that absolutely involves food and three days of accommodations before the hosts can ask the reason a guest is in their home. This felt to me like exactly what it was, a random interview with a stranger conducted in …

A Study On Vivian Fine’S Chamber Concerto For Cello And Six Instruments, Andrea Beltran Landers

Dissertations

The music of American composer Vivian Fine (1913-2000) has fallen into obscurity despite its high quality. Her musical career has led her from being a child-prodigy at the piano to being a part of the elite inner circle of avant-garde composers in New York in the early 1930s, and ultimately to a faculty position at Bennington College in the 1960s. Due to the stability and job security that the academic world brought to Fine, she was able to dedicate most of her time to composition. The Chamber Concerto for Cello and Six Instruments belongs to this fruitful period in her …

Fatale, Fragile, And Furiosa: Redefining Female Tropes For A New Generation Of Feminism In Jeanne Shaffer's Three Faces Of Woman For Clarinet And Piano, Olivia Harrison

Music Undergraduate Honors Theses

Among the discipline of music, the representation of women in music professions and the artform itself reveals great disparities between gender identities. In spite of this, musician and composer Jeanne Shaffer approaches the ongoing fight for women’s representation and equity in music. Shaffer’s piece “Three Faces of Woman” for clarinet and piano (1995) depicts three delineations of femininity that women are reduced to. Influenced by cultural minimalization of women, Shaffer’s piece uses different compositional genres as vehicles to illustrate these ever-present stereotypes and the unyielding need to combat them. The first movement presents the trope of the Femme Fatale; the …

Eschatology And Christian Ethics: An Argument For Disabled Beatitude, Marco Peter Spataro

Religious Studies Honors Theses

Catholic eschatology studies four elements of the afterlife: Death, Judgement, Heaven, and Hell. The primary purpose of this paper will be to evaluate the prerequisites for beatification, the state of being for souls elevated to heavenly status. This paper will seek to argue in favor of disabled beatification, particularly for the souls whose mental illness prohibited their use of right reason in this life, through an examination of malignant theology, mental illness, a Catholic definition of God, and the implications such a definition has on the wider study and care of the mentally ill. I will then suggest a path …

Student Preferences On The Development Of A Non-Alcoholic Beverage Product To Alleviate The Negative Impact Of Alcohol On College Campuses, Cecilia Azar

Human Nutrition and Hospitality Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

Alcohol abuse and peer pressure to drink are prominent issues on college campuses across the nation. More than 50 percent of college students aged 18 to 22 consume alcohol monthly and 33 percent consistently engage in binge drinking (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 2021a). A non-alcoholic beverage product marketed to students as an alternative to alcohol in social settings could alleviate some of the negative impacts, such as peer pressure and the dangers caused by overconsumption.

Through two phases, this study implements University of Arkansas student preferences and recipe modification in the development of a non-alcoholic beverage product …

The “Invisible” Impact In The Arts: A Multiple-Case Comparative Study Depicting The Challenge Of Impact Reporting For Arts Impact Organizations, Heidi Rolf

Management Undergraduate Honors Theses

This Honors Thesis researches the complex interrogative following the arts impact industry and the impact reporting methods available to the organizations within this industry. The research is achieved through a multiple-case study on six different arts impact organizations and additional web-based analysis. The case studies provide the structure for the ultimate discussion on available impact reporting methods for arts impact organizations and the level of importance, difficulty, and constraints associated with this form of reporting. This study presents detail on the growth and position of the current arts impact industry as well as that of the creative economy as a …

What Makes A Woman "Pious And Good": The Function Of Several Grimm Brothers' Cautionary Fairy Tales, Hannah Montante

English (MA) Theses

This thesis explores how several of the Grimm Brothers’ fairy tales, “Little Snow-white and the seven dwarfs,” “The Juniper Tree,” and “Cinderella” exhibit patriarchal expectations of women that fairy tale protagonists strive to uphold, while female villains feel driven to violence and artifice because of their inability to fit into this role. Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm published these stories in nineteenth-century Germany, which was predominantly Protestant and held the belief that women should be nurturing homemakers who took care of their husbands and children. These cautionary tales instruct women on how to behave and appear physically, likely because these stories …

Little Rock’S Unique Political Opportunities For Black Arkansans, 1865-1905, Isaac J. Cross

ATU Theses and Dissertations 2021 - Present

Little Rock, Arkansas offered unique political opportunities in the late nineteenth century. Unlike the rest of the state, Little Rock housed a prominent middle-class black community that earned political office positions in local and state government. The current historical scholarship on the state’s African American political power in these years lacks detailed treatment of the political power of black Arkansans in Little Rock. Using newspapers, census data, and local and state government documents, this thesis argues for the unique position of the state’s capital for black Arkansans. In the late nineteenth century, the black middle class was especially strong in …