On May 21, 1998 Kip Kinkel drove to Thurston High
School in Springfield, Oregon. Kinkel killed two
students and wounded another twenty-two students. He
killed his parents the day before. The shootings at
Thurston High School came on the heels of a number of
prominent school shootings and Kip Kinkel provoked
tremendous attention from the media.
In an attempt to understand how the media told the
story of Kip Kinkel and the shootings at Thurston High
School, Ernest G. Bormann's fantasy theme analysis is
used as a critical model. To generate insight into the
rhetorical visions present in the media coverage
articles from three newspapers, The Register-Guard, The
Oregonian and The New York Times, are studied. Fantasy
types and themes including characters, settings and
plotlines are identified and explored.
A literature study provides information about the
media and how it functions in telling stories,
particularly those focused on crime.
The critical evaluation of the fantasy themes and
types at work the three newspapers provide a number of
conclusions. Two rhetorical visions are revealed and
discussed. Specific strengths and weaknesses of fantasy
theme analysis are also discussed. Finally, a number of
future research possibilities are suggested. / Graduation date: 2002
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/28766 |
| Date | 13 July 2001 |
| Creators | Wood, Josie MaryAnne Soules |
| Contributors | Iltis, Robert |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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