Senior Thesis Presentation Notes

Introduction

• Welcome and thanks to attendees for coming to the senior thesis readings.
• Seven students will read excerpts from their completed theses.
• Students reflect on what they wish they had known a year ago.

Student Presentations

1. Jen Sega

• Thesis Topic: Rhetoric and language of gendered violence in hard-boiled crime fiction (1930s-1950s).
  • Focus on shifting gender dynamics post-Great War.
  • Analyze traditional male writers vs. largely unread female writers in the genre.
• Chapter Highlights:
  • Chapter 1: Definition of traditional hard-boiled masculinity.
  • Chapter 2: Women writers navigating and challenging patriarchal genre norms.
  • Discusses how women writers create empowered female characters within the tradition.
• Key Insights:
  • Hard-boiled fiction as a reflection of gender anxieties, connecting masculinity and femininity.
  • Feminist press and the revival of women's writing in hard-boiled genres.
• Advice: Take the working bibliography seriously to avoid last-minute panic.

2. Student on Canterbury Tales (Name Not Provided)

• Thesis Topic: The intertextuality in the Canterbury Tales.
  • Focus on the interaction between stories and storytellers.
• Key Concepts:
  • Competitive storytelling among pilgrims (e.g., Knight's Tale vs. Miller's Tale).
  • The concept of "kweeping" where pilgrims adapt and improve previous tales.
• Conclusions: Genre should not dictate narrative quality; authors can manipulate genres for effective storytelling.
• Advice: Don’t leave proofreading until the last minute; allow time for ideas to develop.

3. Bridget Riley

• Thesis Topic: Wisdom through narrative in Paradise Lost, Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and Moby Dick.
  • Focus on narrators grappling with the inadequacies of language.
• Insights on Narrators:
  • Each author uses narrators to showcase the struggle of conveying complex truths.
  • Discusses the comedic elements of storytelling in Moby Dick.
• Conclusion: Laughter and humor allow for a more dynamic understanding of narrative.
• Advice: Engage deeply with texts; don’t flatten arguments.

4. Mackenzie (Surname Not Provided)

• Thesis Topic: Marriage Plot adaptations in Jane Eyre, David Copperfield, and Basil.
  • Examine the cultural anxieties surrounding marriage in Victorian society.
• Key Findings:
  • Importance of sibling relationships as a commentary on marriage.
  • Sister marriages as a valid plot device that challenges traditional marriage norms.
• Advice: Proofreading and footnotes should not be left until the end.

5. Maddie (Surname Not Provided)

• Thesis Topic: The relationship between invisible identities and postmodern notions of self in contemporary literature.
  • Analyzes The Bluest Eye, Look at Me, and Your Face in Mine.
• Key Themes:
  • Society's obsession with appearance and its impact on identity.
  • Resistance to the pressures of visibility in postmodern narratives.
• Advice: Start reading early to avoid regrets later.

6. Julia Callahan

• Thesis Topic: Witnessing through poetry: analysis of Pinsky, Levine, and Komunyakaa.
  • Exploration of civil, vatic, and emphatic poetic impulses.
• Key Analysis:
  • Poets address personal experiences to comment on larger societal issues.
  • Emphasis on how language can express or obscure truth.
• Advice: Editing is essential; know when to finalize your project.

7. Maddy Burns

• Thesis Topic: Formal experimental poetry by Dickinson, Stein, and HD.
  • Examination of how each writer challenges gender norms through form.
• Key Discussion Points:
  • Dickinson’s acceptance of language vs. Stein’s rejection of norms.
  • HD’s experimentation with ancient forms.
• Advice: Regular writing practice is crucial to managing workload.