American Studies Commons^™

'Barren, Silent, Godless': The Southern Novels Of Cormac Mccarthy, Melissa Davis

All Theses

Though best known for his Western works that have been read widely in the literary community and adapted to film, Cormac McCarthy is rarely discussed in terms of his contribution to Southern literature. However, his first four novels--The Orchard Keeper, Outer Dark, Child of God, and Suttree--are set in the mountainous area around Knoxville, Tennessee. In this setting, McCarthy traces the change of the South and humanity from its agrarian, showing the violent and gothic nature of a modernizing society.
In considering the struggle between the old and new South as presented in the characters of The Orchard Keeper, the …

Pictures, Puzzles, And Missing Pieces: The Childlike Solution To Trauma In The Mature Novel, Natalie Couch

All Theses

Throughout literary history the child in literature has played multiple roles but was most frequently used as either a symbol for innocence or evil. In the case of three contemporary novels, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer; The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon; and M. T. Anderson's novel entitled The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing: Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party, the authors use the image of the precocious child to evoke thoughts about learning and education. These three novels invite their audiences to experience an almost anti-Bildungsroman …

La Théorie De Weber Et La Mentalité Du Travail En France Et Aux États-Unis, Kristina Suorsa

Senior Honors Projects

Il y a beaucoup de différences entre les cultures française et américaine. Un grand désaccord est entre la mentalité au sujet de la notion de travail dans chaque pays. Une théorie sur cette divergence est proposée par le sociologue Max Weber dans son ouvrage The Protestant Work Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism. Dans ce livre, Weber explore l’idée que la religion Protestante est la cause de la différence dans la mentalité de travail. En France il n’y avait pas de tolérance pour le Protestantisme. Les Protestants ont été poursuivis en France et finalement le roi Louis XIV leur a …

A Qualitative Case Study Of Developing Teacher Identity Among American Indian Secondary Teachers From The Ute Teacher Training Program, Virginia Norris Exton

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this foundational study was to explore the factors that contributed to developing teacher identity among new American Indian teachers. Multifaceted research into the history of American Indian education, the design of American Indian teacher training programs, and the beliefs and experiences of four American Indian secondary teachers gave this study a richly detailed context.

Three overarching patterns emerged during the process of analyzing the data: (a) solidarity and independence, (b) habit and change, and (c) tradition and invention. From these patterns, six factors were identified as contributing to developing teacher identity. School-based experiences that affected developing teacher …

Street-Ball: The Myth Of The Ghetto Basketball Star, Vincent F. Mcsweeney

Honors Scholar Theses

In recent decades, countless scholars have examined the developing trend of African American dominance in United States’ professional sports. Many have hypothesized that this over-representation is caused by the presumed reliance on sports as an avenue out of poverty for the African American youths. This trend, it is believed, has a highly detrimental effect the African American community. In actuality, this argument is flawed because it works under the stereotypical assumption that the overwhelming majority of African Americans come from abject poverty. To dispel this fallacy, the author has analyzed the upbringings of each All-National Basketball League First Team player …

Foot Held Against The Edge, Joseph Schumacher

All Theses

The poems included in this creative thesis demonstrate a growth in the author's personal development and interpretation of the world. This collection contains 27 poems, which use a variety of styles, themes, and structures to study alternative perspectives and to scrutinize cultural norms. The purpose of this creative thesis is to show the author's proficiency in this genre while also challenging readers to examine their own interpretations of the world around them.

'Picking And Choosing': Marianne Moore's Strategic Revision Of The Romantic Sublime, Emily Atkins

All Theses

While many Modernist writers made conscious attempts to position themselves against an existing Romantic literary tradition, careful examinations reveal important overlaps and connections in theme, imagery and purpose. While Marianne Moore's work is perhaps farther away from a Romantic aesthetic than that of many of her contemporaries, a close examination of the body of her work reveals an engagement with many themes, motifs, and ideas that can be traced to her Romantic predecessors, a relationship that might best be described as 'picking and choosing,' to use her words. Many of her poems involve an appropriation and interrogation of the sublime, …

'Poe And Not Poe': A Study Of The Radio Adaptations Of Edgar Allan Poe's Short Stories, Ashley Davis

All Theses

This master's thesis analyzes four of Poe's short stories--'The Pit and the Pendulum,' 'The Tell-Tale Heart,' 'Metzengerstein,' and 'The Purloined Letter'-in comparison with their respective radio adaptations. Using the texts and Poe's essay 'The Philosophy of Composition' as guides for comparison, it is apparent that the respective changes made in each radio play veer greatly from Poe's original stories. Although the radio adaptations leave behind some traces of Poe's signature technique, they mostly remove that which was deemed too scary, too dark, or too overly philosophical for radio audiences. Therefore, the stories become at once comforting and disarming, at once …

On Sea-Goats, Chase Hart

All Theses

This thesis can be viewed as mediation between two processes of interpretation. Once process affirms freeplay and the continuation of the game. The other still wants a center or 'the reassuring foundation, the origin and the end of the game' as Derrida calls it. On a deep level, these poems try to realize themselves as inevitably subject to play, while also acknowledging themselves as trying to meaningfully interpret experience.

Why Katahdin Runs: A Play In Three Acts, Jaisey Bates

LMU Theses and Dissertations

For KATAHDIN, a Mixed Blood young woman who grew up in non Native group foster homes, running is her safest means of escaping her anger and her lack of family, roots, and memory.

This is the story of how Katahdin's ancestors help her find a home within, roots, and joy.

The Role Of Occupational Values And Support In Career Choice: An Emphasis On Women In Science, Heather Meikle

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine how occupational values and social support for career pursuits influenced career choice, with a specific focus on women in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM). A sample of 62 college graduates participated in telephone interviews that addressed gender differences in seven occupational values and three sources of social support. Results showed that differences in occupational values differ by both gender and between individuals in STEM and non-STEM careers. The strength of STEM values better predicted a career in STEM than did gender. Finally, women in STEM received the least amount of social …

Corona Ion Deposition: A Novel Non-Contact Method For Drug And Gene Delivery To Living Systems, Niraj Ramachandran

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Application of corona ions produced in air to B16F10 murine melanoma cells in vitro and in animal models resulted in the transport of molecular therapeutics across the cell membrane. This work presents the development of new methods for drug and gene delivery based upon similar principles as the traditional electrode driven membrane destabilization processes known as electroporation. This was achieved with non-contact corona ion deposition that temporarily increased the permeability of cell membranes.

Interaction of corona charge with biological cells was studied and their potential for molecular delivery was established. Molecular delivery was first demonstrated in vitro using tracer molecules …

A Study Of Instructional Strategies That Promote Learning Centered Synchronous Dialogue Online, Shelley Stewart

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This multiple case study provides a description and explanation of what, why and how instructional strategies have the potential to promote learning-centered synchronous dialogue online, specifically in the synchronous web-based course system (SWBCS), Elluminate Live! This research was guided by the theory of transactional distance, specifically the dialogue component. Qualitative data collection techniques were employed, including, interviews, observations, researcher's reflective journal, surveys and Delphi. Three cases were examined, consisting of the instructor, their students and the synchronous sessions during the course. Data were analyzed iteratively to garner themes. Member checks were conducted to maintain an active corroboration on the interpretation …

Organizational Communication And Change: A Case Study On The Implementation Of An Innovation At A Florida Medical Facility, Erika G. Llenza

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examined how employees at a Florida medical facility felt regarding the upcoming change to a paperless system and whether a training program administered by the organization was effective in reducing anxiety, increasing understanding of the need for the change, increasing employee confidence using the new computer system, changing employee perceptions of the new system, and helping employees view the change as an organizational improvement. The results indicated that the training program marginally reduced anxiety, but did not significantly increase user confidence or understanding of the need for the change. While participants viewed the change as an organizational improvement, …

Limts Of Beach And Dune Erosion In Response To Wave Runup From Large-Scale Laboratroy Data, Tiffany M. Roberts

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The SUPERTANK dataset is analyzed to examine the upper limit of beach change in response to elevated water level induced by wave runup. Thirty SUPERTANK runs are investigated, including both erosional and accretionary wave conditions under random and monochromatic waves. Two experiments, one under a spilling and one under a plunging breaker-type, from the Large-Scale Sediment Transport Facility (LSTF) are also analyzed. The upper limit of beach change approximately equals the maximum vertical excursion of swash runup. Exceptions to this direct relationship are those with beach or dune scarps when gravity-driven changes, i.e., avalanching, become significant. The vertical extent of …

Teaching Functional Skills To Individuals With Developmental Disabilities Using Video Prompting, Julie A. Horn

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Because many individuals with developmental disabilities prefer to be as independent as possible, strategies need to be developed to teach them functional skills. Video prompting is a fairly new technology, in which a person learns to engage in a complex behavior by viewing steps of a task analysis on video. The steps are broken down so that the task is more manageable for the individual. The present study evaluated how many steps needed to be presented in the video model for the learner to acquire a functional skill. Three individuals between the ages of 17 and 29 and diagnosed with …

Qualitative Analysis Of Teacher Perceptions And Use Of The Dynamic Indicators Of Basic Early Literacy Skills (Dibels) Within A District-Wide Reading First Program, Brian T. Gaunt

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The aim of the Reading First grant program was to (a) increase quality and consistency of instruction in K-3 classrooms; (b) conduct timely and valid assessments of student reading growth in order to identify students experiencing reading difficulties; and (c) provide high quality, intensive interventions to help struggling readers catch up with their peers (Torgesen, 2002). In the State of Florida, school districts must incorporate the use of an assessment tool called the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) to qualify for Reading First grant funding. Though DIBELS has been found to be a valid and reliable assessment …

American Memorials: A Conceptual Model, Mona Doreen Greenberg

Graduate Student Dissertations, Theses, Capstones, and Portfolios

Reverence for the dead is a defining human characteristic. Pyramids are no longer in style, but a variety of memorials mark the American landscape, commemorating lives lost in war, exploration, storms, and most recently, lives taken by acts of terrorism. The study of American memorials differs as widely as do the reasons for building memorials. The development of a conceptual model lends insight to the nature of memorials and informs future scholars who may want to investigate this very human phenomenon.

A literature review identified 10 constructs that appeared to be universal to memorials: visitors, memory and meaning, grieving, education, …

Examining Emotional Reactivity To Daily Events In Major And Minor Depression, Lauren M. Bylsma

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a debilitating disorder characterized by significant mood disturbance. In laboratory studies, MDD has been characterized by both blunted positive (PER) and negative emotional reactivity (NER). However, mood disordered persons' emotional reactivity has rarely been studied in naturalistic settings, and it is unknown how less severe forms of depression relate to emotional reactivity. To address these issues, the current study utilized two naturalistic sampling methods (the Day Reconstruction Method and the Experience Sampling Method) to examine PER and NER to daily life events in 35 individuals currently experiencing a major depressive episode (MDD), 26 individuals currently …

Stress Analysis And Mechanical Characterization Of Thin Films For Microelectronics And Mems Applications, Patrick Waters

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Thin films are used for a variety of applications, which can include electronic devices, optical coatings and decorative parts. They are used for their physical, electrical, magnetic, optical and mechanical properties, and many times these properties are required simultaneously. Obtaining these desired properties starts with the deposition process and they are verified by a number of analysis techniques after deposition. A DC magnetron sputter system was used here to deposit tungsten films, with film thickness and residual stress uniformity being of primary interest. The film thickness was measured to vary by up to 45 % from the center to outer …

Peyton, Sunny E. (Fa 219), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 219. Paper: "Stirring Our Brew: A Halloween Fairytale" written by Sunny E. Peyton for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Davis, Sarah (Fa 224), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 224. Paper: "Derby Day" written by Sarah Davis for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Study Of Fpga Implementation Of Entropy Norm Computation For Ip Data Streams, Subramanya Nagalakshmi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Recent literature has reported the use of entropy measurements for anomaly detection purposes in IP data streams. Space efficient randomized algorithms for estimating entropy of data streams are available in the literature. However no hardware implementation of these algorithms is available. The main challenge to software implementation for IP data streams has been in storing large volumes of data, along with, the requirement of high speed at which they have to be analyzed. In this thesis, a recent randomized algorithm available in the literature is analyzed for hardware implementation. Software/hardware simulations indicate it is possible to implement a large portion …

Cobb, Sheila Marie (Fa 223), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 223. Paper: "[Folk Medical Beliefs]" written by Sheila Marie Cobb for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Hexing (Fa 228), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 228. Paper: "Hexing" Personal Experiences That Were Possibly 'Hexing' Episodes." Written for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class. Author's name withheld at time of donation.

Poindexter, Karen S. (Fa 225), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 225. Paper: "A Ghostly Experience in Breeding, Kentucky" written by Karen S. Poindexter for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

Norris, Keith (Fa 226), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 226. Paper: "Superntaural Storytelling Session and Subsequent Events Which Occurred in Jefferson County, Kentucky" written by Keith Norris for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.

A Monte Carlo Approach For Exploring The Generalizability Of Performance Standards, James Thomas Coraggio

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

While each phase of the test development process is crucial to the validity of the examination, one phase tends to stand out among the others: the standard setting process. The standard setting process is a time-consuming and expensive endeavor. While it has received the most attention in the literature among any of the technical issues related to criterion-referenced measurement, little research attention has been given to generalizing the resulting performance standards. This procedure has the potential to improve the standard setting process by limiting the number of items rated and the number of individual rater decisions. The ability to generalize …

Family Affairs Newsletter 2008-04-15, Jean Vermette

Family Affairs newsletter (2004-2016)

FAMILY AFFAIRS was a free, twice-a-month, social activities newsletter for the GLBTQI (gay/lesbian/bisexual/trans/queer/intersex) community, sent out around the 1st and 15th of each month. It covered the State of Maine only. The list was begun and maintained for many years by Jean Vermette in Bangor, and later operated by Zack Paakkonen of Portland. Over the years it evolved from a social activities newsletter into a business directory, classified ad service, and community bulletin board.

Glynn, Luanne Carol Aylesworth (Fa 229), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid and full-text scan of paper (Click on “Additional Files” below) for Folklife Archives Project 229. Paper: "[Folk Medical Beliefs About Illness]" written by Luanne Carol Aylesworth Glynn for a Western Kentucky University folk studies class.