Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters

“Death Conjunct Living” is a collection of flash essays that explores the interconnectedness between life and death—births, miscarriages, childhoods, funerals— as well as the term “empty stomach.” How a stomach can be empty of child or empty of food; how it can indicate a birth, a miscarriage, or an eating disorder. “Death Conjunct Living” is an exploration of the flash medium and how micro nonfiction can tackle macro themes.

Both research and lived experience indicate that intangible things such as myths and absences may acquire agency, becoming Latourian actants and causing changes in people’s thoughts, beliefs, and actions. This dissertation focuses on myths and absences located in Spain’s 20th century—specifically Francoist-generated political myths, the absences of those disappeared by the Franco regime, and the literary myths created by authors of historical fiction set during the Spanish Civil War, the resulting dictatorship, and the Transition to Democracy. The argument is made that these three actants— political myth, absence, and literary myth—have acted and interacted in the following sequence: the political myths put forth by the Francoists and presented as facts led to the complicity of many of the Spanish people in the extermination of those considered dangerous or undesirable to the regime; once released into the popular imagination, the political myths gained agency, spurring the bigoted beliefs and persecutory actions that led to the absences of the maligned people. The presence of these tragic absences in the lives of their surviving loved ones then gained agency, indelibly marking the survivors and causing grief, anger, and bewilderment as well as fear, humiliation, silence, and transgenerational trauma. The absences also caused the desire among contemporary writers of historical fiction, some of them descendants of the disappeared who grew up under the cloud of fear and silence perpetuated by those disappearances, to write alternate histories pointing out the absurdities and atrocities connected to the earlier political myths and the resulting absences of undesirables. These literary myths thus acquired their own agency, changing the thoughts, beliefs, and actions of readers who were able to finally see through the truths and tragedies that lay hidden for so long behind the hostile myths. In these chapters, eight historical fictions—five novels, two plays, one film—and one non-fiction account, described by its author as “a novel without fiction”—are analyzed for evidence of the presence and the agency of political myth, absence, and literary myth.

For more than two decades Congress has failed to pass the DREAM Act, a legislation intended to secure a pathway to legal status for undocumented youth brought to the United States as children. Within the broader U.S. immigration domain, the case of the DREAMers (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors) is particularly apt for exploring the dynamics of the policymaking process. Bringing together the theoretical framework of the Multiple Streams (MSF) and the methodology of the Narrative Policy Analysis (NPA) this research illuminates how narrative construction affects policy action. This dissertation integrates the two frameworks through collection and analysis of opposing policy narratives of legislators and other stakeholders involved in immigration policy debates over a twelve-year period.
To advance this research objective, this study sought to understand how problem framing affects policy making, how competing policy coalitions construct policy narratives regarding immigration, and how immigration policy narratives affect the enactment of legislation. In addition, extending the critical examination of the narratives of opposing coalitions illuminates how political and professional elites use language to reinforce existing power structures and advance divergent views of immigration.

The animated screendance presents a meaningful experience through the medium of cinema as seen emerging from Mickey Mouse’s early cartoons, Silly Symphony’s experiments, and Fantasia (1940). The core focus of this research investigates the emotional and affective identifications of the audience engendered through the qualities of animation and the screendance. Drawing from the theories of the animated screendance, a term that shows how cinema can construct affective characters across the artistry of their inherent dance, I argue that these films elicit new understandings of the choreographed body. This is derived through the lens of artistic cartoon animation along with the emotional experience of the spectator by examining the critical body, dance, and film practices that form these bonds. Taking a qualitative approach by analyzing the many films in question through robust textual analysis while including theory on mythological narrative and physiognomy brings us to associate the elements of the body and screendance that influence culture and society. The reason for this approach leads us to recognize the importance of the animated dancing body as an imaginative form that can be controlled and manipulated by the pre-conceived ideas of the animators and human labor dictating these images. The screendance also provides additional layers of signification by including the construction of narrative and psychology through the processes of cinematography and editing, which is further placed onto these characters to increase their believability and emotional connection. All the bodies in question have similar elements that refer back to the human referent and focus on the choreographies that create meaning for these beings. The findings indicate that audiences are emotionally connected to the animated dancing characters on the screen through the importance placed on the representation of human form and cinematic structure to create memories and magic.

Hoops and Other Essays is a collection driven by form and lyricism threading themes of grief, fatherhood, joy and anxiety. I place myself within an American landscape spanning South Florida, Northern Alaska, and Montgomery County, Maryland. Anchored by non-linear structures, an exploration of trauma, and a delight for language, these essays depict the coming of age of a thirty-year-old man who seems to be still coming of age. Poop is a theme; Nature is a theme. Speaking aloud to no one is a character trait, and iguanas are a motif. Hoops and Other Essays pulls free the particulars of the universal struggle of trying to be okay when things hardly ever seem okay. The collection comments on the inevitably of dying shared among the living and the pleasure and pain that emerges from loving what has to end. The essays were written over the course of two years after the sudden loss of my brother which was quickly followed by the birth of my son. In the end, Hoops and Other Essays tries to unravel how one fits between the polar opposites of human existence, with the hope to uncover more likeness than difference in the way we enter and the way we leave it.

As cities respond to accelerating climate impacts, scholars have identified climate gentrification as a phenomenon exerting displacement pressures on low-income communities, including ethnic enclaves. While climate gentrification pathways literature primarily addresses economic causes and effects, an opportunity exists to better understand policy contributions and social impacts surrounding resilience and displacement.
For this dissertation project, I expanded the concept of climate gentrification pathways to examine connections between displacement, resilience strategies, and urban planning. Using an interpretive approach, I explored how an ethnic enclave experienced and responded to displacement pressures, especially regarding social impacts related to (climate) gentrification. In addition, this project compared resilience and planning policies and strategies discourse with community discourse related to climate gentrification.

This thesis paper is an in-depth look at two of Cormac McCarthy’s novels: Blood Meridian and No Country for Old Men, and more specifically, the villains of each story seen from a level of violence paired with philosophy. The dialogue and actions of Judge Holden and Anton Chigurh hold precedent over the novels, storylines, and other characters so much that I place a greater importance on the philosophies and actionable scenes without emphasis from outside ideals or quasi-religious sects. By looking at dialogue and philosophy, previous comparisons to both works never hold the characteristics of each villain as the centerpiece for discussion. Without the reliance of outside precepts, the Judge and Chigurh function as essential placeholders in their novels. Aspects relating to violence become the result of actions proven by speech. Consequently, the Judge and Chigurh are greater than other villains that I explore in detail with this work. I can only hope this paper sheds light on the significance of both characters.

Abortion is an important yet divisive issue that has led to many discussions concerning its legality. In 1973, the Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade decriminalized abortion in the United States. On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, jeopardizing abortion access. This study aims to gain insight into the public’s views on abortion through textual analysis of Reddit posts from a subreddit on abortion and interviews with Florida residents. There are two overarching themes present in both sets of results: the impact and effects of abortion bans and shifting gender dynamics. Analysis of Reddit posts reveal a shift in two sub-themes following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, with increased posts related to “Abortion Experiences” and decreased posts in “Emotional Support.” Interviewees were found to lean pro-choice, echoing the results of recent national surveys on people’s perception of abortion, and they emphasized the impact of abortion bans and the importance of support systems.

Amid the rapid advancements in clinical aesthetics, there lies an intricate gap between the artistic and sensory experience of facial aesthetics and the technical approach of medical sciences. As the field of clinical aesthetics veers further into the realm of the ideal, tensions arise between patient expectations and the practitioner's delivery. Central to this issue is the growing reliance on technology, which often overlooks the immediate sensory experience crucial for aesthetic satisfaction. Drawing inspiration from the arts and humanities, this dissertation introduces "Phenoesthetics" as an epistemological bridge, harmonizing the seemingly disparate domains of sensory experience and scientific analysis. By using visual art, particularly the composite works of the Renaissance artist Giuseppe Arcimboldo, as an illustrative tool, this work seeks to elucidate the dual nature of facial aesthetics perception: the universal, tangible forms and the more abstract, cultural interpretations. By weaving together elements from the arts, humanities, and sciences, this study propounds a Phenoesthetics approach — a comprehensive method designed to enhance understanding and communication in clinical aesthetics. The aim is to provide practitioners with a robust framework, fostering more aligned expectations and improving satisfaction rates in the field of aesthetic medicine.

This study explores the strategies utilized by migrants under the visa regime of international student and their experiences throughout their time as non-immigrant temporary visitors. The concept of “visa regime” forwarded by Banerjee (2022), illustrates the mechanism of state power that controls immigrants and their families through limited legality (Banerjee 2022). Through the qualitative methods of in-depth interviews and ethnographic work, this study compares the experiences of 20 Brazilian international students in a geographical area known for its ethnic communities. South Florida is home to one of the two largest Brazilian communities in the United States, offering an array of opportunities and community support for Brazilian migrants. As demonstrated in this study the experiences of participants demonstrate how the status of international student becomes a waiting room for those hopelessly waiting for an opportunity to acquire permanent residency. With limited pathways to acquire a green card, the waiting room may seem endless for some with limited resources. Leaving both migrants and the educational institutions enabling this waiting room in a vulnerable position.