Impossible journey : the liminality of female heroes

Tamora Pierce’s Tortall books appear to be about the traditionally construed hero’s journey, though with a female hero rather than the conventional male. Superficially, this change seems insignificant: the “monomyth” is reproduced. Founded upon binary oppositions, this monomyth is the male hero’s journey – the traditional journey. However, while these female heroes may appear to conform, this paper explores how, upon a close reading of the narration of two particular moments of change, or “transcendence”, within that journey, the necessary structure collapses. The journey, as is traditionally conceived, is impossible. The first instance works to construct the apparently stable body as changeable, through the narration of shape-shifting. Through this reading, the obviousness of the body (and of identity) is explored and troubled. The second instance works, through the narration of transition into a womanhood, to question the individuality of the body. The body is again produced as changeable, but this transition works to expand readings beyond individual subjectivity to construct the body as operating within a collective. While collapsing traditional conceptions of myth, these readings also work to reposition and rearticulate the female body outside of myth’s masculine discourse, allowing a reinterpretation of that body in terms of the feminine

Lay Theories of Liberation

Lay theories of liberation are how people understand and what they associate with liberation in their own lives. This research explores this topic with interviews at two historical monuments, the George Bush Presidential Library and the Alamo. The goal of this study is to examine popular lay theories of liberation and freedom, and determine whether geographic location (the historical monument) plays a role in how those lay theories are formed. I will be conducting interviews at each location, transcribing the interviews, and examining each for common lay theories of liberation and differences between locations. I expect to find common themes throughout the interviews and see differences in content based on the geographic location and historical significance of the monument

Crop Tree Growth and Quality Twenty-five Years after Precommercial Thinning in a Northern Conifer Stand

Growth characteristics of selected Picea rubens Sarg. (red spruce) and Abies balsamea (L.) Mill. (balsam fir) crop trees were studied in a northern conifer forest to determine the effects of precommercial thinning (PCT) 25 years after initial treatment. Two measures of growth efficiency (GE, growth per unit of growing space) were examined: stemwood increment (dm3) per unit of projected leaf area (PLA) (m2) and stemwood increment (dm3) per unit of crown projection area (CPA) (m2). Stem form differences were evaluated by comparing stem taper between species and treatments. Branch diameters were measured between 1 .O - 2.0 meters above breast height (BH, 1.37 m (4.5 ft)) for each crop tree, and the number and size of branches and the ratio of knots were determined. Volumes of all crop trees were calculated using Smalian\u27s formula (Avery and Burkhart 1994) applied to different geometric forms of the tree to estimate total cubic foot volume from diameter measurements up the tree bole. The efficacy of Honer\u27s (1967) volume equation for estimating total cubic foot volume from diameter at BH (DBH) and total height (THT) was tested by comparing measured values to the estimated values. Differences in tree stability were determined by comparing height to diameter ratios (IUD) of all the crop trees by species and treatment. GE did not differ between treatments using either definition, although average PLA and CPA per tree were higher in the spaced plots. As expected, balsam fir was more growthefficient than red spruce using both GE definitions. There were no significant differences in average PLA between the two species, but red spruce had a larger average CPA than balsam fir. Crop trees in the spaced plots had more stem taper than the unspaced plots and a lower (WD) ratio. Stem taper differed between species; red spruce crop trees had more stem taper than balsam fir. The crop trees in the spaced plots had significantly more volume than those in the unspaced; total stand volume including non-crop trees was not measured. Balsam fir trees contained significantly more volume than red spruce in both treatments. Crop trees in the spaced plots had more and larger branches and also a higher percentage of knot volume than in the unspaced plots. There were no differences in the number and size of branches between balsam fir and red spruce, although red spruce crop trees had a greater knot volume than balsam fir trees. Results of this study are important for managers wanting to use PCT as a silvicultural tool to increase volume growth of selected crop trees without losing value or productivity

Ploughing the Field: Controversy and Censorship in US and UK YA Literature

The United States and the United Kingdom have faced a record number of book challenges in recent years. In the US, the American Library Association documented 1,269 demands to censor library books and materials in 2022, nearly double the number of challenges reported in 2021 (ALA n.p.). In the UK, a third of librarians have been asked to censor or remove books from their libraries (CILIP, qtd. in Shaffi n.p.). In both countries, YA texts are among the most banned and challenged books. The assaults on young people’s freedom to read represented by this form of censorship particularly target marginalised identities and experiences: “the majority of banned titles are authored by or about members of the LGBTQ and Black communities” (Diaz n.p.). The ideologies underpinning many book challenges can also be seen in the divisive attacks against transgender people and their right to exist, vitriolic responses to critical race theory, and the elimination of reproductive rights, to name but a few. In short, the personal has become political, as “book challenges represent the movement of a private act (determining what one’s own children should read) into the public sphere” and the attempt to transform personal convictions into “community values and beliefs” (Knox 132). In this iteration of “Ploughing the Field”, we brought together YA experts (see Table 1) who have lived and/or worked in the US and the UK to better understand: some of the recent trends in YA and why they have garnered such strong reactions in the Western milieu; the role that YA can play in the lives of young people; and our responsibilities as teachers and scholars of YA to young readers and each other

Ploughing the Field: YA in Translation

In agricultural terminology, ‘monoculture’ describes the cultivation of a single crop, to the exclusion of others. In YA, fictional monoculturalism can lead, at best, to monotonous stories in which the same (white, able, cisgender, heterosexual, and middle class) characters go on the same adventures. At worst, it can work to reinforce the monolithic social structures embedded in dominant Western culture. YA in translation has the powerful ability to disrupt any tendency of YA to tell a “single story” (Adichie) by expanding and diversifying the narratives that are available. As B.J. Epstein and Elizabeth L. Chapman suggest in International LGBTQ+ Literature for Children and Young Adults, “translations will help to create a change in society by importing new ideas” (5). Scholarship interrogating the function and practice of children’s and YA literature in translation has expanded over the past few years.1 In this edition of Ploughing the Field, we further investigate the development of YA in translation, specifically, by bringing together the perspectives of five academics and practitioners in an edited transcript of a roundtable discussion held at the YA Studies Association’s 2020 conference

Making the Most of an Adjunct Placement

This poster discusses approaches to ensure that adjunct placements leverage the temporary placement to the benefit of both adjunct librarians and institutions. Librarians can leverage short-term employment to develop skills and gain experience in new library environments. Libraries maintain services while seeking longterm solutions and progress on key projects leveraging skill areas supporting adjunct librarians’ professional development. Clear career goals, intentional supervision, and guidance on translating experience to future job applications can ground an adjunct appointment in mutually-beneficial principles

Topics in need of more attention in Premarital Counseling

Abstract Premarital counseling (PMC) is a program designed to equip couples with strategies that can facilitate healthy marriages and relationships. This research sought to examine topics that participants who received premarital counseling thought were not adequately covered for them and topics participants believed would help strengthen their marriage. Data was collected from 241 Ghanaian participants who identified as being married, separated, or widowed. Each participant was allowed up to three open-ended responses. There were a total of 531 responses out of a maximum of 723 potential responses. Participants for this study were either living in Ghana (74%) or were living abroad (26%). The majority of the participants were female (61%) with an average age of 36 years (Range 31-76). At the time of the study, the majority of the participants were married (69%), Cohabitating (28%), Divorced (2%), or Widowed (1%); however all participants had taken part in PMC at some point in time before marriage. The qualitative data were coded using the Thematic Analytic approach (Maguire & Delahunt, 2017). Two researchers coded for the question “Name three topics that were not adequately covered for you” and two different researchers coded for the question “Which topics would help strengthen your ongoing marriage?”. After the coding was completed it was reviewed by a fifth researcher to determine the reliability among coders for the questions. Results showed that 14 themes emerged from the coded data. The top three topics that participants reported as receiving insufficient training on doing PMC were sex/intimacy, finances, and parenting difficulties. The top three topics proposed for in-depth information during PMC were values in marriage, finances, and sex/intimacy. Findings from this study show empirical evidence for the importance of coaching couples about these topics to prepare and promote healthy behaviors in intimate relationships and marriages. Findings from this study will benefit marriage counselors by providing empirical data on topics to prioritize during premarital counseling sessions. Secondly, findings will help develop/improve current premarital counseling training manuals in Ghana. Future Cross-cultural research is recommended. Further research and coding are currently being completed on the remaining questions from the survey. Key Words: Premarital Counseling, Ghana, Marriage, Relationships, Intimacy, Thematic Analytic Approach, Qualitative Researc