SSA 2017

Worse than a Thousand Deaths: The Afterlife of Robert Devereux, Second Earl of Essex, in Seventeenth Century Drama (Paper)
Ben Gee, Hannah Palmatary, Cecelia Weingart
This project, initiated under Professor Hank Dobin's guidance in the summer of 2015 alongside fellow prospective panelist Hannah Palmatary, contains a detailed look at the legacy of Robert Devereux in all kinds of literature since his ignominious execution in 1601 for rebellion against his sometime romantic interest, England's Queen Elizabeth I. As we studied and researched various "representations" of the Earl in art, literature, and eventually film and other medias as well, we incorporated these representations into a digital timeline that neatly chronicles the chronological and typological progression of works that impacted the Earl's multifarious and contradictory legacy - sometimes a fool or a ruffian, even a villain, and other times a heroic remnant of a chivalrous past put to rest with his downfall. The Earl's fascinating life and even more compelling afterlife are both examined in my study, which focuses on seventeenth century dramatic portrayals of Essex.

The Essex Timeline: A Thousand Times Worse Than Death (Digital Story)
Cecelia Weingart, Hannah Palmatary, Ben Gee
My focus within the project has been the performance of a play on February 7, 1601. By reading scholarly essays and watching film and television representations of the event, I explored the historical questions of the intentions behind the performance and the identity of the play.

Ambiguous Essex - Examining Morality in Children's Literature (Digital Story)
Hannah Palmatary, Ben Gee, Cecelia Weingart
The Earl of Essex’s dramatic rise to power and epic fall from grace in Queen Elizabeth I's court mark the Earl as one of the most fascinating characters in British history. Essex possessed a mercurial and ambitious personality which fueled his amorous, yet volatile relationship with Elizabeth. Given the dynamic nature of the Essex story and the man himself, Essex has been the subject of many imaginative historical and fictitious retellings. However, the characterization of Essex in these retellings differs drastically—from evil antagonist to loving hero, from laughingstock to gentleman to madman. Within the genre of children’s literature, the Earl’s ambiguous nature becomes crystallized, often taking the form of a morally abstruse character. This project aims to examine the moral uncertainty in representations of Essex in children’s literature and discuss the potential for and value of this type of character to enhance moral development in children.

The Storm Inside (Creative Writing)
Andross Blenman
I intend to read a short story I have written about a teenage boy. He is an outcast at his school and feels misunderstood everyone around him, even his family. After his latest incident at school he is once again betrayed another friend. This most recent betrayal is the final straw, and leads to the boy to discover a means to wreak dark vengeance upon those that have hurt him. This weapon is perhaps the most globally destructive force in the history of mankind, something no other human has been capable of taming in their life time: the weather. However, we shall see that even the destructive power of the weather pales in comparison to the storm that rages inside each and everyone of thus. Especially this boy.

AUGUST (Creative Writing)
Win Gustin
Written over the course of one month, AUGUST is an original four-part short story detailing four dinners with four different people, each with the implication that each person will never be seen again. Each part represents a different significant other calling back memories from months and years prior, and each part is its own ride of a mixture of bittersweet emotion, all written from my point of view compounded with memories of the past. The project is an exploration into sexuality, loss, acceptance, passionate emotion, and regret.