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Title: Fearing the youth: economic turmoil, adult anxiety and the Japanese Battle Royale controversy.
Creator: Pagel, Caren., Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: In December 2000, Japanese lawmakers took unprecedented steps to ban Fukasaku Kinji's Battle Royale from theaters prior to its scheduled release. The film was deemed "crude and tasteless" for its portrayal of teen violence in a state run game of kill or be-killed and attempts to ban the film were pursued through the film certification process all the way to the floor of Japanese parliament. This thesis investigates the controversy surrounding the release of Battle Royale and the socioeconomic...
Show moreIn December 2000, Japanese lawmakers took unprecedented steps to ban Fukasaku Kinji's Battle Royale from theaters prior to its scheduled release. The film was deemed "crude and tasteless" for its portrayal of teen violence in a state run game of kill or be-killed and attempts to ban the film were pursued through the film certification process all the way to the floor of Japanese parliament. This thesis investigates the controversy surrounding the release of Battle Royale and the socioeconomic and cultural factors - in particular, the Japanese recession and widening generation gap of the 1990s - that influenced both the film's message and the extraordinary political reaction in Japan. This thesis argues that the objections to the film were not based solely on the violent content as is often reported, but rather were the combination of adult economic and cultural anxiety regarding themselves and the youth, the anti-authority message of the film that encouraged the youth to reject adult systems, and a political campaign that exploited the adult fears by using Battle Royale as a scapegoat for youth problems.
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Date Issued: 2011
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3172429
Subject Headings: Criticism and interpretation, Influence, Motion pictures, Censorship, Violence in motion pictures, Sensationalism in motion pictures, Politics and government, Social life and customs
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Focusing on the local, connecting to the global: the role and success of local media stations in Kargil.
Creator: Khan, Abdul Nasir, Fejes, Fred A., Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: This thesis is a study of the role of local television stations in Kargil (India), which investigates whether the success of local media in Kargil is a result of fulfilling the needs and desires of the local community, using the methods of content analysis, interviews, and surveys. Kargili local television stations have adopted global media technologies for disseminating their programs, but at the same time have changed some of the television convention to feed their needs and expectations of...
Show moreThis thesis is a study of the role of local television stations in Kargil (India), which investigates whether the success of local media in Kargil is a result of fulfilling the needs and desires of the local community, using the methods of content analysis, interviews, and surveys. Kargili local television stations have adopted global media technologies for disseminating their programs, but at the same time have changed some of the television convention to feed their needs and expectations of local viewers. The forces of globalization have not only exposed places like Kargil to new technologies, but it has given them an opportunity to participate in new discourses, to create a local media that is being used to address the specific concerns and problems of the local community.
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Date Issued: 2015
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004449, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004449
Subject Headings: Kargil (India)--Social aspects., Jammur and Kashmir (India)--Social aspects., Mass media--Kargil (India)--Social aspects., Mass media--Kargil (India)--Moral and ethical aspects., Online social networks--Influence.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Dissipating hostility through feminine rhetorical style: Barbara Bush and the petitioners of Wellesley College.
Creator: Doran, Bethany Lynne., Gorbacheva, Raisa Maksimovna, Wellesley College, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: This study uses Karlyn Campbell's concept of feminine rhetorical style as a theoretical framework for analyzing the rhetoric of Barbara Bush's 1990 Wellesley College commencement address. Through a systematic evaluation of Barbara Bush's speech, this study reveals that her rhetoric exemplifies feminine rhetorical style. The analysis also concludes that Barbara Bush's personal tone, specifically her use of narrative and humor, is the most useful and effective characteristic of her feminine...
Show moreThis study uses Karlyn Campbell's concept of feminine rhetorical style as a theoretical framework for analyzing the rhetoric of Barbara Bush's 1990 Wellesley College commencement address. Through a systematic evaluation of Barbara Bush's speech, this study reveals that her rhetoric exemplifies feminine rhetorical style. The analysis also concludes that Barbara Bush's personal tone, specifically her use of narrative and humor, is the most useful and effective characteristic of her feminine rhetorical style. Using feminine rhetorical style, Barbara Bush successfully dissipates some of the tension she faced prior to the graduation ceremony at Wellesley College. Therefore, this study reveals that feminine rhetorical style is an attractive alternative for speakers seeking to build identification in hostile situations when identification is, or appears to be, lacking.
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Date Issued: 2010
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/2100573
Subject Headings: Influence, Criticism and interpretation, Feminist theory, Narration (Rhetoric), Psychological aspects, Persuasion (Rhetoric)
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Distracted Driving: A Cross-Disciplinary Analysis Exploring The Effectiveness Of Public Service Announcements Regarding Texting And Driving That Employ A Filmed Narrative With Emotional Appeals.
Creator: Seibold, Jeremy R., Charbonneau, Stephen, Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: Despite efforts to mitigate texting and driving in the United States, accidents as a result of distracted driving continue to increase, especially within the 16-24 age group. Considering the traits of the members of this age group, as well as the attributes of the various means that are utilized to mitigate such behavior, I hypothesize that the employment of filmed narratives in public service announcements is more effective than any other established approach. Testing the validity of this...
Show moreDespite efforts to mitigate texting and driving in the United States, accidents as a result of distracted driving continue to increase, especially within the 16-24 age group. Considering the traits of the members of this age group, as well as the attributes of the various means that are utilized to mitigate such behavior, I hypothesize that the employment of filmed narratives in public service announcements is more effective than any other established approach. Testing the validity of this hypothesis, contributing to a lack of research, three methods of analysis were employed in this project: a textual analysis of a filmed narrative; an audience analysis of the comments accompanying the filmed narrative; and a video session followed by a self-administered questionnaire. The results of this study indicate that while the filmed narrative is more effective than the spoken narrative, more intensive analyses are necessary for further speculation.
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Date Issued: 2017
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004874, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004874
Subject Headings: Distracted driving--Case studies., Advertising, Public service--Case studies., Text messaging (Cell phone systems), Traffic safety.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Embodied Mimicry: Lightening Black Bodies in the Visual Rhetoric of Popular 20th Century Black Media.
Creator: Judge-Hemans, Janéa, Heidt, Stephen, Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: This study analyzes various forms of visual and textual rhetoric found in popular black-owned print media from 1900-1970, including: beauty product advertisements, magazine cover photography and feature articles in order to contribute to a rhetorical history of color bias within the African-American community. The imagery included here validated and encouraged the transformation and lightening of African-American bodies through what I call embodied mimicry in order to achieve dominance within...
Show moreThis study analyzes various forms of visual and textual rhetoric found in popular black-owned print media from 1900-1970, including: beauty product advertisements, magazine cover photography and feature articles in order to contribute to a rhetorical history of color bias within the African-American community. The imagery included here validated and encouraged the transformation and lightening of African-American bodies through what I call embodied mimicry in order to achieve dominance within the racial group and a semblance of acceptance outside of it. Mimicry of white societal standards by African-Americans including: formatting of print media, circulation of beauty ads and physical embodiment of white physical features ultimately re-inscribed the tenets of racism into the black public sphere in the form of colorism. The intention of this research is to analyze the rhetorical history of colorism in order to better understand the current state of colorism in American society.
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Date Issued: 2016
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004719, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004719
Subject Headings: African Americans -- Color -- Social aspects, Black race -- Color, Colorism -- United States, Ethnicity in mass media, Human skin color -- Social aspects, Mass media and minorities, Race awareness, Racism in mass media
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Global warming in the microblog era: a rhetorical analysis of Twitter dialogue between ExxonMobil and Greenpeace USA.
Creator: Kattoura, Mark A., School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: This qualitative study examines whether microblogging illustrates or contradicts the longstanding notion that the Internet allows for greater public participation in important issues, thus potentially expanding public sphere. The study analyzes 5 years of tweets about climate change between ExxonMobil and Greenpeace USA using a new hybrid, or blended methodology that combines Kenneth Burke's rhetorical analysis of cluster-agons with eight physical attributes of the Internet that Marshall Poe...
Show moreThis qualitative study examines whether microblogging illustrates or contradicts the longstanding notion that the Internet allows for greater public participation in important issues, thus potentially expanding public sphere. The study analyzes 5 years of tweets about climate change between ExxonMobil and Greenpeace USA using a new hybrid, or blended methodology that combines Kenneth Burke's rhetorical analysis of cluster-agons with eight physical attributes of the Internet that Marshall Poe identified as influential in pushing societies and ideas in new directions. Clusters are also examined using Grace Poh Lyn's reflexive analysis. Additionally, the analysis also considers the use of agitative and control strategies, discursive tensions between freedom and domination, and the rhetorical use of public vernaculars. Analysis of the tweets reveals that business organizations that at first glance or in theory seem to be at odds actually share common discursive practices. They communicate about the same issues at the same or similar times using the same language for the same primary purpose-survival of the organization-while giving the impression that they are working for the good of their respective publics for environmental causes or the bottom line, or even both. The researcher concludes that although there are specific cases of microblogging in which the public benefits to some extent, those gains are either very short-lived or are more likely to exist in theory rather than practice due to the fluid nature of microblogging as well as continued organizational missteps which I call "corporate ejacking."
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Date Issued: 2013
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/3360800
Subject Headings: Influence, Global warming, Mass media and culture, Social responsibility of business
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: A Feminist Cultural Study of Identity, Hair Loss, and Chemotherapy.
Creator: Guillerm, Celine, Scodari, Christine, Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: The main aim of this dissertation is to discuss the way women negotiate the cultural meaning of hair loss, alopecia, as a result of undergoing chemotherapy, and to understand, accordingly, how cancer's cultural effects regarding women can be deeply different from those of men. Very few studies have been done about the cultural impact and resonance of alopecia. It is often regarded as "secondary" to other effects of chemotherapy. Because, in many cultures, head hair for women expresses or...
Show moreThe main aim of this dissertation is to discuss the way women negotiate the cultural meaning of hair loss, alopecia, as a result of undergoing chemotherapy, and to understand, accordingly, how cancer's cultural effects regarding women can be deeply different from those of men. Very few studies have been done about the cultural impact and resonance of alopecia. It is often regarded as "secondary" to other effects of chemotherapy. Because, in many cultures, head hair for women expresses or manifests attractiveness and power, to be bald is to be deprived of the ability to fit into society, whether in the public or private sphere. The study examines the representation of such women in the media, audience/subject responses to these representations, and interrogates women's identities and representations in terms of Laura Mulvey's theory of the male gaze. Women who have experienced chemotherapy-induced alopec ia were interviewed in this regard. Other contributive feminist, cultural and/or media studies works, such as those by Suzanna Walters, Susan Bordo, Naomi Wolf, Donna Haraway, Stuart Hall, Kimberle Crenshaw, and Judith Butler, help facilitate the analysis. From these perspectives, a historical analysis takes into consideration the symbolic dimension of hair, especially women's head hair, within Western cultural history, particularly in France and a multicultural America. In addition, a textual analysis looks at women, cancer, and hair loss as represented in popular culture characters and personalities. The study insists on the necessity for women to resist to the culture industries and deconstruct the male gaze, as well as the female gaze, which can both contribute to, and perpetuate women's objectification.
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Date Issued: 2015
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004502, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004502
Subject Headings: Baldness -- Psychological aspects, Body image, Cancer -- Psychosomatic aspects, Cancer -- Treatment -- Complications, Feminine beauty (Aesthetics), Identity (Psychology), Self esteem in women
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Advocating environmental issues through mobile gaming.
Creator: Gutierrez, Cynthia, Lewter, Bradley, Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: Recently, many researchers have been interested in how videogames can influence the attitude and behavior of children. It has also been questioned if videogames can be a useful teaching tool in the classroom. There are many games that have been created to teach traditional school subjects such as Math and English. But what about creating games to teach about current environmental issues? The goal of my thesis project is to create an educational advocacy game for smartphone devices that will...
Show moreRecently, many researchers have been interested in how videogames can influence the attitude and behavior of children. It has also been questioned if videogames can be a useful teaching tool in the classroom. There are many games that have been created to teach traditional school subjects such as Math and English. But what about creating games to teach about current environmental issues? The goal of my thesis project is to create an educational advocacy game for smartphone devices that will educate children about the effects of overfishing on marine life and how it can negatively affect coastal communities in the Caribbean.
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Date Issued: 2014
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004118
Subject Headings: Video games -- Design., Video games -- Social aspects., Computer games -- Social aspects.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Image Restoration in the Apologetic in the Apologetic Rhetoric of Professional Athletes: A Case Study of Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant, and Michael Phelps.
Creator: Epstein, Adam, Mulvaney, Becky, Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: This purpose of this study is to investigate the apologetic rhetoric of professional athletes’ off-field scandals. The three case studies used were Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant, and Michael Phelps. A genre analysis was conducted to determine the success or failure of the speech by examining the image repair strategies used during the rhetoric. Further research revealed that the audiences’ perception plays a large role in determining if the rhetoric was successful or not. Two factors that aid the...
Show moreThis purpose of this study is to investigate the apologetic rhetoric of professional athletes’ off-field scandals. The three case studies used were Tiger Woods, Kobe Bryant, and Michael Phelps. A genre analysis was conducted to determine the success or failure of the speech by examining the image repair strategies used during the rhetoric. Further research revealed that the audiences’ perception plays a large role in determining if the rhetoric was successful or not. Two factors that aid the audience are the medium in which the public address was given, and the time it took to deliver the speech once the off-field scandal took place. The findings determined that Tiger Woods apologia was not successful, while Kobe Bryant’s was successful. The rhetoric of Michael Phelps’ speech lacked in delivery and strategies chosen. To have a successful apologia, one should have a clear use of strategies as well as a timely public address.
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Date Issued: 2017
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004878, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004878
Subject Headings: Woods, Tiger., Bryant, Kobe--1978-, Phelps, Michael--1985-, Sex scandals--United States., Verbal self-defense., Rhetorical criticism., Discourse analysis., Crisis management., Sports--Public relations.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Imagining Kandinsky’s theories as a synesthetic iPhone app.
Creator: Torlen, Anna, Bargsten, Joey, Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: Wassily Kandinsky wrote Über das Geistige in der Kunst, in 1912, and was translated from German into English by Michael Sadler. Naming it at first, “The Art of Spiritual Harmony” in 1914 it is known as, Concerning the Spiritual in Art. He wrote color and music theories based on angles, synesthetic experiences, subjective instincts, chromotherapy, and shapes. Kandinsky’s theories are worth continuing to research and bring forth into the new generation of technology where we can see music as...
Show moreWassily Kandinsky wrote Über das Geistige in der Kunst, in 1912, and was translated from German into English by Michael Sadler. Naming it at first, “The Art of Spiritual Harmony” in 1914 it is known as, Concerning the Spiritual in Art. He wrote color and music theories based on angles, synesthetic experiences, subjective instincts, chromotherapy, and shapes. Kandinsky’s theories are worth continuing to research and bring forth into the new generation of technology where we can see music as numerical expressions. The goal of this iPhone Application is to teach users the relationship between color and music based on Kandinsky’s theories.
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Date Issued: 2015
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004414, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004414
Subject Headings: Art and music, Art, Modern -- 20th century -- Psychological aspects, Blaue Reiter (Group of artists), Computer art -- Technique, Expressionism (Art) -- 20th century, Kandinsky, Wassily -- 1866-1944 -- Concerning the spiritual in art -- Criticism and interpretation, Kandinsky, Wassily -- 1866-1944 -- Influence, Spirituality in art, iPhone (Smartphone) -- Mobile apps
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Gay-centric identity: a challenge to gay cultural script, gay ghetto and performance.
Creator: Beebe, Robert D., Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: For many gay men performing a gay-centric identity can be challenging. By adopting a set of expected behaviors known as the gay cultural script, many of these men are potentially met with discrimination from both heterosexual and homosexual communities. The gay cultural script is readily available as it is found within the gay ghettos and through various representations of gay men in the media. This research question examines how the gay cultural script when found within the gay ghetto and...
Show moreFor many gay men performing a gay-centric identity can be challenging. By adopting a set of expected behaviors known as the gay cultural script, many of these men are potentially met with discrimination from both heterosexual and homosexual communities. The gay cultural script is readily available as it is found within the gay ghettos and through various representations of gay men in the media. This research question examines how the gay cultural script when found within the gay ghetto and through the media's representation of gay men provides a lens to which the performance of a gay-centric identity may be communicated and shared. The focus of this research is separated into three interconnected areas: (1) exploration of gay-cultural script, (2) location to which the gay cultural script operates and, (3) analysis of the relationship between the gay cultural script and gay-centric identity performance.
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Date Issued: 2008
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/107802
Subject Headings: Gender identity, Gays in popular culture, Gay men, Identity, Gay men in mass media
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Improving communication based on cultural competency in the business environment.
Creator: Burton, Walter N., Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: The purpose of this study was to show support that certain cultural characteristics of an individual could be identified based on the region where that individual was born and raised. These cultural characteristics were identified and defined, and strategies on understanding these cultural characteristics were reviewed. This study revealed that by focusing on this understanding, trust can be established quickly and it is this trust that is the basis of building any type of relationship....
Show moreThe purpose of this study was to show support that certain cultural characteristics of an individual could be identified based on the region where that individual was born and raised. These cultural characteristics were identified and defined, and strategies on understanding these cultural characteristics were reviewed. This study revealed that by focusing on this understanding, trust can be established quickly and it is this trust that is the basis of building any type of relationship. Several different macrocultural systems were examined in this study. These included the United States, Asia, Central and South America, India, the Middle East, and the European Union cultures. These are the largest and the fastest growing regions of the world as well as the locations where most of the newly established business relationships are being formed., The study examined each macrocultural system individually by giving some background information on the culture and reasons for their recent explosive economic growth. Upon review of this study, any individual should be able to approach others with the realization that, with some degree of confidence, cultural characteristics of the individual being pursued can be predetermined based on a number of factors. The ability to recognize these factors facilitates a cultural competency that includes the skills and qualities that enable successful outcomes to happen in business contexts where different cultures are interacting. This predetermination will provide a type of blueprint to an individual's thoughts, tendencies, and even buying patterns., These strategies will reveal ways of sidestepping everyone's natural tendency to say "no." By providing this insight into predisposed behavior patterns, most individuals will tend to lower their natural defense barriers and a smooth and effective conversation will follow. Personality types are recognized during or after a conversation, but cultural characteristics can be determined prior to the start of any conversation. Oftentimes, it is too late to try and figure out a personality type to adjust your sales approach or strategy in the middle of a conversation. There are ways to recognize cultural characteristics and incorporate certain strategies simply by knowing where a prospect was born and raised, as well as knowing their ethnicity.
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Date Issued: 2011
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3360620
Subject Headings: Personality and culture, Business communication, Intercultural communication, Discourse analysis
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Improving college professors' communication skills inside the classroom: an exploratory study.
Creator: Van Allan, James., Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: This thesis examines how college professors can improve their communication skills inside the classroom by testing pedagogical issues identified in previous scholarship against current teaching practices. This thesis addresses four main areas related to classroom communication skills that reflect how to build a classroom into a community of equality, open dialogue, and deep learning. The importance of classroom communities and of professors developing engaging deliveries to create compelling...
Show moreThis thesis examines how college professors can improve their communication skills inside the classroom by testing pedagogical issues identified in previous scholarship against current teaching practices. This thesis addresses four main areas related to classroom communication skills that reflect how to build a classroom into a community of equality, open dialogue, and deep learning. The importance of classroom communities and of professors developing engaging deliveries to create compelling oral performances is described as well as issues of active listening and various models and techniques to help facilitate communication better in the classroom. A qualitative study analyzing written interviews completed by 19 college professors in Florida is conducted. Interview responses are then compared to pedagogical issues identified in previous literature to determine if there are similarities or gaps in current research. The interview determined that an interactive classroom with a professor who is consciously aware of their communication skills can help foster deeper learning with students. This research can help to develop best teaching practices for college professors.
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Date Issued: 2011
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3174312
Subject Headings: Oral communication, Interaction analysis in education, Teacher-student relationships.-, Teacher effectiveness
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Improving methods of communication based on culture in the business environment.
Creator: Burton, Walter N., Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: The ability to understand the individuals that we deal with on a daily basis can give anyone who focuses on this knowledge a competitive advantage in today's business world. In today's fast paced and globally expanding business world, it is critical to explore innovative approaches that will facilitate the process and time it typically takes to establish business relationships. When it is imperative to quickly create a business relationship between individuals that are unknown to each other,...
Show moreThe ability to understand the individuals that we deal with on a daily basis can give anyone who focuses on this knowledge a competitive advantage in today's business world. In today's fast paced and globally expanding business world, it is critical to explore innovative approaches that will facilitate the process and time it typically takes to establish business relationships. When it is imperative to quickly create a business relationship between individuals that are unknown to each other, identifying the city or region of the individual with whom a relationship is being formed and understanding that culture will help build a common ground which will facilitate and enhance the newly established working relationship. This paper shows how this can be achieved.
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Date Issued: 2008
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/165671
Subject Headings: Business communication, Communication in management, Organizational effectiveness, Interpersonal relations, Relationship marketing, Corporate culture
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Preaching to the choir: the culture war and the box office success of Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ.
Creator: Kuhn, Rebecca., Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: In 2004, Mel Gibson released The Passion of the Christ, a film that focuses specifically on the events surrounding the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth. Over a year before its release and well ahead of any studio publicity, the film and its director were at the center of a discussion that sparked criticism from biblical scholars, Jesus historians, and members of the media. In spite, or perhaps because, of this controversy, The Passion was well-received by its audiences if not by its critics....
Show moreIn 2004, Mel Gibson released The Passion of the Christ, a film that focuses specifically on the events surrounding the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth. Over a year before its release and well ahead of any studio publicity, the film and its director were at the center of a discussion that sparked criticism from biblical scholars, Jesus historians, and members of the media. In spite, or perhaps because, of this controversy, The Passion was well-received by its audiences if not by its critics. This dissertation explores the cultural, political, and economic factors that led to the box office success of Mel Gibson's film The Passion of the Christ and also examines why viewers identified with Jesus, the protagonist of the film. First, this project places the success of The Passion of the Christ in socio-historical and political-economic context of 2004, emphasizing the popularity of neoliberal economic policies, conservative political thought, and Evangelical Christianity. Second, this project explores the specific political and economic arrangements that facilitated the making of the film at Cinecitta studios in Rome. The ease with which Gibson was able to make The Passion outside of the United States is a direct result of neoliberal economic policies that emphasize free trade and, in the process, undermine trade unions and film industry laborers. Third, in addition to a macro- and micro-level political economic analysis of The Passion of the Christ, this project also examines the film as it fits into the horror genre. Horror not only seeks to elicit an immediate visceral reaction from audience members but also manifests the political and economic insecurities of society. Finally, this project connects the film text to these anxieties, including the war on terror, the war in Iraq, and an extended crisis of masculinity.
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Date Issued: 2009
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/359922
Subject Headings: Criticism and interpretation, Passion, History of doctrines, Christianity and culture, Motion pictures, Political and social aspects, Horror films, Criticism and interpretation
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Muslim Women: Between Culture and Feminism.
Creator: Alotaibi, Hanadi, Darlington, Patricia, Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: Women’s rights in Islam became a major subject after the third feminist movement in the United States. When feminism spread globally, many Islamic scholars connected it to Islam. Islamic feminism is a term that takes most of its ideologies from the two primary sources of Islam – the Quran and the Sunnah. This qualitative research explained the bias directed towards women in Islam by using objective reasoning through examples as well as by encompassing any misinterpretation of views regarding...
Show moreWomen’s rights in Islam became a major subject after the third feminist movement in the United States. When feminism spread globally, many Islamic scholars connected it to Islam. Islamic feminism is a term that takes most of its ideologies from the two primary sources of Islam – the Quran and the Sunnah. This qualitative research explained the bias directed towards women in Islam by using objective reasoning through examples as well as by encompassing any misinterpretation of views regarding women’s rights in Islam. The method used was a content analysis. The findings were that Islam is a feminist religion. While Islam provides Muslim women with full rights, U.S. and Saudi Arabian cultures have impeded Islamic feminism. Lastly, the U.S. feminism started as a movement by women to empower women. However, Islamic feminism first focused on the rights of all human beings, then concentrated on women in Islam.
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Date Issued: 2016
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004563, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004563
Subject Headings: Islam--21st century., Muslim women--Islamic countries--Social aspects., Women in Islam., Islam and secularism--History., Feminism--Islamic countries., Feminism--Religious aspects--Islam., Women's rights--Islamic countries., Equality before the law--Islamic countries.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: No Surrender: Bruce Springsteen, Neoliberalism and Rock and Roll’s Melancholic Fantasy of Sovereign Rebellion.
Creator: Graves, Kaitlin N., Trapani, William, Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: This thesis builds from press accounts of Bruce Springsteen’s South by Southwest keynote address, taken by many to be a renewed call to arms of the classic mantras of the rock ethos in the age of a declining recording industry. In tracing the ways the speech circulated I argue that its discourse was rearticulated toward quite different (and concerning) ends. Throughout, I aim to show the apparatuses of power that sustains the rock liberation fantasy. I read the coverage of Springsteen’s...
Show moreThis thesis builds from press accounts of Bruce Springsteen’s South by Southwest keynote address, taken by many to be a renewed call to arms of the classic mantras of the rock ethos in the age of a declining recording industry. In tracing the ways the speech circulated I argue that its discourse was rearticulated toward quite different (and concerning) ends. Throughout, I aim to show the apparatuses of power that sustains the rock liberation fantasy. I read the coverage of Springsteen’s address as a therapeutic discourse meant to soothe the anxiety over the closure of agency in the age of neoliberalism. The general problematic for the thesis, then, addresses an anxiety over the collapse of freedom and as such works to offer broad reflections on the nature of radical agency in our increasingly neoliberal present.
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Date Issued: 2017
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004945, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004945
Subject Headings: Springsteen, Bruce--Influence., Neoliberalism., Politics, Practical--United States., Popular culture--United States--History--20th century., Popular music--Social aspects--United States--History--20th century., Rock music--Social aspects--United States--History--20th century.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The Sorcerer’s Apprentices: Authorship and Sound Aesthetics in Walt Disney’s Fantasia.
Creator: Fernandez, Daniel, Guneratne, Anthony R., Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: This thesis makes three claims new to the critical literature onWalt Disney’s 1940 film Fantasia. Setting the scene by placing a spotlight on the long-serving Philadelphia Orchestra conductor Leopold Stokowski, it contextualizes his pervasive influence, as well as contributions by others that shaped Fantasia and defined the film’s stylistic elements. Inspired by recent critical debates on post-silent era filmmaking and theories of authorship, it makes a case for Fantasia being the culmination...
Show moreThis thesis makes three claims new to the critical literature onWalt Disney’s 1940 film Fantasia. Setting the scene by placing a spotlight on the long-serving Philadelphia Orchestra conductor Leopold Stokowski, it contextualizes his pervasive influence, as well as contributions by others that shaped Fantasia and defined the film’s stylistic elements. Inspired by recent critical debates on post-silent era filmmaking and theories of authorship, it makes a case for Fantasia being the culmination of a “sound film” and notes that its displays of individual artistic talent makes it a noteworthy example of distributed authorship. Fantasia remains a unique experiment in Disney’s filmmaking in that it acquired its eventual form only because of decisions taken during production since no absolute “blue-print” for the finished film existed at the time it went into production, when a large selection of musical numbers were assigned to teams of animators.
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Date Issued: 2017
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004854, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004854
Subject Headings: Stokowski, Leopold--1882-1977., Authorship., Animated film music., Musical films.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: The Very Useful Notion: A Rhetorical History of the Idea of Human-Made Climate Change, 1950-2000.
Creator: Brooten, Gary, Marin, Noemi, Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: This dissertation tests an original hybrid methodology to explore the rapid spread of the idea of human-made climate change that began in the 1950s after the idea had lain dormant for half a century. It describes the 1950s rhetorical events that triggered the idea’s diffusion, then traces how its rhetorical uses gradually gave root to the end-of-thecentury political impasse over how to respond to the societal implications of the idea. The research methodology rests on the simple logic that an...
Show moreThis dissertation tests an original hybrid methodology to explore the rapid spread of the idea of human-made climate change that began in the 1950s after the idea had lain dormant for half a century. It describes the 1950s rhetorical events that triggered the idea’s diffusion, then traces how its rhetorical uses gradually gave root to the end-of-thecentury political impasse over how to respond to the societal implications of the idea. The research methodology rests on the simple logic that an idea can only spread by being used in human discourses. It combines traditions of rhetorical historiography with a philosophical view of intellectual history as the cumulative effect of a “natural selection” of ideas and their spread by human individuals over time and geography. It calls for sampling and analyzing rhetorical artifacts in light of the rhetorical situations in which they originate, focusing on how the idea of human-made climate change is used rhetorically in scientific and other discourses. The analyses form the basis of a narrative giving emphasis both to rhetorical continuities and to conversation-changing rhetorical events. They also show how these rhetorical dynamics involve interactions of human communities using or attacking the idea for their communal purposes. The results challenge science-focused understandings of the history of the idea itself and also suggest that the methodology may be more broadly useful. As to the history, the analyses highlight how changes in the rhetorical uses of the idea made possible its 1950s breakout in climate science, then led to uses that spread it into other sciences and into environmentalism in the 1960s, attached it to apocalyptic environmentalism in the 1970s, injected it into partisan politics in 1980s and shaped the political impasse during the 1990s. The data show that the methodology reveals elements of the discourses missed in histories emphasizing the “power of ideas,” suggesting that a focus on the usefulness of ideas may be more fruitful. A focus on rhetorical uses of ideas grounds the causation of intellectual change in human motivation and agency, expressed in material acts that multiply and disperse naturally through communities and populations.
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Date Issued: 2016
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004691, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004691
Subject Headings: Climate change mitigation, Climatic changes -- Philosophy, Climatic changes -- Social aspects, Global environmental change, Human beings -- Effect of climate on, Rhetorical criticism
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Through the North Door: The Invocation of Invitational Rhetoric in Wiccan Rituals.
Creator: Howald, Kayleigh, Mulvaney, Becky, Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, School of Communication and Multimedia Studies
Abstract/Description: Wiccan witchcraft, a contemporary religion, frequently suffers from misunderstandings; the worst of which, arguably, being that it thrives in a postfeminist society. Although it remains unclear why witches, despite their specific traditions, would not immediately embrace feminism, this study claims that whether practitioners agree or disagree, they are performing feminism. In this study, I argue that Wiccan rhetoric (both discursive and non-discursive) functions epistemically to encourage...
Show moreWiccan witchcraft, a contemporary religion, frequently suffers from misunderstandings; the worst of which, arguably, being that it thrives in a postfeminist society. Although it remains unclear why witches, despite their specific traditions, would not immediately embrace feminism, this study claims that whether practitioners agree or disagree, they are performing feminism. In this study, I argue that Wiccan rhetoric (both discursive and non-discursive) functions epistemically to encourage feminist values. The thesis analyzes three typical forms of Wiccan rhetoric using Sonja K. Foss and Cindy L. Griffin’s approach of invitational rhetoric and the values of equality, immanent value, and self-determination.
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Date Issued: 2016
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004698, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004698
Subject Headings: Feminism -- Religious aspects, Feminist theory, Goddess religion, Magic, Wicca, Witchcraft, Women and religion
Format: Document (PDF)

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