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The topic of the thesis is epistemic certainty and uncertainty in Sophocles’ Ajax. Epistemic certainty refers to the quality of a character’s knowledge. I coined the term to describe the aspects of the play which seemed to explain this gap between Ajax’s actual and perceived character. Ajax is typically assessed by scholars as a character who makes decisions purely on the basis of self-assertion in the pursuit of glory. My thesis challenges this view, which has become a point of near-consensus among scholars. This effort differs from other studies of the Ajax in that it acknowledges the existence of both paradigms of action and personality: based either on the reason or the will. I conclude that Ajax acts on the basis of reason, but misleads other characters (and the audience) because of the dynamics of epistemic certainty and uncertainty. I view the Ajax as deliberately thematizing these dynamics of knowledge for the sake of provoking reflective thinking and discussion about this phenomenon in the play’s audience. At the same time, it pursues this investigation while preserving the expanded scope of recent works on the Ajax to include its implications for the play’s marginal characters, particularly Tecmessa and the Chorus. To that end, the investigation encompasses the entirety of the play while still addressing a major aspect of criticism concerning Ajax himself. Meanwhile, I describe how these two planes of engagement, that is, being epistemically certain or uncertain, mimic the condition of theatre-goers (or readers) as they move from being an audience member, an objective observer, to someone implicated in the action of their own lives once the play has ended. / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA) / The topic of the thesis is epistemic certainty and uncertainty in Sophocles’ Ajax. Epistemic certainty refers to the quality of a character’s knowledge. I chose the topic because I was curious about the assessment of Ajax among scholars as a character who makes decisions purely on the basis of self-assertion in the pursuit of glory. The topic thus challenges what has become a point of near-consensus among scholars. This effort differs from other studies of the Ajax in that it acknowledges the existence of both paradigms of action and personality: based either on the reason or the will. It pursues this investigation while preserving the expanded scope of recent works on the Ajax to include its implications for the play’s marginal characters, particularly Tecmessa and the Chorus. To that end, the investigation encompasses the entirety of the play while still addressing a major aspect of criticism concerning Ajax himself.

The discourse surrounding art in the early 21st century seeks to explain our artistic practices in terms of a radically distinct set of conventions, which many have dubbed ‘metamodern.’ Metamodernism abides neither by modernist aspirations of linear progress, nor by the cynical distrust of narratives familiar to postmodernism. Instead it appears to be based on an entirely different set of premises, relating to betweenness, oscillation, and metaxis, generating art with a dual capacity for irony and sincerity. While metamodernism seeks to break the mold of the conventions that preceded it, it also avoids delimitation and prescription, and this traps it in an impossibility. To truly supplant the postmodern, the metamodern state of betweenness must be equally definite and formally circumscribed. In this project, I argue that metamodernism can be defined as an aesthetic of liminality – a state of thresholds and transitions – and that such a definition opens new avenues for understanding its core axioms. The second goal of the project is to reflect on where the metamodern state of transition might lead, and what future forms it promises. The project relies on literary theory, chiefly that of Northrop Frye, on analysis of the discourse surrounding contemporary aesthetics, as well as on occasional forays into philosophy, anthropology and sociology. The project concludes that metamodernism’s core tenets are best understood as existentialist in nature, abiding by the tradition of existentialist writers such as Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Merleau-Ponty, and others. Identifying an existential underpinning to metamodern art is also to uncover an ethical substrate to what otherwise appears to be a freeform aestheticism. The ties between existentialism and metamodernism provide a case study for a broader look at the relationship between ethics and aesthetics, which might be pursued in future work. / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA) / There is a growing consensus among scholars that early 21st century art can no longer be explained in terms of familiar aesthetic conventions. The term ‘metamodernism’ is catching on as a description of our new era. Metamodernism is understood as an oscillation between two modalities – modernism and postmodernism – generating art that is more idealistic and romantic than what we have seen in previous decades, while retaining its capacity to be ironizing and self-aware. However, the discourse surrounding metamodernism has been tentative, provisional, and difficult to circumscribe. In avoiding any overarching claims or settled positions, metamodernism risks remaining only a radicalisation of previous conventions rather than a genuine evolution. The goal of this project is to come to grips with the core tenets of metamodernism, to present them more clearly and distinctly, and to suggest what the scholarship surrounding metamodernism might need to move beyond its current constraints.

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How I applied the Licentiate curriculim in English at the Universidad Nacional de México to my 30-year experience in book-publishing. / Licenciatura en Letras Inglesas

Proceeding from the assumption that psychoanalytic theory has yielded insightful literary interpretations, I propose that equally legitimate readings result from analyzing consciousness in literature. William James' "Stream of Thought" offers a psychological theory of consciousness from which I develop a literary theory that counterbalances the Freudian emphasis on the unconscious. Examining two works by Henry James, I demonstrate how assessing the elements of a character's consciousness leads to conclusions at which other theories do not arrive. This analytical approach leads to not only an alternative critical agenda but also a fuller understanding of the psychological function of the character's and, by extension, the human mind. / Master of Arts

This study of the development of Howells's theory of fiction and the extent of its expression in his own novels involves a study of the development of his literary tastes. In order to arrive at an understanding of Howells's critical views as expressed in his own fiction, his literary notices and critical essays will be studied concurrently with his novels.

The purpose of this essay is to perform a comparative psychoanalytic reading of The Great Gatsby (1925) and The Picture of Dorian Gray (1891) in terms of the titular characters’ narcissistic behavior. My claim is that Jay Gatsby and Dorian Gray can be seen as different depictions of narcissism. Literary critics in previous research characterized Gatsby and Gray as narcissists, but, there has not been a comparison between the two with focus on their narcissism. Gatsby and Gray display crucial differences which suggests that they portray narcissism in different ways. Theodore Millon identified four subtypes of the original narcissistic personality in order to better identify different types of narcissists. My aim is to use his subtypes to identify, and provide the causes and effects of Gatsby’s and Gray’s particular narcissistic behavior. My analysis indicates that Gatsby can be seen as a fictional illustration of the unprincipled and compensatory narcissist while Gray can be viewed as a fictional characterization of the amorous narcissist.

Master of Arts / Department of English / Timothy A. Dayton / This thesis project seeks to reconcile the literary criticism of Marxist critic and advocate of literary realism Georg Lukács with the writing of postmodern author Thomas Pynchon in order to validate the continued relevance of Lukácsian aesthetics. Chapter 1 argues that Lukács’ The Historical Novel is not only a valid lens with which to analyze Pynchon’s own historical novel, Mason & Dixon, but that such analysis will yield valuable insight. Chapter 2 illustrates the aesthetic transition from the historical drama to the historical novel by using Lukács’ ideas to explicate The Courier’s Tragedy, a historical drama found within the pages of Pynchon’s The Crying of Lot 49. Chapter 3 applies Lukács’ ideas on the “world-historical” figure and the “mediocre” hero of the classic historical novel to Mason & Dixon. Chapter 4 asserts that Mason & Dixon enables contemporary readers to experience the novel as what Lukács calls a “prehistory” to the present. This chapter also illustrates how the prehistory of Mason & Dixon anticipates Pynchon’s nonfiction essay “A Journey into the Mind of Watts.” Finally, this chapter demonstrates how Pynchon avoids the pitfall of modernization in Mason & Dixon, which Lukács defines as the dressing up of contemporary crises and psychology in a historical setting. Chapter 5 ties together the work of the previous four chapters and offers conclusions on both what Pynchon teaches us about Lukács, as well as what Lukács helps us to learn about Pynchon.