Critical and Cultural Studies Commons^™

Off The Rails: Cinematic Trains As Technological Controls Of The Natural World, Trinity Thompson

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Short train rail lines across the United States are seeing increased national funding to reduce toxic chemical spills caused by train derailments, the most notable of which happened in February 2023 in East Palestine, Ohio. A year prior, the film White Noise (2022) featured a similar toxic train derailment incident, taking place, too, in Eastern Ohio, and featuring actors from the town of East Palestine. In considering other films featuring trains, I identified a pattern of environmental conflict, leading me to question the relationship between trains and the natural environment as portrayed in popular cinema. To conduct my research, I …

Challenging The Positionality Of Western Mainstream English Through The Implementation Of Communication Action Statements, Victoria Mcdermott, Amy R. May

Journal of Communication Pedagogy

Communication is the most powerful tool we have to challenge the plague of invisibility impacting our Indigenous communities. As we continue to challenge the diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives touted by our institutions, we need to move beyond mission statements to motion, i.e., action required for meaningful transformation to take place (Qassataq, Iñupiaq, 2022). To call attention to and name the silencing of language and knowledge systems outside of western mainstream english (WME), the present paper proposes the concept of Communication Action Statements (CAS). Based on place and space, CASs recognize, label, and affirm the negative effects of WME, …

The Crusading Days Of Jackie Stewart: Evaluating The Development Of Safety In Motor Racing During The 1960s., Alex Twitchen

Journal of Motorsport Culture & History

This article critically evaluates the contribution of Jackie Stewart in making motor racing a safer sport for competitors. It challenges the validity of the popular assumption that Jackie Stewart by himself developed a ‘culture of safety’ that transformed the sport. Instead, the role of other individuals are identified alongside the importance of three social processes. These processes are identified as the changing balance of power between different masculine identities, the development of commercial sponsorship and a growth in the coverage of the sport on television.

The development of motor racing from the 1960s onwards as a safer sport in which …

Book Review- Racing With Rich Energy: How A Rogue Sponsor Took Formula One For A Ride., James Miller

Journal of Motorsport Culture & History

No abstract provided.

Book Review: I Was A Nascar Redneck: Recollections Of The Transformation Of A Yankee Farm Boy To A Southern Redneck In The Golden Era Of Nascar And Beyond., Quinn Beekwilder, Daniel Dean

Journal of Motorsport Culture & History

No abstract provided.

What Outfit Shall The Protagonist Wear? New Models Of Revenue Creation In Online Fiction Platforms, John Rodzvilla

Emerson Authors, Researchers, & Creators

Online fiction platforms like Wattpad, Tapas, Choices, and Episode have created new models of digital storytelling that serve billions of readers a month who access the content through apps and websites. Through a free-to-read (F2R) model these platforms offer access to thousands of online prose narratives. Instead of requiring money upfront for access, they have found a way to monetize narrative through ad-supported serialization and paywalls. Some companies have also begun to offer reader customization through microtransactions similar to those in the mobile game world. This paper examines how these platforms are using the F2R model to create a compelling …

Curating A Consumption Ideology: Platformization And Gun Influencers On Instagram, Jenna M. Drenten Ph.D., Lauren Gurrieri, Aimee Dinnín Huff, Michelle Barnhart

School of Business: Faculty Publications and Other Works

This study explores how a platform enables social media influencers to promulgate a consumption ideology. We show how gun influencers, or “gunfluencers,” use Instagram to link products, activities, and meanings to Second Amendment ideology – a gun-centric belief system in the United States colloquially known as “2A ideology.” Through a qualitative study of 25 Instagram gunfluencers, we identify a process of curating a consumption ideology wherein social media influencers employ four curatorial tactics: glamourizing, demystifying, victimizing, and tribalizing. Findings suggest gunfluencers extend audiences and leverage algorithms to prescribe and model how supporters of 2A ideology should look, act, speak, feel, …

From Patriarchal Stereotypes To Matriarchal Pleasures Of Hybridity: Representation Of A Muslim Family In Berlin, Rahime Özgün Kehya Dr

Journal of Religion & Film

Sinan Çetin’s blockbuster Berlin in Berlin (1993) is a Turkish-German co-production. In contrast to certain representational tendencies with German orientalism or Turkish occidentalism, it deconstructs the intersectional structures of migration, religion, and gender. The portrayal of religion in films about Turkish-German labour migration is a kind of cultural narcissism often projected into national cinema by denigrating the faith of the other and glorifying one’s own religion. However, perspectives at such intersections are critical and require sensitivity in filmmaking, as films can create prejudice or help build peaceful relationships around these sensitive issues. The paper employs discourse analysis in linking Derrida’s …

Columnas: The Honors Program Newsletter At Bentley University, Hailey Jennato, Samson Shen, Clara Williams

Honors Program

Page 1: HOW AI IS IMPACTING THE BENTLEY CLASSROOM AND EDUCATION OVERALL ~ by Nayeli Franco ’24

Page 2: A BEAUTY OF DIVERSITY ~ by Yun Song ’26

Page 3: RESURRECTING THE DEAD THROUGH COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY: HONORING THEIR MEMORY OR EXPLOITING THEIR LEGACY? ~ by Hailey Jennato ’24

Page 4: THE IMPORTANCE OF DEVELOPING EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE ~ by Isa Ramirez Perdomo ’26

Page 5: FROM STRUGGLE TO STRENGTH: THRIVING AS AN INTERNATIONAL STUDENT ~ by Ledion Hoti ’25

Page 6: CHASING BUTTERFLIES ~ by Alyssa Galin ’27

Code^Shift Newsletter Fall 2023, Srividya Ramasubramanian, Maya Espinel

CODE^SHIFT Research

No abstract provided.

El Vínculo Entre El Arte, La Política Y El Espacio Público: Una Investigación De Colectivo El Muro Cusco Y Su Resistencia Contra Poder Estatal Y La Censura Del Espacio, Stella Gould

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

El Colectivo El Muro Cusco es un colectivo libertario y autogestionado dedicado al apoyo a las luchas sociales y al intercambio de información alternativa. Activo durante los últimos 20 años, El Muro,1 como se le conoce coloquialmente, ha sido un proveedor de la verdad en Cusco, utilizando el arte y la protesta para expresar descontento con las injusticias perpetuadas por el gobierno peruano. Utilizando el muro del Paraninfo Universitario de la UNSAAC ubicado en la Plaza de Armas de Cusco como su centro focal, el Colectivo utiliza el espacio como galería de arte y lugar de exposición, pero también como …

Aït Khbach Nomads And A Thousand Plateaus: An Investigation Into The Challenges Of Nomadism Using Concepts From Deleuze And Guattari, Ryder Hobbs

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Aït Khbach nomads of Drâa-Tafilalet Region in Morocco face several challenges to their lifestyle. Namely, their obstacles relate directly to desertification and the state. Through interviews with the Aït Khbach, this paper seeks to present their narratives. Additionally, this paper grapples with the metaphysics of nomadism and the groundwork of its praxis. In their work, A Thousand Plateaus, Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari construct concepts, such as smooth space, the state apparatus, and nomadism, which can be utilized pragmatically to complement and explore the narratives of Aït Khbach nomads.

Casar Student Discussion Series: ‘Does Social Media Bring More Harm Than Good?’, The Prince Alwaleed Center For American Studies And Research Casar

Performances, Events, and Presentations

CASAR Student Debate Series - Launched in Fall 2023:

The Center of American Studies and Research (CASAR) launched a Student Discussion Series in Fall 2023 semester, it is a student-led debate on a plethora of current hot topics. In this student discussion series, students play the role of delving into topics together to understand one another. This event is broadcasted on Facebook live via the CASAR Facebook Page, where the entire record is still available to watch. Students passionately present their arguments in an organized manner, going back and forth between the two sides, and often students become excited about …

Climate Change Journalism In Pakistan: Ethical Deliberations, Muhammad Ittefaq, Shafiq Ahmad Kamboh, Ayesha Ashfaq

School of Communication Studies - Faculty Scholarship

In the 21st century, research on climate journalism has received exponential growth globally. However, the media’s ethical role in covering climate change has not sufficiently been explored enough. In this chapter, we provide a broad overview of climate change journalism in Pakistan, the role of stakeholders that are directly involved in this crisis, and further highlighted the need to follow the UNESCO-led ethical principles and deliberations by the local climate journalism. We conclude that though a great deal of attention has been paid by the local scholars and scientists to highlight different dimensions of climate emergency, however, the findings of …

Re-Examining, Re-Empowering: The Effect Of Contextualizing Testimonial Theatre On Spect-Actors, Felicia Owusu-Ansah

Spect-actor: A Journal of Pedagogy & Theatre of the Oppressed

To be empowered, freed from rejection, silence and trauma, one may have no choice but to speak up. But how does the silenced speak in the presence of the oppressor? At this point, theatre (of testimony) became the most useful tool to break the silence among irregular returnees in Akuma, Ghana. This qualitative study article reports on the healing and empowering effects of Testimonial Theatre on spect-actors during its use for dissemination of research findings to the researched community. It aims to show how Testimonial Theatre’s effects of compassion and empathy led to the resilience of human essence, breaking silence, …

Teatro Do Oprimido E Augusto Boal. Uma Jornada Marxista, Geo Britto

Spect-actor: A Journal of Pedagogy & Theatre of the Oppressed

O artigo é um resumo do livro que sairá em breve onde depois de mais de uma década após a morte de Augusto Boal, pouco se sabe sobre as origens fascinantes do Teatro do Oprimido. O artigo traça o caminho histórico, político e artístico que levou Augusto Boal a desenvolver sua metodologia. Indo desde do início do contato de Boal com o teatro até a sistematização da 1ª técnica do Teatro do Oprimido, o Teatro-Jornal. O autor combina narrativas históricas com uma análise profunda do projeto teórico e prático do Teatro do Oprimido. O artigo não só traz à tona …

Theater Of The Oppressed And Augusto Boal, A Marxist Process, Geo Britto

Spect-actor: A Journal of Pedagogy & Theatre of the Oppressed

The logic of capitalism is to think of each individual in an isolated way, where only they add up and we would have a social life as products separated from the objective and subjective relations that we realize. In the case of the artists this is a stronger logic still, often they themselves reinforce this idea as if they were in their ivory towers creating their theory and practice that they deliver magnificently to the society. Augusto Boal as every human being, was a collective being, fruit of various cultures, languages and different communities and a product of the social …

Relações Entre Teatro E Política No Trabalho Teatral De Boal No Pós-1964: A Coletivização Do Fazer Artistico Como Expressão Autoconsciente Da Produção Estética, Patricia Freitas

Spect-actor: A Journal of Pedagogy & Theatre of the Oppressed

Este artigo empreende um olhar histórico sobre o trabalho teatral realizado por Augusto Boal após a instauração da ditadura militar no Brasil, em 1964. Em primeiro lugar, buscaremos compreender como o trauma histórico gerado com o golpe redimensionou a prática artística socialmente engajada no país e colocou em tensão a teoria e a prática produzidas por Augusto Boal. Nessa esteira, este estudo verificou que a reflexão proposta por Boal sobre a cena brasileira possuía um fundo mais amplo e estava embebida em um movimento de crítica cultural, com vistas à criação de um programa de ação estético-política.

Relationships Between Theatre And Politics In Boal’S Post-1964 Theatrical Work: The Collectivization Of Artmaking As A Self-Conscious Expression Of Aesthetic Production, Patricia Freitas

Spect-actor: A Journal of Pedagogy & Theatre of the Oppressed

This essay aims to bring a historical perspective to the theatrical work carried out by Augusto Boal after the establishment of the military dictatorship in Brazil in 1964. The historical trauma generated by the coup re-dimensioned the socially engaged theatrical practice in the country. In Boal's case, it created important contradictions between his theory and practice. Along these lines, this study verified that the reflection proposed by Boal on the Brazilian scene had a broader background and was embedded in a movement of cultural criticism, with the aim of creating an aesthetic and political program of action.

O Mecanismo Da Empatia No Teatro Fórum, Ali Mansouri

Spect-actor: A Journal of Pedagogy & Theatre of the Oppressed

Mesmo que o conceito de “empatia” não tenha sido mencionado mesmo nos textos mais recentes sobre performance, sempre houve uma disputa entre os teóricos do teatro em diferentes momentos acerca dos impactos da empatia no público. Embora alguns tenham considerado a empatia como a base do teatro, outros a viam como um terreno perigoso que pode produzir sentimentos inapropriados e prejudiciais no público. Descobertas recentes dos neurocientistas revelaram que a empatia (tanto com personagens fictícios ou reais) é inevitável para os seres humanos, e seu mecanismo inconsciente está presente em qualquer indivíduo mentalmente saudável. Creio que tal habilidade inerente pode …