I initially became acquainted with the subject matter for my capstone thesis in the English Department during my Senior Seminar with Dr. Demarco. In this seminar, I encountered the concepts of liminality, otherness, and other themes surrounding the blurred lines of animality and humanity. One of the works we read was Le Roman de Melusine….
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Characters of War: The Iliad and The Song of Roland by Matthew Pheneger
We’d expect literary works from differing cultures to mirror that in their writing, however, The Iliad and The Song of Roland are more similar than expected. In their most basic explanations, both texts retell deeds—both good and wicked—that were carried out by men who fought in wars. It is through the innovation of the poets…
Luther’s Act by Christopher Shanley
This Halloween marks the 499th anniversary of Martin Luther’s posting of the 95 Theses on the church door in Wittenberg castle. Luther’s theses were against the act of indulgences which were certificates one could buy from the church to skip part of the penitential process. An extremely pious man, Luther was deeply troubled by his…
DĂşn Aonghasa: An Ancient Irish Hill Fort by Colin McGarry
While romping around Ireland’s historical landmarks for the semester pretending to be a serious student, I was lucky enough to see the large, ancient hillfort of DĂşn Aonghasa, a massive three-tiered defensive fortress on the Aran Islands. The fort itself is made from three dry stone walls, roughly D-shaped, that go to the steep cliffs…
The Renaissance Festival: A Home for All by Ashley Vassar
On September 5th 2016, I attended my 13th Renaissance Festival and 9th Ohio Renaissance Festival. The Ohio Renaissance Festival is located in Waynesville, Ohio and this year, it ran from September 3rd to October 23rd. Since my friends and I dress up, we usually wait until October when the weather has cooled to attend. This…
On the Work of Petronius by Merritt Ver Steeg
Petronius Arbiter was a Roman who lived during the reign of Nero, and—according to most historians—the author of The Satyricon. We don’t know much about Petronius’life, but according to Tacitus,“His days he passed in sleep, and his nights in the business and pleasures of life. . . Indolence had raised him to fame, as energy…
Who Runs the World? Shakespeare’s Girls by Hannah Simpson
“It’s always fun to talk about Shakespeare,” quipped Caroline Bicks at the start of her lecture, “Incited Minds, Rethinking Shakespeare’s Girls.” I couldn’t agree more. Much like the title of her lecture indicates, Bicks’ talk centered on stereotypes that surround adolescent girls and how the strong-Willed (pun intended) females of Shakespeare’s plays defy them. After…
Gargoyles, Stained Glass, and Travel Learning by Sarah Thomas
Being a part of Dr. Arnold’s Castles and Cathedrals Travel-Learning Course has been one of my favorite experiences as an OWU student. It allowed me to truly experience the material that I have spent the past three years learning. To copy from another program, I got to put “theory into practice.” One of the things I…
Adventures in the First Five Weeks of Ireland! by Amadea Weber
Hey all, this is Amadea writing under threat from Erika! It’s been an incredibly busy 5 weeks since I got to Ireland with my rubber pirate-duck companion, Captain Rohan Corteo. This duck was given to me at the beginning of the summer by my boss and I decided to bring him along with me and…
Returning Home by Erika Hankins
Hello everyone, It’s been nearly a month since I returned to the States after spending four months in Greece. All flights went smoothly and luckily no luggage was lost. Surprisingly, I didn’t get jet lag either. 🙂 I’ve heard that many students who study abroad have a few problems adjusting to American life/culture after being…