This thesis explores the depiction of the ‘other’ and foreignness in Stoker’s Dracula by examining the representation of the Dutch Abraham Van Helsing and the American Quincey Morris, rather than...Show moreThis thesis explores the depiction of the ‘other’ and foreignness in Stoker’s Dracula by examining the representation of the Dutch Abraham Van Helsing and the American Quincey Morris, rather than focusing on the titular character.Show less
Since the very first published appearance of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth, contained within the adventure-filled pages of The Hobbit (1937), readers have been drawn into the fantastical, wondrous...Show moreSince the very first published appearance of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth, contained within the adventure-filled pages of The Hobbit (1937), readers have been drawn into the fantastical, wondrous world so masterfully crafted by this Oxford philologist. Such an extensive collection of stories, unfinished tales, and background information garners much opportunity for study, both casual and academic. Academic interest in particular has come so far as to spawn its own field of ‘Tolkien Studies’, entirely dedicated to the study of Tolkien and his oeuvre. Perhaps the most heated debate within Tolkien Studies considers whether Tolkien’s legendarium is essentially Christian or Pagan in nature. What has not yet been offered is an examination of Arda’s religion that would suit the wishes of its author: a discussion of religion in Tolkien’s works from inside Middle-earth. This thesis will consider the signs and instances of reverence and religion from an ‘in-world’ perspective, in the same fashion that a wanderer of Middle-earth would encounter them, and in doing so, brings a new and valuable approach to the Christian/Pagan debate, namely the approach of the writer and the sub-creator.Show less
This thesis investigates the morphological status of COVID-related splinters. It examines whether the splinters cov(i)-, -demic, and quaran- are in the process of becoming combining forms, in...Show moreThis thesis investigates the morphological status of COVID-related splinters. It examines whether the splinters cov(i)-, -demic, and quaran- are in the process of becoming combining forms, in similar vein to forms like -(a)holic, a splinter which has developed into a combining form. Corpus-based investigation and feature-based analysis have shown that cov(i)- and -demic indeed behave like combining forms in word formation processes, while quaran- does not. However, an analysis of its lexical structure has indicated that it is not impossible for quaran- to become a combining form eventually.Show less
This thesis discusses the role of orphans in Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist and Bleak House. It argues that the role of the orphan is to function as a literary device with which the ideology of the...Show moreThis thesis discusses the role of orphans in Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist and Bleak House. It argues that the role of the orphan is to function as a literary device with which the ideology of the Victorian family can be challenged as well as consolidated.Show less
This thesis examines the use of a patriarchal system as a default in fantasy literature, and it critically explores the possibility of creating more equal systems – such as a matriarchal one that...Show moreThis thesis examines the use of a patriarchal system as a default in fantasy literature, and it critically explores the possibility of creating more equal systems – such as a matriarchal one that is not merely the mirror image of patriarchy – within the worldbuilding of fantasy novels. It does so by comparing the patriarchal system in Mervyn Peake's Titus Groan (1946), to the matriarchal system in Samantha Shannon's The Priory of the Orange Tree (2019).Show less
