Travel Narratives in the Cinema of Alexander Payne
The first in-depth analysis of the films of Alexander Payne through the lenses of authorship, tourism, and leisure. With the films Election, About Schmidt, Sideways, Nebraska, and The Holdovers, Alexander Payne has carved out an unusual role in American cinema as a bankable auteur. There is something about Payne's neurotics and searchers, his ......
An analysis of how post-9/11 war movies changed from following soldiers on specific missions to chronicling war as a day-to-day occupation. In 2003, the United States began a war in Iraq without a mission. Instead of fighting to restore peace-the traditional objective of warfare-servicemembers faced the grim reality that there was no goal. ......
Extractivism, War, and Visuality in Northern Kurdistan
Focuses on contemporary art and media to examine the role of visuals in environmental violence and war in Northern Kurdistan. Extractivism-exploiting the earth for resources-has long driven racial capitalism and colonialism. And yet, how does extractivism operate in a world where ecological and humanitarian sensibilities are unprecedentedly ......
A collaborative effort to address some of the chronic issues affecting the preservation and revitalization of indigenous languages. What does it mean to "revitalize" an indigenous language when approximately 6,700 of the nearly 7,000 left in the world need protection? Where to begin? Each language offers a sense of history, identity, and ......
Despite the island's long-simmering tensions, Dominicans and Haitians once unified Hispaniola. Based on research from over two dozen archives in multiple countries, Siblings of Soil presents the overlooked history of their shared imperial endings and national beginnings from the 1780s to 1822. Haitian revolutionaries both inspired and aided ......
The incredible career of the forgotten but foundational pro wrestler who shaped American sports culture. William Muldoon was an infamous athlete whose prowess and savvy across his six-decade career led him to wealth, cultural importance, and political power. Muldoon, the child of poor Irish immigrants, began wrestling in the 1870s and quickly ......
The Christ of Ixmiquilpan and Colonial Piety in Mexico City
A study of the Christ of Ixmiquilpan, a historically beloved religious icon from sixteenth-century Mexico, and its evolving cultural importance. The life-sized crucifix known as the Christ of Ixmiquilpan (also the SeNor de Santa Teresa) was one of the most important artworks in colonial Mexico. The statue began as an ordinary devotional image, ......
