Master of Arts in English, Cleveland State University, 2023, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences

Our Bodies Like Rivers is an essay collection that meditates on the geographical and psychological landscape of home, Appalachia, climate change, and the anxieties and ironies of living in the Anthropocene. From environmental catastrophe, to the opioid crisis, to the plight of consumer, to the health and subtle changes of home and the ones we love, these essays all point to an interconnectedness. Our collective sickness and health is a body of water, without boundary or distinction. This work guides us through the wreckage of modern society and seeks to show us how we might go on.

Committee: Hilary Plum (Advisor); Mary Biddinger (Committee Member); Caryl Pagel (Committee Member) Subjects: Animal Sciences; Climate Change; Cultural Anthropology; Endocrinology; Environmental Philosophy; Environmental Science; Families and Family Life; Fine Arts; Genetics; Geography; Journalism; Toxicology