Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Review Of Rulers, Religion, & Riches: Why The West Got Rich And The Middle East Did Not, Lynne P. Doti

Economics Faculty Articles and Research

A review of Jared Rubin's Rulers, Religion, & Riches: Why the West Got Rich and the Middle East Did Not.

“What Is He Whose Grief Bears Such An Emphasis?” Hamlet’S Development Of A Mourning Persona, Jennifer Lodine-Chaffey

Quidditas

Long viewed by scholars as destructive to his selfhood and detrimental to his swift execution of revenge, Hamlet’s concern with the outward expression of his grief actually plays an integral part in his struggles to forge a mourning identity in the wake of his father’s death. The Shakespearean prince’s attempts to faithfully perform his interior bereavement, I contend, are challenged by his father’s command to enact his mourning through outward revenge, which at first seems contrary to Hamlet’s hope to discover a mourning persona consonant with his grief. By the conclusion of the drama, though, Hamlet embraces mourning as part …

The Psychological Grotesque In Modern American Literature, Amanda Turnbull

Master of Liberal Studies Theses

In his novel Winesburg, Ohio, Sherwood Anderson describes a grotesque as someone who has “snatched up” a “truth,” “called it his truth, and tried to live his life by it” (23-4). This one defining “truth” manifests in the grotesque’s life in the form of a number of significant psychological deformities such as fanaticism, denial of reality, and turning inward upon oneself, isolating the grotesque from those around him and arresting his emotional and psychological growth. Using Anderson’s paradigm, this thesis explores the pervasive use of the psychological grotesque in modern American literature by examining the overlapping features of grotesque characters …

Sacramental Imagery In The Fiction Of James Joyce, Flannery O'Connor, And Wendell Berry, David Jones

Master of Liberal Studies Theses

Alienation, nihilism, disenchantment, and destruction of the Earth are some of the widespread maladies of modernity and post-modernity. Dualisms between body and soul, the physical and spiritual, nature and grace, and fact and value have separated humans from other people, from the Earth, from the divine, and ultimately from themselves. Ambivalence about embodiment has characterized Western Civilization since at least the time of Plato and early Christianity. Over time, a confluence of powerful philosophical, religious, and scientific ideas and movements deepened the fissures of these destructive dualisms. Modern science with its claims to hegemony over objective ways of knowing the …

Reimagining The Narrative: A Contemporary Creative Collection Of Interracial Perspective, Holly Jefferies

Master of Liberal Studies Theses

This essay offers a critical analysis of my creative thesis, Reimagining the Narrative: A Contemporary Creative Collection of Interracial Perspective, which consists of five fabric art scrolls, illustrating contemporary narrative views about interracial relations. I present such information to demonstrate the need to retell history from a visual interracial perspective, so that it might be seen through a new lens. In this critical essay, I argue that while historical context and documentation records history and provides insight into historical narratives, contemporary views within writing and art persist in their capacity to not only offer new points of view, but also …

The Metamodern Man, Nathan R. Arrowsmith

Master of Liberal Studies Theses

Abstract The first time I heard the term, “Metamodern Age,” I was actively involved in a discussion about the various themes in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. The setting was a Master of Liberal Studies class (Rollins College, MLS 604), entitled “Modernity” taught by Dr. Tom Cook. It was October of 2015. Frankenstein, also known as The Modern Prometheus, is a masterpiece and a solid sample from the Modern Era. Following approximately fifty years of Postmodern Era sludge, we are now in what could be identified as the Metamodern Era. Our Modernity class speculated confidently that the current Age of Metamodernism is …

The Promise And Perils Of Radical Left Populism: The Case Of Venezuela., Gabriel Hetland

Latin American, Caribbean, and U.S. Latino Studies Faculty Scholarship

Mainstream critics argue that populism inevitably leads to economic disaster and political authoritarianism. Venezuela is often pointed to as proof of this. Yet, while the profound crisis gripping Venezuela is undeniable, comprehensive analysis of Chavismo shows that populism, and specifically the radical left populism found in Venezuela, is more ambiguous. From 2005-2013 radical left populism in Venezuela reduced poverty and inequality, deepened democracy, and built popular support for a "transition to socialism." These gains were erased in the post-2014 crisis, which revealed two flaws of the Chavista model hidden by its earlier success: its unsustainable material foundation and inability to …

Liquor Store Theatre: Ethnography & Contemporary Art In Detroit, Maya Stovall, Ph.D.

Wayne State University Dissertations

ABSTRACT

LIQUOR STORE THEATRE:

ETHNOGRAPHY AND CONTEMPORARY ART IN DETROIT

by

MAYA STOVALL

2018

Advisor: Dr. Andrew D. Newman

Major: Anthropology

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

Liquor Store Theatre is a study of the struggle for the city in contemporary Detroit. An ethnography completed over several years in an east side Detroit neighborhood called McDougall Hunt, the project exists in a variety of registers, working across contemporary art, performance, urban anthropology, critical geography, visual studies, film and new media, African American studies, and urban studies. The visual work of Liquor Store Theatre includes a four-volume, twenty-plus video episode meditation on city …

A Defense Of Epistemic Invariantism And Intellectualism, Lucas Lockard

Wayne State University Dissertations

The traditional view of knowledge includes two plausible claims. The first claim is that the truth-conditions required to know some proposition p do not vary. So, for any two subjects who have the same epistemic position regarding p, either both know that p or both do not know that p. An implication of this invariantist position is that any difference in knowledge will be explained by a difference in their epistemic position. The second claim is that only epistemic or ‘truth-conducive’ reasons are relevant to considerations of knowledge. This intellectualist position has recently come under attack from those who argue …

Making Home: Directing Reintegration Plays, Katherine Alaina Skoretz

Wayne State University Dissertations

This doctoral study explores three American post-combat reintegration plays written and produced in 2010 and 2011 in the United States. Using script analysis and production research, the dissertation describes some of the major themes of reintegration and strengths of theatrical production as revealed by the critically alternative narratives in the scripts and performances of Time Stands Still by Donald Margulies, American Soldiers by Matt Morillo, and Oohrah! by Bekah Brunstetter.

The Word And The Kingdom, Daniel C. Peterson

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

Members of the Church have been charged since ancient times with the covenant need to share the Gospel message with those around them. In more recent times, this has been described as a need for “every member” to be a missionary. There are many ways that we can do so through the use of modern technology and the dedication of our talents. The “ministry of the word” beckons each of us onward.

“Thou Art The Fruit Of My Loins”: The Interrelated Symbolism And Meanings Of The Names Joseph And Ephraim In Ancient Scripture, Matthew L. Bowen, Loren Blake Spendlove

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

To the ancient Israelite ear, the name Ephraim sounded like or connoted “doubly fruitful.” Joseph explains the naming of his son Ephraim in terms of the Lord’s having “caused [him] to be fruitful” (Genesis 41:52). The “fruitfulness” motif in the Joseph narrative cycle (Genesis 37–50) constitutes the culmination of a larger, overarching theme that begins in the creation narrative and is reiterated in the patriarchal narratives. “Fruitfulness,” especially as expressed in the collocation “fruit of [one’s] loins” dominates in the fuller version of Genesis 48 and 50 contained in the Joseph Smith Translation, a version of which Lehi and his …

The Interpreter Foundation And An Apostolic Charge, Daniel C. Peterson

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

In April 2006, Dallin H. Oaks, in unpublished remarks at the naming of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship (as the successor to FARMS), reminded listeners that “this institute belongs to God.” On November 10, 2018, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland (also in unpublished remarks, titled “The Maxwell Legacy of the 21st Century”) renewed that commitment: the Institute should be “as faithful as eternal truth, and as bright as the light of truth that is in us.” This is, likewise, the vision of T he Interpreter Foundation, in contrast to Latter-day Saint “academic ventures” at some universities. It should …

Full Issue

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

No abstract provided.

An Inviting Exploration, David Calabro

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

This informative and very readable volume, targeted to a Latter‑day Saint audience, serves as an introduction to the Apocrypha and an exploration of Latter‑day Saint views of the books. Even those already familiar with the Apocrypha will find this book insightful in the Latter‑day Saint approaches it brings to bear. Even so, the book touches too lightly on some issues, including the extent of the Apocrypha, the phenomenon of pseudonymity, and the reasons for the current exclusion of the Apocrypha from the Latter‑day Saint canon.

“By Small Means”: Rethinking The Liahona, Timothy Gervais, John L. Joyce

Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship

The Liahona’s faith-based functionality and miraculous appearance have often been viewed as incongruous with natural law. This paper attempts to reconcile the Liahona to scientific law by displaying similarities between its apparent mechanisms and ancient navigation instruments called astrolabes. It further suggests the Liahona may have been a wedding dowry Ishmael provided to Lehi’s family. The paper displays the integral connection Nephi had to the Liahona’s functionality and how this connection more clearly explains the lack of faith displayed by Nephi’s band during the journey than traditional conceptions of its faith-based functionality.

Executive Disorder, Mark Rice

American Studies Faculty/Staff Publications

In lieu of an abstract, here is the essay's first two paragraphs:

In How We Got Here (2000), David Frum plumbed the 1970s for essential truths about contemporary American life, seeing in that decade the engines of economic and social transformation that, as the book's subtitle puts it, "brought [us] modern life—for better or worse." Frum called the 1970s "a time of unease and despair, punctuated by disaster."' He was writing in the waning days of the twentieth century, with Bill Clinton in the White House and a fog of unease and nostalgia misting the land. But if he was …

'The Good Shepherd Lays Down His Life For The Sheep' (John 10:11, 15, 17): Questioning The Limits Of A Johannine Metaphor, Christopher W. Skinner

Theology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Scholars have long recognized that the Good Shepherd discourse reflects a realistic picture of the ancient Palestinian shepherd and his relationship to the flock. But how far should the details in this metaphor be pressed? It is often asserted that any halfway decent shepherd would have been willing to die on behalf of his flock and that Jesus’ statement to that effect (10:11, 15, 17) reflects a common expectation. This scenario, however, would actually leave a flock more exposed to danger. Thus, it is appropriate to understand Jesus’ pronouncement as falling outside the realm of historical verisimilitude and better to …

Developing A Theologically Self-Reflexive Critique With Comparative Theologians And The Sociological Analysis Of Pierre Bourdieu, Colby Dickinson

Theology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

In this article I attempt to locate productive foundations for a critical theological methodology through engaging with both the inherently critical nature of comparative theology alongside the sociological, self-reflexive analysis of Pierre Bourdieu. I turn, first, to comparative theology because it is a field with a heightened sensibility for how self-reflexive critique functions within a theological context, as it assumes that both sides in any conversation maintain the possibility of re-examining their own premises and foundations. I turn, second, to the work of the sociologist Pierre Bourdieu because it is his analysis of symbolic power that provides an examination of …

The Right To Religious Freedom - A Theological Comment, Hille Haker

Theology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Every time I cross the border to the United States, I thank God I am a legal immigrant, white, and a citizen of the European Union and Germany, coming from a country and entering another where I expect my rights to be protected. The laws of the land may in part differ from the European ones, and even clash with some of my religious values and convictions. But since morality and positive laws never entirely coincide, the laws of a nation-state challenge me to reevaluate my convictions as much as I will challenge the rightness of some of the United …

Playboy, Timothy J. Gilfoyle

History: Faculty Publications and Other Works

No abstract provided.

Review Essay: An Edition Of The Archetype Of Piers Plowman B, Ian Cornelius

English: Faculty Publications and Other Works

The B-Version Archetype, published on-line and in print by the Piers Plowman Electronic Archive (PPEA), deserves close study by all scholars of Langland’s poem. John Burrow, Thorlac Turville-Petre, and their PPEA collaborators have produced an ‘intermittently critical edition’, in approximately the sense called for by Robert Adams in 1992, at the beginning of the PPEA project. On the difficult problem of ‘rolling revision’, Burrow and Turville-Petre adopt an unsatisfactory compromise; they probably also over-estimate the quality of the archetype as a record of Langland’s writing. Yet this edition is the best record now available of the received text of Piers …

An Unfinished Project: John Courtney Murray, Religious Freedom, And Unresolved Tensions In Contemporary American Society, Miguel H. Diaz

Philosophy: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Religious freedom has re-emerged as a controversial issue in the courts, in the Church, and in the public square in the United States. This essay examines the groundbreaking contribution that John Courtney Murray, SJ made to bring about a paradigm shift in Roman Catholic teaching on religious freedom. This shift can be traced to the Church’s transitioning from the view that “error has no rights” to only people—not ideas—have rights. The essay underscores Murray’s focus on human conscience and addresses tensions that have emerged in the United States between voices that affirm the right to religious freedom and those that …

Theoria As Practice And As Activity, Julie Ward

Philosophy: Faculty Publications and Other Works

In Book X chapter 7 of Nicomachean Ethics (henceforth, EN), Aristotle reaches two decisive conclusions: frst, the activity of our intellect which he terms θεωρία is the highest kind and comprises “complete happiness” (ἡ τελεῖα εὐδαίμονια, EN 1177a19); second, a theoretical life, being divine, counts as the highest, and is the one to aim at (EN 1178a5-7). These are compelling claims, rightly generating much scholarly comment, particularly about the balance of excellent theoretical and moral activity in the best human life.2 Yet the present paper proposes to follow a diferent standard, one with a broader, thematic approach to θεωρία. My …

Brazilian Insecurity, Luiz Fernando Valente, Marguerite Itamar Harrison, Leila M. Lehnen

Spanish and Portuguese: Faculty Publications

The position papers below formed the basis for a roundtable on “Brazilian Insecurity,” sponsored by the American Portuguese Studies Association at the Convention of the Modern Language Association of America, in New York City, January 4-7, 2018, in response to the presidential theme for the convention, “States of Insecurity.” The papers deal with such issues as the shape of undergraduate education, the training of graduate students, faculty hiring and promotion, and the future of the humanities in the American academy. The authors represent three different types of academic institutions in the United States: a private research university (Brown University), a …

Oral Histories: Out Of The Archive And Into The Classroom, Patrick Basista

Undergraduate Research Posters 2018

Social Studies educators argue that primary sources are the preferred method of introducing material to students, as opposed to textbooks. By using this method, teachers aid students in developing critical thinking skills by studying sources to reach their own nuanced historical conclusions. Primary sources such as oral histories provide an aural, intimate, and a richly detailed way for students to engage with the past. The purpose of this research was to provide high-quality teaching materials aligned to Ohio Department of Education standards, and that utilize audio clips of interviews conducted in 2016. These materials were posted on two CSU blogs: …

Pre-Symposium Film Festival Program 2018, Belmont University

Humanities Symposium Programs

No abstract provided.

2018 Program, Belmont University

Humanities Symposium Programs

No abstract provided.

Reflections On The Contingent Workforce At Catholic Colleges, Matthew J. Gaudet

General Engineering

Contingent or “adjunct” professors are highly educated and often excellent educators, yet they are suffering from a nationwide epidemic of low wages, a lack of benefits, poor working conditions, short and sporadic contracts, and—to make ends meet—long commutes that often involve two, three, or even more institutions. This story of contingency on American campuses is fast becoming a well-tread narrative, not only in periodicals that focus on academic life (e.g. the Chronicle of Higher Education, Vitae, Insidehighered.com), but also more recently, in mainstream news outlets as wide spanning as the Washington Post, the New York Times, CNN, Forbes, The Atlantic, …

Pollock And Sturgeon On Defeaters, Albert Casullo

Department of Philosophy: Faculty Publications

Scott Sturgeon has recently challenged Pollock’s account of undercutting defeaters. The challenge involves three primary contentions: (1) the account is both too strong and too weak, (2) undercutting defeaters exercise their power to defeat only in conjunction with higher-order beliefs about the basis of the lower-order beliefs whose justification they target, and (3) since rebutting defeaters exercise their power to defeat in isolation, rebutting and undercutting defeaters work in fundamentally different ways. My goal is to reject each of these contentions. I maintain that (1) Sturgeon fails to show that Pollock’s account of undercutting defeaters is either too strong or …