By Riley Dauber ’25 Major: English; Minors: Journalism, Editing, and Publishing and Communication and Media Studies Brief Description: The final assignment for Dr. Charles’s Jane Austen class was to choose one of Austen’s novels and examine a theme or issue in the selected text. I chose to look at the queer themes and gender roles…
Tag: English
Rejections of Patriarchal Authority and Expectations of Female Passivity in Susanna Rowson’s Charlotte Temple
By Emma Reilly ’23 Majors: English, History; Minors: Journalism, Editing, & Publishing, Gender Studies Brief Description: My paper examines agency and authority in America’s first bestselling novel. Close readings and analyses of relevant paratexts position the novel as distinctly anti-patriarchal. I argue that instances of narratorial and character authority encourage a proto-feminist reading of a…
N. Scott Momaday and the Kiowa People: Returning to Heritage
By Heather Fabritze ’25 Majors: English and Communications & Media Studies; Minor: Journalism, Editing, & Publishing Brief Description: A culmination paper of my research on the Kiowa Tribe’s history, cultural practices, and myths, as well as an analysis of Kiowa writer N. Scott Momaday’s works. I tie together his motivations as an author…
Financial Stability or Mutual Affection: What Makes a Happier Marriage?
By Delaney Runge ’24 Major: English; Minors: Education Studies, Journalism, Editing, and Publishing, and Creative Writing Brief Description: Within Jane Austen’s literature, the endings for characters are often happy, but ultimately make the reader think about their true implications. Through this essay, the marital outcomes of Elizabeth Bennet and close friend, Charlotte Lucas, are compared…
Sister Krone and The Impossibility of Mammy in The Promised Neverland
By Dante Chavez ’23 Major: English; Minors: Creative Writing, Computer Science Brief Description: From racist caricatures to minstrel shows, the black figure has been subjected to various forms of torment and ridicule in American media. However, many people are unaware of the effect this media has had on the way black people are depicted on…
Jane and Catherine Join Society: Northanger Abbey’s Plot and Publication
By Grace Hogsten ’25 Major: English; Minors: Gender Studies, Creative Writing, and Journalism, Editing, & Publishing The following was written for ENG 394: Jane Austen Although Northanger Abbey was one of the last of Jane Austen’s works to be published, it is one of her earlier written works. Before writing Northanger Abbey, Austen had not…
Faculty in Focus
Dr. Alisha Knight, Professor of English and American Studies and Associate Provost for Diversity and Inclusion Reckoning with the Past to Foster a Healthier Future “I’m still getting used to being more visible around campus,” Dr. Alisha Knight said, when asked about her position as Associate Provost for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Washington College,…
Revelation to Revolution, in Search of Queer Liberation through Self-Actualization, Self-Definition, and Group Mobilization in Science Fiction Narratives
A Senior Capstone Experience by Erica Quinones ’22 Submitted to the Department of English Advised by Dr. James Allen Hall Contributor Biography: Erica is a first-year English PhD student at the University of Delaware where she studies the intersection of language and queerness in post-1945 sci-fi texts with a particular interest in personhood, fluidity, and…
Real-World Economic Theory and Fictional Dystopia in Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games Series
A Senior Capstone Experience by Maggie Moore ’22 Submitted to the Departments of Economics and English Advised by Dr. Adalbert Mayer and Dr. Courtney Rydel Contributor Biography: Maggie Moore is a recent graduate of Washington College and the author of “Real-World Economic Theory and Fictional Dystopia in Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games Series,” for which…
Hope is the Thing with Feathers: The Potential Impacts of the Political Implications of Popular Young Adult Literature: A Close Reading of The Hunger Games
A Senior Capstone Experience by Julia E. Clifton ’22 Submitted to the Department of English Advised by Professor Roy Kesey Contributor Biography: Julia Clifton graduated from Washington College last spring with a degree in English and minors in creative writing and JEP. She is from Bel Air, Maryland and now works at the public library…
Finding Bigfoot in Modern-Day American Society: How Sasquatch Has Become a Marker for American Consumerism
By: Adahne Hemp. Written as part of the First-Year Seminar “Here Be Monsters” Stories of the “Wildman” have been interwoven in native North American culture for centuries. Over time, these legends have mutated from authentic folklore to fabricated first-hand accounts of hairy beast-like men known as Bigfoot, or Sasquatch. Seemingly legitimate reports and sightings of…
“Dark Humor” and the Facilitation of Hatred
By: Elizabeth Collins. Written as part of the First-Year Seminar “The Power of Language Ideologies” 1. Introduction Although social media outlets such as Reddit promote participatory media practices which provide grounds for productive, democratic discourse, these sites also have the potential to foster discourses of hatred against marginalized groups, especially given the anonymity these sites…
Thought Control in Brazil and Parable of the Sower
By: Rian Van Tassell. Written as part of the First-Year Seminar “Dystopia on the Page, Stage, and Screen” “Until one of them becomes a leader most will follow, or a tyrant most fear.” (Butler 103). In reading dystopian novels, one may begin to wonder why a character makes certain choices or realize that sometimes characters…
We Are Our Own Demise: the Risk of Ignorance in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Red Badge of Courage, and Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave
By: Annalie Buscarino. Written as part of the course “Intro to American Literature” “Don’t run no resk,” Jim warns Huck in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Ironically, both Jim and Huck, among other renowned literary characters, actively court risk into their own lives.The characters of the books The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain,…
The Ineffable Self and Memory in “Mrs. Dalloway”
By: Emily Holt. Literature has the ability to act as a vehicle through which the effects of consciousness can be explored. The limitations and influences of individual consciousness inherently prove to be obstructions in the pursuit of a true connection with another being; sharing thought and experience within the context of what it means to…
The Inspiration for Social Change
By: Eman Simms. Written as part of the course “Renaissance Drama” For centuries, theatre has been a centerpiece for expression. Whether used as a means of conveying religious ideology, moral character, novel ideas, or just pure entertainment, theatre has become an antique artform that has gained exceptional appreciation as well as numerous amounts of criticism….
“Let Us Speak Our Love”: Romance and Eroticism in the Lyric Friendship Poetry of Katherine Phillips
By: Shannon Neal. Written as part of an independent study based on research conducted with Professor Elena Deanda, of the Modern Languages department, at the British Library in the summer of 2017. Seventeenth century poet Katherine Philips (1632-1664) is well known as foundational in the tradition of poetry written between women. Her lyric romantic friendship…
The Effects of Google on Our Minds
By: Amanda Gabriel Featured artwork: “Reflection” by Anna Watts. Growing up in the “Electronic Age,” I have witnessed and experienced many of the vast developments and discoveries in the field of technology. With new computerized advancements being made each day, more traditional practices are being converted to online forms, such as printed literature…
Outsider
By: Saoirse Featured artwork: “Liminal” by Alicia Legard What does it mean to be an outsider? It means I don’t belong. It means I have to explain the complicated story of my name every single time I introduce myself. It means I shiver under four layers of clothing when everyone else is wearing short-sleeve…
Seeing is Caring
By: Daniel Teano Featured artwork: “Fatal Isolation” by Rachel Rahm No one can deny nature’s beauty. When the morning sun overcomes the night, fortunate spectators are stunned in amazement. Amidst nature’s canvas, they stand convinced that the morning sky strikes an equally powerful sensation to everyone around the world. Certainly, images such as the sunrise…
“Hee for God only, shee for God in him”: The Sexual Contract of Milton’s ‘Paradise Lost’
By: Rebecca Sachs Featured artwork: “Own Worst Enemy” by Anna Watts Joint SCE written for English and Political Science Introduction In contemporary studies of gender dynamics, discussions often focus on the extensive history of inequalities faced by women, the notable improvements that feminist movements have helped to achieve, and the difficulties modern women around the…
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