‘The Darkness is the Closet in Which Your Lover Roosts Her Heart’: Lesbians, Desire and the Gothic Genre

This paper discusses the use of the Gothic genre in two ‘lesbian’ novels: Nightwood by Djuna Barnes (1936) and Affinity by Sarah Waters (1999). The Gothic, I argue, is employed and manipulated in order to counter the repressive effects of ‘lesbian panic’, evident in much women’s fiction (an idea posited by Patricia Smith in Lesbian Panic, 1997). I begin by constructing a framework for my argument from the disparate yet related scholarship of several theorists, including Terry Castle, Eve Sedgwick, Claude Lévi-Strauss and Gayle Rubin. My argument hinges on the claim that lesbianism threatens cultural order – based upon male homosocial relationships and the reciprocal exchange of women – in a similar way to incest. Therefore, lesbianism is subject to extreme repression, rendered shady and invisible in history and literature. Following this theoretical introduction, I argue that the Gothic genre – that twilight realm of unconscious fantasies and forbidden desires – can be used as a tool for subverting the repressive system that keeps lesbianism in its place, bringing its silence into articulation. Through the self-conscious use of Gothic tropes in Nightwood and Affinity, Djuna Barnes and Sarah Waters write the lesbian back into tangible existence, ‘repossessing’ the spectre of the lesbian towards their own emancipating ends. In particular, the incest taboo and the love triangle are twisted into new shapes in these novels, so that all that Western culture designates as ‘abject’ becomes eerily illuminated by the Gothic’s unflinching perspective. Finally, I discuss the options available when concluding a lesbian novel and the effects of genre on narrative outcome: Is a happy ending possible in a realist lesbian novel? Could the Gothic genre hold the key to unravelling the silence of lesbian panic? My conclusion leaves discussion open to other perspectives, arguments, and, of course, to further scholarship

An Anatomy of Disbelief: Discussions of Slavery Before and After Rebellion and the Ways Power Reinforces Narratives of Impossibility

This paper is a historiographical exploration of freedom and the notion of thinkability through the lens of the Stono Revolt and Haitian Revolution. This paper builds upon extension scholarship of the thinkability of the Haitian Revolution and adds a transnational comparative element by looking for similarities with the earlier Stono Revolt. By exploring two historical events that are often ignored or misrepresented, this paper aims to analyze the ways in which slavery and enslaved individuals were viewed before and after such events. Such changes in perspective and rhetoric can aid in ascertaining the various ways these isolated moments of resistance had an ideological impact on colonial powers. This paper aims to provide an overview of attitudes and ideology concerning methods of slavery and enslavement and discuss the lived experiences of those who were enslaved, highlighting the methods of rebellion and resistance. This information can also be used to inform current-day decisions about the ways we educate ourselves on and discuss these topics, as well as the general importance of elevating the history of these events so they are no longer viewed as unthinkable or impossible

Effects of Cooling and Postharvest Storage Methods on Broccoli Quality

Broccoli (Brassica oleracea L. var. italica) is a cool-weather vegetable that is grown for its edible flowering heads and stalks. Broccoli inflorescences are immature plant organs with high respiration rates, resulting in a rapid loss of quality after harvest. The effects of cooling and storage methods on postharvest broccoli quality were evaluated based on metabolite contents of broccoli samples stored for 0, 7, 14, 21, 28, and 35 days. Sugar and organic acid contents were measured for broccoli harvested Fall 2018. Contents were compared for two cultivars (‘Diplomat’ and ‘Arcadia’) and two temperature treatments (not precooled and stored at 6 [superscript zero] ⁰C, and precooled with an ice slurry and stored at 0 ⁰C in ice). Glucosinolate, volatile, carotenoid, and chlorophyll contents were measured for broccoli harvested Summer 2019. Contents were compared for two cultivars (‘BH053’ and ‘Emerald Crown’) and two temperature treatments (precooled with top icing and stored at 7 ⁰C, and precooled with an ice slurry and stored at 0 ⁰C in ice). Cultivar, storage temperature, and storage time significantly affected metabolite contents in broccoli. Sucrose content was significantly greater for ‘Diplomat,’ while organic acid content was greater for ‘Arcadia.’ Carotenoid, and chlorophyll contents were significantly greater for ‘BH053,’ while glucosinolate and dimethyl disulfide content was significantly greater for ‘Emerald Crown.’ Broccoli stored at 7 ⁰C had significantly greater dimethyl disulfide contents while broccoli stored at 0 ⁰C had significantly greater sucrose and glucosinolate contents. Sugars, organic acids, carotenoids, and chlorophyll significantly decreased within 21 days during storage, while glucosinolates were unaffected by storage time. However, the sulfur-containing volatiles increased from 21 to 35 days. These results indicate that the postharvest quality of broccoli was significantly greater for ‘Diplomat’ than for ‘Arcadia,’ and greater for ‘BH053’ than for ‘Emerald Crown.’ In addition, these results suggest that storage iii at lower temperatures helps to maintain postharvest quality of broccoli by decreasing the loss of nutritionally important glucosinolates and sugars, while preventing the production of volatiles responsible for off-odors

Apopka Insect Field Guide

For my master\u27s project I created a printable insect field guide specific to my area for use by the local elementary and middle schools. My property is located near both Lakeville Elementary School and Piedmont Lakes Middle School, therefore insects collected in my garden should closely approximate the insects that could potentially be seen at either school. A targeted insect guide will help facilitate any number of observational activities and may encourage the schools to plant insect friendly vegetation to increase their abundance of insects. My goal is for this teaching tool to encourage local teachers to include insect education as part of their science curriculum. There are several components to the project. First, I collected insects using a sweep net during the day and a blacklight at night. The resulting insect collection is shown in Appendix 2. I then created 20 scientific illustrations from a portion of the collection, all of which can be found in a Box folder. I used these illustrations to create the printable field guide. The assembly instructions for the field guide can be found in Appendix 1. Insects should be a part of every comprehensive science education due to their diversity, abundance, ecological importance, and usefulness as a tool for teaching larger biological concepts. It is important that teachers have access to materials that make it easy to include insects as part of their curriculum, and I hope that by creating an Apopka Insect Field Guide I can encourage teachers at my local elementary and middle schools to bring students outside to observe insects. I will distribute this field guide to teachers at both schools as a .PDF file. In the future, I can add additional entries into the field guide as I complete more illustrations and find additional insect species. I can also help any interested teachers plant pollinator gardens that will attract more insects for observation

The Perspectives of School Resource Officers on Job Responsibilities and Training

As school security measures are increasing, including the use of school resource officers (SRO) throughout the United States, there is a concern that these officers are being used as disciplinarians rather than being in the schools to ensure student safety. There is very little research that looks at the job expectations for SROs and if the training they receive reflects what is required of them. To address this issue, this study will provide the perspectives that SROs have on their job responsibilities, what they believe their responsibilities should be, and if the training they received reflects those responsibilities. This study used in-depth interviews and observations to gain insight into the roles and the training of SROs in the modern world. The study discovered four major themes that relate to the training and roles of SRO

Olive Custance, Nostalgia, and Decadent Conservatism

Olive Custance was one of the most prolific women poets published in The Yellow Book, with poems appearing in eight of its thirteen volumes. She is also mentioned in several studies of the fin de siècle; as her 1972 bibliographer Nancy J. Hawkey states: ‘her name is invariably included in contemporary lists of representative poets’ of the 1890s. For example, in 1925, Richard Le Gallienne fondly recalled her ‘flower-like girlish loveliness’ at John Lane’s teas and includes her in a list of prominent ‘minor poets’ of the period. In The Eighteen Nineties (1913), Holbrook Jackson groups her among ‘those poets who give expression to moods more attuned to end-of-the-century emotions’. This fosters the impression that Custance did not continue writing beyond the fin de siècle. Modern critics perpetuate this notion, observing her apparent poetic silence following her final volume, The Inn of Dreams (1911), which itself consisted largely of reprints from The Blue Bird (1905). However, Custance in fact continued publishing long after 1911, producing work throughout the 1920s, 30s and 40s, until her death in 1944. In this article, I will consider why her later work has been overlooked, contextualizing her position in the twentieth century. This investigation provokes challenging questions about how we might address the disquieting political uses to which Decadent poetry may be put. &nbsp