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Garst, John. John Henry and His People: The Historical Origins and Lore of America’s Great Folk Ballad. McFarland, 2022.
Full text linkThe origins of the John Henry myth have vexed scholars since the nineteenth century. Who was this man who fought a steam-powered drill only to die in his victory? Did he even exist? What was the genesis of the folk ballad that cropped up in his name, ever-changing in its details related to location and specifics? John Garst explores these questions and more in his work: John Henry and His People: The Historical Origin and Lore of America’s Great Folk Ballad. While Garst is a chemist by trade, he is also a “folk song enthusiast, hobbyist, and amateur scholar [with a] sixty-five-year interest in American folksong” (7). His interest in folklore stems from the fluidity of form: “For folklore, time also brings recognition of value, but folklore has a great advantage over fixed art. Folklore is winnowed in another sense. It is changed” (51). As Garst writes, the popular ballad has continued to resonate because it adapts to its cultural context as it is just specific enough to be plausible, but also vague enough to imbue significance across generations. These shifts—in verbiage, but more importantly, in meaning—are the heart of John Henry and His People’s long-form excavation of the Henry myth
Adapting The War of the Worlds for Television
Full text linkIn 2019, two TV adaptations of H. G. Wells’s classic The War of the Worlds (1898) were simultaneously released. The two shows make very different choices in the way they adapt the original novel, each trying in its own way to modernize the source material for contemporary tastes. One is a period drama set in Edwardian England while the other is a contemporary update set in both France and England. Both shows foreground female characters as their leads, although both fail to convincingly empower their protagonists and completely move beyond stereotypes. Similarly, the original anti-imperialist content from the novel is maintained by one but not by the other. Instead, it draws from Wells’s novel to reimagine it as a post-apocalyptic narrative about human cooperation and competition. Both productions exploit contemporary anxieties over societal collapse. They ultimately focus on the novel’s original interest in the limited first-person perspective of its protagonist and narrator, while concentrating on the family as the locus of their narratives and themes
Young, Simon. The Nail in the Skull and Other Victorian Urban Legends. UP of Mississippi, 2022
Full text linkSimon Young is a British historian who has published several books and peer-reviewed articles on topics concerning the supernatural, history, and folklore. In 2022, he added The Nail in the Skull and Other Victorian Urban Legends to his extensive publication repertoire. Young’s impressively exhaustive methodology for curating this collection of Victorian legends is unlike other books of its kind, which have generally focused on fairytales, ghostly and spectral stories, or, such as in the case of Karl Bell’s 2012 book, The Legend of Spring-Heeled Jack: Victorian Urban Folklore and Popular Cultures, many alterations of a singular legend or unifying motif. In this book, Young investigates a very particular type of story: “belief narratives . . . stories in which the readers or listeners are expected to believe or in which they are expected to consider belief” (xxi; emphasis added). In other words, Young limits his survey to the sort of extraordinary tale that allows the audience to ponder the probability of its validity rather than immediately dismiss the impossibility of it. The resulting collection is rather sensational without crossing over into the realms of science fiction, fantasy, or wholly unbelievable tall tales. The most noteworthy effect Young’s book has on our understanding of Victorian folklore is the way he reveals a network of literary culture via the history of transmutable storytelling as he carefully traces the variations of each legend from one version of the story to the next, across publication venues, social classes, British territories, and time periods of the nineteenth century
Letter from the Editor in Chief
Full text linkIt is an honor to return as editor of Scientia et Humanitas for the second consecutive year. This journey has proven to be exceptionally rewarding, and I am delighted to unveil the largest volume in the journal’s history. Serendipitously, Volume Fifteen features exactly fifteen articles, each reflecting the richness and diversity of the contemporary interdisciplinary research conducted at Middle Tennessee State University.
The volume opens with Emiliya Mailyan’s article, “From Waves: The Deliberate Odds and Ends of Mansfield’s Garden Parties,” in which Mailyan analyzes Katherine Mansfield’s intricate narrative techniques. Landon Funk then offers “The Ramifications of Female Sexuality: Cultural Uncertainty, Domestic Confinement, and Threatened Patriarchy in Robert Frost’s ‘Two Witches,’” in which she discusses Robert Frost’s complex place in the patriarchal trajectory of American history. Evan Knutila’s genre-bending piece, “From Anomie to Metanoia: The Spiritual-Political Thought of Henry Thoreau and Thomas Merton,” takes an inward turn, reflecting on Thoreau and Merton’s understanding of solitude as a means to discover the inner dimension of divinity.
We shift our emphasis to contemporary social sciences in Elaina Manuel’s “A Harm Reduction Approach: A Discussion of Supervised Consumption Site to Address Opioid Use Disorder” in which Manuel advocates for the establishment of supervised consumption sites as a vital intervention for opioid use disorder. Harley Mercadal provides a literary reading of Cormac McCarthy in “Where ‘dead people lay like saints’: Gothic Modernism in Cormac McCarthy’s Child of God,” making a case for the author as an expression of Gothic Modernism. In “The Purpose of Comparison Between Grendel, the Dragon, and the Hero in Beowulf” Miles Wine examines the monsters of Beowulf as reflections of moral conventions in archaic England.
Returning us to social science, Elizabeth Counts and Dr. Elizabeth Smith examine the relationship between processed foods and chronic diseases among food bank clientele in “Examining Processed Foods in Food Banks and the Presence of Chronic Diseases in Food Bank Clientele.” Rashieq Cockerham brings us into the natural sciences in “Characteristics of the Structure and Selected Biological Activities of Polysaccharides Isolated from Fedora 17 Hemp (Cannabis sativa),” investigating the use of hemp polysaccharides as potential applications in developing sustainable, bioactive products.
Matthew Hutton’s article, “A Fool’s Errand: Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus and the Parodic Use of Tragic Characterization in Early Elizabethan Drama,” challenges the conventional reading of Marlowe’s play, interpreting Doctor Faustus as a parody of the title character. Feminist theory informs Mavis Wolff’s piece, “Off with Her Head! An Analysis of Female Awakening Through Social Deviance in Lynn Nottage’s Las Meninas,” considering Queen Thérèse as an expression of female empowerment.
The last movement of the volume showcases its interdisciplinary component. In “How the Courts Affect Social Change Through Rent Control,” Alexander Garcia examines cultural mores through a social science lens, arguing that the courts are limited by the judicial system’s constraints. Brandon Black’s literary analysis “Outcast of All Outcasts: The Doppelganger in Poe’s ‘William Wilson’” discusses Poe’s use of the doppelganger archetype. Nethanial Belmont reconsiders the American historical narrative in “Survival of the Tribe: How the Cherokee Nation Fought Genocide,” reframing the history the Cherokee through firsthand interviews and accounts. Angela Benninghoff discusses Milton’s characterization of the Biblical Eve in “The Mother of All Living: Eve’s Redemptive Role in John Milton’s Paradise Lost. Finally, Patrick Wells highlights the frequently overlooked contributions of the United States Colored Troops during the Civil War in “Those Who Paved the Way: A Detailed Look into the Contributions of the USCT in Tennessee.”
I wish to express my sincere gratitude to our diligent reviewers, Briley Welch, Hannah Antrican, and Eilidh Hancock, whose thorough evaluations and constructive feedback have significantly enhanced the quality of the journal. Additionally, I would like to extend my appreciation to my associate editors, Rebecca Price, Nicholas Krause, Angela Benninghoff, and Brittney Norton, for their unwavering commitment and hard work. Your dedication to fostering innovative scholarship has been commendable and has substantially contributed to the success of this volume. Notably, I wish to acknowledge my managing editor, Matthew Hutton, whose expertise and efforts have ensured that this volume is not only polished but also impactful. I would also like to extend my sincerest thanks to Dr. Philip Phillips, Associate Dean of the MTSU Honors College, not only for the opportunity and help with this volume of Scientia, but also for the continued mentorship he has offered throughout my graduate career. An exceptional amount of thanks is also due to Honors College Dean John R. Vile and Strategic Communication Specialist Ms. Robin E. Lee, both of whom extended significant guidance.
Thank you all for your continued support of Scientia et Humanitas. I hope you enjoy this volume as much as we enjoyed bringing it to fruition.
Best regards,Kylie PetrovichEditor in Chie
How The Courts Affect Social Change Through Rent Control
Full text linkThis article explores the Supreme Court’s attitude toward one solution to the unaffordability of rental housing: rent control. This policy, more formally known as rent stabilization, allows jurisdictions to cap the amount landlords can charge for rent to curb exploitative practices. The policy is controversial, as some economists believe it is inefficient and ineffective at making housing more affordable. In contrast, others view it as a quick, easy, and relatively low-cost remedy to an ongoing crisis. The Supreme Court has upheld rent control laws, though not without exceptions, as this article outlines. These laws are drafted, debated, enacted, and implemented by other branches of government in cities and states. The Court generally steps aside to let the democratic process decide whether a city or state adopts or rejects this policy. This article argues that courts cannot affect social change regarding rent control because they are limited by the legislative process and their own judicial doctrines. Despite these constraints, the Supreme Court’s deference helps maintain these laws in cities where they have been enacted, thereby assisting many in affording their homes
Introduction
Full text linkThis Summer issue provides readers with a variety of information that includes the impact of retention laws on students and their families, the importance of supporting a child’s imagination through play, and exploring the commonly used term “child centered”. Additionally, this issue explores the impact AI technology has on STEAM education and how to support students’ mental health with play, expressive arts, and parenting programs. The International Journal of the Whole Child continues to be committed to promoting holistic learning and the development of the whole child
Re-Engaging University of Houston Libraries Supporters
Full text linkAfter a hiatus, University of Houston Libraries hosted its first on-campus stewardship event in several years. The event, Books and Bubbly, invited guests to visit with librarians, archivists, and students to learn about recent initiatives, resources, and scholarship; and to introduce them to Reimagined Libraries, a bold vision for transforming spaces and services
Smith, Andrew and Mark Bennet, editors. Locating Ann Radcliffe. Routledge, 2021.
Full text linkLocating Ann Radcliffe, edited by Andrew Smith and Mark Bennett, is a collective volume comprising seven articles written by various international scholars. All the articles in the volume were previously published as an issue of Women’s Writing, volume 22, issue 3 (August 2015), also entitled “Locating Ann Radcliffe” and edited by the same publisher. In the introduction to the volume, the editors (Andrew Smith, Professor of Nineteenth Century Literature at the University of Sheffield, UK, and Mark Bennett, author of a Ph. D. thesis on Ann Radcliffe, and scholar of travel writing and Victorian popular fiction) state that the volume “broadens the critical understanding of Ann Radcliffe’s work and includes explorations of the publication history of her work, her engagement with contemporary accounts of aesthetics, her travel writing, and her poetry” (1)
LGBTQ Rights Policy Analysis
Full text link This policy paper addresses the progress and setbacks in the struggle for LGBTQ rights in the United States, advocating for the passage of the Equality Act as an essential legal safeguard. Despite notable advancements, LGBTQ Americans continue to encounter systemic and interpersonal discrimination, particularly in employment, housing, and public spaces. Such discrimination is often entrenched in heterosexist and transphobic ideologies, creating pervasive inequities and mental health disparities. The Equality Act is presented as a critical response to these challenges, proposing comprehensive protections that would prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. By ensuring equal treatment in all facets of life, the Equality Act would support the mental and emotional health of LGBTQ individuals and symbolize a national commitment to equal rights. Its enactment would represent a milestone in the movement toward full civil rights for LGBTQ Americans, reflecting the country’s dedication to the principles of liberty and justice for all
Multiage: Words and Meanings
Full text linkEducation: Words and Meanings is designed to clarify certain words often used in educational texts. Clarifying the meanings of these words gives depth to the reader’s understanding