Arts and Humanities Commons^™

The Ubume Challenge: A Digital Environmental Humanities Project, Sam Risak

English (MA) Theses

In 2019, the “The Momo Challenge” frightened parents in the United States into believing “Momo” would appear online where she’d lure their children into harming themselves. While this challenge is one of many recent viral hoaxes, “Momo” is not simply a product of our digital age. Known as the ubume (“birthing-woman”), the figure who provides the face for “Momo” has lived for centuries in Japanese folklore where yokai (supernatural creatures) often caution listeners against entering unchartered parts of the land. And once Japan industrialized, so too did their “unchartered lands,” the ubume reborn to fit the cities and technologies that …

The Powerful Presence Of Dams In Appalachian Poetry, Zoe Hester

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Contemporary Appalachian poetry offers a lens through which we can see the immense impact that the Tennessee Valley Authority has had in Appalachia. In this thesis, I explore the powerful presence of dams in Appalachian poetry by analyzing three poems. Jesse Graves’s “The Road into the Lake” centers on personal and familial loss, Jackson Wheeler’s “The TVA Built a Dam” mourns the loss of communities, and Rose McLarney’s “Imminent Domain” focuses on the ecological destruction that has occurred in Appalachia and around the globe as the result of the construction of TVA dams. Ultimately, all three poems serve as eulogies …

Holler, Ashley Gregg

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The artist discusses her Master of Fine Arts thesis exhibition Holler, held at Tipton Gallery March 2^ndto March 13^th, 2020. The exhibition features an installation of works on fiber, paper, and found objects tied to her upbringing in Southern Appalachia. A variety of collected materials including bedsheets, chalkboards, and barbwire are taken out of their traditional contexts and brought into a new vantage point through the artist’s alterations.

Gregg re-contextualizes materials, language, and signifiers as a process of decoding formative experiences in domestic and academic spaces. Themes examined in the work include rote learning, tradition, …

"Wand'ring This Woody Maze": Deciphering The Obscure Wilderness Of Paradise Regained, Brooke Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The setting of Milton’s great sequel is puzzling, being called a desert and a “waste wild” (IV. 523) repeatedly and at the same time including descriptions of protective oaks and woody mazes. These conflicting descriptions conjure up several questions: In which environment does the epic take place? Because Milton is so detailed in his adaptations of biblical narrative the inclusion of trees is quite perplexing. While he does tend to expand biblical narrative quite frequently – e.g. Paradise Lost – he rarely initiates a change without just cause. The crux of this particular change centers on what this just cause …

Mexican Politicians And British Investors: A Symbiotic Relationship, Daliarlene Saenz

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this work is to ascertain whether Mexico was a part of Great Britain’s informal empire, which hinges primarily on economic dependence. After independence, Mexico’s image as a resource-rich land attracted British investment, but political instability and its long-held London Debt, repelled British investors. The Porfirian administration prioritized mending its reputation abroad and promoting modernity domestically. Weary of American domination, the Porfirian administration sought British collaboration instead, most significantly of Weetman Pearson. However, post-Revolution governments did not value British business collaboration as its predecessors. Hence, they had no qualms on protecting its domestic priorities over pleasing Whitehall. Through …

Between The Devil And The Deep Sea: The Korean American War For Independence (1910-1945), Andrew Chae

War, Diplomacy, and Society (MA) Theses

From 1910 to 1945, while the Korean peninsula was a protectorate- and eventual colony- of the Empire of Japan, Koreans in the United States began an arduous process to maintain their sense of identity in a new land, and struggled to have a voice in a society that rejected their race. As a people in diasporic exile, Korean Americans engaged in a collective war for their independence by gathering resources to liberate Korea and committing extraordinary effort to deconstruct contrived stereotypes of Koreans. There are a number of forms of primary sources that corroborate the major arguments of the thesis, …

Requisitioned: American War Art Of The Second World War, Spenser Carroll-Johnson

War, Diplomacy, and Society (MA) Theses

The United States requisitioned artists to assist with military objectives and servicemen requisitioned art as a form of rhetoric. This research reexamines the role of “official artists” and thereby extends its definition to include the multitude of art they produced during the Second World War. The underpinnings of this thesis reside during the economic crises of the 1930s that brought about American emergency relief initiatives for artists under the direction of Holger Cahill and, by extension, Edward Bruce. For the first time in history, the American public engaged with state-sponsored art. Due to a symbiotic relationship that formed between the …

“An Entirely New And Utterly Horrifying Reality”: Jews’ Perceptions Of And Reactions To The Kovno Pogroms, June 22–July 6, 1941, Sarah Markowitz

War, Diplomacy, and Society (MA) Theses

This thesis examines a roughly two-week period, between June 22 and July 6, 1941, during which Jews in Kovno (Kaunas), Lithuania, became the primary targets of attacks by local Lithuanians in the midst of the German invasion of the Soviet Union. An analysis of eyewitness accounts reveals that, in comparison to life before June 22, the Kovno pogroms constituted “an entirely new and utterly horrifying reality” for Kovno Jews. While Jews knew some Lithuanians to be antisemitic, there was no previous history of widespread antisemitic violence in the city and positive interethnic relationship were common. Therefore, in the days following …

Frontmatter (Volume 40, Issue 4)

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

Book Review: Politik Und Gesellschaft Im Kaukasus: Eine Unruhige Region Zwischen Tradition Und Transformation, Paul Crego

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

A review of Olaf Leiße, editor, Politik und Gesellschaft im Kaukasus: Eine unruhige Region zwischen Tradition und Transformation. Wiesbaden: Springer Verlag, 2019. x, 490 pages 978-3-658-26373-7; 978-3-658-26374-4 (eBook)

The Analysis Of Honor Killings In Pakistan And How It Is Related To The Notion Of “What Will Other People Say?", Mahum Nazar

Undergraduate Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Silly Trip Wires, Jonathan Byrd

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The artist discusses the work in Silly Trip Wires, 2020 his Master of Fine Arts exhibition. The exhibition includes an installation, Silly Trips Wires, and documentation of a smaller site-specific version of the work.

The Artist discusses the process of transition from military to civilian, and the potential effects that mental trauma from combat deployments can have on this process. This is tied to an analysis of how communicating the experience of veterans to civilians, through artwork, functions to bring about understanding.

Dunidedcudigunadie, Lawrence Reid

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The artist discusses his Master of Fine Arts exhibit, titled DUNIDEDCUDIGUNADIE. The exhibit is to be held at the Tipton Gallery in downtown Johnson City, TN, from April 2nd to April 10th, 2020. A live reception will be held the evening of April 3rd, featuring a performance with the work, titled Look at You!

The following thesis explores the artist’s formative years – investigating how childhood experiences combine with artistic and theoretical influences to inform his art-making process.

Ritualistic Equestrianism: Status, Identity, And Symbolism In Tudor Coronation Ceremonies, Keri Blair

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The crowning of a King or Queen of England is and remains an essential part of English tradition. For centuries, British subjects have flocked to the city streets to catch a glimpse of their next monarch. For the Tudors, the spectacle of pageantry was often an ostentatious display of wealth and grandeur. Using horses as an historical lens, this study will examine four different components of equestrianism in Tudor coronation ceremonies: The King’s Champion, the Gilded Spurs, the Master of the Horse, and the Horse of Honor. Despite significant political, religious, and cultural changes that occurred during the Tudor era, …

Manifold Minis, Jojo Karlin

Open Educational Resources

This work is a living Manifold project. To view the live project and video links, please visit https://cuny.manifoldapp.org/projects/manifold-minis.

/="/">The project represents the results of five weekly Manifold Mini sessions conducted Spring 2020. Each 30 minute session began with a brief demo and ended with questions and answers. The lessons were followed up with emails and recaps on the CUNY Manifold Users group forum on the CUNY Academic Commons.

• April 7 Introduction to Manifold
• April 14 Manifold OER models (some CUNY examples)
• April 21 Reading Groups in Manifold
• April 28 Using Resources in Manifold
• May 12&13 Publishing Your …

An Exploration Of Procedural Methods For Motion Design, David Hamilton

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This research aims to apply procedural techniques, similar to those employed in node-based modeling or compositing software packages, to the motion design workflow in Adobe After Effects. The purpose is to increase efficiency in the motion design process between pre-production and production stages. Systems Theory is referenced as a basis for breaking down problems in terms of inputs and outputs. All of this takes place within the context of a larger motion design project.

Simulating Destruction Effects In Sidefx Houdini, Ethan B. Elkins

Undergraduate Honors Theses

As movies, television shows, and other forms of media have progressed over the last century, the use of destruction sequences as a form of entertainment have seemingly grown exponentially. From ginormous explosions to cities collapsing, more destruction sequences have drawn people’s attention in ways that are quite captivating. However, as content producers continue to push the limit of what is possible, the reliance on practical effects starts to dwindle in comparison to the usage of computer generated scenes. This thesis acknowledges the trend and dissects the entire process of how a general destruction sequence is made, from the research and …

Creating A Short Animated Film With Cloth Characters, Elizaveta Kochan

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This creative thesis involved making an animated short film from scratch, dubbed “Laundry Day” for the time being. The film follows two sentient clothing characters, a hoodie and a pair of pants, who need to get out of their owner’s room to get to the laundry room after accidentally being left behind. Please watch the short here and use the password “goodiehoodie”:

https://vimeo.com/415387205

This was a time consuming, challenging, and multifaceted project, but provided an accurate glimpse into how feature animation is made. The process of making any project like this is commonly called a pipeline, and can be simplified …

The Roadmap: Exploring T.S. Eliot’S The Waste Land With World War One Literature, Matthew Bennett

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Through careful analysis paired with poetry, war memoirs, and novels from the same period, one can break down T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land to recognize the impact of The Great War on the world's modern memory while pondering the possibility of memory as a tool to overcome trauma.

An Analysis Of Cross-Ideological Expectation Voting On The United States Supreme Court, 2000-2017, Sarah Saulsbury

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Contrasted with the other branches of government, the Supreme Court has long been an institution posing a level of secretiveness equal to its power. Naturally, that has developed a desire, and maybe necessity, to gain a better understanding regarding the principal influences of judicial decision making on America’s highest Court. One phenomenon that has long been of interest to Court observers is the notion of the justice’s voting across established ideological lines. Previous attempts to explain and reconcile cross-ideological votes have focused on the influence of external actors on the Court, its legitimacy, public opinion, and dynamics between justices. Yet, …

Shahrazad In Appalachia: Surviving Violence Through Stories And The Support Of “Sisters”, Kaitlyn Hill

Undergraduate Honors Theses

When women are lured away from home, they become vulnerable and cannot survive the violence inflicted upon them by their ‘lovers.’ This thesis explores the ties between two distinct cultural regions, Arabic and Appalachian, to examine the violence against women and what allows these women to escape such situations by using Hanan al-Shaykh’s One Thousand and One Nights: A Retelling and three traditional Appalachian murdered girl ballads.

Many of the women in these stories die at the hands of their ‘lovers,’ regardless of their culture of origin. Once removed from their fellow women, they lack a support system that would …

The Art And Craft Of Aerial Dance, Vianna Isbister

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The Art and Craft of Aerial Dance discusses my personal experiences training and performing aerial dance, along with my study of safe practices in aerial rigging. My journey as a Theatre and Dance Honors-In-Discipline Scholar at East Tennessee State University from 2016-2020, culminated with my senior thesis capstone performance at Azure Aerial Arts on Friday, December 6th, 2019. This exploration into the world of aerial dance began in the spring of 2017 and has not ceased. If anything, the drive and motivation to continue pushing forward despite many obstacles continues to grow and manifest itself into new forms in my …

Menstruation Regulation: A Feminist Critique Of Menstrual Product Brands On Instagram, Max Faust

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Much research about advertisements for menstrual products reveals the ways in which such advertising perpetuates shame and reinforces unrealistic ideals of femininity and womanhood. This study aims to examine the content of Instagram posts by four different menstrual product brands in hopes of understanding how these functions may or may not be carried out by social media posts by these brands as well. Building on the body of research about menstrual shame and advertising, I specifically ask: How do the Instagram pages for four menstrual product brands dissuade individuality; how do they prescribe femininity; and how do these functions differ …

The Aesthetics Of Storytelling And Literary Criticism As Mythological Ritual: The Myth Of The Human Tragic Hero, Intertextual Comparisons Between The Heroes And Monsters Of Beowulf And The Anglo-Saxon Exodus, Daniel Stoll

Undergraduate Honors Theses

For thousands of years, people have been hearing, reading, and interpreting stories and myths in light of their own experience. To read a work by a different author living in a different era and setting, people tend to imagine works of literature to be something they are not. To avoid this fateful tendency, I hope to elucidate what it means to read a work of literature and interpret it: love it to the point of wanting to foremost discuss its excellence of being a piece of art. Rather than this being a defense, I would rather call it a musing, …

The Enduring Hold Of The Bible On Modern Literature: Exploring The Fall Narrative As A Conceptual Metaphor For American Literature In John Steinbeck’S East Of Eden, Lauren Stotsky

Undergraduate Honors Theses

There is no greater work of literature, perhaps, than the Bible. The Bible has shaped and influenced more literature, art, and culture than any other work in our time. The effects of the Bible’s words are still woven into modern literature today, illustrating that the Bible’s themes, allegories, parables, fables, metaphors, and characters are things that we humans are unable to depart far from even many decades later. One of the very first stories in the Bible, found at the beginning in Genesis, tells of Adam and Eve. Adam and Eve’s depiction as the first kind of our species and …

Creative Gender Expression Performativity As A Coping Mechanism For Minority Stress, Emerson A. Todd

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Creative Gender Expression Performativity may be a coping mechanism for dealing with minority stress in sexual and gender minority populations. The current study suggests the creation of a new scale that measures effortful presentation rather than directional presentation. Rather than examining whether someone identifies as masculine or feminine – the proposed model would instead look at how much effort an individual is putting into their gender expression. In this mixed methods study, participants (N = 187) completed a survey based on gender expression, minority stress, and mental health, while 10 participants completed a qualitative post-survey interview via email. Multiple regressions …

Everyday Decay, Abageal Jacobs

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The medium format photographs created in conjunction with my senior thesis exhibit, Everyday Decay, use texture, line, intimate framing, warm color palettes, and layering to explore an aspect of the everyday landscape that we interact with often but generally ignore. The choice of medium and subject of decay creates a sense of the past, aided by the warm tones that imply affinity and nostalgia.

The Poetic Process: A Poetry Collection, Kirsten Noelle Litz

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The Poetic Process is a creative thesis analyzing the use of different poetic forms but focuses more on the application of them through a series of creative work.

Investigating Early Bluegrass Recording Techniques, Lincoln Hensley

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper is about my investigation of early bluegrass recording techniques and the processes they used. After doing some extensive research, and compiling a database of black and white photographs from the time period, I felt I had enough information to assemble a team to try and produce the sounds, tonal qualities, and energy those recordings have. So John Kornhauser, Joshua Gooding, Hunter Berry, Sarah Griffin, along with myself, went to BigTone studios and tracked for two four hour sessions. BigTone studios has all of the vintage microphones, tape recorders, echo chambers, and out board equipment I need to replicate …

All Eyez On Me: The Socialization Experiences Of African Americans At Predominately White Institutions, Tamara Kuykendall

Curriculum and Instruction Undergraduate Honors Theses

The review of literature section is to analyze the socialization experiences of African Americans that attend predominately white institutions (PWIs). African Americans are defined as Americans of African and especially black African descent for this research. The term “African American” and “black” will be used interchangeably. The paper highlights an overview of the social experiences of African American college students, distinguishes external, non-academic factors that contribute to the black college experience, and describes how African Americans experience social collectiveness within a predominately white campus. It also moves to identify how this interaction shapes African Americans’ perception of ‘blackness’ amongst the …