An Examination of Narrative and Thematic Devices in Virginia Woolf\u27s To the Lighthouse and Mrs. Dalloway

The purpose of this master’s thesis is to examine the narrative and thematic devices Virginia Woolf employs in her two novels, To the Lighthouse and Mrs. Dalloway and how her techniques impact the way in which the readers view the characters and their relationships. Her use of narrator and themes in both novels helps develop more complex characters, making them more relatable and their situations examples that readers can use in life outside the novels. This thesis looks directly at her use of language and character development in order to examine how she achieves success in her novels. The first chapter of this thesis focuses on To the Lighthouse and the ways in which Woolf uses the narrative as a sort of laboratory for experimenting with her early family life. In doing this, she uses narrative techniques that serve not only her purposes as author, but she in turn writes a tale that is a model of family life and relationships that work for a population of readers in general. The tale is a simple exploration of family life, but one that creates a sort of “how-to” for readers. These ideas are explored through the narrator and thematic structure that occur throughout the novel. The second chapter of this thesis focuses on Mrs. Dalloway and how Woolf uses this narrative to create a set of characters who, when all woven together, create a model of human experience at its most powerful. Woolf dramatizes situations in this novel, through her narrative devices and thematic structure, which show the depth to which human beings experience life and the impact that major life events can have on the human psyche. The characters experience and feel life altering events all in a single day, emphasizing how “regular” they are, and Woolf exemplifies that power through her narrator and the way in which she finally brings the characters to one another. Through the narrative and thematic devices Woolf employs in this novel, she creates a model for readers to live by, showing what works and what does not, sharing the intimate details these characters experience in their dramatic situations

Analysis of Minor League Rule Changes Effect on Stolen Bases

This study uses various statistical analyses to evaluate the justification of rule changes for Major League Baseball that were implemented within the Minor Leagues during the 2021 minor league season. The primary focus of the study is predicting how some of these Minor League rule changes could affect the stolen base success rate and the number of attempts per game within the Major Leagues. A survey was conducted to evaluate how fans feel about stolen bases within the current game and if rules should be altered to increase the number of stolen bases that occur. Additionally, recorded Major and Minor League data was compared between 2019 and 2021 with the Major Leagues and the Double-A level being considered as control groups since no rule changes were implemented that would affect stolen base rates but each of the other leagues brought in an experimental rule change. This is an exploratory study that sets the table for other studies to follow

Towards a Traceable Enterprise Architecture for Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises

The practice of Enterprise Architecture (EA) continues to develop. Many large organizations are using EA processes and practices to help manage their complex set of integrated processes and applications. The set of integrated processes and applications required to meet their unique business requirements. Large organizations inherently recognize that an effective EA assists the enterprise to determine its desired direction. The resulting EA is then used to help manage the changes required to achieve the enterprises chosen destination. In a similar manner, Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) can benefit from EA practices. Achieving these benefits requires EA practices and tools be appropriately scaled to the size of the enterprise. My objective is to address the EA needs of SMEs by researching appropriate EA best practices, building artifacts that embrace these practices, and then evaluating these artifacts to determine how well they meet the need

Anna Safley Houston and Early Twentieth Century Collectors

Anna Safley Houston was an eccentric woman from Chattanooga who had a compulsive desire to collect antiques. Houston’s glass collection is one of if not the finest glass collections in the world. Houston had much in common with other great collectors from the early twentieth century such as William Randolph Hearst, Armand Hammer, Bella King and others. Houston did a large amount of traveling, visiting every state along with Canada and Cuba. Houston also established a social and professional network of friend and family who helped her overcome certain difficulties of collecting. In addition, Houston wanted her work to be admired, refusing to sell many pieces of glassware because she was saving them for a museum. Houston differed from other collectors in the barriers she overcame in gathering her collection. Most great collectors from the early twentieth century attended prestigious universities and had made significant achievements in academics. Houston was forced to drop out of middle school to assume family responsibilities when her mother died. Also, collectors often were very wealthy as collecting tended to be quite costly. While Houston was a successful business woman, she was not wealthy. When the Great Depression came, Houston would chose to sell her house instead of selling part of her precious collection. Houston would go on to construct a barn to live in with all of her antiques. The fact that Houston was able to amass one of the greatest collections in the world without being wealthy or highly educated is truly remarkable

Female Adolescent Offender\u27s Experience with Restorative Justice Practice

This hermeneutic study examines the lived experience of one female juvenile offender as she went through the restorative justice practice of either victim-offender mediation (VOM) or group conferencing. Hermeneutics is an interpretive approach to looking at everyday experiences and uncovering what is usually hidden from us. When asked about her experience, one theme stood out as essential for the participant: becoming trustworthy. Several aspects including being listened to, re-developing relationships, and making amends with those who were harmed by the crime marked the participant\u27s transformation. These findings correspond with Erikson\u27s psychosocial stages of adolescence and young adulthood, as well as the work of developmental theorist, Carol Gilligan. Implications for social work practice include gaining a better understanding of the unique experiences of female adolescent offenders and aiding in the development of gender-specific programming in the field of juvenile corrections

Turn Alternation in Response to Substrate Vibration By Terrestrial Isopods, Porcellio, Laevis (Isopoda: Oniscidea) from Rural and Urban Habitats

Terrestrial isopods are known to increase the alternating mechanisms in response to adverse environmental conditions, a behavioral pattern presumably associated with efficient escape. The present study investigates whether turning behavior in response to vibration disturbance differs between natural populations inhabiting disturbed and undisturbed areas. Some specimens were col- lected from urban habitat characterized by construction and heavy automobile traffic, and others from relatively undisturbed rural habitat less than 10 kilometers distant. We examined maze turn alterna- tion in three groups: rural and urban terrestrial isopods exposed to vibration during testing, and rural isopods not exposed to vibration. As predicted, rural isopods exposed to vibration made significant- ly more turn alternations than rural isopods not exposed to vibration. However, rural vibration- exposed isopods also exhibited significantly greater turn alternation than vibration-exposed urban isopods. There was no significant difference between rural non-exposed and urban vibration-exposed isopods. These results indicate that isopods increase turn alternation when disturbed, but that previ- ous exposure to disturbance is associated with a reduction in the effect. Whether this is due to accli- mated or evolved behavioral mechanisms is presently unknown

Does right thoracotomy increase the risk of mitral valve reoperation?

ObjectiveThe study objective was to determine whether a right thoracotomy approach increases the risk of mitral valve reoperation.MethodsBetween January of 1993 and January of 2004, 2469 patients with mitral valve disease underwent 2570 reoperations (1508 replacements, 1062 repairs). The approach was median sternotomy in 2444 patients, right thoracotomy in 80 patients, and other in 46 patients. Multivariable logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with median sternotomy versus right thoracotomy, mitral valve repair versus replacement, hospital death, and stroke. Factors favoring median sternotomy (P < .03) included coronary artery bypass grafting (30% vs 2%), aortic valve replacement (39% vs 2%), tricuspid valve repair (27% vs 13%), fewer previous cardiac operations, more recent reoperation, and no prior left internal thoracic artery graft. These factors were used to construct a propensity score for risk-adjusting outcomes.ResultsHospital mortality was 6.7% (163/2444) for the median sternotomy approach and 6.3% (5/80) for the thoracotomy approach (P = .9). Risk factors (P < .04) included earlier surgery date, higher New York Heart Association class, emergency operation, multiple reoperations, and mitral valve replacement. Stroke occurred in 66 patients (2.7%) who underwent a median sternotomy and in 6 patients (7.5%) who underwent a thoracotomy (P = .006). Mitral valve replacement (vs repair) was more common in those receiving a thoracotomy (P < .04).ConclusionsCompared with median sternotomy, right thoracotomy is associated with a higher occurrence of stroke and less frequent mitral valve repair. Specific strategies for conducting the operation should be used to reduce the risk of stroke when right thoracotomy is used for mitral valve reoperation. In most instances, repeat median sternotomy, with its better exposure and greater latitude for concomitant procedures, is preferred