The forty-four poems of this collection reflect the diversity of ideas which intrigue the poet, the attitudes by which she chooses to live, the relationships which are important to her, and the emotions which influence all of those ideas, attitudes, and relationships.

This thesis is composed of a collection of thirty-four original poems with an introduction by the author. The introduction attempts to justify the collection by discussing common influences and techniques employed in its creation. The introduction also supplies background information on each poem and, on occasion, discusses the relation of a poem to the rest of the collection.

At the beginning of the novel, the main character, J. D. Alfred, is a young, immature college freshman, naive both socially and sexually. In the initial chapter, however, he encounters a "mysterious" dark-haired girl, older than himself and very experienced. Near the middle of the novel J.D. begins a quest, not quite sure what it is he is looking for. As he moves from place to place, he discovers more and more about his family, his friends, the world around him, and the woman with whom he has become entangled, discoveries which he chooses to ignore until too late. He is left with only one choice to make, whether to die a fiery death, or live to deal with problems which he is not yet equipped to handle.

This thesis is composed of three original short stories and a critical analysis of them. "Tricentennial Seaweed Stories: is a comic tale of the future, set in twenty-first century America. "Cousins" is concerned with the conflicting religious views of three young adults. "A Vacation in Utah" examines the psychological and social pressures which bring the protagonist near to committing homicide. The first story is narrated in an omniscient voice, the second in an objective voice, and the last in first person. The critical analysis examines the fictional elements in the stories, including plot, character development, theme, and narrative point of view. This analysis expresses an opinion upon the degree of success achieved in each short story in terms of style and content.

Abstract of Thesis--Catholic University of America, 1959. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 75-81).

AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF RORY LEAHY, for the Master of Fine Arts degree in THEATER, presented on *MARCH 28, 2017, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. TITLE: JOURNEY TOWARDS ADEQUACY: THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS OF TORAK THE INADEQUATE MAJOR PROFESSOR: Dr. Jacob Juntunen This thesis documents the development of my play Torak The Inadequate from its earliest conception to its full production performed by the SIUC Department of Theater in its Christian H. Moe Laboratory space in March of 2017. The play is a synthesis of pulp fantasy, social commentary, and comedy that tells the story of a young hunter-gatherer living in ancient times named Torak, who with his unlikely companions Ragnor and Belit, must journey across the prehistoric world to find a new home. Chapter One explores the play’s beginnings, influences from other stories and genre elements and rough outline. Chapter Two concerns the writing and revision processes themselves. Chapter Three deals with the pre-production of the SIUC rendition of the show. Chapter Four details the production, from auditions to performance. Chapter Five is an artistic autobiography in which I put Torak in the larget context of my work both before my MFA program and after. The production script of Torak as well as production photos will serve as appendices.

Concerto for Piano and Orchestra consists of three movements. The whole work follows a general character of Fast -- Slow -- Fast; but within each movement are sections with contrasting tempi. The performance time approximately eighteen minutes.

Air for Band is an original composition by Lawrence Weiner.

The String Quartet is comprised of three movements: Allegro, Adagio, and Vivace. The Allegro utilizes a monothematic Sonata Allegro form: the Adagio is through-composed, and the Vivace is a Rondo. All three movements feature a lean harmonic texture, much of the harmony resulting from linear movement, i.e. counterpoint.

Triabolous is a three movement composition for trombone, woodwind quintet, and one percussionist. The three movements Agitato, Andante, and Allegro, are of equal length resulting in a total performance time of 15 minutes. The piece is primarily a trombone solo; however, the trombone does not function as a solo throughout the total composition. There are portions of every movement where the trombone is silent or added to the quintet as an auxiliary wind instrument.