Browsing by Subject "Form"
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Item Some versions of the fragment, 1700-1800(2014-08) Schneider, Rachel Marie; Bertelsen, Lance; Cohen, Matt, 1970-; Moore, Lisa L; Baker, Samuel; Pagani, KarenSome Versions of the Fragment, 1700-1800 examines the eighteenth-century literary print fragment archive to redefine the fragment as a genre typified by its materiality. Eighteenth-century fragments included not just sentimental poems, but novels, satires, and political pamphlets. They are both long and short; written by famous and anonymous authors; canonical and unknown. This dissertation, in recuperating the eighteenth-century fragment’s rich variety, offers a taxonomy that includes three versions of the fragment: the unintentional, the intentional, and the complete. Examining the fragment in this way not only provides categories that can help us better understand how fragments fit within various social and cultural conditions in the eighteenth century, but also how these ways of understanding the fragment can help critics account for its evolutions today. Previous analyses of the literary fragment have emphasized its metaphorical qualities and its formal dimensions. This dissertation argues that the genre is defined no less by its materiality: prefaces, punctuation, and page arrangements are the common constitutive elements shared by all three versions of the fragment. By paying attention to the eighteenth-century fragment’s materiality, critics today can better account for the fragment’s role in the period’s generic developments, as well as its evolving literary marketplace.Item Symbolic heroes : superhero films in a post 9/11 world(2012-05) Welsh, Michael Tyler; Brummett, Barry, 1951-; Treat, ShaunThis thesis seeks to offer a rhetorical explanation to the sudden rise of superhero films in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. This study draws on the theoretical writings of Kenneth Burke and his concepts of equipment for living and form. I argue through the rhetorical usage of form these films have constructed symbols that respond to the trauma and fears audiences experience living in the context of a post 9/11 world. Chapter one outlines a historical literature review tracing the origins of superhero films to their literary roots in comic books. This literature review outlines the history of comic book characters addressing social fear and trauma throughout the United States' history and suggests that superhero movies continue this tradition through the visual medium of film. Chapter two constructs a methodology in which to critically examine these films. The chapter outlines Burke's concept of the Symbol and Barry Brummett's notion of the rhetorical homology. With this methodology in place, chapter three and four present case studies explicating how form manifests itself in specific superhero films and explores the rhetorical influence these movies have on audiences. Chapter three examines the Symbol that is found within three films: Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and Spider-man. Chapter four looks critically at the rhetorical homology that exists between the film 300 and the Bush administrations justification of the Iraq invasion. Furthermore, chapter four defines the Mask found in V for Vendetta as a site for political protest and a rhetorical source of empowerment for the disenfranchised. The concluding chapter investigates the ramifications of these symbols and critiques the messages some of them suggest to audiences and also discusses the opportunity for further research in the subject area.Item When innovativeness in form matters: the joint impact of form innovativeness and expected innovativeness type on product evaluations over time(Texas A&M University, 2007-09-17) Kroff, Michael WilliamPast research in the area of product innovativeness has been dominated by studies conducted at the firm level. Furthermore, these studies principally lack a consumer perspective on the product innovativeness - product performance relationship. The purpose of this dissertation is to explore three seemingly critical questions regarding the impact of product innovativeness dimensions on the evaluation of innovative products at the individual level: (i) how do consumers evaluate and respond to different types of product innovativeness? (ii) do these evaluations change over time?, and (iii) under what conditions is change most likely to occur? Specifically, new visual design features (i.e., form innovativeness) and new non-visual features (i.e., function innovativeness) are empirically tested to understand how they interact and relate to new product evaluations. Within this research, attitudes and behavioral intentions toward products with innovative features are measured over time to assess how and when they might change. Two experiments were conducted to empirically test the impact of form innovativeness on functionally innovative products over time. Participants in both experiments received multiple exposures to innovative products, rating their attitudes and behavioral intentions toward the products after each exposure. Participants in the first experiment saw a visual representation of the products only once while those in the second experiment saw the products during each exposure. Results from two experiments suggest that form innovativeness does indeed have a changing impact on the liking of innovative products. Furthermore, this change is moderated by the product's visual presence or absence. Finally, this change occurs when innovativeness in form is applied to either a form product or to a function product.