Excellence in Research Awards

Walt Whitman: A Man of Compassion

Kaitlyn Cyr — Mon, 18 May 2009 08:41:12 PDT

Although Walt Whitman was such a complex man, I focused on his time in the Civil War which showed what a caring, compassionate man he was and proved that he was more than a poet

Realizing Death: The Journey of American Cinema

Elizabeth C. Urban — Fri, 15 May 2009 11:50:58 PDT

Since their inception, movies have served as the meter of popular culture, reflecting the customs, tastes and thinking of their times. As such, films provide benchmarks for the history of psychological development. A survey of American movies reveals that even though there has been a progression of psychological thought about death and dying by the medical community and a more naturalistic portrayal in our cinema, we remain a death-denying culture.

Does Chicano Rap Empower the Twenty-First Century Immigrants Rights Movement in the United States

Alejandra Lopez — Wed, 07 May 2008 11:01:48 PDT

The relationship between Chicano rap and the Twenty-First Century Immigrants' Rights Movement proves that music can be a powerful instrument to communicating the voice of a social movement. Through the rap lyrics of Chicano artists, including Kid Frost, Cypress Hill, Control Machete, Lil'Rob, Proper Dos, Akwid, and Kinto Sol, I analyze the frustrations and demands of undocumented Mexican immigrants and Chicanos living in the United States. Therefore, I examine how Chicano rap encourages people to change anti-immigrant United States legislature and social rejection against undocumented Mexicans and Chicanos through political activism. Preserving identity, maintaining unity, fighting to change anti-immigrant legislature, and exposing abuses committed by government officials, Chicano rappers through their powerful music urge people to demand humanitarian immigration reform from the U.S. government in order to ensure human rights, equality, and justice for all. Because the unique Chicano rap lyrics in English, Spanish, and Spanglish, uphold the need for social change, I argue that Chicano rap is filled with prevailing significance that empowers the Twenty-First Century Immigrants' Rights Movement.

Women in Modern Theatre: An Ethnodrama

Veronika Nedashkovskaya — Wed, 07 May 2008 10:59:40 PDT

This research paper explores the genre of performance ethnography and ethnodramas; it focuses on the great contributing playwrights and how they were able to blend theatre and journalism into a performance piece. The research I found will help me in completing my own ethnodrama.

Kate Chopin's Life and Personal Influence

Jasdomin Tolentino — Wed, 07 May 2008 10:56:37 PDT

Ella Enchanted: Reclaiming Fairy Tales / Perpetuating Hollywood Standards

Emma Carbone — Wed, 07 May 2008 10:53:22 PDT

Feminists often denounce traditional fairy tales because they perpetuate the ideals of a patriarchal society by encouraging girls to behave like proper princesses and wait for charming princes to take charge and save the day. In response to these traditional fairy tales, many authors have tried to reclaim the realm of fairy tales for girls. These retellings feature active protagonists who are not scared of taking charge and do not need princes to save them. One example of this new fairy tale genre is the 1998 children's novel Ella Enchanted by Gail Garson Levine, an untraditional feminist retelling of the story of Cinderella. This paper examines why, when it was adapted into a movie in 2004, this story is, shockingly, no longer an effective feminist text.