Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2023, Popular Culture

Popular culture is rife with stereotypes of sex workers. One of the most common, the sex worker with a heart of gold, has many iterations as a classic literary trope (Rahab from Judeo-Christian literature) and has now evolved into twenty-first-century television and film (Moulin Rouge! and Firefly). These stereotypes are largely affected by class, race, disability, gender, and sexuality, are often subjected to gendered violence and sexualization, and are narratively limited by their relationship with male protagonists. The sex worker with a heart of gold also maintains some similarities regardless of genre. This thesis examines the trope within westerns and romantic films.

Committee: Becca Cragin Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Sarah Rainey-Smithback Ph.D. (Committee Member); Jeffrey Brown Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Film Studies; Gender; Gender Studies; Mass Media; Womens Studies

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2018, English

Rhetoric and feminism have historically been seen as having little to do with each other. This dissertation seeks to illuminate commonalities between rhetoric and feminism by demonstrating how Burkean identification operates as a pivotal link between the two. It argues that Burkean identification allows for an articulation of how to use the claims we make about who we are to create the kind of transformation feminism is interested in encouraging. It does so by elucidating the relationship between feminist rhetorical principles and Burkean thought through the analysis of third-person identity constitution—a three-step process through which the audience is encouraged to identify with a third-person Other. Each step of that process is demonstrated through the rhetorical analysis of science-fiction television series that use third-person identity constitution to constructively transform the perception of the third-person Other and to encourage the audience to adopt the feminist rhetorical principles that led to that changed perception. These analyses reveal the significant role Burkean identification can play in developing a constructively transformative and feminist rhetoric as well as the important tool science fiction can be for feminist rhetoric.

Committee: Nan Johnson (Advisor); James Fredal (Committee Member); Sean O'Sullivan (Committee Member) Subjects: Rhetoric

Bachelor of Science of Media Arts and Studies (BSC), Ohio University, 2016, Media Arts and Studies

An analysis of Joss Whedon's cult television show Firefly, specifically what made it successful and whether those aspects can be applied to a sci-fi series in the alternate history sub-genre.

Committee: Eric Williams (Advisor) Subjects: Motion Pictures; Multimedia Communications

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2012, Environmental Science

While the number of conservation projects has increased domestically and worldwide, many environment education programs have failed to fulfill their goals of encouraging the citizens to actively adopt pro-environment behaviors. To investigate the potential correlation between people's environment attachment and people's tendency to perform pro-environment behaviors, a survey was conducted in the rural part of Wayne County, OH in 2009. The result of the survey research shows a significant correlation between people's attachment to the natural environment and their tendency to participate in certain kinds of pro-environment behaviors. Such finding supplements the previous research on the relationship between place attachment and pro-environment behaviors. The survey results from my 2009 survey show that these local citizens tend to associate fireflies with good environment quality. A literature review yielded little evidence to support or reject such hypothesis. One major reason for the lack of research on the relationship between fireflies and the natural environment was because of the lack of suitable technology to monitor firefly activities in the field. I developed a new timed sequential digital photographic method to monitor firefly flashing activities in their natural habitats. Such method has potential for engaging citizens into environment education programs. I used this method to collect data on the West Badger Farm near Wooster, OH in 2009. The results showed that this method could capture the flashing activities of different firefly species and was sensitive to the changes of the flashing activities. The two species of fireflies I studied showed similar responses to climatic factors, but different responses to landscape types and farming practices. The data also suggested that these two firefly species were active at the same time during the night, contrary to previous studies that classified them into different active groups (“early-active” vs. “late-acti (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Richard Moore PhD (Advisor); Jeremy Bruskotter PhD (Committee Member); Joe Kovach PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Behavioral Sciences; Conservation; Ecology; Entomology; Environmental Education; Environmental Science; Science Education; Sociology; Wildlife Conservation