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Language, Literature, And Culture Newsletter, Ninth Edition (September 2025), Language, Literature, And Culture Department, Clark University

Language, Literature, and Culture

The ninth issue of the Language, Literature, and Culture department newsletter, which went out in September 2025. The Language, Literature, and Culture department newsletter aims to "share stories, news, ideas, achievements, and important information about and within our academic department that can be helpful to the campus community at large".

Myth Of Happiness From The Consumerism Perspective In Simone De Beauvoir’S Les Belles Images, Joesana Tjahjani, Sekar Dewantari

Paradigma: Jurnal Kajian Budaya

France's post-World War II, thirty years of glory, resulted in the growth of purchasing power among the French, which triggered growth in consumerism, notably among the bourgeois— France's upper-middle-class society. People believed in a myth that objects are not solely useful for fulfilling needs but also served as a sign of social status, dignity, andcomfort. They equally believed that if the objects are consumed and the associated social standards fulfilled, they maybecome a way to obtain greater happiness. This article aims to examine the myth that happiness can be attained byconsumption and social standard fulfillment in a French consumer society …

The Enthusiastic Dimension And Its Effect On The Formation Of The Literary Narrative Discourse Structure, Laith Bani Nasr, Salem Al-Hadrusi

Jordan Journal of Applied Science-Humanities Series

This study explores the passionate dimension and its effect on the formation of the structure of the literary narrative discourse, based on the rules and principles adopted by researchers in the field of narrative semantics, foremost among them Algridas Julien Greimas. The study seeks to follow procedural elements to analyze the narrative structure of the passionate dimension and its stages of formation through adopted pathways that may reveal the semantic implications behind the structural levels that constitute the narrative text. With this pathway-based perspective, which underpins the narrative analysis of the alluring dimension, the analyst—regardless of their methodological affiliation—can discern …

The Image Of The Settler In Arab Theatre, Yahya Al-Bashtawi

Jordan Journal of Applied Science-Humanities Series

This study aimed to identify the image of the settler in Arab theater. The settler is a Jewish immigrant with extremist religious orientations and beliefs. He came from outside Palestine and settled in the occupied territories to establish a state alongside his fellow settlers. The significance of this research lies in exploring the image of the settler in Arab theater, investigated through the selection of two short theater texts: "The Settler" by Gamal Banoura and "Amos’ Nightmare" by Ghannam. Additionally, two theatrical productions were examined: "The Eye and the Tooth" directed by Francois Abu Salem, and "Return to Haifa" by …

Oткрытые Слова. Стихи Января — Августа 2025., Victor Fet

Open Access Books

Фет, В. Oткрытые слова. Стихи января — августа 2025.  Київ: Друкарський двiр Олега Федорова. 2025. 284 с.  

Эта книга — продолжение серии из пяти предыдущих книг: «Над бездной» (2022), «Ткань памяти» (2022), «Свет слов» (2023), «Контурная карта» (2024) и «Предел памяти» (2025) (К.: Друкарський двiр Олега Федорова). Сюда вошли стихотворения, написанные с января по август 2025.

Кошмар почти четырёх последних лет не кончается, не кончаются и стихи. Мы — вся наша цивилизация — вступили в такую полосу неопределённости, где рефлекторное плетение кружева слов может быть не более, чем средством медитации, способом не сойти немедленно с ума. …

Book Reviews, Melissa Brooks, Justin Easterday

Mississippi Libraries

Reviews of:

Watson, J. and J. Thomas, Jr., eds., Faulkner's Families. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2023. 247 pp. $30.00 (Paperback).

Lemco, A. (2023). Wading In: Desegregation on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Univ. Press of Mississippi. 206 pp. $22 (Paperback).

Crossed Stitches: Tension And Transformation In Nineteenth-Century Embroidery Samplers., Hayley Salo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Originally designed as practice pieces, embroidery samplers have long been studied as domestic objects and part of sewing history. Interpretations of the material and textual significance of individual samplers is less common. However, recent scholarly attention has turned to using sewing practices and objects as a means for understanding individual stitchers and their contributions to public discourse. As such, a focused study of the material and textual content of embroidery samplers furthers our understanding of the genre on its own and as a wider textile practices. Crossed Stitches is interested in the production, portability, circulation, and reception of embroidery samplers …

Reaching The Young And Hopeless: Rooting For Redemption At A Residential Treatment Center, Christian P. Newton

Say Something Theological: The Student Journal of Theological Studies

This article reflects on my experiences as an educator at a Residential Treatment Center, observing the spiritual battles being fought by some residents as they attempt to rectify their lives after their involvement in sexual abuse. It will review literature that has been successful in my classroom with helping young people change their mind concerning their irredeemableness and that can also improve how evangelical attempts across Christian dominations pastor to those who feel scorned by God. Due to the mentality of some residents who have deeply struggled with the concepts of forgiveness and regret, literature is offered as starting point …

Race And Nation In Three Canonic Texts Of Puerto Rican Literature: Luis Palés Matos’S Tom-Tom Of Kinky Hair And Black Things, José Luis González’S La Llegada, And Edgardo Rodríguez Juliá’S Cortijo’S Wake, Luis R. Galanes

CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture

In this essay we propose a critical reading of three politically-charged canonic texts of Puerto Rican literature that uphold and vindicate an African heritage for Puerto Rican culture, highlighting their role in moving discussions about blackness at the center stage of debates about national identity and culture, and assessing their contribution to the emergence and development of an Afro-Puerto Rican identity and literature. These texts are: Luis Palés Matos’s Tom-Tom of Kinky Hair and Black Things, José Luis González’s La llegada; and Edgardo Rodríguez Juliá’s Cortijo’s Wake. Moreover, a debate about the racial background of the authors …

Digital Literature: A Modern Concept Of Contemporary Literature, Dala Jamal

Al Jinan الجنان

Since the earliest eras of his existence on this Earth, man has attempted to document his daily experiences using various available means: from carving on rocks and stones to drawing in caves, then documenting on animal skins after the invention of letters, and later writing on paper. In our modern era, we have reached documentation on computers, which represents a significant shift in the way we document due to its advanced features that surpass human intellect. In this research, I aimed to shed light on a new literary genre that emerged from the computer two decades ago and can only …

Book Review: River Fiction Of India: Intersectional Flows Of Narratives, Geographies, And Histories, Nilay Patel

Critical Humanities

Book Review of

River Fiction of India: Intersectional Flows of Narratives, Geographies, and Histories,

edited by Subhadeep Ray

London & New York: Routledge, 2025

306 pp.

ISBN: 978-1-032-66253-4 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-1-032-98346-2 (pbk)

ISBN 978-1-003-59818-3 (ebk)

Artificial Intelligence And Art, Jeffrey Moser, Sally Brown, Jay Cole, Ashley Denardo, Charles Brown, Dana Coester

Artificial Intelligence Exhibit

This section gives an overview of the opportunities and risks with using AI in art, media, literature, and more. Includes two creative student submissions using AI.

Queer Inclusion In Libba Bray's Beauty Queens: The Case For Lgbtq Ya Literature, Kayla Michelle Crumbley

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a time sensitive case study on the nature of Libba Bray's novel Beauty Queensand it's placement as both a metacognitive novel and discourse in the nature of queer acceptance in the publishing and media landscape of the 2010s and 2020s. This includes focusing on contextualizing the book in the changing landscape of queer acceptance and visibility in the media over the last 20 years through the lens of the inclusion in YA and how that manifest in the 2010 and 2020s book bans on LGBTQ YA fiction. The novel highlights the wider need for LGBTQ YA …

Mr. Hyde And His Representation Of Alcoholism, Jacob S. Capes

NEXUS: The Liberty Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies

This essay explores The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson through the lens of addiction psychology, drawing parallels between Dr. Jekyll’s descent into madness and the stages of alcoholism as defined by the DSM-5. By interpreting Jekyll’s relationship with his transformative elixir as a metaphor for alcohol abuse, the analysis traces his progression through early experimentation, growing dependency, and eventual loss of control, aligning with the three clinical stages of alcohol use disorder. The essay further examines how intelligence and genetic predisposition—two key risk factors for addiction—contribute to Jekyll’s vulnerability, incorporating both modern scientific …

Knowing Remembers Joe Christmas: An Exploration Of Trauma In William Faulkner's Light In August, Kendall Boyd

University Honors Theses

William Faulkner wrote Light in August in 1932, during the American prohibition and national Jim Crow laws. As a southern gothic/American modernism text, Light in August is a fictional story that takes place in the southern states of the U.S. and primarily relies on memory and ambiguity to reveal its dark themes of racism, sexual violence, and collective trauma. The novel features two separate narrators as main characters: Lena Burch and Joe Christmas. Joe Christmas, a man of mysterious heritage who lives a life of tragedy and violence, is the focus of my analysis of Light in August. Using …

Representations Of Queer Cowboys In History, Literature, And Film, Olivia Black

History & Classics Undergraduate Theses

My senior thesis focuses on showing the existence and erasure of queerness in American cowboys. The first chapter uses two journals from two different cowboys as well as an article from a Denver newspaper to establish what being queer looked like to cowboys and how that queerness continued after the end of the Frontier. Chapter two focuses on interpretations of cowboys in literature using two fictional cowboy stories which included the queer aspects of cowboy life as well as autobiographical and fictional cowboy poetry that confirmed explicit homosexual activity and revealed a shift in public views on being queer. The …

Science And The Humanities: Are They Two Polar Entities?, Elizabeth Mckenna Silvey

Masters Theses

Science and the humanities are often perceived as being separate entities. In academic settings, there is little to no overlap in these courses of study. One can obtain a Bachelor of Science or a Bachelor of Arts degree, but there are no academic majors that allow for the study of both the humanities and the sciences. Despite the seemingly different courses of study, it is through careful examination of literature and thoroughly delving into pieces of literature in order to excavate the meaning and purpose behind the work, that one is able to see the distinct connections between the two …

Creating Accessible Literature For Deaf Young Adults, Kailee Bates

Undergraduate University Honors Capstones

Access to literature in a person’s most accessible language is a human right. One that has been deprived from many members of the Deaf community, despite the growth of translated literature in other languages. Translators have yet to tackle the business of creating accessible American Sign Language (ASL) translations for older audiences, specifically for young adults. After the critical period of language development, less resources are tendered for older Deaf students. This project aimed to spread awareness of this need to several different people groups and emphasize the complexity of translating an English text into ASL. It did this by …

‘Amazigh Literary Space’: Intersection And Hybridity Across Languages And Media, Daniela Merolla

Journal of Amazigh Studies

My contribution will focus on multilingualism and multimedia in the ‘Amazigh literary and cinematographic space’ (Merolla De l’art, “Amazigh/Berber Literature”). Examining this notion coined in the 1990’s (Merolla “Gender and Community”) allows us to reflect on ongoing debates regarding North African literatures in postcolonial contexts. It also helps to see that Amazigh/Berber literature solely defined as Amazigh-language production tends to isolate works and performances that engage with multiple languages and literary traditions, cultural intersections, and hybridization in North Africa and its diasporas. The discussion is contextualized within the historical development of what is sometimes referred to as the “North …

The Madonna - Whore Complex, Rhiya S. Ashman

Persimmon Creek

In this work, I wanted to explore the literature/media trope of the Madonna/Whore complex, specifically when it comes to Black women in media. The Madonna Whore complexes illustrate how women are often written into one of two extremes - they are either extremely pure, innocent, and childlike (The Madonna), or they are sexual, rebellious, and seductive (The Whore). The piece is full of symbolism, including the materials used to make it. I wanted to illustrate these extreme yet two dimensional ways these women were portrayed by creating them in flat paper, with no faces, to show how they are still …

Love Drugs: Exploring The Ethical Implications Of Relationship Targeting Biochemical Supplements, Hallie Young

2025 Spring Honors Capstone Projects - Archive

"Love drugs" can be defined as chemical interventions that affect desire, attraction, and affection. Contemporary advancements in neurochemical interventions have increased interest in love drugs and highlighted the need for accessible love drug analyses. This project explores how love drugs will affect contemporary relationships through realistic literary scenarios informed by current philosophical literature. These scenarios consist of three vignettes compiled into a novella-length creative work. It was initially anticipated that these vignettes would reveal that introducing a meta-biological or chemical intervention into social situations where authenticity is normatively highly valued would prompt participant introspection. In practice, this work finds that …

Language, Literature, And Culture Newsletter, Eighth Edition (May 2025), Language, Literature, And Culture Department, Clark University

Language, Literature, and Culture

The eighth issue of the Language, Literature, and Culture department newsletter, which went out in May 2025. The Language, Literature, and Culture department newsletter aims to "share stories, news, ideas, achievements, and important information about and within our academic department that can be helpful to the campus community at large".

Earth As Archive: An Interdisciplinary Approach To Possibility And Understanding, Alissa Petrizzo

Honors College Theses

This thesis takes the reader on a journey through the process of literary analysis to uncover new considerations of our past, present, and future. Living in the climate crisis, we are in dire need of the humanistic presence within solution-making conversations. I introduce scholarly voices from anthropologists, environmental scientists, and novelists before diving into Pitchaya Sudbanthad's novel Bangkok Wakes to Rain. While you hear my voice throughout the journey, I exist more so as a tour guide, helping you along the way to new possibilities of understanding. We dig up and analyze evidence of the Earth as an archive …

The Bones: A Novel-In-Progress, Chris Stark

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.

Wide Screen With Critical Essay "Translating A Poetry Of Cinema"., James L. Richie Iv

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation combines the creative task of translating Víctor Cabrera’s poetry collection WIDE SCREEN (2009) from Spanish into English with a critical study that analyzes the volume to highlight the uniqueness of his writing, the importance of translating such a work for an Anglophone audience, and the challenges that occur in translating this complex collection. Moreover, Cabrera’s writing engages with a variety of cultural works in ways that challenge preconceived notions of language, culture, and medium. The poetry in WIDE SCREEN draws inspiration from the films of American filmmaker Jim Jarmusch, while frequently putting these films into dialogue with works …

A Modern Prometheus: Frankenstein's Relevance In Our Modern Society, Amanda C. Partida

Theses and Dissertations

For over two hundred years Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein has been in the public consciousness. It took only five years for the first adaptation, Presumption; or the Fate of Frankenstein, to be staged in 1825. Since then, there has been at least one adaptation every decade, with Universal Studios’ 1931 Frankenstein as the most famous adaptation, which shows just how much Shelley’s novel of science and hubris has resonated with audiences for many years.

This thesis aims to connect the ever-changing scientific anxieties of society with the most well-known Frankenstein film adaptations. By focusing on four specific films Frankenstein (1931), …

Performative Masculinity In Ducal Literature In Florence (1520-1580), Matthew T. Perkins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Ducal literature of sixteenth-century Florence illuminates the performative nature of gender and sexuality, especially in regard to masculinity. The impetus of this study is Benvenuto Cellini’s autobiography, My Life. While contemporary historiographical studies examine Cellini’s work for its overt misogyny and violence, this work argues that the performative nature of gender, through interdisciplinarity and contextual analysis, offers a highly complex view of masculinity. Cellini’s autobiography directly relates to Giorgio Vasari’s The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects. Vasari’s accounts of Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni and Giovanni Antonio Bazzi, called Il Sodoma, emphasize the importance of fashioned …

Entre Magia Y Olvido: A Narrative Journey Of Latinos/Hispanics In Fantasy Literature, Kendra Edith Lara

Theses and Dissertations

This story was born from imagination and a deep desire for inclusivity. “Corazon de Magia” is told through the perspective of Julietta Hernandez, a young Mexican American woman who is thrust into a magical adventure. Aided by friendship and intuition, Julietta investigates a mysterious pendulum that is the key to finding a missing shopkeeper. This story is a tribute to the Hispanic/Latino community- a celebration of strength, resilience and possibility.

We can be magic too.

Angelic Wasting: The Impacts Of The Enlightenment, Evangelicalism, And The Industrial Revolution On Romanticization Of Tuberculosis In England, 1800-1850, Sara M. Sudano

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis aims to elucidate the intersections between the portrayal of tuberculosis in the Romantic era and the Enlightenment, evangelism, and the Industrial Revolution. This study aims to do so by locating and analyzing depictions in the primary source representations of the disease, then considering the effects of the three factors mentioned above on its representation. The Enlightenment, evangelism, and the Industrial Revolution interacted in a variety of ways, and the influence of all three factors was found within the representations of tuberculosis, albeit in often indirect ways. In the novels of Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell and Charlotte Brontë, tuberculosis was …

Chrysanthèmes Et Camélias: Le Japonisme Littéraire Au Xixᵉ Siècle Et Aujourd’Hui, Emiko Iguchi

Honors Theses

Ce travail explorera le dialogue entre Madame Chrysanthème et Le Cahier rose de Madame Chrysanthème, une réponse directe de Félix Régamey à l’oeuvre de Loti. J’analyserai également un exemple plus moderne, L’Élégance du hérisson de Muriel Barbery. Bien que ces trois oeuvres traitent de l’interaction entre les mêmes deux pays, les intentions des auteurs se révèlent à travers leur manière de représenter les personnages et les échanges culturels. Malgré le manque général de compréhension de la culture japonaise qui transparaît dans le récit de Loti, Madame Chrysanthème a eu une influence durable sur la manière dont le Japon a …