Literature in English, North America Commons^™

Exploring The Morality Of Arthur Miller And Elia Kazan To Show How It Affected Their Work, Friendship And Society, Dale D. Parry

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study is to explore the moral convictions, or the lack of same, in the personal character of Arthur Miller and Elia Kazan and to show how those convictions affected not only their work and personal friendship but society as well. They first met in 1946 when Harold Clurman of the Group Theater passed to Kazan a Miller play that he had read entitled All My Sons. With the success of the play, the two became fast friends and collaborators in profession and ideology. Each had in common the Great Depression, problem fathers, marital instability and Communism. …

Humor Me To Heaven: Humor's Redemptive Role In The Works Of Eudora Welty, Flannery O'Connor, And Marilynne Robinson, Stephanie Johnson

Masters Theses

Humor is the topic of many psychological, social, and cultural studies, but this project examines humor under a new lens. Humor's unique qualities explored in this study prove that humor is capable of more than just causing laughter; the nature of humor allows it to unveil truths about humanity, both spiritual and physical, through exposing man's flaws. This quality is especially important to consider when analyzing humor in the context of literature, in which humor also works as an aesthetic element. This study searches several short stories by Eudora Welty and Flannery O'Connor along with Marilynne Robinson's Gilead to reveal …

Covenant Nation: The Politics Of Grace In Early American Literature, Justin M. Scott-Coe

CGU Theses & Dissertations

The argument of this dissertation is that a critical reading of the concept of "covenant" in early American writings is instrumental to understanding the paradoxes in the American political concepts of freedom and equality. Following Slavoj Zizek's theoretical approach to theology, I trace the covenant concept in early American literature from the theological expressions and disputes in Puritan Massachusetts through Jonathan Edwards's Freedom of Will and the essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson, showing how the covenant theology of colonial New England dispersed into more "secular" forms of what may be called an American political theology. The first chapter provides an …

Prose And Polarization: Environmental Literature And The Challenges To Constructive Discourse, Paige E. Costello

CMC Senior Theses

This work explores how authors employ literary modes to persuade readers towards one side or another of the environmental debate and whether the works promote constructive discourse on environmental issues. It uses two seminal works from each side of the environmental discourse, Silent Spring and The Population Bomb and The Ultimate Resource and The Skeptical Environmentalist, to analyze stylistic differences and similarities, to compare public reception, and to explain the increasing polarization of environmental discourse.

Smallpox Inoculation And Race Relations In Eighteenth And Nineteenth Century America, Kristen Schaibly

Undergraduate Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Jack Kerouac: Le Sel De La Semaine, Thomas A. Ipri

Library Faculty Research

In 1967, Jack Kerouac appeared on the French service of the Canadian Broadcasting Service on the program Le Sel de la a Semaine. This Icarus Films release takes a fascinating look at Kerouac’s connection to Quebec where his parents are from. This interview by Fernand Seguin took place just 2 years before Kerouac’s death, making the program all the more poignant.

It's Bigger And Hip-Hop: Richard Wright, Hip-Hop, And Masculinity, Marcos Julian Del Hierro

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

In Native Son, Richard Wright presents a view of the impoverished, inner-city from an insider's perspective, which reflects the anger and hate brewing towards the rest of the nation as a result of living under harsh, isolating conditions. Wright's main character, Bigger Thomas serves as an archetypal ghetto figure both in his attitudes and the treatment he receives from Anglo Americans. Additionally, the reception of Native Son by a majority white reading audience also reflected the voyeuristic thrill of the bourgeoisie when consuming cultural products by African Americans. The selection of Wright's novel into the Book of the Month …

Science Fiction And Postmemory Han In Contemporary Korean American Literature, Seo-Young J. Chu

Publications and Research

In this essay, Seo-Young Chu explores representations of a specifically Korean American type of postmemory that she calls "postmemory han."

Balancing Rosie And June: A Study Of Lynchburg College Postwar Alumnae And The Impact Of The Feminine Mystique, Dinah Watson

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

In 2003, the movie Mona Lisa Smile debuted describing the frustrations that many college women may have faced in the years after World War II. Wellesley College was the elite all-female institution that openly and proudly prepared its young women with the proper rules of etiquette and correctness. Despite Wellesley’s own excellent academic reputation, its close proximity to the prestigious single-sex male college, Harvard, made it even more appealing and convenient for the Wellesley girls to find a “suitable” husband. The novice young art instructor, Katherine Watson, was unique in that she wanted to offer her students not only a …

The Rhetoric Of Crisis: How We Talk About The Vulnerability Of Youth, Casey Cramer

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

The classical definition of rhetoric is generally understood to be the art of persuasion. Originating in ancient Greece, rhetoric was one of the three original liberal arts. It focused on effective use of language, most often in the arena of politics and public discourse (Brummett, 35). By mastering persuasive language, politicians were able to shape and sway public opinion in their favor. Conversely, by understanding the mechanics of rhetoric, citizens were able to recognize and interpret speech that was purposefully constructed. The prevalence of rhetoric in political speech made it an integral part of a democratic society - politicians needed …

What Archives Reveal: The Hidden Poems Of Amelia Earhart, Sammie L. Morris

Libraries Research Publications

The importance of primary source materials to scholarship is undeniable. Primary source materials can verify or contradict information accepted as true in history books and other secondary sources. They can tell the whole, or at least more complete, story of events. Unlike secondary sources, primary source materials offer first-hand accounts from the past, bringing history closer and making it feel more real. It can even be argued that primary source materials are less susceptible to the loss or misinterpretation of information over time in subsequent edition revisions. In particular among primary source materials, manuscripts such as diaries and letters offer …

Towards A Bibliography Of Critical Whiteness Studies, Tim Engles

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

As the title implies, this book offers a multi-disciplinary overview of the explosion of work in scholarly critical whiteness studies. The contributing bibliographers acknowledge that this work follows and builds upon a great deal of whiteness critique previously provided by African American writers, and by those writing from other racialized positions. Each section provides a solid introduction to key concepts and practices regarding whiteness in a particular field, including: philosophy, history, literature, cinema, the visual arts, psychology, education, media studies, qualitative inquiry, personal narratives, and international and comparative approaches.

Major Literary Award Winners In The Medium-Sized Academic Library, Todd Spires

E-JASL: Electronic Journal of Academic and Special Librarianship (1999-2009, Volumes 1-10)

Abstract

This article addresses the role of major literary award-winning books and authors in the medium-sized academic library. It details a study performed at Bradley University’s Cullom-Davis Library in early 2006. The project surveyed award-winning books held by the library at the time of the study. The purpose of the survey was to evaluate past selection performance of these materials, to provide data on items that the library needs to acquire and to encourage library faculty to watch for and make use of literary and other prize winning materials. The article describes the thought-process involved, the actual workflow and the …

Handling And Preventing Journalistic Fraud: Janet Cooke, Stephen Glass, Jayson Blair, Kenneth Munson

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

Fraud is a growing concern in the news business, especially in recent years where numerous journalism scandals rock its foundation. This paper examines the most prominent cases: Stephen Glass, the reporter for The New Republic newsmagazine who completely or partially fabricated 27 stories in the late ‘90s; Jayson Blair, the New York Times reporter who was found to have plagiarized or made up his supposedly on-thescene reporting in 2003; and Janet Cooke, who won a Pulitzer Prize in 1981 for her Washington Post story about a child heroin addict who, in actuality, did not exist. This paper will examine flaws …

The "Essential Renewing Fantasy": The Vietnam Experience In American Literature, Jeffrey Gross

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this study, I employ the idea of postmodern naturalism to illustrate how Tim O'Brien addresses the postmodern era following the Vietnam War, which he achieves through form and characterization, and how he blends in a naturalistic framework where events and powers beyond his characters' control affect their lives. Such a study of six of O'Brien's novels-Northern Lights, Going After Cacciato, The Nuclear Age, The Things They Carried, In the Lake of the Woods, and July, July-is important because it unveils common motifs and structural strategies employed by O'Brien in developing an evolved and postmodern version of naturalism. Rather than …

Nomadismos Lingüisticos Y Culturales En Yo-Yo Boing De Giannina Braschi (Linguistic And Cultural Monadisms In 'Yo-Yo Boing' By Giannina Braschi), Laura R. Loustau

World Languages and Cultures Faculty Articles and Research

"En la novela Yo-Yo Boing Giannina Braschi plantea un bilingüismo e identidad nomádica. Huye del concepto de permanencia y arraigo, definiéndose en sus personajes como un ser errante y proponiendo una yuxtaposición lingüística propia. Braschi utiliza un code-switching para subrayar la complejidad de vivir simultáneamente en más de una cultura y una lengua. El concepto teórico que da impulso a este artículo es la definición sobre la conciencia nómada que plantea Rosi Braidotti. Para Braidotti lo que define el estado nomádico es la subversión de convenciones fijas y estáticas. Braschi, en Yo-Yo Boing subvierte las convenciones lingüísticas al incorporar un …

A Review Of Cyberactivism: Online Activism In Theory And Practice, Kevin Eric De Pew

English Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

More Than Just Imaginative: A Qualitative Study Of Values In Literature For Young Children From The 20th Century, Anna L. Cates

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation endeavors to address the issue of proper methodology for character education. Although character education enjoys wide support among teachers, parents, and society at large, the proper manner with which to accomplish this educational objective continues to be debated. Literature-based approaches to character education are among the most popular means of presenting values to students. This popularity has prompted scholars to closely scrutinize the value patterns in literature for young people. In part, the resulting studies have aimed to ascertain the worthiness of literature itself as a medium for introducing discussion about values and related issues. The method used …

Robertson Davies: Narrative Structure And The Search For A Canadian Identity, Angela M. Busboom

Honors Capstones

Capstone submitted as a graduation requirement for the BSU Honors Program.

The Rise Of Mass Culture Theory And Its Effect On Golden Age Detective Fiction, Sarah Jean Trainin

Theses Digitization Project

This thesis will explore the segregation of detective fiction from the general fiction market between 1920 and 1940.

I'Ll Take My Land: Contemporary Southern Agrarians, Suzanne W. Jones

English Faculty Publications

For many earlier southern white writers, the southern rural landscape was the repository of nostalgia for lost ways of life, whether it was the plantation fantasy that Thomas Nelson Page pined for in his stories In Ole Virginia (1887) or the segregated agrarian ideal that many contributors yearned for in I'll Take My Stand (1930). For modern southern white writers, beginning most prominently with William Faulkner, the rural landscape has conjured up unsettling guile about a way of life that flourished on the backs of the black people who tilled that land. And not surprisingly, for many black writers the …

The Pitchman In Print: Oral Performance Art In Text And Context, Joseph Ugoretz

Publications and Research

Oral performance art, patterned performative speech for an audience, is perhaps the oldest and most ubiquitous human art form. Specific instances of this art include the performances of griots and guslars, troubadors and shamans, as well as rappers and riddlers, preachers and politicians. While this art form is by definition oral, it is also the case that, frequently, literary art has represented oral performance art. There is written art which depicts oral art, which describes it, appropriates it, criticizes and co‑opts it.

In this dissertation, I define oral performance art as constituting a separate and unique artistic genre, one which …

Hunger Unpublished, Mark Axelrod

English Faculty Articles and Research

How Mark Axelrod lined up some of the world’s finest writers on one of the world’s biggest issues – and still couldn’t get them into print.

Multiculturalism And The American Identity: A Student Oriented Approach, Robert A. Slayton

History Faculty Articles and Research

Faced with questions of how to teach multicultural American History, Robert Slayton challenges his students to reach their own conclusions about what it means to be American after reading Upton Sinclair's The Jungle and Anne Moody's Coming of Age in Mississippi.

F. Scott Fitzgerald's Female Characters An Author's Changing Perspective, Todd Dykes

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

No abstract provided.

Ua12/2/1 Hillside, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

Special magazine edition of the College Heights Herald:

• Anna, Cara. Keeping the Balance – Ralph Willard, Kevin Willard, Basketball
• Armes, Anya. Giving the Gift to Others – Jim Wayne Miller

Vilifying The Enemy: The Christian Right And The Novels Of Frank Peretti, Jay R. Howard

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Peretti's novels provide a clear statement of the worldview of conservative Christians who hold the Bible to be literally true and without error. Not only is the reader presented with doctrinal positions, but the implications of those positions for life in modern society are spelled out as well. In this essay, I analyze Peretti's views of the modern world, its heroes and villains, and argue they are representative of the views of the New Christian Right (Liebman and Wuthnow) in the late 1980s and the 1990s.

Shared Lives: Women Who Wrote For Women, Andrea Kempf

Sabbatical Projects

The author studies the literature of Janet Lambert, Georgette Heyer, Francis Parkinson Keyes, and Inez Haynes Gillmore Irwin, and posits that frequent events within their works are not fantasy, but re-tellings of real experiences these authors lived.

Ua51/1/4 Soky Book Fair Scrapbook, Wku University Libraries

WKU Administration Documents

Scrapbook of clippings and photographs documenting the 1993 SOKY Book Fair.

The Lost Tribalism Of Years Gone By: Function & Variation In Gay Folklore In Armistead Maupin's Tales Of The City Novels, Jimmy Browning

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This thesis intends to demonstrate that, because of the unusual circumstances of its writing - a semi-journalistic piece produced during a period of crisis in the real-life community fictionally depicted - Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City series stands as an unusually accurate and reliable ethnographic source for information concerning the gay male subculture of San Francisco in the late 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, not only the practice and behavior themselves, but also reflecting their personal and communal function. The methodology employed in demonstrating this thesis is necessarily subjective. Like gay folklore scholar Joseph P. Goodwin in More Man Than …