Department of English Language and Literature
Catherine Adams
Professor Joseph Csicsila, Sponsor
Letters from the Earth: "Faith is Believing What You Know Ain't So" or the Twain Manifesto
In reading the selected works from every major period of Mark Twain's literary career, we have witnessed the growth and development of a writer employing humor to thinly conceal his discontent with Christian ideals while ultimately expressing his despair of the human condition. Twain's view of our reality and his critique of divine providence cannot, however, be reduced to simple and palatable humor. In this vein the author of this presentation makes the argument that Twain's Letters from the Earth is not, as many critics have claimed, the ramblings of an embittered old man; on the contrary, it is a clear, courageous and concise presentation of Twain's true voice and is representative of his entire career.
Session C - Student Organization Center - 11:30 a.m.~11:45 a.m.
Jennifer Marie Armstrong
Professor Christine Hume, Sponsor
Poetry and Prose: A World of Words
This presentation offers a series of dramatic readings from the senior thesis of the author. The author, drawing on her experience in both theater and creative writing, focuses on the dramatic elements of the written word, especially as these elements are apparent in the contrasting nature of language as it is conveyed through both poetry and prose. In these readings the emphasis is therefore placed on the performance nature of the texts.
Session B - Student Organization Center - 10:15 a.m.~10:30 a.m.
Julie S. Brehmer
Professor Sheila Most, Sponsor
Exposing Children to Hearing Impaired Individuals Through Literature
There are not very many children's books that address deafness, although more books on the subject are being written now than ever before. In this presentation, the author compares two books, The Raging Quiet by Sherryl Jordan and The Gift of the Girl Who Couldn't Hear by Susan Shreve, which both focus on deaf children and their relationships with their hearing friends. More specifically, the author compares and contrasts the writing styles of Jordan and Shreve, concluding with an evaluation of effectiveness of the books in educating and informing children about deafness and friendship.
Session A - Main Lounge 28 - 9:00 a.m.~9:15 a.m.
Meyin Hardy
Professor Phillip Arrington, Sponsor
What Causes Grade Inflation?
This presentation explores the casual forces behind the rise of high school grade inflation. Through an examination of the practices of one secondary institution, Troy High School, the author argues that the causes of grade inflation involve teachers, parents, administrators and textbook manufacturers. These causes, in combination, indicate that grade inflation is the result of a paradox: people might object to it, yet no one wants to deal with the consequences.
Session B - Main Lounge - 10:00 a.m.~10:15 a.m.
Lori Hubbard
Professor Mary Zdrojkowski, Sponsor
"The Simpsons:" Satirical Social Commentary on Christianity and Family Values in American Culture
There are few aspects of American culture that do not suffer from the satire of the animated television program, "The Simpsons." In this paper the author develops how the program has awakened Americans to the idiosyncrasies of some of our strongly held ideals through its satire of Christianity and family values, contending in the process that "The Simpsons" transcends popular culture in the extraordinary influence it exerts on American life.
Session B - Reception Room - 10:15 a.m.~10:30 a.m.
Alaine Karoleff
Professor Elisabeth Daumer, Sponsor
Reflections on Change: The Metamorphosis of New York City, Women, War and Life in "Waterlily Fire"
"Waterlily Fire," a poem inspired by a fire that destroyed a Monet painting, was written by Jewish-American poet and activist Muriel Rukeyser. The poem embodies the theme of change and the vulnerability that accompanies it. Rukeyser links this theme to the material experiences of womanhood as she reveals a girl growing into a woman and changing along with the city she inhabits. This presentation explores these themes, ultimately attempting to demystify the largely unknown and seldom critiqued Rukeyser.
Session B - Main Lounge - 10:15 a.m.~10:30 a.m.
Brandon Kierdorf
Professor Joseph Csicsila, Sponsor
It Took a Century to Smell the Water and Drink Up the Landscape
Pioneers became settlers and transformed America from an English colony to an independent country with a newly developing culture. Still embryonic, this new culture borrowed already established forms from the English. So did the writers of America; James Fenimore Cooper's use of the Queen's English in his opening narration of The Pioneers reflects a nation with less than 50 years of independence and an identity not fully realized. However, in the opening paragraphs of chapter 19 of Huckleberry Finn, by contrast, Huck's description of the landscape in first person vernacular develops a more organic relationship between narrator and nature. This presentation makes the argument that the differences in Cooper and Twain represent the emergence of an authentic American prose.
Session C - Student Organization Center - 11:45 a.m.~12:00 p.m.
Agnes Krynski
Professor Daniel Seely, Sponsor
An Analysis of Underlying SOV Word-Order and Word-Order Variation in German
Constructing a theory of our knowledge of language means investigating the internal, mental constructs of our individual language system. This presentation examines word-order variation in German. The author advances the claim that there is one underlying order for all German sentences and that word-order variations are the result of movement transformations that happen before words are actually spoken.
Session B - Student Organization Center - 10:30 a.m.~10:45 a.m.
Hava Levitt
Professor Elisabeth Daumer, Sponsor
Building From the Place of Mournful Labor: Muriel Rukeyser's "Waterlily Fire"
If read as a post-Holocaust poem, Muriel Rukeyser's "Waterlily Fire" offers a peace-oriented community a unique path toward a livable future. Rather than leading her reader on a journey away from atrocity, she relates her story of moving through and within it. This presentation attempts to explore the poem in this particular context.
Session B - Main Lounge - 10:30 a.m.~10:45 a.m.
Gabe Miller
Professor Mary Zdrojkowski, Sponsor
Humor in Jazz
Though often overlooked or ignored by critics and musicologists, humor has playedan important role in jazz music. It has been present in different forms in differenteras of the music's history, at times abstract and only accessible through music, at other times concrete and directly accessible through performers' humorous verbal monologues. This presentation explores examples of both abstract and concrete types of jazz humor, and highlights the ways in which a recognition of both types of humor allows for a more complete understanding of jazz history.
Session A - Intermedia Gallery - 8:30 a.m.~8:45 a.m.
Maria Moreno and Teresa Sunol
Professor Daniel Seely, Sponsor
The Null Subject Parameter: Comparison Between English and Spanish
Humans are born with a unique capacity for language. This innate information common to all humans consists, by hypothesis, of certain principles and parameters that the child modifies to accommodate a particular language. One interesting parameter is the Null Subject Parameter, which accounts for the allowances of sentences that do not contain a spoken subject. Spanish and English are two languages that differ in this characteristic. Therefore, the setting of these parameters must be easy enough for the child to learn. In this presentation the authors investigate the nature of this parameter in light of syntactic theory.
Session B - Student Organization Center - 10:45 a.m.~11:00 a.m.
Adrienne Muncy
Professor Veronica Grondona, Sponsor
Implications of Diverse Literary and Colloquial Language Varieties in Sorbian, a Minority Language of Germany
The Sorbian languages consist of a group of West Slavic language varieties spoken in southeast Germany, by about 50,000 people. While there are two standardized Sorbian literary languages, Upper Sorbian and Lower Sorbian, most native speakers remain unfamiliar with the literary languages and communicate in various Sorbian dialects, many of which are intelligible with the literary languages only with difficulty. This presentation examines the phonological, morphological, and lexical peculiarities of various Sorbian language varieties, giving particular attention to the sociolinguistic implications which the existence of the different varieties have for the survival of this minority language.
Session B - Student Organization Center - 11:00 a.m.~11:15 a.m.
Lisa Ann Ozga
Professor Harry Eiss, Sponsor
Princess Leia Organa: A Heroine's Journey in "The Star Wars Trilogy"
Mythologist Joseph Campbell noted that there is a certain typical hero sequence of actions that can be found in most myths. Campbell referred to this important archetypal pattern as the "hero's story" (or "hero's journey"). George Lucas, a lover of mythology, was profoundly influenced by the archetypal hero's journey when he created "The Star War Trilogy." This influence is especially apparent in the character Princess Leia Organa, one of the major players in "The Trilogy." She is a well-rounded, gutsy, and very intelligent female hero, and this presentation explores her character in terms of the mythological hero's journey.
Session C - Student Organization Center - 12:00 p.m~12:15 p.m.
Jimi A. Radabaugh
Professor Sheila Most, Sponsor
Ancient Greek Myth in Contemporary Literature: John Updike's The Centaur
For nearly two thousand years the mythology of ancient Greece has impacted English literature. One of the more fascinating examples of mythology's enduring influence appears in John Updike's 1963 novel, The Centaur. This presentation explains the function of myth in Updike's novel and, in particular, focuses on the parallels that Updike deliberately draws between characters in classical mythology and his own life.
Session A - Main Lounge 29 - 9:15 a.m.~9:30 a.m.
Melissa Cara Reinhold
Professor Elizabeth Daumer, Sponsor
The Strength in a Piece of Transparent Light: The Theme of Fragile Power in "Waterlily Fire"
This presentation provides a look into the power images that the little known writer Muriel Rukeyser applies in her poem, "Waterlily Fire." Rukeyser embedded these images of power into fragile objects, often relating this fragile power to women. This presentation thereby presents a complex argument about the poet's need to speak out on these fragile images and the powerful impact they can have on New York City, religion, women, war and communication.
Session B - Main Lounge - 10:45 a.m.~11:00 a.m.
Matt Sameck
Professor Joseph Csicsila, Sponsor
River Ride to Nowhere: Moral Growth and Futility in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a classic that is widely read as an affirmation of the individual will. However, while Huck's journey seems like a story of enlightenment lauding the battle against slavery, the conclusion of the novel suggests otherwise. This presentation explores how Huck's inability to act on what he learns illustrates the impossibility of the romantic notion of the individual changing society, an idea that Twain bitterly satirized throughout his career.
Session C - Student Organization Center - 12:15 p.m.~12:30 p.m.
Jennifer Schmidt
Professor Sheila Most, Sponsor
A Modern Hero: Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz" and Joseph Campbell's Monomyth.
According to Joseph Campbell's theory of the monomyth, the path that each hero journeys along encompasses three rites of passage: departure, initiation and return. Within each of these stages are adventures that reflect various aspects of the mythological journey. Using Campbell's monomyth, this presentation explores the ways in which Dorothy, as portrayed in the movie "The Wizard of Oz," is a hero undertaking the hero's journey.
Session A - Main Lounge - 9:30 a.m.~9:45 a.m.
Sara Christine Sokoloski
Professor Sheila Most, Sponsor
Being Different: Comparing Two Children's Novels
Being different can be good, but for children, it can be scary and stressful. Children face many differences, from not having the same clothes as everyone else, to having different family structures. The books, The Giver and Julie, tackle the problem of differences by going to the extreme of telling stories of children dealing with differences of the supernatural kind. This presentation develops those differences, addressing the issue in terms of the books' differences in characters, points of view and narrative structure.
Session B - Intermedia Gallery 65 - 10:00 a.m.~10:15 a.m.
Jeffrey J. Steichmann
Professor Mary Zdrojkowski, Sponsor
Humor in Folktales: Its Use as Societal Constraint and Social Pressure Relief
Jesting, jokes and humor in folktales have been acknowledged for their entertainment value, but their significance as reinforcement of behavioral norms has only cursorily been examined. In this presentation the author demonstrates through interpretative analysis of American folktales and legends that humor functions to provide certain constraints on social behavior as it, at other times, also offers relief from certain societal pressures.
Session A - Intermedia Gallery - 8:45 a.m.~9:00 a.m.
Rebecca Traynor
Professor Sandy Norton, Sponsor
Feminism Isn't Dead
James Joyce's The Dead has long been categorized as misogynist literature because Joyce primarily portrays weak women whose voices are silenced. However, as this presentation deals with the issue, the novella can be seen as entering the realm of feminism when Joyce's lead character, Gabriel, purportedly the strong male, is forced to confront the staunch, emerging voice of his wife, Gretta, just as his own authority and sense of self become ill-defined.
Session C - Student Organization Center - 12:30 p.m.~12:45 p.m.Karen Weasel
Professor Rebecca Sipe, Sponsor
Case Study: An Independent Writing Student, Adrian High School
This case study details the writing history of a twelfth grade student at Adrian High School who suffers from acute anxiety disorder and depression. The study includes journal entries and writing samples compiled during the several months of the observer's work on the study, charting progress in the student's writing style and voice, providing descriptions of how the student is able to grow as a writer despite the daily challenges he faces.
Session B - Main Lounge - 11:00 a.m.~11:15 a.m.
Stephanie Weber
Professor Sheila Most, Sponsor
The 64-Bit Myth: The Relationship Between Ancient Myth and the Modern Role-Playing Game
Often myth is thought to be something far removed from contemporary society. This presentation brings myth to modern times through the medium of role-playing computer games. The elements of ice, fire, lightning and earth are the specific links between cultures such as Greek, Germanic, Hindu and Christian and the modern role-playing game Diablo II and its expression Lord of Destruction.
Session B - Intermedia Gallery - 10:15 a.m.~10:30 a.m.