http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/keyword/class Inquiries Journal provides undergraduate and graduate students around the world a platform for the wide dissemination of academic work over a range of core disciplines. en-us Thu, 16 Apr 2026 22:04:04 -0400 Thu, 16 Apr 2026 22:04:04 -0400 http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1927/deconstructing-social-classification-and-mobility-the-hindu-varna-system-platos-magnificent-myth-and-the-british-caste-system By Aadi C. Krishna - This research elucidates the striking parallelism between the Hindu Varna System and Plato's Magnificent Myth through an unorthodox view of their class-based classification, social mobility, and meritocracy while arguing that these stem from the Arguments from Division of Labor and Biological Determinism. Furthermore, it establishes that the Caste System introduced in India by the British in the 18th Century fundamentally differs from the systems followed in ancient India and Athens and investigates the fundamental forces and the motivations behind its implementation. Lastly, the paper conducts... Fri, 10 Dec 2021 02:49 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1927/deconstructing-social-classification-and-mobility-the-hindu-varna-system-platos-magnificent-myth-and-the-british-caste-system http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1915/performance-of-class-in-the-socioeconomic-institutions-of-early-medieval-ireland By Jack R.T. Corp - Early medieval Irish society operated on an elaborate power structure formalized by law, practiced through social interaction, and maintained by tacit exploitation of the lower orders. This paper investigates the materialization of class hierarchies through the lived experiences of rural communities and the transient classifications of authority between peasants and commoners enforced by elite groups. Early Ireland’s hierarchical system refers to rank, a “perceived” construct perpetuated through expressions of prestige and ritual performance, but not to political authority, which... Fri, 08 Oct 2021 10:58 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1915/performance-of-class-in-the-socioeconomic-institutions-of-early-medieval-ireland http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1882/penelope-helen-and-the-ancient-greek-spectrum-of-femininity-observations-of-womanhood-in-the-homeric-epics By Jenn Beardsley - Although most Ancient Greek literature focused on male characters, a literary analysis of Homeric poetry reveals an inquisition of femininity, motherhood, and what it meant to be a woman in Ancient Greece. Throughout the epic The Iliad and its sequel The Odyssey, the Homeric poets created a spectrum of ideal versus unideal femininity, with notorious Helen on one end and faithful Penelope on the other. Dissection of each epic unveils an exploration into this spectrum of femininity through the use of motifs, or the repetition of a theme throughout a narrative. Specifically, the poets utilized the... Fri, 26 Feb 2021 02:40 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1882/penelope-helen-and-the-ancient-greek-spectrum-of-femininity-observations-of-womanhood-in-the-homeric-epics http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1866/material-nostalgia-in-classical-and-early-modern-drama By Marnie J. Monogue - The inescapability and influence of the past becomes most discernable with homecoming. A particularly powerful sense of nostalgia concentrates in textiles, especially when these objects purposefully invoke the past. More often than not, theatre uses textile props and clothing as the primary representative medium, enhancing storytelling capacity. These symbolic fabrics and costumes can best be characterized as Shakespeare’s “trappings and suits of woe,” as they function as both physical and psychological traps, but also allow for outward expression of “that within which... Thu, 21 Jan 2021 11:38 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1866/material-nostalgia-in-classical-and-early-modern-drama http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1851/bach-and-the-style-galant-progressive-elements-in-the-italian-concerto By Maggie Lu - While the music of Johann Sebastian Bach is often characterized by elaborate Baroque counterpoint and a relatively conservative set of aesthetic principles, elements of the emergent galant fashion are exemplified in certain mid-to-late career compositions. The galant style, which increasingly took hold of European music during the central decades of the eighteenth century, represents a simplicity and clarity divergent from the rigorous compositional approach that Bach has become remembered for. One of the most substantial instances of this stylistic progressivity occurs throughout his Italian... Tue, 15 Dec 2020 11:07 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1851/bach-and-the-style-galant-progressive-elements-in-the-italian-concerto http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1827/exploring-the-role-of-skin-tone-among-low-income-black-college-students By Chelsea G. Gardner - Light-skinned slaves, who were often the children of Black female slaves who were raped by their White masters, received slightly privileged treatment in comparison to their dark-skinned counterparts. For example, light-skinned slaves were allowed to work in the house of the master instead of working on the field. They also had more access to learning trade skills and received some schooling (Hunter 2007). During slavery, there was a small class of freed people who were early business and community leaders; these individuals were more likely to be light-skinned. After slavery, light-skinned Blacks... Tue, 27 Oct 2020 08:56 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1827/exploring-the-role-of-skin-tone-among-low-income-black-college-students http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1825/exploring-the-concept-of-time-using-metaphor-in-the-aeneid By Ziyang N. Su - Time has always been an abstract concept in human languages. To better understand how this temporal concept is addressed in different languages, it can be explored in the context of classical times through Latin texts. In the well-known piece The Aeneid, the author Virgil constantly refers to the concept of time in an overlapping timeline and we can interpret the intertwined timeline through figuration, substitution and action. This use of metaphors to visualize the abstract temporal concept is evident in classical Latin literature and thus can be expanded to the Latin context and even modern... Wed, 21 Oct 2020 07:51 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1825/exploring-the-concept-of-time-using-metaphor-in-the-aeneid http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1749/class-gender-and-the-anxieties-of-meritocracy-in-jacobean-england By Joshua B. Black - The staged plays of the early Jacobean period are valuable textual products for the literary critic, the cultural researcher and the historian alike. These plays are significant containers of knowledge about the mutually reinforcing social and political tensions of the early years of King James I’s reign. There is a body of literature which presently deals with questions about the complex class and gender politics of John Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi (1614): Frank Whigham concluded that the ‘play was written, at least in significant part, to dissect the actual workings of the... Tue, 08 Jan 2019 09:46 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1749/class-gender-and-the-anxieties-of-meritocracy-in-jacobean-england http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1545/a-16th-century-ovid-the-influence-of-classical-mythology-on-the-understanding-of-shakespeares-plays By Emily Gray - Commonly believed to be the single greatest writer and poet of the English language, as well as one of the most distinguished and esteemed dramatists in the entire world, William Shakespeare is credited with authoring approximately 38 works of theatre, 154 sonnets, two lengthy narrative poems, and several additional pieces of verse. While there exists some question concerning the authenticity of authorship of several of these dramatic works, scholars have determined that 32 of the 38 plays can unquestionably be attributed to Shakespeare (Root 119-132). With the majority of the writing of his known... Mon, 27 Feb 2017 05:47 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1545/a-16th-century-ovid-the-influence-of-classical-mythology-on-the-understanding-of-shakespeares-plays http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1389/social-brokers-reinforcing-the-family-to-increase-social-mobility By Spencer Barr - Social and economic wellbeing are not simply determined by the choices one makes. Social class and poverty display consistent patterns across groups and generations making social mobility and economic success difficult in individual lives. But there are some who seem to defy the limitations of social class and become successful despite humble or difficult beginnings. In particular, social brokers like governmental organizations, charities and philanthropists have become common in trying to decrease the negative effects of social stratification and provide resources for future success stories in... Mon, 11 Apr 2016 08:20 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1389/social-brokers-reinforcing-the-family-to-increase-social-mobility http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1368/utilizing-technology-for-learning-stem-subjects-perceptions-of-urban-african-american-middle-school-students By Xue Wen - This study was designed to explore current issues of access, interests and attitudes towards technology use in STEM related courses for a population of middle school students enrolled at a Title I urban school in the South. The participants in the study were largely African-American students enrolled in grades 6, 7 and 8. Data were collected from 124 usable anonymous surveys. The study focused on respondents’ perceptions of and experiences with computers and mobile devices, especially with respect to learning in math, science, technology and other so-called STEM courses. Potential differences... Mon, 22 Feb 2016 04:15 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1368/utilizing-technology-for-learning-stem-subjects-perceptions-of-urban-african-american-middle-school-students http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1353/book-review-a-brief-history-of-neoliberalism-by-david-harvey-2005 By Florence Lee - Michael Thompson, reviewing A Brief History of Neoliberalism by David Harvey, calls it ‘the world according to David Harvey’ (2005). This is an accurate remark: although erring slightly on the side of conspiracy, the book is a breathtaking overview of the ‘neoliberal world’ through Harvey’s neo-Marxist and anti-capitalist lens. The book is aimed at the general reader and is a non-technical, concise introduction to many of the key features of neoliberal theory: the economic practices proposing that human wellbeing can be attained by reducing state intervention, promoting... Fri, 12 Feb 2016 03:11 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1353/book-review-a-brief-history-of-neoliberalism-by-david-harvey-2005 http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1206/the-dichotomy-of-gender-in-euripides-bacchae By Hayley E. Tartell - In Euripides’ Bacchae, careful examination of the character Dionysus illuminates discrepancies in action based on gender. Ultimately, Dionysus’ effeminate nature compounded with his subversive measures toward women and male proclivities suggest an inherent duality. Dionysus’ vacillation between masculine and feminine tendencies characterizes him as a heteronormative embodiment of both males and females, in essence, a community or civilized society. However, since his duality also represents a loss of identity, one can deduce that the play advocates a pre-communal state of existence... Mon, 12 Oct 2015 09:44 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1206/the-dichotomy-of-gender-in-euripides-bacchae http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1015/the-many-faces-of-odysseus-in-classical-literature By Hayley E. Tartell - Throughout classical literature, the different depictions of Odysseus range widely: he is variably portrayed as a hero in Homer’s The Odyssey, a villain in Sophocles’ Philoctetes, a self-serving opportunist in Sophocles’ Ajax, a deceitful figure in Virgil’s Aeneid, and a scoundrel in Euripedes’ Hecuba. In The Odyssey, though stubborn and boastful, Odysseus otherwise exhibits courage, cunning, sharp intellect and concern for his men -– all traits that characterize the archetypal hero. In Philoctetes, Odysseus is deceitful and conniving, as he abandons morality... Wed, 18 Mar 2015 04:11 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1015/the-many-faces-of-odysseus-in-classical-literature http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/841/mythology-and-astronomy-as-manifestations-of-ancient-greek-culture By Paul Hay - However, it is imperative to remember the human element in both of these pursuits. Stories do not exist without storytellers, and astronomy cannot be studied without astronomers to do it. No matter how much evidence exists showing that the Trojan War really happened, still it is Homer who made the myth what it is today. Similarly, even if a cluster of stars looks exactly like a horse, it takes an astronomer to give it the name Pegasus. Both mythology and astronomy are thus profoundly affected by the cultures of which the mythmakers and the astronomers were a part. The Greek hero Perseus provides... Thu, 19 Dec 2013 04:54 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/841/mythology-and-astronomy-as-manifestations-of-ancient-greek-culture http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/806/four-lines-to-immortality-didos-renaissance-through-josquin-des-prez By Dana M. Plank - With these haunting final words, the young queen of Virgil's Aeneid, Dido, takes her life on a flaming pyre of her lover's belongings. The death of Dido is one of the most poignant moments in classical literature. Dido begins as an independent queen who rules Carthage without the aid of a male monarch, a model of chastity devoted to her late king. When the hero of The Aeneid, Aeneas, arrives in Carthage, Dido is forced by the gods to fall passionately in love with him. In the course of one book, the great queen becomes a suicidal woman broken by love , and a plaything of bickering gods. After... Fri, 22 Nov 2013 09:26 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/806/four-lines-to-immortality-didos-renaissance-through-josquin-des-prez http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/581/power-and-transgression-in-twelfth-night-and-measure-for-measure-artifice-and-ideology-as-tools-of-the-elite By Jesse A. Goldberg - Shakespeare’s comedies, at first glance, seem to uniformly end on a positive note, with the fulfillment of desires, the overcoming of obstacles, and the victory over malevolent forces. In Twelfth Night and Measure for Measure, however, this is not the case. The conclusions of both plays are reiterations of problematic power structures present in each play. This is not to say that these comedies are absolutely favorable to strict power structures. In fact, both plays are in favor of bending the rules sometimes, though they seem to suggest that there are rules that are not meant to be bent... Fri, 07 Oct 2011 10:11 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/581/power-and-transgression-in-twelfth-night-and-measure-for-measure-artifice-and-ideology-as-tools-of-the-elite http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/417/examining-intersectionality-the-conflation-of-race-gender-and-class-in-individual-and-collective-identities By Chloe A. Diggins - Furthermore, hegemonic, hetero-normative discourse positions us (vis-à-vis one another) in a symbolic hierarchy that reflects and evaluates race, class, gender, sexuality, and ethnicity. Though we are all subjectified by the power of discourse, resistance may be found in deconstructing and interrogating the articulation between our various subjectivities. Intersectionality, for many theorists (see Brah, 1996; Brah and Phoenix, 2004; Lewis, 2006), is a way to challenge subjectification based on gendered assumptions, essentialized difference, racialization, and other post-colonial regimes... Mon, 28 Mar 2011 08:05 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/417/examining-intersectionality-the-conflation-of-race-gender-and-class-in-individual-and-collective-identities http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/392/the-effect-of-troys-rebirth-on-aeneass-transformation-in-the-aeneid By Sujay Kulshrestha - In the Aeneid, Virgil depicts the struggle of the newly displaced Trojans to find a new home, under the leadership of Aeneas. The Trojans, having only recently lost the Trojan War to the Greeks, travel in search of a new home, eventually settling in Italy−to the dismay of some of the Italians. The motif of Troy’s rebirth plays a major role in the Aeneid in that it is intertwined with Aeneas’s personal destiny; the two domains are so intertwined that Aeneas both prevents his own happiness and alters his own personality to successfully create a new Troy. Over the course of the... Fri, 18 Feb 2011 09:34 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/392/the-effect-of-troys-rebirth-on-aeneass-transformation-in-the-aeneid http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/384/the-relationship-between-gods-and-humans-in-aias-and-the-poetry-of-sapphos By Sujay Kulshrestha - Reading Greek plays provides valuable insight into the relationships between gods and humans. While both gods and humans have fairly similar personalities Greek gods have a certain amount of power that, given motivation from an arrogant mortal, they are all too willing to manipulate for their own entertainment without regard to the consequences for others. In Aias, Sophocles begins by telling the story of Ajax some time after the events in Homer’s Iliad. Over the course of the play, Sophocles relates that Ajax feels slighted, because he was not awarded the now-deceased Achilles’s armor... Wed, 09 Feb 2011 09:14 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/384/the-relationship-between-gods-and-humans-in-aias-and-the-poetry-of-sapphos http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/364/incorporating-technology-into-the-modern-english-language-arts-classroom By Steven A. Carbone II - The mere mention of the English Language Arts content area, for many people, might conjure images of ancient, dusty tomes, the sound of a classroom full of pens scratching across college-ruled paper, or the palpable befuddlement of students staring down a school year full of challenging texts and writing. Enter technology, and along with it an entirely new skill set and accompanying literacies. This is the twenty-first century after all, and English teachers would be remiss if they did not take advantage of the latest and greatest technological methods of reading, expression, and communication... Mon, 17 Jan 2011 09:05 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/364/incorporating-technology-into-the-modern-english-language-arts-classroom http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/330/challenges-faced-by-gifted-learners-in-school-and-beyond By Jeremy S. Page - Gifted learners, although possessing higher levels of intelligence than their peers, are disadvantaged in the sense that they frequently do not, or are not given the opportunity, to reach their full potential (Farmer, 1993). Krause, Bochner and Duchesne (2003:212) report that gifted learners are labeled, along with ‘gifted’, ‘talented’ or ‘creative’, as ‘underachievers’, ‘educationally disadvantaged’ or ‘special needs.’ This is primarily because schools and teachers are unaware of how to appropriately cater to these learners... Wed, 24 Nov 2010 09:23 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/330/challenges-faced-by-gifted-learners-in-school-and-beyond http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/209/the-breakdown-of-censorship-in-american-cinema By William K. Boland - In America, the years from 1946 to 1962, labeled the “post classical era” of cinema, were years in a state of transition. American culture was simply unstoppable and alive, constantly changing and growing toward a more open society. However, though there was a shift in American values toward openness in addressing sexuality and violence as well as other societal issues, it was in direct conflict with the conservative government currently in power. This conflict of ideals resulted in a caustic, explosive period of heightened awareness of violence, sexuality, social problems, and individuality... Mon, 22 Mar 2010 08:50 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/209/the-breakdown-of-censorship-in-american-cinema http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1689/race-class-and-oppression-solutions-for-active-learning-and-literacy-in-the-classroom By Steven A. Carbone II - Oppression tends to exist in compartmentalized, clearly labeled categories of race, social class, gender, or sexual preference. While these rigidly defined categories may have been applied to allow for rational discussion of problems and solutions, the truth is that they are inherently oppressive themselves. Hatt-Echeverria and Urrieta (2003) indicate that the oppression of class and race tend to intersect, creating a grey area of overlapping categorizations. They further assert that this “compartmentalization of oppression arises from imperialistic and institutionalized motivation to quantify... Wed, 06 Jan 2010 10:01 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1689/race-class-and-oppression-solutions-for-active-learning-and-literacy-in-the-classroom http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/105/ovids-metamorphoses-and-the-plays-of-shakespeare By Katherine Blakeney - Publius Ovidius Naso (43 B.C – 17 A.D.), a Roman aristocrat and poet, wrote a collection of poems based on Greek and Roman mythology. Ovid called it “Metamorphoses” as he selected myths that dealt with the transformation of people, gods, and heroes into forces or features of nature. Metamorphoses became one of the most popular and influential literary works in the history of European civilization. Shakespeare must have read Ovid in Latin, as Metamorphoses was part of his school program. There is also a Latin copy of Metamorphoses with Shakespeare’s signature on it, but... Thu, 31 Dec 2009 09:35 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/105/ovids-metamorphoses-and-the-plays-of-shakespeare http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/71/confrontation-with-death-illuminates-deaths-mystery-in-the-odyssey By Lindsay D. Clark - Even in fairy tales and fantastical legends, the trespassing of the breathing upon the domain of the spirits is rare. It is a disturbing idea; when the dead visit our world, we can at least find comfort in numbers. Yet the hero Odysseus braves the unknown and looks into the eyes of death. And as ghostly whispers blow across the hair on his arms we expect him to return traumatized, changed, darkly enlightened—but no. He emerges a little puffy-eyed, but very much himself. Several times Odysseus seems close to discovering some deathly mystery, brushing the stardust off some universally kept... Sat, 28 Nov 2009 11:49 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/71/confrontation-with-death-illuminates-deaths-mystery-in-the-odyssey http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/62/the-emobidment-of-human-tragedy-in-the-illiad By Lindsay D. Clark - Why raise the curtain on this 45 day by 45 night saga? In a story whose ending everybody knows already, why choose these actions of these characters to expound upon? The Iliad is not a war tale one might tell in which friends love friends, who in conjunction hate enemies, and all fight quite openly for comrades, for righteousness, and for glory—for here wherein lies a single truth? Or a story worth telling? The Iliad instead is a story of confusion, of vagueness, of mixed messages and muddled motivations. And it achieves its primary meaning not through fearless Achilles or great Hector... Mon, 23 Nov 2009 09:41 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/62/the-emobidment-of-human-tragedy-in-the-illiad