In rapidly growing North American cities, large-scale urban developments struggle to create a distinctive sense of community. Responding to increasing trends of isolation, decentralization, cultural and artistic expressions, capitalizing on local knowledge and people, have emerged as driving forces in the creation of authentic community development. Working within the existing model of large-scale development, interrogating process and program in relation to community building, this thesis asserts that architecture and urban design must calibrate themselves in response to the emerging trends by taking a multidisciplinary and comprehensive approach to design. This thesis asks the following questions: What is architecture’s contribution to a creative community? How can our existing instant communities continue to evolve in response to changing needs? Where can we find public space in our contemporary communities? Can public art be used as a tool for community building? The case study site, surrounding the Jane-Finch intersection, was rapidly developed from 1960 to 1970. The imposing Palisades apartment complex, standing on the north-east corner of the intersection, has become an icon in the neighbourhood. Three distinctly modern buildings rise out of a grassy lawn to be seen throughout the larger neighbourhood. The development represents both challenges and opportunities; 4,400 people know it as home while others associate it with media reports of poverty, crime and an aging legacy of modern architecture (San Romanoway Revitalization Association 2009). Issues of identity, public space, scale and implementation are examined through case studies of highly designed architectural precedents and informal grassroots organizations to inform the design proposal. Through the re-conception of the ambiguous ground plane at the base of the Palisades apartment complex as an educational and cultural campus for the emerging arts community, this thesis demonstrates the potential role of architecture in supporting creative community building and an expanded understanding of the contradictory role of an architect as mediator, dreamer and realist.

The aim of this essay is to examine Janes personal progress through the novel Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. It addresses the issue of personal development in relation to social position in England during the nineteenth – century. The essay follows Janes personal journey and quest for independence, equality, self worth and love from a Marxist perspective. In the essay close reading is also applied as a complementary theory.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2008. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on September 22, 2008) Includes bibliographical references.

Zugl.: Jena, Univ., Diss., 2009

Thesis (M.A.)--East Carolina University, 2009. / Presented to the faculty of the Department of English. Advisor: Thomas Douglass. Title from PDF t.p. (viewed May 4, 2010). Includes bibliographical references.

Through a study of Twilight literary texts, fangirls' online discourse, and cinematic adaptations, I theorize the rhetorical dimensions of "neo-Victorian melodrama," a pervasive mode of discourse in girl culture. These rhetorical functions include the validation of girls' emotional lives, especially affective responses to coming-of-age experiences. Through the confessional revelation of interiority, neo-Victorian melodrama promotes empathy and intimacy among girls and functions to critique restrictive constructions of contemporary girlhood, which has inherited Victorian discourses related to female youth. Theorizing these rhetorical dimensions helps advance an appreciation for girls' rhetorical activities and their cultural preferences. These preferences have often been derided by ageist and sexist critiques of Twilight, a phenomenon initiated by Stephenie Meyer's young adult vampire romance. In order to determine the rhetorical dimensions of neo-Victorian melodrama in girl culture, I use generic rhetorical criticism. Specifically, Meyer's Twilight Saga appeals to contemporary girls through melodramatic moments shared with Charlotte Brontë's nineteenth-century Jane Eyre. Fangirls' online discourse certifies this appeal while also demonstrating how melodrama qualifies girls' own speech practices. Thus, generic criticism is complemented by ethnographic approaches to fandom. In addition, a focus on narrating voiceover, a sound convention with a legacy in girls' media, helps make sense of the Twilight cinematic adaptations' translation of neo-Victorian melodrama from page to screen. The rhetorical dimensions of neo-Victorian melodrama in girl culture are consistent with previous feminist theoretical insights related to the revelation of affect, intimacy, and personal experience for the purpose of community building. While feminist rhetoricians have addressed women's rhetorical practices, they have not theorized girls to the same extent, nor have they used generic criticism to account for melodrama's redemptive or progressive potential. Likewise, while scholars of literature, film, and media studies have advanced an appreciation for women's preferences for melodrama, these feminist scholars generally have not treated girls' preferences for the melodramatic mode. And while feminist critics in girls' studies have theorized girls' productive cultural contributions, as well as their complex reading and viewing strategies, such scholarship has not accounted for girls' preferences for melodrama. My study at once builds on and remedies the gaps in this theoretical foundation. / text

Jane Addams influenced the lives of many immigrant Chicagoans through offering a variety of community oriented services including art education programs at the Hull-House. This study examines the origins and philosophy of both the Butler Art Gallery and Labor Museum, and discusses each program’s role for residents, visitors, and guests of Hull-House. In addition to providing a historical basis for Jane Addams as an art educator, this study discusses the techniques for community organization that were utilized by Hull-House residents, including Jane Addams and Ellen Gates Starr. / text

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