This MA thesis scrutinizes metaphors used by the late medieval English in order to explore the cultural response to climate anomalies of varying severity prefacing the Little Ice Age. The thesis indicates that changes in these cultural expressions marked a transformation in late medieval English writers' conceptions of the natural world and their relationship to it. The central hypothesis is that repeated, long-term unreliable and uncertain weather conditions, and the resulting material insecurities and losses, stimulated a fundamental cultural response which reconfigured the metaphors used for the natural world. Although the representation of nature is inescapably an act of imagination, metaphors and metonymies for nature will be identified in the medieval creative literature, as well as the proto-scientific study of weather, and, in the context of the socioeconomic metabolism model, be brought under the light of conceptual metaphor analysis for elucidation.

This MA thesis scrutinizes metaphors used by the late medieval English in order to explore the cultural response to climate anomalies of varying severity prefacing the Little Ice Age. The thesis indicates that changes in these cultural expressions marked a transformation in late medieval English writers' conceptions of the natural world and their relationship to it. The central hypothesis is that repeated, long-term unreliable and uncertain weather conditions, and the resulting material insecurities and losses, stimulated a fundamental cultural response which reconfigured the metaphors used for the natural world. Although the representation of nature is inescapably an act of imagination, metaphors and metonymies for nature will be identified in the medieval creative literature, as well as the proto-scientific study of weather, and, in the context of the socioeconomic metabolism model, be brought under the light of conceptual metaphor analysis for elucidation.

Cooking skills are important but declining, with significant health, social, cultural, political, economic, and environmental implications. Food and cooking education can begin to address some of the negative effects of the cooking skills decline. This thesis makes the case for cooking classes in the education system, especially in higher education. The paper begins with a history of cooking education and skills, outlines the implications of the decline in skills, and discusses the potential for cooking education in higher education. The second part consists of a course syllabus, designed for Pomona College. The third section includes a discussion of the implementation of this course at Pomona College specifically, including a description of the course creation process, challenges, available resources, and recommendations for future action.

Sedan forskning inom ämnet brandskydd för byggnader inleddes på 1900-talets andra hälfthar intresset för att bygga allt högre och mer komplexa byggnader ökat. I och med detta harhögre krav på brandskydd samt lagar och regler som beskriver de olika krav som ställsutvecklats.Äldre kulturhistoriskt viktiga bebyggelser i Sverige har svårt att uppfylla dessa krav.Samtidigt som det ställs höga krav på såväl organisatoriskt som byggnadsteknisktbrandskydd spelar byggnadernas kulturhistoriska värde en avgörande roll i hur brandskyddettillåts implementeras och i vilken omfattning. Det blir därför en avvägning mellan vad som ärmöjligt att göra ur brandskyddssynpunkt och ur en kulturhistorisk aspekt. I både Sverige ochNorge har man vid brandskyddsinventeringar kommit fram till ett flertalbrandskyddslösningar som varit möjliga att tillämpa.Ett exempel på dessa kulturhistoriska trähusbebyggelser är Rademachersmedjorna iEskilstuna. På mitten av 1600-talet beordrade den dåvarande konungen Karl X Gustaf att ettflertal stensmedjor skulle uppföras i Eskilstuna. I samband med konungens död 1660 föllplanerna och endast ett 20-tal smedjebyggnader uppfördes och då istället i trä. Endast sex avdessa smedjebyggnader finns bevarade och utgör de Rademachersmedjor som området ärkänt för idag.Syftet med denna studie är att genom systematiska fältstudier skapa en översikt över ochdokumentera Rademachersmedjornas nuvarande brandskydd. Utifrån detta materialvisualiseras områdets byggnadstekniska brandskydd samt riskzoner på ett översiktligt sättför brukare, förvaltare och ägare. Vidare fokuseras arbetet på brandspridningsaspekten samtrespektive byggnads nuvarande brandskydd. Detta innebär att den kulturmässiga aspektenendast kommer att beröras översiktligt.Denna studie baseras på bedömningsmodellen Bedömning av brandskydd ikulturbebyggelse (härefter kallat BSV-k) och de delar denna omfattar. Detta innebär att detbefintliga brandskydd som inte omfattas av bedömningsmetoden inte kommer att bedömas,däremot kommer detta brandskydd översiktligt beröras i samband medbyggnadsbeskrivningarna.Av Rademacherområdets totalt 16 byggnader uppnår endast en byggnad brandskyddsnivånacceptabelt brandskydd. Detta medför att områdets totala brandskydd är bristfälligt sett urdagens brandskyddsperspektiv. På Rademacherområdet har uppmärksammats ett flertalzoner som utgör en högre risk för uppkomst av brand. Dessa högre utsatta riskzoner ärspridda över hela Rademacherområdet vilket innebär att en uppkommen brand i områdetsena del kan komma att spridas vidare till andra delar av området. I och med detta kan storadelar av området snabbt bli involverat. I dessa sammanhang är det viktigt att försöka undvikaatt brand över huvud taget kan uppstå. Sådana åtgärder är oftast av enklare karaktär och imånga fall de mest ekonomiskt fördelaktiga. Att ta bort brännbart material i anslutning tillbyggnaden, ta bort löst brännbart material på vindsutrymmen och i utrymningsvägar ärnågra brandförebyggande åtgärder som kan tillämpas på Rademacherområdet. Sådanabrandförebyggande åtgärder utgör delvis ett skydd mot brandspridning. I de fall därbyggnadernas avstånd till angränsande byggnader är mycket kort utgör potentiellabrandbärare, såsom papperskorgar och träplank, ett större hot till vidare brandspridning dåbranden har ett kortare avstånd till brandbäraren jämfört med den närliggande byggnaden.Det redan korta skyddsavståndet mellan två byggnader blir ännu mindre när en potentiellbrandbärare är placerad mellan byggnaderna. Detta innebär att branden kan spridassnabbare till närliggande byggnader och omfatta ett större område.För att nå en acceptabel brandskyddsnivå enligt BSV-k för Rademacherområdet i Eskilstunaräcker det i många fall att tillämpa brandförebyggande åtgärder, såsom att ta bort brännbartmaterial i vindsutrymmen och flytta undan papperskorgar från fasaderna. / It is very important to protect buildings against fire. Especially older wooden buildings andareas with a historically important heritage, i.e. areas that cannot be restored to their originalcondition upon loss. In Eskilstuna one such area is located - Rademachersmedjorna. Onbehalf of Eskilstuna Kommunfastigheter AB a documentation of Rademachersmedjorna’sconstructional fire protection has been conducted in this report in order to have the area'sfire protection level documented. The purpose of this study has been, via systematic fieldstudies, to provide an overview of Rademachersmedjorna and document the area’s currentfire protection level. Based on this information, a visualization of the area's constructionalfire protection and risk zones has been developed to give a simple overview for users,managers and owners. The inventory can be used by Eskilstuna Kommunfastigheter AB for aquick and easy visualization of Rademachersmedjorna’s fire protection level and risk zones.Furthermore, this information could be used as a basis for planning future safety preventionefforts. The documentation over the area is based on the assessment method Bedömning avbrandskydd i kulturbebyggelse (hereafter referred to as BSV-k) and the parts this methodincludes. There are a total of 16 buildings at the Rademacher area and only one buildingachieved an acceptable fire protection level according to BSV-k. There are several zones inthe area that pose a higher risk for the occurrence of fire and fire spread. These highervulnerable fire hazard zones are spread out over Rademachersmedjorna which means thatthe whole area quickly can get involved in case of fire. In this context it is important to avoidfire what so ever may arise. Removing combustible material in escape routes, in attics andcombustible materials nearby the buildings are some fire prevention measures which can beapplied. It is also important to note objects such as bins and wooden planks that existbetween the buildings being potential fire carriers. In cases where the buildings distance to anearby located building is very short, the potential fire carriers pose little threat as the firecan spread directly from building to building. To achieve an acceptable level of fire protectionfor Rademachersmedjorna - according to this study's assessment method - is sufficient inmany cases to apply fire prevention.

Church Women United incorporated in December 1941 as an interdenominational and interracial movement of liberal Protestant women committed to social reform. The one hundred organizers represented ten million Protestant women across the United States. They organized with the express purposes of helping to bring peace on Earth and to develop total equality within all humanity. Church Women United was the bridge between the First and Second Wave of Feminism and the bridge between the Social Gospel and Social Justice Movements. Additionally they connected laterally with numerous social and religious groups across American society. As such, they exemplify the continuity and matrix of reform in American history. Because they worked to promote international peace, develop positive race relations, and advance women’s rights, their campaigns give us a model for how to rectify the social problems of today. These women used communal prayer, politics, education, and hands-on labor to promote their ideas. They originated in collective prayer and continued this tool, but they added letter writing campaigns, public education forums, and lobbying politicians at all levels including the president to advance their goals. They held massive campaigns to collect needed items for war-torn countries and natural disaster areas as well as acting as counselors to the needy. They raised public awareness of issues facing migrant laborers, inner-city residents, Native Americans, Japanese internment detainees, and then worked hard to ameliorate the worst of these problems. They promoted literacy around the world, as well as new agricultural techniques to address human conditions that were known to lead to political and social unrest. This dissertation covers the mid-twentieth century while being predominately focused on the years 1941-1968. This study is built upon multiple archives across the United States and oral histories of movement leaders. It is one of the first interdenominational studies focused on the work of women in social reform work. This dissertation enlarges our knowledge of feminism and social reform work.

This thesis examines the political pop art of contemporary Chinese artist Wang Guangyi in light contemporaneous shifts within the political, economic, and artistic space of China from 1978 until the present. Through an analysis of the work of art as an historically determined antagonistic aesthetic praxis, this thesis attempts to reveal the sedimented traces of the alternative modernity which the Chinese government is actively attempting to construct. With its evocative juxtaposition of contrasting ideological forms, the artwork of Wang Guangyi seeks to deconstruct the normative and teleological narratives encountered within the dialectic interplay between state sponsored transnational capitalism and Marxist-Leninist communism. An understanding of the discursive structure upon which these dual modernising narratives has been based, and of the fragmented artistic space they have engendered, should serve to enliven the debate concerning the role of cultural production in questioning and revealing narratives of the nation, of the Self, and of modernity.

Foreign Affairs: Policy, Culture, and the Making of Love and War in Vietnam investigates the interplay between war and society leading to and during the Vietnam War. This project intertwines histories of foreign relations, popular culture, and gender and sexuality as lenses for understanding international power relations during the global Cold War more broadly. By examining sexual encounters between American service members and Vietnamese civilian women, this dissertation argues that relationships ranging from prostitution to dating, marriage, and rape played a significant role in the diplomacy, logistics, and international reception of the war. American disregard for South Vietnamese morality laws in favor of bolstering GI morale in the early war years contributed to the instability of the alliance and led to a rise in anti-American activities, health concerns, and military security threats. The length of the war in addition to the difficulty for service members to definitively identify enemy forces placed stress on soldiers. Publicized cases of rape and disagreements over responsibility for orphans or children born outside marriage to U.S. servicemen in the later war years further deteriorated relations. Negotiating these relationships resulted in implicit assignments of power between the United States and their allies in South Vietnam. In addition to the bi-lateral relations between the U.S. and South Vietnam, North Vietnamese and National Liberation Front propaganda citing the GI-civilian relationships sparked security concerns and further threatened the alliance. This dissertation further contends that encounters provided propaganda material for opposition forces, strained the overall war effort at home, and shaped how Americans remember the war.

Sexual delinquency marked midcentury cinematic representations of adolescent girls in 1940s, 50, and early 60s. Drawing from the history of adolescence and the context of midcentury female juvenile delinquency, I argue that studios and teen girl stars struggled for decades with publicity, censorship, and social expectations regarding the sexual license of teenage girls. Until the late 1950s, exploitation films and B movies exploited teen sex and pregnancy while mainstream Hollywood ignored those issues, struggling to promote teen girl stars by tightly controlling their private lives but depriving fan magazines of the gossip and scandals that normally fueled the machinery of stardom. The emergence and image of the postwar, sexually autonomous teen girl finally began to see expression in mainstream melodramas of the late 50s, and teen girl stars such as Sandra Dee and Natalie Wood created new, “post-delinquent” star images wherein “good girls” could still be sexually experienced. This new image was a significant departure from the widespread belief that the sexually active teen girl was a fundamentally delinquent threat to the nuclear family, and offered a liberal counterpoint to more conservative teen girl prototypes like Hayley Mills, which continued to have cultural currency.

This dissertation examines the constructed racial identities of African American settlers in colonial Liberia as they traversed the Atlantic between the United States and West Africa during the first half of the nineteenth century. In one of the great testaments that race is a social construction, the West African neighbors and inhabitants of Liberia, who conceived of themselves as “black,” recognized the significant cultural differences between themselves and these newly-arrived Americans and racially categorized the newcomers as “white.” This project examines the ramifications for these African American settlers of becoming simultaneously white and black through their Atlantic mobility. This is not to suggest that those African Americans who relocated to Liberia somehow desired to be white or hoped to “pass” as white after their arrival in Africa. Instead, the Americo-Liberians utilized their African whiteness to lay claim to an exotic, foreign identity that also escaped associations of primitivism. This project makes several significant contributions to scholarship on the colonization movement, whiteness, and Atlantic world. Importantly for scholarship on Liberia, it reestablishes the colony as but one evolving point within the Atlantic world instead of its usual interpretative place as the end of a transatlantic journey. Whether as disgruntled former settlers, or paid spokesmen for the American Colonization Society (ACS), or visitors returning to childhood abodes, or emancipators looking to free families from the chains of slavery, or students seeking medical degrees, Liberian settlers returned to the United States and they were remarkably uninterested in returning to their formerly downtrodden place in American society. This project examines the “tools” provided to Americo-Liberians by their African residence to negotiate a new relationship with the white inhabitants of the United States. These were not just metaphorical arguments shouted across the Atlantic Ocean and focusing on the experiences of Americo-Liberians in the United States highlights that these “negotiations” had practical applications for the lives of settlers in both the United States and Africa. The African whiteness of the settlers would function as a bargaining chip when they approached that rhetorical bargaining table.

As a word, glamour is hard to define, but is instantly recognizable. Its association with Hollywood movie stars fully emerged in the 1930s in the close-up celebrity portraits by photographers like George Hurrell. The aesthetic properties in these images that help create glamour are characterized by the Modernist style, known for sharp focus, high contrast, seductive poses, and the close-up (tight framing). My essay will explore the origins of the visual aesthetics of glamour, arguing that their roots can be found in the still life photographs of the 1910s, produced by fine art photographers such as Edward Steichen. This essay will primarily focus on the photography of Edward Steichen because he used these same techniques found in his still life portraits on Hollywood celebrities when he began working for Condé Nast’s Vanity Fair and Vogue in 1923. Steichen changed the conversation on how to photograph celebrities and his practices eventually led to the creation of glamour portrait photography. This thesis documents the ways in which Steichen established the precedent for glamour photography when he applied the close-up and Modernist style on Hollywood stars. The result of Steichen’s application was photography that provided visually identifiable and mechanically reproducible glamour.