Jacob Herrmann | Rice University (original) (raw)
Papers by Jacob Herrmann
The Journal of Undergraduate Research, 2011
The servants within 18th-and 19th-century English literature play an undoubtedly vital role withi... more The servants within 18th-and 19th-century English literature play an undoubtedly vital role within everyday life. Elizabeth Langland highlights this point in her discussion of the middle class: "Running the middle-class household, which by definition included at least one servant, was an exercise in class management, a process both inscribed and revealed in the Victorian novel" (291). In Victorian England, especially, class and rank were everything. While during the Romantic period servants were common, rising concerns for their role in the household becomes more apparent during the Victorian Era. Gothic novelists take their concerns for these domestic issues and use the servants as easy targets to become scapegoats in the novel themselves. In both the The Castle of Otranto and Wuthering Heights, the fear of exploited power and class position leads the authors to use servants as ignorant tools in order to heighten the suspense and terror, thereby exhibiting the concerns for their role in society. Nelly Dean in Wuthering Heights, for instance, interferes with dealings between the inhabitants of Thrushcross Grange and Wuthering Heights so much that some critics see her as the "villain." When she has a chance to stop Isabella from entering Wuthering Heights, she neglects her duty and instead follows her inside. Other servants, such as Joseph, increase the terror by releasing the dogs to attack Lockwood as he leaves Wuthering Heights. In The Castle of Otranto the servants, especially Bianca, enhance the terror by telling of the horrific sights they encounter, like the giant hand. While it is true that they manage daily household duties and often care for children, they also have the opportunity to abuse their power, which causes anxiety among the ruling classes. This anxiety over the abuse of power, which the upper class seems to fear, is a unique and interesting situation. The author Graeme Tytler says, "Although masters (and mistresses) ultimately have the upper hand of their servants, it is noteworthy how much power servants exercise within the sphere of domination to which they are subject" (44). The servants, although subordinate to their masters, hold much control over the domestic sphere. They are not only in charge of chores and cleaning, but the most trusted ones also help raise children and act as the master's confidant-someone they can talk to and confide in. The servants are constantly around the family and are able to observe all the innerworkings of the household. There was a massive fear during this time that servants, the more inferior beings, would rise up against the upper classes and assume control: "If the master lost status in the outside world, or if coalitions within the family, formed with or without the assistance of the servant, led to a decline of the master's status within the family, the servant might well be tempted to betray a master who was no longer quite as masterful" (Coser 36). The master's status, whether through social or financial loss, gave an excuse for servants to seek control. Servants could seek control and rise through the ranks, in theory, in a number of different ways.
Association of College and Research Libraries, 2021
Chapter 20 in Teaching About Fake News: Lesson Plans for Different Disciplines and Audiences
Proquest Dissertations Publishing, 2020
This study combines the theories of ethno-symbolism and imperium studies to examine how the cultu... more This study combines the theories of ethno-symbolism and imperium studies to examine how the cultural and political effects of colonial subjugation in a medieval context shape ideological construction of nation and empire within Arthurian literature.This study combines the theories of ethno-symbolism and imperium studies to examine how the cultural and political effects of colonial subjugation in a medieval context shape ideological construction of nation and empire within Arthurian literature.
The Peer Review: Journal for Writing Center Practitioners, 2017
Excerpt: Conceptualizing and creating “safe spaces” or “brave spaces” for LGBTQ+ students within ... more Excerpt:
Conceptualizing and creating “safe spaces” or “brave spaces” for LGBTQ+ students within the writing center presents unique challenges. These students need to feel safe from negative repercussions based on their gender and sexual identity. They need to feel welcomed within the writing center, while also having a space in which to discuss and develop their writing and personal writerly identity. As an often invisible minority within the college campus setting, LGBTQ+ students have specific concerns that need to be addressed in order to ensure a productive, safe environment in which to work and learn. At the same time, writing centers must also be committed to upholding values of higher education and promoting equitable academic access for all students. Addressing LGBTQ+ concerns in the writing center serves not only these minority students, but also opens opportunities for all students to engage in critical societal discourses and build critical thinking skills.
Proceedings from the Northern Plains Conference on Early British Literature , 2016
Monsters, such as Bisclavret and the loathly lady, not only function as creatures of intrigue, bu... more Monsters, such as Bisclavret and the loathly lady, not only function as creatures of intrigue, but they are also important symbols through which to access the complexity of human identity, or more specifically in the case of “Bisclavret” and “The Wife of Bath’s Tale,” issues of gendered power. Considering the work of Jeffrey Jerome Cohen regarding Monster Theory and Caroline Walker Bynum’s Metamorphosis and Identity (2005), among others, this paper demonstrates how monstrous bodies serve as tools to subvert traditional notions of gendered agency and identity in the Middle Ages, and in turn, shows that the truly monstrous characters are those who commit sexual transgressions against cultural expectations.
Proceedings from the Northern Plains Conference on Early British Literature, 2016
Open Prairie: Electronic Thesis and Dissertations , 2013
This study examines the use of post-9/11 films (such as The Dark Knight [2008] and District 9 [20... more This study examines the use of post-9/11 films (such as The Dark Knight [2008] and District 9 [2009]) and how America has constructed its national purpose through media and popular culture representations.
Proceedings of the Northern Plains Early British Literature Conference, 2013
Tolkien appears to have struggled with the concept of trolls in both The Hobbit and The Lord of t... more Tolkien appears to have struggled with the concept of trolls in both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Undoubtedly, trolls have come a long way from their Nordic roots in Icelandic saga and Old Scandinavian folktales; however, the portrait of these creatures remains just as ambiguous as their origins. Through an examination of trolls in Icelandic sagas, Scandinavian folktales, and Tolkien’s works, one can begin to reconstruct a map of how trolls have developed into recognizable creatures that they are today.
The Journal of Undergraduate Research, 2011
The servants within 18th-and 19th-century English literature play an undoubtedly vital role withi... more The servants within 18th-and 19th-century English literature play an undoubtedly vital role within everyday life. Elizabeth Langland highlights this point in her discussion of the middle class: "Running the middle-class household, which by definition included at least one servant, was an exercise in class management, a process both inscribed and revealed in the Victorian novel" (291). In Victorian England, especially, class and rank were everything. While during the Romantic period servants were common, rising concerns for their role in the household becomes more apparent during the Victorian Era. Gothic novelists take their concerns for these domestic issues and use the servants as easy targets to become scapegoats in the novel themselves. In both the The Castle of Otranto and Wuthering Heights, the fear of exploited power and class position leads the authors to use servants as ignorant tools in order to heighten the suspense and terror, thereby exhibiting the concerns for their role in society. Nelly Dean in Wuthering Heights, for instance, interferes with dealings between the inhabitants of Thrushcross Grange and Wuthering Heights so much that some critics see her as the "villain." When she has a chance to stop Isabella from entering Wuthering Heights, she neglects her duty and instead follows her inside. Other servants, such as Joseph, increase the terror by releasing the dogs to attack Lockwood as he leaves Wuthering Heights. In The Castle of Otranto the servants, especially Bianca, enhance the terror by telling of the horrific sights they encounter, like the giant hand. While it is true that they manage daily household duties and often care for children, they also have the opportunity to abuse their power, which causes anxiety among the ruling classes. This anxiety over the abuse of power, which the upper class seems to fear, is a unique and interesting situation. The author Graeme Tytler says, "Although masters (and mistresses) ultimately have the upper hand of their servants, it is noteworthy how much power servants exercise within the sphere of domination to which they are subject" (44). The servants, although subordinate to their masters, hold much control over the domestic sphere. They are not only in charge of chores and cleaning, but the most trusted ones also help raise children and act as the master's confidant-someone they can talk to and confide in. The servants are constantly around the family and are able to observe all the innerworkings of the household. There was a massive fear during this time that servants, the more inferior beings, would rise up against the upper classes and assume control: "If the master lost status in the outside world, or if coalitions within the family, formed with or without the assistance of the servant, led to a decline of the master's status within the family, the servant might well be tempted to betray a master who was no longer quite as masterful" (Coser 36). The master's status, whether through social or financial loss, gave an excuse for servants to seek control. Servants could seek control and rise through the ranks, in theory, in a number of different ways.
Association of College and Research Libraries, 2021
Chapter 20 in Teaching About Fake News: Lesson Plans for Different Disciplines and Audiences
Proquest Dissertations Publishing, 2020
This study combines the theories of ethno-symbolism and imperium studies to examine how the cultu... more This study combines the theories of ethno-symbolism and imperium studies to examine how the cultural and political effects of colonial subjugation in a medieval context shape ideological construction of nation and empire within Arthurian literature.This study combines the theories of ethno-symbolism and imperium studies to examine how the cultural and political effects of colonial subjugation in a medieval context shape ideological construction of nation and empire within Arthurian literature.
The Peer Review: Journal for Writing Center Practitioners, 2017
Excerpt: Conceptualizing and creating “safe spaces” or “brave spaces” for LGBTQ+ students within ... more Excerpt:
Conceptualizing and creating “safe spaces” or “brave spaces” for LGBTQ+ students within the writing center presents unique challenges. These students need to feel safe from negative repercussions based on their gender and sexual identity. They need to feel welcomed within the writing center, while also having a space in which to discuss and develop their writing and personal writerly identity. As an often invisible minority within the college campus setting, LGBTQ+ students have specific concerns that need to be addressed in order to ensure a productive, safe environment in which to work and learn. At the same time, writing centers must also be committed to upholding values of higher education and promoting equitable academic access for all students. Addressing LGBTQ+ concerns in the writing center serves not only these minority students, but also opens opportunities for all students to engage in critical societal discourses and build critical thinking skills.
Proceedings from the Northern Plains Conference on Early British Literature , 2016
Monsters, such as Bisclavret and the loathly lady, not only function as creatures of intrigue, bu... more Monsters, such as Bisclavret and the loathly lady, not only function as creatures of intrigue, but they are also important symbols through which to access the complexity of human identity, or more specifically in the case of “Bisclavret” and “The Wife of Bath’s Tale,” issues of gendered power. Considering the work of Jeffrey Jerome Cohen regarding Monster Theory and Caroline Walker Bynum’s Metamorphosis and Identity (2005), among others, this paper demonstrates how monstrous bodies serve as tools to subvert traditional notions of gendered agency and identity in the Middle Ages, and in turn, shows that the truly monstrous characters are those who commit sexual transgressions against cultural expectations.
Proceedings from the Northern Plains Conference on Early British Literature, 2016
Open Prairie: Electronic Thesis and Dissertations , 2013
This study examines the use of post-9/11 films (such as The Dark Knight [2008] and District 9 [20... more This study examines the use of post-9/11 films (such as The Dark Knight [2008] and District 9 [2009]) and how America has constructed its national purpose through media and popular culture representations.
Proceedings of the Northern Plains Early British Literature Conference, 2013
Tolkien appears to have struggled with the concept of trolls in both The Hobbit and The Lord of t... more Tolkien appears to have struggled with the concept of trolls in both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Undoubtedly, trolls have come a long way from their Nordic roots in Icelandic saga and Old Scandinavian folktales; however, the portrait of these creatures remains just as ambiguous as their origins. Through an examination of trolls in Icelandic sagas, Scandinavian folktales, and Tolkien’s works, one can begin to reconstruct a map of how trolls have developed into recognizable creatures that they are today.