Abstract As a novel always deemed eccentric and chaotic, Laurence Sterne¡¦s Tristram Shandy has constantly drawn attention of the reading public but has also incurred multitudinous attacks by the critics for its apparent disorderliness. Exteriorly, the novel indeed exhibits chaotic features, whether by its digressions or interludes; however, after a close and meticulous analysis we could actually find harmony and unity within all the confusions and irregularities. Since the author utilizes the eccentricity of the novel to camouflage harmony within, we could assume that a force of some kind is surreptitiously in motion to conduct all the exterior chaos into harmony. Thus my objective in this thesis is to indicate and analyze the ¡§force¡¨ which can trample down all the external irrationalities and enables harmony and order to reveal themselves once again. The thesis will analyze the novel in three main aspects. Formally, the digressions of the novel will be mainly investigated. All the seemingly irrelevant opinionative and explanative digressions will be discussed and examined in close analysis. In dealing with digressions, the ideas of the Russian Formalist Victor Shklovsky will be referred to. Reciprocally, Sterne¡¦s demand for his reader¡¦s participation (interaction) is another distinguishing feature of the work. This part of the thesis will examine the balancing force while it exhibits itself when readers act as active agents bestowing meanings through interaction and Wolfgang Iser¡¦s Reader-Response theory will applied. The closing section of the thesis endeavors to analyze the content of the novel by inspecting the discrepancies and exemplify how Sterne attempts to liberate his reader¡¦s imagination. The thesis will end with the analysis of the author¡¦s philosophical attitude towards life as I realign the novel in strict time-order and trace the causality of the events within. Key words: Laurence Sterne, Tristram Shandy, Russian Formalism, reader response, interaction, digressions, harmony, chaos, discrepancy, causality

Thesis (M.A.)--Catholic Theological Union at Chicago, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 137-142).

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1987.

This study investigates the reading processes used by nine sixteen-year-old, adolescent reluctant readers as they read and interpret poetry. The study also considers how these reading processes are affected by the students' participation in a one-month study of reading and independently discussing poetry in small groups. Each student's responding-aloud interpretation of poetry gathered before the study (pre-test protocol) is compared with his or her responding-aloud interpretation of poetry gathered after the study (post-test protocol). This is done by analyzing each protocol according to a reading scale which identifies five key-reading processes each of which is qualitatively differentiated across five categories. This reading scale, designed by the researcher, is based on the analysis of over one hundred and twenty responding-aloud protocols of adolescent reluctant readers. / Six of the nine readers refine the processes through which they read and interpret poetry. The most likely cause of this improvement is their having been involved in independent small-group discussion of poetry. The analysis of students' pre-test and post-test protocols reveal the (differing) extents to which each of them use the five key-reading processes.

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of Accelerated Reader on the reading motivation and achievement of fourth grade students. The participants were 68 fourth grade students who attended an elementary school in a suburban location north of a large Midwestern city. Quantitative and qualitative methods were employed in the investigation to understand and analyze the effects of the program.Quantitative methods utilized a pre/post-test design using the Motivation to Read Profile (Gambrell, Palmer, Codling, & Mazzzoni, 1996) to assess motivation and the STAR Reading Diagnostic Test (Renaissance Learning, 2002) to measure achievement through instructional reading levels. Participants were divided into three groups based upon the total number of Accelerated Reader points they had accumulated during a continuous 14 week period. Analyses compared the differences in gains in motivation and reading achievement among the groups. The only significant effect noted was that the higher the number of Accelerated Reader points accumulated, the smaller the decrease in motivational scores. A comparison of the number of books read among the groups revealed the group obtaining the highest number of points read significantly more books than the group with lowest.Qualitative measures consisted of the administration of the Conversational Interview portion of the Motivation to Read Profile (Gambrell, et al., 1996) to nine students, three randomly selected from each of the previously established groups. Interviews were conducted to gain information concerning students' motivation for reading through the construction of theories based upon consistencies and differences among and between groups' responses. The categories within which all themes were grouped included motivations for book selections, reasons for reading, and the amount of knowledge retained through reading. Very little mention of Accelerated Reader was made in any portion of the interview sessions. / Department of Elementary Education

Thesis (D.A.)--Illinois State University, 1983. / Title from title page screen, viewed May 6, 2005. Dissertation Committee: Glenn Grever (chair), John Brickell, Richard Dammers, Richard Newby, Stanley Renner. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 129-136) and abstract. Also available in print.

Thesis (M.A.)--Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, 1995. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 94-97).

Thesis (M.A.)--Catholic Theological Union at Chicago, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 137-142).

Thesis (Th. M.)--Regent College, Vancouver, BC, 2002. / Abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 120-125).

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Hong Kong, 1987. / Also available in print.