The Bachelor Narrator Motif in the Sketches of Nathaniel Hawthorne

This thesis examines the bachelor narrator motif in seven of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s sketches, published between 1831 and 1843. Hawthorne’s narrators are artists, alienated from society in general, and from women in particular. Moreover, they are modeled upon the figure of the European flaneur, the idle ‘man about town’ who believes he can read the character of the stranger in the crowd. In these first person narrations, Hawthorne explores the problems of subjectivity (involving self-concept, including the split between the conscious and the unconscious, and the gap between the mind and the material world) and the problem of knowledge (involving the five senses and reason). The central argument of the thesis is that the bachelor narrators in the sketches are the literary antecedents of the character Miles Coverdale in Hawthorne’s novel The Blithedale Romance (1852), which tells the story of a failed utopian experiment. In his early period, Hawthorne experimented with many of the narrative strategies and themes in his bachelor sketches that evolve and take shape in the novel. Common to the sketches and the novel is the theme of the alienation of the artist and the uncertainty of knowledge, including knowledge of the self. The thesis is divided into three chapters. Chapter One explores a group of opticsdriven sketches, and the related theme of voyeurism. This chapter includes a discussion of “Sunday at Home” (1837), “Sights from a Steeple” (1831), and “Foot-prints on the Sea-Shore” (1838). Women are the objects of a controlling male gaze, and men blame women for disturbing their ability to reason, and for attempting to lure them into marriage. Chapter Two features the dissociated narrator, and includes a discussion of “Monsieur du Miroir” (1837) and “Little Annie’s Ramble” (1835). The narrator in “Monsieur du Miroir” is unable to connect to others, especially women. His view of reality is distorted by a narcissus complex, and by a failure to evolve beyond the mirror stage, as defined by Jacques Lacan. “Little Annie’s Ramble” is framed upon the fairytale Little Red Riding Hood. “Annie” can be interpreted as a tale of adult lechery and abduction, and features a flaneur/artist whose fear of women causes him to shift his attention towards a five year-old girl. Chapter Three contains a discussion of “The Haunted Mind” (1835) and “The Old Apple Dealer” (1843). In these two sketches, the senses are unreliable determinants of reality. In “The Haunted Mind” Hawthorne examines the philosophical subject of time from the point of view of a disoriented and alienated narrator. In “The Old Apple Dealer” he critiques America’s naive belief in progress, and describes the alteration of perception due to the experience of velocity on a passenger train. Coverdale is a composite of the bachelor narrators in the sketches that Hawthorne experimented with at the outset of his literary career. The conclusion examines the first-person narration of Miles Coverdale, who fails to recognize his role in the failure of a utopian experiment. In his portrait of Coverdale, Hawthorne reveals how much in tune he is with the problem of stereotyping on the basis of class or gender

A Better Understanding Through the Use of the Nature Journal

This paper examines the positive impact that spending time in the natural world has on students. In reviewing the history of environmental education in the United States, the importance of nature on human development, and the impact that journaling and reflective thought processes have in education, this capstone sought to expand upon the research and encourage using nature journals to affect children’s perceptions of the natural world and their place within it. While journaling can facilitate communication, self-expression and personal development, it is also a way to enhance learning by connecting background knowledge to new information, analyzing and synthesizing ideas and experiences before and after instruction occurs, and improving deductive and inductive reasoning skills. Using this technique to improve learning in an outdoor setting also produces the desired outcome of building connections between students and the natural world. This in turn empowers students to become good stewards of the planet and to know that they have a part to play in alleviating the harmful effects of our current climate crisis

The Flanagan Quality of Life Scale: Evidence of Construct Validity

BACKGROUND: The Quality of Life Scale (QOLS), developed originally by John Flanagan in the 1970's, has been adapted for use in chronic illness groups. Evidence for reliability and validity has been published over the years for both English and translations. This paper presents further evidence of construct validity for persons with chronic conditions as well as across two languages, and gender. METHODS: A sample of 1241 chronically ill and healthy adults from American and Swedish databases was used to generate factor analyses for both the 15-item original QOLS and the 16-item chronic illness adaptation. RESULTS: Analysis of the data suggested that the QOLS has three factors in the healthy sample and across chronic conditions, two languages and gender. Factors that could be labeled (1) Relationships and Material Well-Being, (2) Health and Functioning, and (3) Personal, Social and Community Commitment were identified. CONCLUSIONS: The QOLS is a valid instrument for measuring domains of quality of life across diverse patient groups

Prepubertal Ontogeny of Luteinizing Hormone-Releasing Hormone Immunoreactivity in Developing Pig Brain

Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH, GnRH) is a 10-amino acid peptide produced in the brain that regulates the release of LH from the pituitary gland. LH is crucial for initiating the successful ovulation of mature ovarian follicles (Graafian follicles) and transforming the ovulated follicle into a steroid-secreting corpus luteum. In the male, LH causes Leydig cells in the testis to secrete testosterone, a hormone essential for male sexual behavior secretory activity of accessory glands of the reproductive tract, muscle accretion, and spermatogenesis. The focus of this study was to determine the prepubertal ontogeny of LHRH-like immunoreactivity (LHRH-IR) in the male Chinese Meishan pig. The Meishan breed is known for reproductive traits, including increased litter size and precocious puberty, but slow growth and obesity. Brains of animals from gestational day (g) 30, 50, 70, 90, and 110 and postnatal day (pn) 1, 10, 20, and 50 (duration of pregnancy averages 114 days) were processed by a standard immunohistochemical technique utilizing a commercially available rabbit anti-LHRH antibody. Coronal sections of the brain revealed LHRH-IR in cell bodies and fibers at g30 entering the brain via the terminal nerve and in the septal region of the basal telencephalon. The numbers of LHRH-IR cells increased at g50 and cells were localized to the septum, organum vasculosum of the lamina terminalis, optic area, and lateral hypothalamus whereas immunoreactive fibers were present throughout the septum and hypothalamus and had reached the median eminence, the lowest connecting link to the anterior pituitary gland. Results from this study indicate that LHRH may be present in the Meishan brain earlier during development and fibers containing LHRH-IR appear in the median eminence (lower part of the hypothalamus near the pituitary gland) earlier than previously reported for the domestic pig. These results suggest a breed difference in the ontogeny of reproductive control systems in the pig. An understanding of the LHRH neuronal network within the brain and hormones and exteroceptive factors that affect its secretion of LHRH that, in turn, causes gonadotropin (luteinizing hormone and follicle stimulating hormone) secretion by the pituitary gland will reveal neuroendocrine mechanisms regulating reproduction in the pig

The Poet/Practitioner: A Paradigm for the Profession

This article explores a new paradigm or model for the professional social worker: The poet/practitioner. The training and practice of the poet are congruent with many aspects of social work practice. An examination of the practice of the poet, and the congruence of these practices to social work, reveals a paradigm with the capacity to focus social workers on the essential values of our profession. This paradigm, which highlights the humanistic, creative, and socially conscience role of the social work practitioner, may be particularly important today given the medicalization of social problems and the conservitization of society

Intermediate reading exercises for use with the Durrell Analysis of Reading Difficulty.

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

Quality of Life for Dementia Caregiving Dyads: Effects of Incongruent Perceptions of Everyday Care and Values

Purpose of the Study: This dyadic study investigated incongruence in care recipients’ (CRs’) and caregivers’ (CGs’) perceptions of (a) CRs’ involvement in decision making and (b) how much CRs value social relations as predictors of subjective quality of life (QOL) of CRs with mild-to-moderate dementia and their primary family CGs. Design and Methods: A secondary analysis of cross-sectional, dyadic data from in-person interviews with 205 CRs with mild-to-moderate dementia and their primary family CGs Incongruence was operationalized in two ways: absolute difference and direction of difference. Paired t tests and multilevel modeling were used to analyze differences. Results: CGs reported CRs were significantly less involved in decision making and valued social relations significantly less than CRs. Greater incongruence on CRs’ values significantly predicted lower QOL of CG and CR. When CGs reported that CRs valued social relationships less than the CR himself/herself reported, CGs’ and CRs’ QOL was significantly lower compared with QOL for dyads where there was no incongruence on CRs’ values. Incongruent perceptions of CRs’ involvement in decisions were not a significant predictor of QOL. Implications: This study provides evidence for the importance of assessing both CRs’ and CGs’ QOL, as well as incongruence in their perceptions in domains that may affect both of their QOL

Predictors of Discrepancy between Care Recipients with Mild-to-Moderate Dementia and Their Caregivers on Perceptions of the Care Recipients' Quality of Life

Purpose: The goal of this study was to explore predictors of discrepancy between reports of caregivers (CGs) and care recipients (CRs) with mild-to-moderate dementia about CRs’ quality of life (QOL). Design and Methods: This study was a secondary analysis of cross-sectional data drawn from a study of 200 care dyads of CRs with mild-to-moderate dementia and their primary family CGs. Paired t test, ordinary least squares multiple regression, and binary logistic regression were used for the analyses. Results: Caregivers rated CRs’ QOL significantly lower (worse) than CRs did. Ordinary least square regression results showed that greater incongruence in perceptions of CRs’ decision-making involvement (DMI) and higher level of CR impairment in activities of daily living were significantly related to higher absolute discrepancy between CG and CR about CRs’ QOL. In the logistic models, when the dyad had more DMI incongruence, or CG reported higher relationship strain, the CG was more likely to report a lower CR QOL than CR reported. Implications: Practitioners should consider incorporating CRs’ perspective when planning care instead of solely depending on CGs’ perspective. Also, practitioners should pay attention to any gap between perceptions of CGs and CRs, particularly with regard to CRs’ QOL

A blocking ELISA for the detection of specific antibodies to bovine respiratory syncytial virus

A blocking enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) has been adapted to detect specific antibodies in bovine sera to respiratory syncytial virus using a horseradish peroxidase-labeled monclonal antibody to the fusion protein of the virus. This assay plus an indirect blocking ELISA and indirect ELISA were used to detect antibodies to the bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV) in 159 field-origin bovine sera. Results of these assays were compared with serum antibody titers measured by the serum neutralization (SN) test. Over a 56-day period, the mean neutralization titers and the mean delta absorbance values for the blocking ELISA, on the same sera, showed similar declines. However, the calculated correlation coefficients between mean SN titer and mean absorbance value for the blocking ELISA of the individual sera ranged from -0.2 to -0.5 depending on the source of sera. Similar values were obtained whether using crude or purified viral antigen in the assays. Corresponding calculated correlation coefficients were generally higher for the indirect blocking ELISA or indirect ELISA than for the blocking ELISA. The blocking ELISA was between 70 and 64% as sensitive as the serum neutralization test with a specificity of 100 or 90% using the crude and purified viral antigen, respectively. The indirect blocking ELISA and indirect ELISA had similar calculated sensitivities and specificities. The blocking ELISA was faster to run than either of the other ELISA’s or the neutralization test. Further, nonspecific background absorbance was obviated because the blocking ELISA detects antibodies to 1 specific viral protein, the fusion protein. These studies suggest that the blocking ELISA should be useful as a serological test for BRSV antibodies

Comparative Ovarian and Pituitary Hormone Secretion in Pregnant Meishan and Yorkshire Gilts

Chinese Meishan and Yorkshire were used to investigate mechanisms regulating the production and secretion of relaxin, progesterone, prolactin (PRL), and growth hormone (GH) during late pregnancy and lactation. Uterine surgical removal (hysterectomy) of nongravid gilts during the estrous cycle (day 8) extends luteal function to 150 days which is beyond the duration of normal pregnancy. Hysterectomy provides a useful model to examine shifts in hormone secretion at the time of expected parturition in gravid pigs. Blood samples were collected via an indwelling jugular cannula twice daily (0800 and 2000 hours) from days 90 to 120 and every 20 minutes within a 3-hour period on days 112 to 116. Relaxin and progesterone are hormones of ovarian origin, and PRL and GH are hormones secreted by the pituitary gland. Parturition occurred earlier (day 114) in Yorkshire than Meishan (day 115) gilts. The prepartum peak relaxin release occurred about 16 hours earlier in both breeds, thereafter relaxin dropped to basal levels during lactation. After hysterectomy, relaxin plasma levels were consistently greater in Meishan compared with Yorkshire gilts from days 110-118. A programmed peak relaxin release occurred one day earlier in Yorkshire compared with Meishan gilts. Following the relaxin peak, corpora lutea persisted in both breeds, but Meishan gilts continued to secrete consistently greater amounts of relaxin than Yorkshire gilts. Progesterone plasma levels remained higher longer in late pregnant Meishan compared with Yorkshire gilts. After hysterectomy, progesterone plasma levels were consistently higher in Meishan compared with Yorkshire gilts from days 101 to 118. Prolactin circulating concentration increased during late pregnancy and early lactation, but at a higher level in Yorkshire compared with Meishan gilts. Growth hormone blood levels increased only during late pregnancy and early lactation in both Meishan and Yorkshire gilts. These results indicate significant differences in the timing, and in some cases, magnitude of hormone secretion profiles in pregnant and hysterectomized Yorkshire and Meishan gilts