Arts and Humanities Commons^™

You Burn With Us: How Fire Functions In Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games Trilogy, Lucy Evans

University Honors Theses

This paper examines Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games trilogy and how fire behaves as a multifaceted element that constructs, exposes and transforms power. Through tracing the development of the protagonist, Katniss Everdeen, this research explores how fire evolves from a weapon into a symbol for revolution. This analysis uses the framework of other dystopian novels, and previous character analysis of The Hunger Games, to understand Katniss's role in the revolution of Panem. It does so through three main behaviors: the construction of Katniss's "girl on fire" persona that commodifies her for the capitol's gain; the exposure of the state's …

"But Oh, What Harm Those Basics Would Cause": How Journalists Can Better Interview Vulnerable Sources Utilizing An Ethic Of Care, Noah Carandanis

University Honors Theses

Traditional journalistic ethics have emphasized detachment from sources and objectivity guiding journalists' practices. In this thesis, I explore the contribution of care ethics to the field of journalistic ethics, emphasizing care in relation to interviewing vulnerable sources. I claim that the traditional objective, detached ethical status quo in journalism is insufficient in the context of reporting on mass shootings. This thesis argues that caring journalistic practices should be utilized when interviewing traumatized, vulnerable sources. In the first part, I present the issue of traditional journalistic practices through my personal experiences. I also discuss the philosophical underpinnings to journalist's objectivity criterion. …

Irish Identity: Symbols Of Nationalism In W.B. Yeats's Cathleen Plays, Emma Mady

University Honors Theses

William Butler Yeats was one of the leading figures of the Irish Literary Renaissance. Two of his plays, The Countess Kathleen (1892) and Cathleen ni Houlihan (1902) portrayed themes of nationalism and revivalism in strikingly different ways. Each play uses figures from folklore and mythology to establish a sense of national identity: the tale of "The Countess Kathleen O'Shea" inspired The Countess Kathleen, and the Irish Sovereignty goddess inspired the figure of legendary Cathleen ni Houlihan. The Countess Kathleen was met with harsh criticism and accusations of blasphemy, while Cathleen ni Houlihan is still widely regarded as Yeats's …

So You Didn't Write The Next Great Novel (And How To Move Forward Knowing You Probably Won't), Adriana Stanzione

University Honors Theses

This thesis discusses the relationship between creative ambition and the paralyzing effects of perfectionism within the writing process. By analyzing this relationship via a lens on philosophy, psychoanalytic theory, and personal experience, it argues that the obligation and pressure to produce "good" work can often prevent sincerity and creative momentum. Divided into several sections, it also delves into ideas like inspiration and the revision process, tying in my own experiences with drafting my first manuscript, which resulted in years of writer's block and cynicism. The thesis also considers how cultural conditions contribute to creative stagnation, and deconstructs the concept of …

Skeletons Vs. Mummies: Osteological Trauma On Bog Bodies As A Measure For Cultural Change In Ancient Europe, Miranda Hoodenpyl

University Honors Theses

Bog bodies are some of the most well known archaeological finds in the world, and are preserved human remains found in wetlands. Researchers use the information stored in the bones of bog skeletons and mummies to learn about cultural lifestyles, travels, diet, and diseases throughout time in Northern Europe and the British Isles. Through multiple cultural changes and migration, the "bog body phenomenon" has remained an unusual treatment displayed throughout time. This literature review looked at skeletal trauma on bog remains to identify cultural change over time in Northern Europe and the British Isles, spanning the Neolithic, Bronze, Iron, and …

The Thinnest Veil, Charles Butler

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

The Thinnest Veil is a work of fiction set in a historical colonial world that traces the horrors of the transatlantic slave trade. The main character, Anuli, is abducted from her home in Nigeria and is sold into deeper levels of the American slave system. I wanted to write from a woman’s perspective in this project and think about what power this character would have in this world. I also wanted to explore West African culture and origin, and the influence they have left in other places they have been. In August 2025, I traveled to Barbados to research the …

A Universe Gone Quickly, Willie Carver

Critical Humanities

A Universe Gone Quickly

Submitted: May 25, 2026

Accepted: June 1, 2026

Idiom, Marianne Worthington

Critical Humanities

Idiom

Submitted: May 26, 2026

Accepted: June 1, 2026

A Poet Bears Witness: An Interview With M. L. Williams On The Function Of Literary Studies In Troubled Times, Leah Toth, M. L. Williams

Critical Humanities

Dr. M. L. (Marty) Williams is a poet and professor of literature at Valdosta State University, a comprehensive university in south-central Georgia. He is the author of Game (What Books Press 2021), Other Medicines (Redbone Chapbooks 2008) and co-editor of How Much Earth: The Fresno Poets (Roundhouse Press 2001). The focus of the interview that follows is the future of literary studies in the modern neo-liberal university, a daunting topic in 2026, in the face of what many administrators refer to as the "right-sizing" of literature programs nationwide in both the U.S. and the U.K. Anybody paying attention to the …

Navigating Prose, Poetry And Criticism: An Interview With Nasir Abbas Nayyar On His Contribution To Urdu Literature And Literary Criticism, Nasir Abbas Nayyar, Inayat Ullah

Critical Humanities

Navigating Prose, Poetry and Criticism: An Interview with Nasir Abbas Nayyar on His Contribution to Urdu Literature and Literary Criticism 

Submitted: May 24, 2026

Accepted: June 1, 2026

An Interview With Mohammed Bennis, Mohammed Bennis, Amine Oudghiri-Otmani

Critical Humanities

An Interview with Mohammed Bennis

Submitted: April 4, 2026

Accepted: May 24, 2026

“Politics Are Downstream From Culture”: An Interview With Paul Lauter, Paul Lauter

Critical Humanities

“Politics are downstream from culture”: An Interview with Paul Lauter

Submitted: May 29, 2026

Accepted: June 1, 2026

The Possibility Of Post Binary Reflexivity: A Genealogy Of Binary Logic In Western Philosophy, Vaughan A. Bidois

Critical Humanities

This article traces a genealogy of binary logic within Western philosophy, from its origins in Platonic metaphysics through to its deconstruction in poststructuralist theory. Drawing on the genealogical methods of Friedrich Nietzsche and Michel Foucault, it critiques how oppositional structures, such as mind/body, reason/emotion, and truth/error, have persisted through shifting intellectual paradigms while shaping knowledge, power, and subjectivity. Structuralist and linguistic theories are examined for their role in reinforcing binary meaning-making, while poststructural critiques (notably Derrida and Foucault) are explored for their attempts to subvert such hierarchies. However, the article argues that these critiques remain paradoxically ensnared within the same …

Human Wisdom And Artificial Intelligence: Role Of Liberal Arts Education In A Neoliberal World, Purna Chandra Bhusal

Critical Humanities

Neoliberalism is an economic and political ideology that originated in the 1930s and 40s, gained momentum in the late 70s and 80s, and peaked in the 90s and 2000s. Since its inception, neoliberalism has promoted a free-market economy with minimal state intervention, granting individuals the freedom to compete and succeed. Since the last quarter of the twentieth century, the neoliberal system has invested in, incorporated, and promoted Artificial Intelligence (AI), valuing an AI-enhanced corporate ethos. As a result, the success of higher education is generally measured by the quantity of technologically sound, market-ready, AI-trained human capital it produces for industry. …

Why Literature Matters: Perpetrator Portrayal, Cultural Imaginaire And Poetry Of The Taliban, Inayat Ullah

Critical Humanities

The question of how perpetrators of violence are identified, represented and understood has become a central concern of Perpetrator Studies, an interdisciplinary field that emerged in the early twenty-first century. This article analyzes The Poetry of the Taliban in a bid to examine how the selected poems construct and negotiate multiple figurations of the perpetrator rather than presenting it as a singular or fixed category. While the poems frequently identify perpetrator through recognizable political, military and ideological structures, they also reveal the complexities involved in reducing the perpetrator to a clearly identifiable form or kind. In exploring these tensions, the …

Enhancing Access And Social Mobility: Metro State University's Liberal Arts Mission In Action, Kristen Lillvis, Kate Ries

Critical Humanities

This article examines how a liberal arts framework has guided Metropolitan State University’s responses to political, financial, and social pressures on higher education. Drawing on the university’s history as an access-oriented, urban institution, the authors present two case studies—the North Star Promise scholarship and emergency grant funding—to demonstrate how mission-driven investments in students’ basic needs advance social mobility and strengthen institutional sustainability. The authors argue that prioritizing student supports, including those available through short-term or contingent opportunities, yields long-term benefits for learners, their communities, and the university.

Submitted: April 13, 2026

Accepted: May 21, 2026

Literature Carries Philosophy’S Open Secret: On Derrida’S Reading Of Romeo And Juliet, Rajesh Sampath

Critical Humanities

This paper attempts a close reading of Derrida’s texts, particularly with a focus on his brief but significant reading of Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet in “Aphorism Countertime” (originally published in French in 1986). We compare this short work with his more sustained engagement with the philosophy of death in Aporias (1993), which itself is an attempted critique of Heidegger’s Being and Time (1927); the latter is, arguably, the most influential work of twentieth-century continental European philosophy, particularly on issues of time, death, and authentic life. The paper tries to show that a fruitful engagement between philosophy and …

Defending The Humanities: Introduction To The Special Issue On “Why The Humanities Matter”, Megan Hutchinson

Critical Humanities

Introduction to the Special Issue

Defending the Humanities: “why the Humanities Matter”

Reclaiming Narrative Authority: Gendered Violence And Feminist Reauthorship In Sharon Pollock's Saucy Jack, Jennifer Jones Cavenaugh

Theatre and Dance Faculty Publications

This article examines Sharon Pollock’s Saucy Jack (1994) as a feminist intervention into the narrative structures that have sustained the cultural authority of Jack the Ripper mythology. Drawing on feminist historiography, particularly Judith Walkowitz’s analysis of male violence as narrative structure and Hallie Rubenhold’s reclamation of the murdered women’s lived histories, the essay argues that Ripper narratives depend on three interlocking conventions: killer-centered focalization, the erasure of women’s lives, and the aestheticization of death as spectacle. Through close performance analysis, the article shows how Pollock dismantles these conventions by centering Kate, a music hall actress whose reenactments transform performance into …

The Contentious Politics Of Abortion: Understanding The Black Protests And Women’S Strikes In Poland, Taubie Sanders

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

In 1993, the Polish Parliament, the Sejm, passed a law called ‘The Abortion Compromise’ permitting abortion only in cases when there is a serious threat to the life or health of the woman, pregnancy is the result of a crime, or prenatal tests show the fetus to be severely or incurably damaged. The current abortion laws in Poland are the most restrictive in all of Europe. Poland’s abortion laws have undergone much contestation in recent years. In 2016, the Black Protests erupted across the country in opposition to a proposed total ban on abortion. In 2020, the Women’s Strikes commenced …

Trans And Gender Diverse Experiences With Healthcare Professionals, Victor N. Soto

University Honors Theses

There is a history of state powers working against the interest of Transgender and Gender Diverse (TGD) people, but since the second Trump election attacks on TGD have reached a new precedent; this suggests the state is engaging in necropolitical actions to gain and maintain power. To better understand how the current climate is impacting TGD people, and add to discussions about TGD-centered healthcare research, this thesis interviewed 15 TGD students from the Portland metro area about their experiences with healthcare providers. All fifteen of the interviews were transcribed and coded. Four primary themes were found: 1) bad provider experience; …

La Poésie De Guerre - La Poésie Française Dans Les Deux Guerres Mondiales, Veronica Mayrose

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

Cette thèse explore six poèmes de la Première Guerre mondiale et la Seconde Guerre mondiale, avec une concentration sur comment ces poèmes utilisent des thèmes similaires à exprimer desidées differentes. Cette thèse explore aussi comment le contexte historique influence la naturedes poèmes, particulièrement concernant les tranchées de la PMG et l'Occupation de la Francede la SGM.

Welsh, British, And Argentine: Identities Of Convenience In The Welsh Colonies Of Patagonia, Benjamin Welch

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

In this thesis, I examine the Welsh colonies in Patagonia (in Welsh, Y Wladfa) and how the Welsh negotiated their complex identity. Founded in 1865 as a nationalist project intended to preserve Welsh language, culture, and religion, the colony faced extreme hardships and was forced to ask for help. Drawing on British, Welsh and Argentine sources, I argue that Welsh colonists adopted a pragmatic approach to identity, emphasizing their Welshness, Britishness, or Argentinity as needed. While this flexibility was necessary for the colony to survive, it undermined the original goal of a Welsh homeland free of outside influence. Ultimately, the …

Gendered Justice: The Role Of Women’S Civil Society Organizations In Shaping Chile’S Truth Commissions, Frankie Stroud

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

Scholarly literature has increasingly recognized that the inclusion of women and gender in formal transitional justice processes is essential for addressing the gendered nature of mass atrocities. This thesis seeks to contribute to the existing literature on how and why some transitional justice processes have come to address women and gender by specifically studying Chile’s Rettig Commission and Valech Commission. Several hypotheses have emerged from the literature for why the Valech Commission addressed gender to a greater extent, including that women’s civil society organizations, diffusion of international norms, and shifting domestic politics each played a role. Grounded in an anti-reductionist …

Industrial Democracy: Unionization, Power, And Control In Rockefeller’S Southern Colorado, Ava Welty

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

By 1914, democracy was clearly connected to America’s political ethos, and Wilson and Frank Walsh only amplified the term. Against this backdrop, labor and CF&I sought to define their movement as aligned with the national project of industrial democracy, despite having divergent understandings of the term. CF&I and Rockefeller built upon decades of social betterment, in addition to new ideas of company unionism to create their definition of industrial democracy, while workers returned to union recognition as a tool of power to construct their definition of industrial democracy. This paper argues that conflicting definitions of industrial democracy after the Ludlow …

Representasi Pendidikan Karakter Dalam Film Berbahasa Jerman Ich Bin Dein Mensch, Jovita Syahyananda, Desti Nur Aini

Journal of Language, Literature, and Arts

This study aims to describe the representation of character education dimensions, namely knowing the good, loving the good, and doing the good, in the German-language film Ich bin dein Mensch, as well as its implications for German language learning. This research employed a qualitative method using interpretative content analysis of dialogues and scenes in the film that represent the relationship between humans and artificial intelligence. The findings show that the dimension of knowing the good is reflected in the characters’ moral awareness in understanding the boundaries of human relationships with technology. The dimension of loving the good appears through emotional …

Sediment: A Magical Realist Road Novel, Nicolas Victor Rago

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

This magical realist novel follows G and Louie, two strangers, as they road trip west to east across the continental United States. As they travel, they drift through time, exploring historical and personal pasts through surreal atmospheric prose.

Platonic Affection, Philia, And Trans-Philosophy, Kai Parker

McNair Research Journal SJSU

In this article, I review the heteronormative social conventions of cisgender

men and women's abilities to build and maintain friendships vis-.vis

traditional Western gender roles. It divides the philosophical concept of

Plato’s “platonic love” as fully realized Eros from the basic social

interpretation of “platonic” relationships as connections devoid of sexual or

romantic feelings. Aristotle's definitions of friendship, divided into the three

categories of pleasure, utility, and virtue, are compared to friendships

cisgender men and women form with others of the same orientation. Men's

friendships are found to more often fall into friendships of utility and

pleasure, while women's friendships …

The Art Of Martin Wong, And The Traditions He Drew From, Janie Mendosa

IdeaFest: Interdisciplinary Journal of Creative Works and Research from Cal Poly Humboldt

Martin Wong was a singular figure in the art world, drawing from diverse influences including Pan-Asian traditions, Western modernism, social realism, and the emerging graffiti movement. As a queer artist who lived in urban New York City to San Francisco's Chinatown, he existed on the margins.

Interrogating Settler Narratives Of Erasure In The Schatz Tree Farm Archives, Sangeeta Sarkar

IdeaFest: Interdisciplinary Journal of Creative Works and Research from Cal Poly Humboldt

In 1987, L. W. Schatz donated a 385-acre parcel of land to Cal Poly Humboldt to be used as an experimental station, outdoor classroom, and demonstration area for forestry educators and students. Previous student research and other institutional narratives have extensively documented the history of this land from a settler perspective. However, this documentation contains few mentions of the Indigenous history of the landscape. Through literature review and archival research, this paper critically analyzes settler colonial narratives around the Schatz Tree Farm and the ways in which they contribute to Indigenous erasure. The predominant forms of narrative erasure in settler …