Conceive, design, produce, and exhibit a complete video art project that brings together skills and concepts I have learned in my critical studies and studio practice courses.

[pt] Na discussão de gêneros na obra de João Guimarães Rosa, onde entra o épico? O objetivo do trabalho é desvendar o que pode ser chamado de épico, já que é comum a crítica assim se referir a este romance de Rosa. É também analisar a presença, ou não, de outros gêneros literários consagrados na obra. Diferenças básicas e semelhanças entre este romance e a Ilíada e a Odisséia. Que tipo de herói é Riobaldo? O trabalho procura do mesmo modo, cercar este herói complexo, capaz até de atos bastante questionáveis, no cenário das tipificações tradicionais dos heróis. / [en] In the discussion of gender in the work of João Guimarães Rosa, where does the gender epic fit? The purpose of this paper is to disclose what could be denote epic, as this Guimarães´ novel is usually refered in the literary review; and also, to analyze the presence, or not, of other literary acclaimed genders. Basic differences and resemblances between this novel and The Iliad and The Odyssey are highlighted. What kind of hero is Riobaldo? This paper describes this complex hero capable of questionable acts, in the setting of traditional typifications of heroes.

[pt] O lead é um elemento fundamental da notícia de jornal. Este estudo adota uma abordagem contrastiva e interdisciplinar, analisando, por meio de definições jornalísticas e descrições lingüísticas, um corpus de 200 leads em inglês e português, retirados de dois jornais americanos e dois brasileiros, em dois períodos: 12 a 14 de setembro de 2001 e 29 e 30 de novembro de 2001. Através da análise de gêneros discursivos, o lead é definido como um subgênero do gênero notícia (Biber, 1988, Swales, 1990). Uma analogia é feita, também, entre o lead e o conceito de Tema da gramática funcional, conforme definido por Halliday (1985). Finalmente, este trabalho apresenta uma proposta de classificação dos leads de acordo com sua estrutura e função, dividindo-os em quatro categorias: objetivo, frase de efeito, contextualizado e intergênero. Testes estatísticos foram aplicados ao corpus para investigar a variação quanto a língua, editoria, jornal e período. Resultados indicam predominância dos leads objetivos, especialmente em português. Os leads em inglês mostraram variação em relação ao período, sendo mais freqüentes os leads intergênero durante o período após 11 de setembro de 2001. A comparação entre leads brasileiros e americanos comprova que os leads variam de acordo com a editoria para a qual são produzidos, havendo predominância de leads objetivos na editoria de Economia, por exemplo, e maior variação nas editorias de Esportes e Cultura. Também foram constatadas variações quanto à extensão, em períodos, dos leads em português e em inglês. / [en] Leads are fundamental elements of the news story. This study follows an interdisciplinary approach, analyzing the lead through journalistic definitions and linguistic descriptions. The corpus was composed of 200 leads in English and Portuguese, collected from two American newspapers and two Brazilian newspapers, in two different periods: 12 to 14 September, 2001, and 29 and 30 November, 2001. Using genre analysis theory, leads are defined, in this dissertation, as a subgenre of the news story genre (Biber, 1988, Swales, 1990). Also it is possible to view the lead in analogy to Halliday`s (1985) concept of Theme. Finally, this research paper presents a tentative classification of the leads according to their structure and function, dividing them in four categories: objective, effect phrase, contextualized and intergenre. Statistic tests were applied to the corpus to investigate the variation regarding language, section, newspaper and period. Results point to majority of objective leads, especially in Portuguese. American leads present a variation related to the period of production, intergenre leads being the most frequent during the post-September 11 period. Comparative analysis of American and Brazilian leads shows that leads vary according to the section to which they are written. There is predominance of objective leads in the Business section, while Sports and Culture present more variety. There were also differences between Portuguese and English leads regarding the length of the leads.

La direction de conscience est une pratique catholique qui connaît un nouveau succès au XIXe siècle. Dans ce cadre, femmes et hommes détaillent à leur directeur leur vie personnelle et les mouvements de leur âme, à des fins de moralisation et de progression spirituelle. Pour l’Église catholique, c’est l’un des vecteurs de transmissions d’un système de valeurs qui place les femmes au cœur de la régénération morale de la France, en les transformant en agents de conversion de leurs familles. Le renouveau de la direction de conscience constitue ainsi une réponse pastorale au projet de reconquête de la société française par l’Église catholique, dans un contexte de contestation de ses prérogatives. Les projets des personnes dirigées ne peuvent cepen-dant se résumer à ceux de leurs directeurs : la direction de conscience donne accès à des ressources concrètes et symboliques qui permettent d’aménager les normes de genre. Le directeur est sollicité pour jouer le rôle d’intermédiaire et d’arbitre de la vie conjugale des couples des élites pour qui la discrétion des échanges est primordiale. Ainsi, son rôle dépasse largement la régulation des pratiques de dévotion, fonction qui lui est donnée par les manuels de piété. Si les directeurs s’acquittent de ce travail d’encadrement spirituel jusqu’aux années 1880, les attentes des personnes dirigées s’infléchissent ensuite vers une demande d’accompagnement dont la dimension spirituelle s’affaiblit, ce qui fait naître des conflits. Cette transformation de la pratique de la direction de conscience doit être reliée à l’évolution générale des « techniques de soi » (Foucault) et notamment au développement de la médecine psychologique. / Spiritual direction is a Catholic practice which regained currency in the second half of the nineteenth century: women and men would go through their lives and the movements of their souls with their director, with moral improvement and spiritual progression in mind. The Catholic Church established this practice as one of the vehicles for the transmission of a system of values which puts women at the heart of moral regeneration in France, by turning them into agents of conversion of their families. The resurgence of spiritual direction thus constitutes a pastoral response to the Catholic Church’s project to reclaim the French society, in times when its prerogatives met frequent protest. Yet, the directees’ projects cannot be limited to their directors’: spiritual direction grants access to practical and symbolic resources aiming at adjusting gender norms. The director is also solicited by couples from the French elite to be the go-between and referee of their conjugal life, with the greatest discretion as for their exchanges. The director’s role thus largely exceeds mere control of devotion practices, even though devotional manuals state this as a director’s main function. Even though directors go on fulfiling such a spiritual supervision until the 1880s, the directees’ expectations then bend toward a less spiritually-charged support, leading to conflicts. Such a transformation of the practice of spiritual direction must be linked to the general evolution of “technologies of the Self” (Foucault) and, especially, to the development of psychological medicine.

This project examines how a subset of contemporary American literary cross-genre authors use popular forms within their fiction to comment on, interact with, and critique the possibilities of formula fiction and modern fan communities. I argue that the historic feminization of the popular (set against the stoicism of realism), combined with the startlingly masculine histories of popular genres like science fiction and fantasy, has resulted in distinct differences in the style and aims of male and female authors utilizing hybrid forms. The writers comprising the focus of this study, Junot Díaz, Michael Chabon, Margaret Atwood, and Kelly Link, create a range of competing modes of genre mixing that clarify the lingering effects of popular genre’s marginalization by the literary elite and the academy. The chapters of this project move through these modes by examining, respectively, toxic nerd fantasies and fandoms, the impact of fan fiction and its universalizing impulse, the rise of “speculative fiction,” and the role of domestic fabulism in reimagining the limited frameworks of realism and celebrating the possibilities of mass tropes and forms. Each of these chapters interrogates the author’s impact on the developing field of the new American literary genre fiction, linking their public personas as fans and scholars of genre to the attitudes and ideologies advanced by their fiction. These projects, anti-imperialist or feminist in nature, make self-conscious arguments about the value of the popular genres with which they interact. By focusing on the links between the author’s persona, public reception, and cultural fandoms, and the impact of these elements on contemporary cross-genre fiction, I attempt to revitalize genre theory in a manner that challenges its historically hierarchal configurations, particularly for women authors and consumers of the popular.

This is a creative thesis consisting of two short stories in the post-apocalyptic genre. A genre that highlights suffering, societal trauma, and the effects of trauma and loss on the human psyche. This genre asks the reader to be sympathetic to these extreme plights. Post-apocalyptic narratives also feature classic heroes who come out on top, despite the genre’s harrowing settings. The two stories featured in this creative thesis are an answer to my inquiry into the genre and seeks not only to show what makes post-apocalyptic literature entertaining but also worthy of literary merit. The two short stories that constitute this body of work are “A Muddled Canvas,” and “They Have No Ears to Hear My Pleas.” The first story, “A Muddled Canvas,” asks what responsibility God, the protagonist, has to those who remain after the apocalypse he created. The story follows God as he tries to come to terms with the effects his actions have on his creations. The other story, “They Have No Ears to Hear My Pleas,” follows the life of a therapist turned apathetic to his clients’ issues because of the apocalypse. After so much time spent helping others, he develops a bad case of compassion fatigue.

This study establishes a comprehensive methodology for analyzing children's website content, based on both linguistic and rhetorical data, by employing defensible criteria to evaluate both qualitative and quantitative data. By employing genre theory as a prism for examining form, substance, and rhetorical action within children's websites, this study applies that methodology to a purposeful sample of five children's websites. Results of the analysis document the complex multimodal and multilinear nature of the websites studied and identify a possible new genre, the pop culture carousel website.

Ce travail de thèse traite de la construction des masculinités par des athlètes investis dans une carrière sportive de haut niveau. Notre enquête s’appuie sur des observations ethnographiques durant les entraînements et sur des entretiens (n=48) réalisés avec des athlètes (n=38) et entraineurs (n=10) dans un Pôle Espoir de handball (n=8), de rugby (n=13) et dans un Pôle France de boxe française (n=13), de patinage artistique dans la catégorie individuelle (n=11), ainsi que dans trois clubs au Québec (n=3). Un premier apport de cette thèse réside dans la mise en relation entre deux cadres théoriques utilisés respectivement en sociologie du sport de langue anglaise et française. Nous avons analysé nos données en utilisant les concepts — d’ordre de genre, de régime de genre et de masculinité hégémonique — développés par Raewyn Connell et ceux de — champ, d’habitus et de capital — développés par Pierre Bourdieu. Nous avons proposé de considérer que le champ sportif est régi par une forme de masculinité hégémonique. Cette dernière se définirait comme une configuration idéale d’appartenances, de dispositions et de capitaux, propice à assurer la re-Productivité des agents dans le jeu social. Nous avons vu que cette forme était malléable. Il existe une pluralité de masculinités hégémoniques en relation avec le régime de genre spécifique à chaque discipline et plus précisément avec l’ordre de genre local ancré géographiquement et institutionnellement. Un deuxième apport de cette thèse réside dans l’étude du processus d’hybridation des masculinités en relation avec la multiplication des exigences institutionnelles. En rupture avec une conception essentialiste de la masculinité hégémonique, nous relevons que cette dernière se caractérise par la pluralité de ces facettes et par sa plasticité. Les athlètes les plus conformes à la forme hégémonique dans leur discipline développent une capacité à entrer dans des registres dispositionnels variés, voire contrastés. Ils sont toujours plus aptes au combat, mais plus fins dans les usages de la violence et de leur corps, qu’ils apprennent à gérer comme un capital (esthétique, hygiénique). Par ailleurs, ils mettent à distance l’expression de sexisme et d’homophobie, ce qui ne permet pas pour autant de remettre en question l’inégale valeur des sexes, des genres et des sexualités dans le champ sportif. / This thesis examines the construction of masculinities by athletes invested in a high-Level sporting career. Our investigation is based on ethnographic observations during sports training and interviews (n = 48) conducted with athletes (n = 38) and coaches (n = 10) in a Pole Espoir of handball (n = 8) of rugby (n = 13) and in a Pole France of french boxing (n = 13), in two Poles France of ice skating in the individual category (n = 11), and in three clubs at Quebec (n = 3). The first contribution of this thesis lies in the linkage between the two theoretical frameworks used in Sport Sociology respectively in English and French language. We analyzed our data using the concepts - gender order, gender regime and hegemonic masculinity - developed by Raewyn Connell and those - field, habitus and capital - developed by Pierre Bourdieu. We proposed to consider that the sports field is governed by a form of hegemonic masculinity. This form would be defined as an ideal configuration of affiliations, dispositions and capital favourable to promote the re-Productivity of agents in the social game. We have seen that this form was malleable. There is a plurality of hegemonic masculinities in relation to specific gender regime of each discipline and more precisely with the local gender order which is geographically and institutionally anchored. The second contribution of this thesis lies in the study of the process of masculinities hybridization in relation to the increase of institutional requirements. Contrary to an essentialist conception of hegemonic masculinity, we note that this latter is characterized by the plurality of its facets and its plasticity. The athletes, who are the most conform to the hegemonic form in their discipline, develop a capacity to enter into a variety or mixed dispositional uses. They are always more "fit for fighting", but more subtle in the uses of violence and their bodies, that they learn to manage as a capital (aesthetic, hygienic). In addition, they put away the expression of sexism and homophobia, which still does not really allow reconsidering the unequal value of sexes, genders and sexualities in sports field.

[pt] Este trabalho tem como foco central a investigação de metáforas que conceituam o casamento. Para tanto, são revistos aspectos do casamento contemporâneo, sobretudo as questões de gênero abordadas nas pesquisas sobre casais, e apresentadas as principais formulações teóricas e estudos sobre a metáfora conceitual à luz da Linguística Cognitiva. Foi realizada uma pesquisa de campo na qual utilizou-se entrevista semi-estruturada, visando a indagar sobre temas importantes acerca da relação conjugal dos participantes. A amostra de conveniência foi composta por três homens e três mulheres, com idades entre trinta e cinco e cinquenta anos, pertencentes às camadas médias urbanas, heterossexuais, coabitantes e que se autodenominaram casados há, no mínimo, dez anos. Para a análise dos resultados, utilizou-se o método de análise de conteúdo proposto por Bardin (1997) e o método de análise do discurso usado por Quinn (1987). Os resultados encontrados apontam para diferenças de gênero no que diz respeito à concepção e à experiência do casamento. Também pôde-se perceber que os sujeitos vivem as metáforas presentes em seu discurso, ressaltando a relevância da perspectiva cognitivista desse construto. / [en] This paper has the main objective of investigating metaphors which conceptualize marriage. For this, we reviewed aspects of contemporary marriage, especially gender questions discussed in researches about couples. We also presented the main theoretical findings and studies about this conceptual metaphor, according to Cognitive Linguistics. There was a field study, with a semi-structured interview, aimed at questioning about important issues related to the marital relationship of the participants. The convenience sample was composed by three men and three women, among 35-50 years old, who belonged to the urban middle class. They were heterosexual, cohabitants, and they describe themselves as being married for at least ten years. For the analysis of the results, we used the content analysis method proposed by Bardin (1997) and the discourse analysis method used by Quinn (1987). Our findings point to gender differences in the conceptualization and marriage experience. We could also notice that the participants live the metaphors present in their discourse, which highlights the relevance of the cognitive perspective of this construct.

The Chronik Disorder project consists of an exegesis and screenplay. The exegesis discusses research into the film genre, three-act structure, mythic structure and archetypes. The research then informed thematic ideas, character creation and a method for plotting the screenplay and developing the characters. Chronik Disorder is an Australian story, set in contemporary Melbourne, about adolescents and rites of passage. The story explores teenagers and the hip-hop subculture, gangs, graffiti and drug experimentation. The story deals with other issues such as vocational challenges; the breakdown of the nuclear family; father-and-son relationships; and Vietnam veterans and how the war affected them emotionally and impacted on their relationships with their sons. Harley, 17, a hooker in an under-eighteen's rugby union team, dreams of playing with the under-nineteen's Australian Wallabies. Harley's alcoholic father, Kev, takes out his pain caused by his experiences in Vietnam on Harley, who escapes by hanging out with graffiti-based gang Chronik Disorder. When his friend Damian dies, Harley blames himself, ruins his rugby career, and escapes by hanging out with his gang, committing crimes and taking drugs.