Alvarez’s In the Time of the Butterflies is a fictional depiction of three sisters who are lauded for their role in ending the supremacist, womanizing, and terror-inspiring reign of Trujillo. While, one character, Patria, seems to represent the traditional, and at times cloistered, life of a Dominican wife and mother (reflecting the Malinche and sufrida archetypes), the text also shows her transformation into one of the most vital figureheads of the revolution. I find that when she joins the revolution, she comes as a transformed Marian-figure. Unlike Ibez Gomez Vega and other feminist scholars who have categorized Patria as one torn between two ways and who chooses to replace the old ways with new ways, I argue that Patria finds a way to live pluralistically, as she inhabits the role of a revolutionized and evolved Madonna whom Gloria Anzaldua would refer to as a "new mestiza." This term changes its Aztec root "mestiza," meaning torn between ways into, a new mestiza who "copes by developing a tolerance for contradictions, [who] operates in a pluralistic mode–nothing is thrust out…nothing abandoned. Not only does she sustain contradictions, she turns the ambivalence into something else". In doing so, she reconstructs a Marian identity by returning to the Marian and Indigenous Goddess figures whose sexuality and equality with God have been buried by centuries of patriarchal and colonial fathers. This thesis demonstrates that Patria does not have to face the rigidity of certain feminist and secular standards. As a new mestiza. Patria can live beyond the rigidity of borders, and create something new, something that is truly Patria, out of womanhood.

This study is divided into two major parts. The first explores the variations of the stranger genre in the American twentieth-century short story by examining the short works of Sherwood Anderson, Ernest Hemingway, Eudora Welty, Katherine Anne Porter, Flannery O'Connor, Raymond Carver, and David James Duncan. The second provides five original works of fiction that represent my understanding of the genre. Observations in the first section fall into three basic categories: "The Mysterious Stranger: Character," "The Tough Guy: Conflict," and "The Nature of Knowing: Theme." "The Character in Transition" chapter relates my observations in the critical study to the structure of my original fiction, while the final chapter presents five original short stories.

This thesis is written as a supporting paper for a Master of Fine Arts graduate exhibition of color photographs. The work in the exhibition represents the concentrated study in the graduate program in photography at East Tennessee State University. The paper begins with an introduction to my ideas about the media. Then it discusses my motivation and methods. The following chapter concerns the influence of contemporary photographers whose work and philosopy play a crucial role in my understanding of photography. The paper concludes with a discussion of four photographs that represent the Master of Fine Arts graduate exhibition. I scrutinize each photograph for both artistic and technical aspects and also provide my thoughts on my photography.

Critics use the words "vanished culture" to describe Isaac Bashevis Singer's work for Polish Jewry had been destroyed. However, Singer's characters survive the travails of anti-Semitism and resettle in America. This study explores Singer's Polish Jews to determine whether they assimilate into their new culture; or maintain their strong Jewish traditions and adapt to the freedoms of America. Singer's life is analyzed, including the people and places that have influenced his work. Two of Singer's works are examined in this thesis. Chapters Three and Four explicate an allegorical short story, "The Little Shoemakers." Singer writes a fairytale view of a magnificent rejuvenation in the new world. Chapters Five and Six explore the realistic portrait of Jewish transplants in the novel, Enemies, A Love Story. Chapter Seven concludes that belief in the Jewish faith, along with the love of freedom, allow Singer's characters to adapt, not assimilate, to foreign soil.

This study is an examination of the historiography of the ancient-medieval texts that record events related to the Northumbrian and the Pictish royal houses in the seventh century. The Picts, the Scots and the Celtic Britons fell into subjugation under the control of the expansionist Northumbrian kings and remained there for most of the seventh century. Northumbrian expansion was halted by Bridei, king of the picts, when he put down the advancing Northumbrian forces of king Ecgfrith at the Battle of Dunnichen, also known as Nechtansmere, in the year A.D. 685. The outcome of the battle not only stopped Northumbrian expansion to the north, but began its reversal. The battle also allowed the Picts to gain back the lands they had lost to their Northumbrian enemy. For the Northumbrians, the battle had political and ecclesiastical implications that may have contributed to the later decline of their kingdom.

This thesis examines factors contributing to Bulgaria’s important role and involvement in the creation the Eastern European Orthodox Community under the cultural influence of Byzantine Empire from the middle of ninth century. The study primarily uses original Greek and Latin sources translated either in Old Church Slavonic or in contemporary Bulgarian, Russian, Serbo-Croatian or English. The approach of this thesis places Bulgarian-Byzantine relations in the context of the creation of the Eastern European Orthodox Community, illustrating that adopting and interpreting of Byzantine culture by the Slavic nations is a process of mutual acculturation, with paramount importance for the creation of the European cultural body. The findings indicate that the cultural and political aspirations of the Bulgarian ruling class in the middle of the ninth century combined with the wide Byzantine cultural expansion followed declining Iconoclasm were the main prerequisite factors for the establishment of a Slavonic literature tradition.

In this study I propose to examine the usage of the pardoning power of the president as it relates to four aspects: the Nixon pardon, political advancement, defense of the person and his party, and independent private gain through the issuance of pardons. These aspects are all a part of the modern day usage of Article II Section 2 of the Constitution. The study relies primarily on statements made from the presidents involved, as well as statements made by judicial persons involved in the pardoning process. The study is also drawn from direct investigations, both private and governmental. A good number of secondary sources were used also to establish the historical setting and round out the story where inconsistencies developed. The study concludes that presidents since Gerald Ford have used his pardon of Richard Nixon as a precedent to allow them a political alibi for questionable endeavors.

Rembrandt's influence on the medium of printmaking can only be explained through his methodology in the production of his images. Experimentation is the key word to describe his evolution in style as he mastered the skills necessary to achieve his desired result. This paper will focus on this experimental attitude towards the medium and the subsequent inspiration it gave to me and other artists. Also included is a technical and stylistic comparison of various etchings by Rembrandt and my six prints that serve as a visual illustration and personal interpretation of the artist's method. My research consisted of the consultation of many texts that aided in my supportive argument and eventual conclusion that Rembrandt created his place in history as an avant-garde in printmaking through his willingness to experiment with various methods in the production of his images.

This thesis examines the nature of the way body language and movement is perceived in the context of abstracted sculptures. The way these abstracted sculptures become creatures and the evolution thereof. It also explores the ways that concepts are altered in response to different media, evolving yet further.

This thesis paper supports the Master of Fine Arts exhibition at the Tipton Gallery, East Tennessee State University, from January 28th through February 8th, 2013. The exhibit is comprised of two hundred fifty-three porcelain objects and lines created with naturally colored porcelain slips used as paint. SURFACE presents my exploration of the natural world; the experiences and memories created during this process compelled this exhibition. Topics discussed are the influences, concepts, techniques, and methods used to create the work. Included are process images, detail images, and images of selected works from the exhibition.