Interdisciplinary Social & Cultural Studies
Asma Ahmed, aaa.5141@mavs.uta.edu
University of Texas Arlington, with Dr. Brent Sasley
Ethiopia’s Foreign Policy: Clan Politics and Drive to the Sea
This research analyses Ethiopia's foreign policy in the Horn of Africa, particularly its relations with Somalia. The civil war and the slide into chaos and disorder have been used to justify Ethiopia's increasing and controversial interventionism. As the dominant actor in the region, landlocked Ethiopia is exhibiting ambitions for access to the sea and echoes of imperialism to the detriment of Somali sovereignty and international law. This is exemplified by the Memorandum of Understanding between Ethiopia and Somaliland in January 2024 which guarantees this drive to the sea in exchange for official recognition of the secessionist Somali state. Through this case study, this research demonstrates how Ethiopia, by using coercion, manipulating clan rivalries, and eroding Somali federal institutions is pursuing access to the Red Sea and the power dynamics unfoding there. This research aims, ultimately, to contribute to a better understanding of the ongoing instability, regional power asymmetries and the paradigms shaping the Horn of Africa.
Christopher Edwards, edw71246@ttu.edu
Texas Tech University, with Dr. Scott Baugh
Beyond the Rainbow: Charting a Course to the Redworld Through Obayashi’s Hausu (1977)
In 1957, Northrop Frye published Anatomy of Criticism: Four Essays. This seminal work is a keystone of narratological studies and provides literary scholars with a structured approach with which to explore the worlds created by storytellers, poets, playwrights, and filmmakers. In his third essay Frye established the Greenworld archetype of comedy as a natural, though often fantastical, setting where characters experience transformation and resolve otherwise intractable conflicts. While Frye uses the forest outside of the city in Shakespeare’s late-16th-century A Midsummer Night’s Dream as his prime example of this archetype, younger readers may recognize more recent Greenworlds such as Oz or Narnia. The Greenworld is tied to comedy; the characters are rewarded with insight, growth and resolution and often return safely to their original worlds, and all are wiser for their journey. Despite similar fantastical settings, the Greenworld archetype does not comfortably apply to tales of tragedy, death, and destruction. This research proposes an equal and Opposite Redworld archetype for horror. A fantastical setting that still operates outside of the rules defined by a character’s 'real world' setting does not award transformation or resolution but rather doom, chaos, and destruction. Through close readings of evidence presented within the mise-en-scène of Nobuhiko Obayashi’s 1977 cult horror film Hausu (House), this work demonstrates how Obayashi’s chaotic exaggeration of well-worn cinematic tropes allows for vivid visual representation of Redworld elements. This analysis establishes a theoretical framework that enables future cinematic scholars to examine under-researched genres through a new narratological approach.
Olivia Hundley, o.h.hundley@tcu.edu
Texas Christian University, with Dr. Cathy R. Cox
Existential Isolation (EI) and Its Effects on Fear of Victimization (FOV)
This study examined the effect that existential isolation (El) has on fear of victimization. On one hand, considering research demonstrating that loneliness is associated with greater victimization concerns, it was hypothesized thatparticipants scoring high on EI would exhibit a similar pattern of results. On the other hand, however, although EI and loneliness are positively related to each other, they are psychologically unique constructs. This means that heightened EI may be associated with a reduced fear of victimization. Participants included 141 college students who completed measures of EI, loneliness, and different fear of victimization scales via Qualtrics. Both a general correlation and partial correlation (i.e., excluding the effects of loneliness) were run on the data. Theresults revealed that EI was negatively related to fear of victimization. These effects remained when controlling for people's loneliness levels. This study has not only helped further differentiate the concepts of EI and loneliness, but ithas also added to the field's general knowledge of fear of victimization. In contrast to only looking at demographics for increase in fear of victimization, now we have opened a door for interpersonal factors. Additionally, this research hassuggested that there is potential for EI to be a mediator for managing anxieties about fear of victimization. Future research should be directed toward proving causality between the constructs.