Master of Arts in Liberal Arts

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A History Of The Egan Family With Emphasis On Dr. Bartholomew Egan And Dr. James Cronin Egan
(LSU Shreveport, 1987) Wilson, Anne Dier
No study of the history of North Louisiana would be complete without considering the Egan family, especially Dr. Bartholomew Egan (1795-1878) and his son, Dr. James C. Egan (1822-1911). The Egans were respected and honored for their wisdom, knowledge, and Judgment, not only in their chosen field of medicine, but also in politics and education. After receiving his degree from Trinity College, Dublin, Bartholomew migrated from Ireland to America in 1818. He lived in Virginia for over twenty years and during this time he was a principal at various classical academies throughout the state. Desiring to pursue medicine as a career, he attended lectures at the University of Virginia and after completing his course, practiced medicine in Virginia until he moved to Louisiana in In Louisiana, he helped found Mount Lebanon University and became its first president. He also helped organize and became the first president of the Northwestern Louisiana Medical Society in 1856. He was appointed by Governor Henry Watkins Allen to superintend the State Chemical Laboratory during the War Between the States. For many years Dr. James C. Egan practiced medicine in Louisiana and is credited with successfully performing one of the first Cesarean sections in the state. When the Civil War began, Egan volunteered his services as a physician to the Confederacy and during Reconstruction he was elected to the State Senate and helped pass the bill which re-established Louisiana State University. In 1876 he helped re-organize the Shreveport Medical Society and in 1878 was elected first president of the state society. He lived well into the 20th century and true to the progressive spirit of the time, Egan directed his undying energy to the improvement of public health. The lives of these two men exemplify the cultured, well-educated mind of the old South.
The Role Of Camp Meetings In The Development Of Religion On The Red River Frontier
(LSU Shreveport, 1987) Plummer, Marguerite Reynolds
The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of camp meeting revivalism in the development of religion on the Red River frontier. The focus of the study is directed toward the following specific aspects: (1) the camp meeting as a technique for evangelizing the populace and establishing churches in the frontier settlements; (2) the camp meeting as a determinant of religious practices and traditions of the Red River culture; (3) the camp meeting as progenitor of church-sponsored revivals and protracted meetings; and (4) the antebellum camp meeting as a prototype of the post-Civil war camp meeting revivals. The role of the camp meeting has been discussed in the context of the Great Revival of the early nineteenth century, also known as the Second Great Awakening. The Great Revival gave birth to the frontier camp meeting, which in turn served as a vital technique for Christianizing the frontiers as the United States of America expanded rapidly westward during the decades following the American Revolution. The Red River frontier represented the Western boundary of the nation during the period of 1830-1860, the period of settlement and development of the northwest corner of Louisiana, northeast Texas, and southwest Arkansas--the region commonly referred to as the Ark-La-Tex. The research consisted of both primary and secondary sources, and included books, journals, newspapers, periodicals, diaries, letters, archival collections, oral histories, interviews and field research. The conclusion that the frontier camp meeting played a significant role in the development of the religious beliefs and practices of the Red River culture was overwhelmingly supported by the data.
While The Band Discoursed Sweet Airs: A Study Of Popular Music In The Social Life Of Shreveport, Louisiana, 1875-1900, With Reference To The N.S. Allen Music Collection
(LSU Shreveport, 1987) Penn, Rachel T.
This thesis deals with the relationship between social activity and popular music in Shreveport, Louisiana, during the last quarter of the nineteenth century. Like most other Americans, Shreveporters preferred popular over classical music as a result of their initial exposure to folk music, traveling variety shows, and amateur participation in the arts. The aspects of social activity considered are music in the schools, the strong tradition of amateur participation in music, music and worship, social dancing, music in both amateur and professional theater performances, music in amateur and professional minstrel shows, and public events including band music. Vocal and instrumental music are considered. Shreveporters, like the majority of nineteenth century Americans, preferred the music that accompanied these social activities. This preference for popular, as opposed to classical, music reflects the importance of a social function tor music during the nineteenth century. Music and other cultural activities developed in Shreveport as part of a strong tradition of amateur proficiency in the arts. Training in the performing arts and in appropriate social behavior began early, both at home and in school. Playing music for and with others was an important part of the social and intellectual activity common to many. The social context for musical activity is established by reports and reviews from the local newspaper, the Shreveport Times. Specific titles of standard dance music are included in an appendix referring to the N.S. Allen Collection of nineteenth century housed in the Library Archives of Louisiana State University in Shreveport. Biographical information on Shreveport architect and bandmaster Nathaniel Sykes Allen provides a picture of one representative Shreveport musician. A sample program of nineteenth century songs and dance music is provided in an appendix including a cassette tape with program notes.
An Oral History Of Vietnam Veterans In Shreveport And Bossier
(LSU Shreveport, 1987) Bicknell, Mary Duett
The purpose of my study, An Oral History of Vietnam Veterans in Shreveport and Bossier, is to provide a historical record of the impressions that the war made on some veterans who live in the community. It has been approximately eleven years since the fall of Saigon in the face of the North Vietnamese onslaught, but we are just now able to analyze our role in the war effort and the effect it had on our veterans. Therefore it is hoped that my oral history project will give some insight that will help in understanding the war and the veterans who fought it.
Impact of the European Migration of Italians to Shreveport, Louisiana from 1880 to 1930
(LSU Shreveport, 1987) Leber, Lucy Richardson
The purpose of this study is to examine the development of the Italian group in Shreveport during the period of foreign migration from 1880 to 1930 to an established community.
A Public Relations Approach to Alleviate the Teenage Drug Problem in Caddo Parish
(1986-08) Ragsdale, Paula Warren
"A Public Relations Approach to Alleviate the Teenage Drug Problem in Caddo Parish" By Ragsdale, Paula Warren
90 More Hot Nights
(1986-05) Pace, Judy A.
A family gathers to celebrate the ninety-second birthday of the family's matriarch, who thinks she's turning 102 and is about to die. As the family comes together, each member has problems and conflicts to work through, bound by the parameters of the family. My final project is a play based on this premise. It is a regional work, utilizing Southern dialogue and a Southern setting. The play is prefaced by an introduction explaining the importance of drama in the development of thought and examining some of the characteristics of Southern literature. In a study of the humanities, the importance of both partaking of literature and putting words on paper cannot be overemphasized. Studying the development of thought, one sees how the writings of each age have contributed to man's enrichment. 90 More Hot Nights is intended to say something about life and how much can happen in the course of a day; it is intended to chronicle a part of the thought of the rural South in the 1980s.
Public Radio: The Role and Participation of the Local Community
(1985-05) Cooper, Glenda B.
This thesis is a critical analysis of public radio in the United States. Tne purpose of the study is to develop an informa tional tool that can be of service to any community in which a public radio station operates. Public radio must operate under guidelines established by Congress in the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967. The most important of these is the requirement that the local station serve and reilect the needs and values of its community of listeners. Therefore, a public radio station can reach its full potential only when the entue community is allowed and encouraged to participate in its growth and development. Effective public participation can be signifcantly enhanced if information regarding public radio's limitations and potentials are made available to those persons seeking involvement. It has been the goal of this study to provide such information. An understanding of how public radio fits into the over-all scheme of the eati: e public broadcasting system is essential for determining its potential for service. An understanding of public radio's history is essential fo' making realistic predictions for its future. An understanding of how and why programming choices are made is essential for obtaining community support and guidance toward managerial decisions of program offerings. These are the elements of public radio this study emphasizes. Public radio's existence is dependent, to a large degree, on the amount of public support it generates. It is hoped that this paper can enhance public participation to a degree that will benefit the station, the licensee and the community.
A Communications Program Toward Rectification of Child Abuse in the Shreveport/Bossier City Area
(1986-12) Culligan, Rita Cromwell
The thesis presented concentrates on providing a communications program to help alleviate child abuse in the Shreveport/Bossier City community. The development of the communications campaign centers around resources already found in the community. A critique of ineffective measures are presented as well as options which are viable. The first phase of the campaign involved data gathering through professiona1s who deal with abused children. This was done by the use of an instrument designed by the author for such purpose. Phone interviews and personal visits with professionals were also used. In the second phase a community plan of preventive action is developed. This phase consists of involvement of the media, local churches, educators, neighborhood organizations, and the medical community. The final phase of the communications campaign should be the evaluation of the campaign. Since the campaign cannot be initiated and accomplished by the author for the purposes of the study and no one else has ever initiated such a widespread community campaign only a comparison with smaller successful campaigns can be made. Based on the success level of those programs Significant reductions in child abuse should occur.
Southwester Electric Power Company: The Source Behind the Switch
(1985-12) Barkley, Eric S.
This project is a look at the history of Southwestern Electric Power Company through the eyes of some of those who helped shape it. The purpose is to form a historical record of Southwestern from its beginnings through data research and by capturing the thoughts of those who were there.
Action Alert: An Ongoing Program of Public Art Is Necessary and Possible in Shreveport.
(1985-12) Nathan, Tama Ripps
The decline of oil, gas and manufacturing revenues, the changes in expectations of minority groups, parish and city governments, and other changes have prompted differenc sec tors of our community to examine alternate ways for the city to prosper. The Belden-Daniels study, jointly sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce and city government, targeted eco nomic solutions and stressed the need for involvement of all citizens if there was to be progress. The problem of many separate Shreveports was cited by the minister of our largest Baptist congregation in a much publicized and de bated sermon. Shreveport's possibilities can and should also be examined from the standpoint of the visual arts be cause a lack of aesthetic quality affects the sense we have of ourselves and the way we're seen by others. During my deliberation of possible areas of study for a final project, as a visual artist I thought of how Grand Rapids started to realize the possibilities of a public art program when in 1967, Henry Geldzahler, then director of the National Endowment for the Arts Visual Arts Program spoke at that local museum. On an introductory tour of Grand Rapids, which included an urban renewal site close to completion, he told his hostess about the new Art in Public Places grants, and noted that sites like the one they were viewing could be enhanced by its use. What catalyst could activate such possibilities here?
The Psychology of Absurdist Literature
(2013-05) Langley Jr, Preston L.
This thesis will discuss Camus’ definition of the absurd and the importance of rebelling against it to provide meaning in a world filled with tragedy and suffering. In addition, Viktor Frankl’s psychoanalytic theory of logotherapy will be discussed as a method of rebelling against the absurdity of modern life, and will be used to provide a method of rebellion against the absurd in absurdist literature. In addition, this thesis will examine the treatment of suicide in absurd life as represented in three types of literature: Albert Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus to illustrate the absurd in essays and other shorter works, Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot, Play, and Endgame to illustrate the absurd in absurdist plays, and Albert Camus’ The Plague to illustrate the absurd in absurdist novels. This thesis will demonstrate how the absurdist treatment of suicide is depicted as depriving life of its meaning, and how by using logotherapy, suicide can be used to provide a meaning in life.
Counterproductive Counterinsurgency: Lessons from the Misuse of Airpower in the American Vietnam Conflict and the United States’ Fight against ISIS
(2017-05) Dean, Ashley E.
America’s relationship with the world drastically changed after World War II. The fear of radicalism, namely communism, drew the United States into Vietnam, a conflict with no real resolution. Far-fetched justifications, unclear rules of engagement, and a tangled bureaucracy all made the American experience in Vietnam a strategic and tactical nightmare. Stagnant, World War II-era tactics plagues American foreign actions in Southeast Asia and do now in the fight against Islamist extremists in the Middle East and Africa. The lessons learned and ignored from the American Vietnam Conflict are more relevant today than ever. As U.S. military and political strategists look to the future in another seemingly endless war, it is prudent that they also look to the past to develop a winning strategy.
The Influence of the Protestant Reformation on the American Revolution
(2019-10) Edwards Jr, Arthur L.
During the Protestant Reformation, John Calvin directed a new school of religious thought in his most famous work Institutes of the Christian Religion. Calvin analyzed and interpreted Biblical text, laying the foundation for the Protestant religion. Calvin also laid the foundation for political thoughts on just government according to Scripture. Ideas of government, its duties and responsibilities, as well as the role of citizens, and the foundation of law, were formulated in Calvin’s manuscript. These ideas were then used by other Reformation leaders, such as John Knox, as the foundation for a new covenant nation. The influence of these ideas from the Reformation can be seen in the political events of the English Civil Wars and the American Revolution. American colonists and founders alike studied and used these ideas to guide their notions of government, liberty, and founding principles of the American democracy. The Petitions presented to England by James Otis, the Stamp Act Congress, and the Virginia House of Burgesses all use the Reformation political ideas as the foundation for their arguments. Finally, the Declaration of Independence is the embodiment of these ideas, with the strands of influence from the Reformation binding the new nation together.
Oppression Pedagogy: Revisiting and Reassessing Maxine Hairston’s “Diversity, Ideology, and Teaching Writing”
(2020-05) Miller, Sean D.
In “Diversity, Ideology, and Teaching Writing” (1992), Maxine Hairston, an English professor at the University of Texas at Austin, criticized a newly popular pedagogy that made its practitioners’ political and ideological worldviews the teaching and learning goals in freshman composition classrooms. Hairston argued that as the traditional purpose and function of the composition course was usurped by the pedagogy, the educational needs of composition students were neglected. She also claimed that the imposition of political and ideological viewpoints on freshman students was an unethical practice that equated to the instructor’s abuse of his or her classroom authority and that took advantage of young, inexperienced, and unsophisticated students. Over the last twenty-seven years, much has been published about the application of, and the debate over, this pedagogy in the composition classroom. This discourse, from both the pedagogy’s critics and practitioners, supports Hairston’s criticism, revealing that the pedagogy does in fact replace the purpose and function of the freshman writing course and engenders unethical teaching practices. This thesis uses Hairston’s criticism as a framework. Chapter 1 introduces and defines key issues and terms. Chapter 2 explores whether the pedagogy displaces and neglects the traditional purpose of the freshman composition course. Chapter 3 questions the ethicality of the pedagogy. And Chapter 4 reveals my findings from the observations of two freshman composition courses and compares them with Hairston’s claims and discourse on the matter. This thesis considers Hairston’s claims, her responders’ rebuttals, counterclaims, and other publications, the publications of other practitioners of the pedagogy, a survey of university catalog course descriptions, and my findings to reach its conclusion. Ultimately, the evidence shows that the pedagogy neglects writing instruction and is an unethical teaching strategy.
Faces, Facades, and False Impressions: A Study of Aesthetics, Interpersonal Literacy, and the Nineteenth-Century Novel
(2020-05) Mazur, Sarah
Aesthetic philosophy, the study of beauty, became popular during the Enlightenment. In the eighteenth century, it was applied to human relationships by thinkers such as Adam Smith. By the end of this century an aesthetic social “code” had developed, whereby one’s social status, physical appearance, and etiquette were understood to signal one’s inner virtue. The didactic literature of the day, such as Fordyce’s Sermons to Young Women (1766) and Lord Chesterfield’s Letters to His Son (1774), taught this aesthetic system of interpersonal literacy. The aesthetic system of understanding others is also apparent in early novels, like Richardson’s Pamela: or, Virtue Rewarded (1740). However, by the turn of the nineteenth century, novelists had begun to question this system of interpersonal literacy, and their reaction against the aesthetic system of interpersonal literacy can be seen in such works as Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice (1813), Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre (1847), and George Eliot’s Adam Bede (1859). A study of these novels demonstrates a growing disagreement with and undermining of interpersonal literacy based on superficial, aesthetic signs. Furthermore, these novels reveal that by the mid-nineteenth century, authors who had rejected the aesthetic system were looking to and creating new models of reading virtue in others.
From Fear to Celebration: The Evolution of Post-Apocalyptic Literature in the United States, 1945-2008
(2020-08) Thompson, Katelyn Flynn
On August 6, 1945, the city of Hiroshima was reduced to rubble by the first atomic bomb. This act, alongside the second bomb that was dropped on Nagasaki three days later, ushered in a period defined by advancements in nuclear power and the fear of those same weapons. As a response to this fear, many Cold War writers turned to the medium of apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, which helped them express both their criticisms towards and potential alternatives to nuclear weaponry. Fifty-six years after the end of WWII, yet another defining moment in US history incited a transformation in the apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic genre. The attacks of September 11, 2001 (9/11) led to an era defined by the eradication of fear based rhetoric. Apocalyptic narratives reflected this change and, instead of inciting fear, were forced to engage with pro-war ideologies, though they continued to undermine those political positions through more subtle tactics. The purpose of this project is to explore the transformation of apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic cultural texts between the end of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first century. By focusing on the role that fear plays in these narratives, both as a method for criticism and its later eradication in post-9/11 texts, this thesis demonstrates that the apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic genre provides a suitable measure for cultural changes, especially concerning warfare and violence.
The Impact of the Marian Exiles on the Aesthetics of the Church of England
(2020-08) Raines, Laura Flowers
The controversy concerning traditional church aesthetics has been debated for centuries; however, the Reformation brought this issue to a decisive turning point when Reformed Church doctrine caused an ecclesiastical revolution based on the writings and church model of John Calvin. This thesis explores the extent to which continental church Reformers’ views on church aesthetics affected the Marian Exiles, who fled England in 1553 on the ascension of Mary Tudor. John Jewel, John Foxe, and Edmund Grindal were among these Protestant clergymen, scholars, and sympathizers. By tracing the influence of Reformed theology and their journey to the Protestant exile cities, the impact of the Marian Exiles is shown to be a determining factor in the aesthetics of the new Church of England. As bishops, Jewel and Grindal championed cause of Reformers in the English Reformation. Jewel’s Apology of the Church of England was paramount in the implementation of Reformed aesthetic doctrine. Additionally, John Foxe’s Acts and Monuments, now referred to as Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, was instrumental in the justification of the Reformed theology, inspiring the removal and destruction of sacred art in churches across England. Without the combined efforts of these three men, the aesthetics of the Church of England, perhaps, would have been more like Elizabeth I’s intended via media.
The Relationship between Epic and Religion: A Study of the Shift in the Concept of Epic Heroism, the Characteristics and Actions of the God(s), and the Interactions between Society and God(s) from the Classical Period to the Renaissance Era
(2020-12) Swain, Crystal Ann
The Classical period introduces epic: a form of literature that reflects the cultural values of society as well as the evolution and transitioned of those values throughout the eras. It is within epic that a reader can trace society’s change in religious beliefs. The goal of this project is to examine the relationship between the epic hero and religion by following the shift from an anthropomorphic polytheistic belief system to a scholastic monotheistic religion. This thesis will study the change in the concept of heroism, the characteristics and actions of the god(s), the rituals performed in tribute to these god(s), and the interactions between the god(s) and society though divine messengers. It begins with a study of the Classical epics, the Iliad and Aeneid, which lay the foundation of early Western civilization’s core values and beliefs. Moving into the late Classical period/early Medieval period, this thesis focuses on the change in religious ideologies present in The Poems of Alcimus Ecdicius Avitus: The Fall of Man, before shifting to the Renaissance period to conclude with Tasso’s epic Jerusalem Delivered and the Holy Crusades.
Changing the Face of Arthuriana: Women’s Arthurian Tradition in Twentieth-Century America
(2020-12) Hoffnung, Rachel J.
This thesis is a limited analysis of late twentieth-century American adaptations of the Arthurian legend. I examine three novels published by American authors in the 1970s and 1980s: David Drake’s The Dragon Lord (1979), Phyllis Ann Karr’s The Idylls of the Queen (1982), and Marion Zimmer Bradley’s The Mists of Avalon (1982). This thesis aims to provide greater scholastic attention to American women’s literary contributions to the Arthurian tradition and to examine the varying representations and characterizations of prominent Arthurian women. Findings from this study suggest that twentieth-century female Arthurianists break from the conventions of their male contemporaries. They reimagine prominent themes from the legend—particularly regarding power dynamics, magic, sexuality, and marriage—to provide significant social commentary for the modern age in which they live. Their adaptations exemplify the legend’s malleability in communicating a culture’s modern values and ethics, as well as its efficacy in examining the largely underrepresented voices within the Arthurian community.

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