Meet some of the hard working senior women who completed and will be defending their honors theses this spring!
Name: Elyse Pfleger
Major: English Literary Studies
Hometown: Holmdel, NJ
Involvement on Campus: Bucknell Dance Company, Bucknell Dance Showcase, Dance Program TA
Title of your thesis: The Soul in Paraphrase: Language and Identity in James Joyce and Kate O’Brien
1. Tell us a little bit about your thesis.
My thesis explores Julia Kristeva’s theory of semiotic language as it applies to James Joyce’s A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man and Kate O’Brien’s The Land of Spices. Kristeva proposes that there are two types of language: the semiotic language of the mother, developed the womb and composed of non-communicable rhythms, and the symbolic language of the father, which is an effort to undermine the mother and subject the subject to its authoritative law of communication and definition. The two Irish novels juxtapose one another as parallel masculine and feminine discourses, and in many ways, The Land of Spices functions as a response to A Portrait. The protagonists in both novels use language as a tool until it no longer serves them, questioning its value as they both consider abandoning it in pursuit of an unknown, artistic endeavor. It becomes clear to these young characters that the authority figures who dominate their lives cannot manifest the artistic truths they wish to uncover; in order to subjugate the communicative language used around them, they must confront the authority that imposes it. Kristeva’s theory of language provides a framework for this discussion. The language the protagonists use and understand shapes their identities and either stunts or permits growth, depending on the type of language to which they subscribe.
2. What made you want to study this?
Two years ago, I took an English course in Irish Literature, where I was first exposed to Irish history and James Joyce. My professor was so encouraging and passionate that I was excited to take his seminar course in James Joyce, which I did this past semester. In preparation for my intensive studies of Joyce and his writing, I decided to relate my thesis topic to him in some way. I came about Kristeva’s semiotic framework after reflecting on a literary theory course I had also taken at Bucknell. I am fascinated by literary theory, specifically that which relates to language and its functions and implications. Kristeva fit the bill, and Joyce has made himself a special place in my heart. The two work well together, since Joyce’s texts themselves do not always subscribe to the symbolic language in which Kristeva writes.
3. What do you think Bucknell as a campus can learn from your findings?
Most people use language as a communicative tool that can work to express some of our innermost thoughts and feelings, however complex or isolated. In my thesis, I explore the plausibility of this notion and question whether it truly is possible to communicate personal feeling through language. If readers agree with my conclusion, I believe they will find comfort in the idea that, on occasion and under the right circumstances, silence can suffice as an understanding that need not be explained or put into words.
Name: Sarah Och
Major: Psychology
Hometown: Bernardsville, NJ
Involvement on Campus: RA, undergraduate research, intern in office of admissions, Community Conduct Board panelist
Title of your thesis: Age differences in decoding and subsequent memory for older and younger adults
1. Tell us a little bit about your thesis.
Older and younger adults differ in the ways that they encode information as the microstructures of the white matter tracts in the brain break down and become generally less efficient with aging. In order to compensate for these deficiencies, older adults begin to employ compensatory mechanisms that help them remember new information, which manifest both behaviorally and neurally. On a neural level, older adults show bilateralized overactivation in both the right and left hemispheres compared to younger adults, which may suggest that the brain is working harder to accomplish the same task. On a behavioral level, older adults show deficiencies in response inhibition tasks and generally perform worse on memory tasks compared to younger adults, yet these deficiencies are not seen in all older adults. In the current study, we investigated the behavioral compensation strategies that older adults use to remember music by asking both older and younger adults to listen to piano melodies, complete an emotion decoding task followed by an implicit memory task. Better decoders on the emotion decoding task are expected to perform better on the memory task. Older adults are expected to utilize the emotion decode cue more than the younger adults as a compensation strategy to remember the tunes in the memory task. Finally, older adults may remember positively valenced tunes over negatively valenced tunes.
2. What made you want to study this?
I have always been really interested in memory and cognitive aging/development.
3. What do you think Bucknell as a campus can learn from your findings?
A lot of times aging is seen in a negative connotation. Sure, usually aging is associated with an overall general decline in certain cognitive capacities like memory, processing speed and response inhibition, but not all older people age in the same way. In other words, we see that some older adults actually perform cognitively similar to the younger adults, at least in the memory test in the current study. That’s really surprising to a lot of people. I think this research can help show how people have more control over their aging process than they might think. Staying mentally active through taking classes, reading, spending time with friends or learning a new skill can help keep your brain sharp even in old age.
Name: Emma Frawley
Major: Environmental Studies
Hometown: Chevy Chase, Maryland
Involvement on Campus: Undergraduate research in Biology, member of Alpha Chi Omega
Title of your thesis: Veganism as a Cultural Phenomenon
1. Tell us a little bit about your thesis.
I interviewed nineteen individuals to understand the way in which the adaptation and transition to veganism can be seen as a cultural-scale reaction to societal, moral, and physical environments that individuals find themselves in. Veganism can and does expand beyond solely that of a diet to serve as an everyday behavioral practice; I was interested in why veganism was important for an individual, and how they came to this decision through their life experiences, self-reflections, and personal values.
2. What made you want to study this?
I became vegan my sophomore year after learning about the intensification of climate change due to animal agriculture (and being a lifelong animal lover.) It’s become an important part of my identity, and I recognized many of the misconceptions and misunderstandings about it over the years. I knew I wanted to apply my interests in an academic setting, and hopefully contribute something to the vegan cause.
3. What do you think Bucknell as a campus can learn from your findings?
I’m hoping this thesis can make veganism a more understandable and more feasible lifestyle choice to those who have contemplated it. By considering veganism from a cultural standpoint, as something with embedded significance drawn from personal values and experiences, I hope there is an aspect of veganism that makes sense and is motivating to anyone who reads it. I aspire for its readers to identify with what some of what the interviewees expressed — whether that relates to animal welfare, species hierarchy, feminism, family and personal health, environmental stability, the ethics of violence and equity, etc. The more people that learn about veganism, the more successful the movement of the lifestyle will be. We, as people, make deliberate behavioral decisions and lifestyle choices that respond to complex issues, like the ones aforementioned. Similar to the way in which people oppose the death penalty as a stance against violence, or choose to use a reuseable coffee mug to reduce waste, so can the choice to become vegan be seen as a practical and tangible response to societal issues.
Name: Megan Ruane
Major: Political Science and Italian Studies
Hometown: Bellefonte, PA
Involvement on Campus: Tour Guide, HC Member, Contributing writer to the Bucknellian
Title of your thesis: The Oligarchical Tendencies and Characteristics of the United States Government in the 21st Century
1. Tell us a little bit about your thesis.
When defining the type of government within the United States, people often times refer to it as a democratic republic. My thesis works to prove that this isn’t necessarily the case anymore. Within the United States, the wealthiest citizens are benefiting at a far greater extent than the average or lower class citizen. This is because they’re able to use their money to influence things such as elections and public policy. I ultimately argue that the United States is a polity, a form of government defined by Aristotle where democracy and oligarchy coexist. In the United States though, this polity is being overrun with oligarchical characteristics. I begin my thesis by looking at Aristotle’s 6 types of regimes, focusing primarily on oligarchy, democracy and polity. I use Aristotle to provide a framework for my definition of oligarchy. I then go on to look at the growing economic inequality in the United States and the deregulation of Campaign Finance as these two topics help to provide evidence on the existence of oligarchical tendencies. Finally, I look at the policy preferences of economic elites and average citizens in order to show how elites are benefiting far more than average citizens are.
2. What made you want to study this?
Within the past few years I have had a growing interest in the economic inequality that exists within the United States. Out of all first world countries, the United States has the highest gini coefficient, a form of measurement that shows economic inequality. There has been a steady disintegration of the middle class within the US and I’ve been curious to understand why this is occurring. The United States is sometimes referred to as the model democracy, where people come to experience the American Dream. I’ve found through my research that this “American Dream” doesn’t necessarily exist anymore. Economic Inequality affects far more than just income status, it also affects things like education which goes on to affect job opportunities. I was hoping that by examining oligarchies I would be able to find an explanation for the growing injustices and inequality within the United States.
3. What do you think Bucknell as a campus can learn from your findings?
It is undeniable that the political atmosphere in the United States is unprecedented and the fate of many Americans is uncertain. I hope my thesis can show Bucknell that there are a multitude of issues stemming from our government that exceed party politics. These are the issues we don’t necessarily get our attention. I hope my thesis exploits some of the issues surrounding our government, and I hope that the Bucknell community can understand that there are issues that stem farther than our little campus here in Lewisburg.
Name: Hannah Paton
Major: Environmental Studies and Economics
Hometown: Amenia, New York
Involvement on Campus: Member of President’s Sustainability Council, Vice President of Bucknell French Club, contributing writer to Bucknellian, member of Delta Gamma Sorority
Title of your thesis: “There’s No Place Like New Orleans”: An Examination and Quantification of Community Strength in Post-Disaster Recovery
1. Tell us a little bit about your thesis.
My thesis is an examination of the place of community strength in post-disaster recovery. My thesis begins by using resilience theory to conduct a case study of New Orleans in the wake of hurricane Katrina. Looking at New Orleans as an example of a system that was undergoing internal pressures at the time of an exogenous shock to its system, I conclude, along with most research that occurred after Katrina, that the extent of the damage after the storm was due to the internal problems of political negligence, poverty, racial segregation, and low elevations rather than due to the actual magnitude of the storm. Hurricane Katrina spurred a lot of research about vulnerability and the preparedness to disaster of different communities. In fact, never was there a more apparent reason for an examination of the social factors of vulnerability, not just the physical. However, where most post-Katrina research focuses on the individual demographic data that lead to vulnerability, much less attention has been given to the place of community strength in post-disaster recovery. My research seeks to fill this gap. In the second part of my thesis, I attempt to create a model using the number of community spaces within each census tract of New Orleans as compared to each census’ tracts return or growth in population to understand if communal spaces and community strength made a difference to a community’s recovery.
2. What made you want to study this?
I have always been interested in sustainable development and urban planning, and how that can be related to communities. My studies at Bucknell have taught me the importance of working to create change at a local level, and I wanted to try to create a thesis that could objectively, and mathematically, show the importance of places like parks and community centers in serving as actors for a community. As an Environmental Studies major, I truly think that sustainability and environmental change begins at the individual level, with communities making personal commitments to living more sustainably. Therefore, local agencies are indispensable is supporting community goals towards sustainable development. Finally, as a double major in Economics as well, I enjoy working with qualitative information and trying to transform it into quantitative data. I think this thesis could serve as an useful tool in attempting to quantify the importance of community strength and the spaces that make communal interaction possible.
3. What do you think Bucknell as a campus can learn from your findings?
I hope that my thesis can contribute to a rethinking of how Bucknell students, and all people, think about sustainable development, urban planning, and the importance of local action in producing global change. Sustainable development is more than just creating lower-waste buildings, it is promoting sustainable lives; it is designing communities for all community members, and building for social equality. Public spaces provide places where community members can come together and everyone can have a voice, and local decision-makers are crucial in maintaining and creating these areas. Although issues of sustainability can seem overwhelming, I hope this thesis can attest to the fact that individual contributions and community commitments can make a substantial change.
Name: Reid Mclain
Major: English – Creative Writing; Psychology
Hometown: Demarest, NJ
Involvement on Campus: ADPi, GSA, Cap and Dagger, Orientation
Title of your thesis: Something About Sera
1. Tell us a little bit about your thesis.
My thesis was done for the Creative Writing concentration within the English Department, so it’s a bit different from most other theses. Instead of being research based, my thesis is a novella; essentially a short book. What I really loved about it was that it offered me so much freedom in how I wanted to shape my project. Writing in novella format allowed me to tell a complete story with a very sharp focus on one particular story arc. In specific, my thesis tells the story of a girl named Kenzi, who has to navigate not only the struggles of beginning high school, but also coming to terms with her sexuality and the repercussions that this identity might hold for her. She does this primarily with the help of a girl she meets named Sera. Sera is older, confident in her personality as well as her identity as a lesbian, and pushes Kenzi to find her own voice. However, Sera’s sexuality is a source of conflict within her family, and it ultimately leads to some very negative consequences in Kenzi’s own life. The way I usually surmise my thesis is somewhere between a coming of age and coming out story.
2. What made you want to study this?
Young adult fiction is something very near and dear to my heart; I grew up on books like Harry Potter and The Golden Compass, and my love for these stories has shaped a lot of my interests as well as who I am today. However as I got older, I noticed that across all types of media, the stories featured very similar kinds of protagonists. I also became really unhappy with the way LGBTQ characters have been portrayed in fiction. If they were included at all, the characters were cast to the side, ridiculed, or their sexuality was their only defining feature. My hope with this thesis was to create a story in which the protagonist’s sexuality was merely one facet of her story. I wanted sexuality to be important to Kenzi, but also to showcase all the ways in which this novella mirrors well established coming of age stories within the fiction genre.
3. What do you think Bucknell as a campus can learn from your findings?
I want to normalize LGBTQ characters and stories in the mainstream. I think it’s really important to showcase a variety of identities within media, and I’m hoping my thesis is one step in that direction. I also hope to represent a different side to the Honors Thesis process, that focuses less on research and more on individual interests and stories.
Name: Emily Sprague
Major: Philosophy & French
Hometown: San Mateo, CA
Involvement on Campus: Bison Girls Dance Team, Speak UP Bucknell, French TA
Title of your thesis: Breaking the Silence: Reclaiming Francophone Caribbean Female Voice in Maryse Condé’s Writing
1. Tell us a little bit about your thesis.
My project delves into the ways Maryse Condé, a Guadeloupean-born writer, reinserts female perspective back into a literary tradition dominated first by a French colonial perspective, then by her Caribbean male predecessors. In particular, I explore two of her texts, I, Tituba, Black Witch of Salem (1986) and Tree of Life: A Novel of the Caribbean (1992), both of which spotlights gender as a critical component of identity that has traditionally been neglected in the historical literary trajectory. Both of the female protagonists – Tituba and Coco, respectively – struggle through silence, yet eventually end up asserting their subjectivity and crafting their unique voices. My favorite finding, though, is that both Tituba and Coco are only able to confidently break their silences with the help of strong female role models. Through fostering influential female friendships in her writing, Condé redefines, recontextualizes, and rewrites the forgotten histories of the female Caribbean experience.
2. What made you want to study this?
While at Bucknell, I took two classes that focused on Caribbean identity and culture: French Colonialisms with Professor Gosson and Caribbean Literature with Dr. Dalleo. Despite the fact that these courses were in completely different departments (French and English), I became fascinated by the way dominated cultures preserve and cultivate individual identity through art, in particular literature. After taking the Women’s & Gender Studies class Women Writing/Writing Women with Erica Delsandro, I became interested in how women theorize their gender through writing, and how female authorship offers an opportunity to identify, investigate, and reveal the multiple ways in which women react against the boundaries created by the normative, male-dominated forces in society. Essentially, by taking a closer look at colonized cultures and oppressed female voices, I wanted to share the beauty and power that individuals have in breaking beyond their forced silences.
3. What do you think Bucknell as a campus can learn from your findings?
Most simply, the very act of storytelling implies that the storyteller has survived to describe the experience. By listening to experiences of people who have previously been silenced, we can learn about their individual perspectives, incredible feats, and wonderfully unique voices.