http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/keyword/theory 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 Wed, 10 Jun 2026 03:58:25 -0400 Wed, 10 Jun 2026 03:58:25 -0400 http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1961/unity-in-virginia-woolf-and-hannah-arendt-creating-reality-in-the-insensitive-and-inaccessible By Esteban A. Sanchez - Woolfian Scholars regularly denote the moments where Woolf’s characters feel inexplicably connected and inseparable from one another as representing the spiritual and mystic beliefs of their author. I want to reframe this notion, considering Woolf's moments of unity, not as a metafictional tool, but as a rebellion against the insensitive and inaccessible natural world. Wittgenstein's refutation of the linguistic contentions in Plato’s Cratylus will outline language’s relationship to reality and how Woolf rejects Platonic Forms. Woolf along with Hannah Arendt will consider thought... Thu, 22 Sep 2022 10:48 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1961/unity-in-virginia-woolf-and-hannah-arendt-creating-reality-in-the-insensitive-and-inaccessible http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1958/the-relationship-between-gender-and-trauma-in-donna-tartts-the-goldfinch By Katie K. Strubel - The Goldfinch (2013) by Donna Tartt is a novel that explores the conditions of grief and escalating lengths characters will go to survive the traumas and mysteries of life. This story of guilt and loss—intermixed with love and longing—is far detached from the traditional coming-of-age trope. I argue that one of the most tantalizing aspects found in this piece of literary fiction is the fascinating and sometimes questionable relationship between main characters, Theodore Decker and Boris Pavlikovsky. Reading this novel through a queer/gender studies lens and the use of a dialogic journal... Mon, 19 Sep 2022 02:37 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1958/the-relationship-between-gender-and-trauma-in-donna-tartts-the-goldfinch http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1949/the-past-is-female-exploring-the-socio-sexual-liberation-of-historical-women-in-carol-ann-duffys-the-worlds-wife By Nandini Sood - British Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy’s The World’s Wife presents a fresh outlook on myths and fairy tales, by retelling them through sociosexually liberated women. The poems feature many themes such as murder, sexuality and childhood that are presented in a dark light and have been individually studied by previous researchers. Other studies have also investigated the feministic political purposes of Duffy’s poetry, but have disregarded the present liberated perspective of women shown. Consequently, this research focuses on Duffy’s manipulation of well-known texts to induce... Fri, 15 Apr 2022 12:19 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1949/the-past-is-female-exploring-the-socio-sexual-liberation-of-historical-women-in-carol-ann-duffys-the-worlds-wife http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1948/fragile-aesthetics-the-problematics-behind-thomas-gainsboroughs-landscape-paintings By Connor E. Yen - The 17th and 18th centuries saw a wide proliferation of aesthetic discourse through which the picturesque emerged to capture the type of beauty derived from the exchange of in vivo vigor for the spirit of artistic medium. While the metaphysical project of 18th century aesthetic theory masquerades as apolitical, placing Thomas Gainsborough’s landscape paintings in dialogue with picturesque beauty reveals an underlying anxiety of peasant encroachment and class conflict. This paper parses the complex interplay between the “smooth” and the “rough” in Gainsborough&rsquo... Fri, 01 Apr 2022 01:04 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1948/fragile-aesthetics-the-problematics-behind-thomas-gainsboroughs-landscape-paintings http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1947/architectural-beauty-as-a-public-good-through-the-lens-of-ritzer-and-kohn By Olivia Sun - After World War II, America’s baby boom and rapid migration into cities sparked a damaging housing crisis. This marked a turning point in architectural style: the rise of modernism. Modernism prioritizes function above all else and believes in the existence of a most efficient, most cost-effective housing blueprint. Hence, America rolled out planned housing developments by the masses with each community constructed in a near-identical fashion. This essay points to the consequential neglect of architectural beauty which is defined as a perfect reflection of the identity of a shared imaginative... Fri, 25 Mar 2022 02:16 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1947/architectural-beauty-as-a-public-good-through-the-lens-of-ritzer-and-kohn http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1937/knowledge-production-in-international-relations-a-poststructural-feminist-critique-of-liberal-feminism By Dana K.J. Al-Thani - In popular international relations (IR) theory, knowledge production is often dismissed as an objective process between the researcher and the empirical world. This article rejects this notion and contends that the process of knowledge production is always inherently political in the conduct and study of IR. In order to achieve this argument, a poststructural lens is adopted in order to critique the liberal understanding of knowledge production within IR as a scientific process capable of revealing ‘universal truths.’ Additionally, in discussing ‘the political’ this article... Wed, 09 Feb 2022 01:27 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1937/knowledge-production-in-international-relations-a-poststructural-feminist-critique-of-liberal-feminism http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1935/do-textbooks-shape-attitudes-toward-war-narrative-images-and-implicit-social-cognition By Noemi Andrusello - To explore the relationship between history education and attitudes to war, narrative primes about World War II were read by 20 undergraduate students at California State University, Fresno. Afterwards, in the course of experimental interviews, participants responded to news of a hypothetical terrorist attack and shared policy solutions and opinions about war. Analysis revealed that interview responses were patterned by narrative. While readers of an ‘enemy’ narrative conveyed feelings of loss, aggressive policies, and war support, readers of ‘ally’ and ‘imperialist... Wed, 19 Jan 2022 01:29 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1935/do-textbooks-shape-attitudes-toward-war-narrative-images-and-implicit-social-cognition http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1913/securitization-framing-and-the-threat-of-right-wing-militias-under-donald-trump By Mia Wolosky - This paper assesses the political preferences and ideologies of the Trump administration and how they influenced framing issues in a way that has underestimated the threats of right-wing militia groups in the United States. President Trump and officials within his administration used rhetoric to place emphasis on the security concerns associated with immigration and far left-wing groups, while failing to condemn violence coming from the right. This paper analyzes how framing, and the securitization of certain issues, downplayed and encouraged the persistent threat of far right-wing domestic terrorists... Tue, 05 Oct 2021 10:23 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1913/securitization-framing-and-the-threat-of-right-wing-militias-under-donald-trump http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1912/populist-authoritarian-readings-of-machiavellis-prince-from-interwar-to-the-present By Graciela E. Lee - In the present day, it seems there's been an unprecedented influx of strong leaders – strong leaders, strong diplomats, strong political campaigns, and strong personalities. Not all of these qualities are mutually exclusive, though it does appear that those in power who exhibit themselves primarily through their “strong personality” possess more controversy and instability than those who are of the other character types. One man, however, seemed to cover all the above bases in his various roles – as a diplomat, strategist, poet and playwright – though he seemed to... Thu, 30 Sep 2021 10:22 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1912/populist-authoritarian-readings-of-machiavellis-prince-from-interwar-to-the-present http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1902/biologization-of-capital-and-capitalization-of-biopower-connecting-foucault-and-marx By Tianhao Hou - Foucault raised the concept of biopower in the first volume of The History of Sexuality and placed its emergence in the context of capitalism, but he did not fully tackle the relationship between biopower and capitalism. In this article, the author fills this gap through a careful reading of Foucault and Marx, arguing that perpetual spirals are formed between biopower and capitalism and their techniques intersected on the human body. The author first traces the definitions of each concept in order to show that they can be discussed and drawn connection with each other. After that, he expands upon... Tue, 25 May 2021 09:33 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1902/biologization-of-capital-and-capitalization-of-biopower-connecting-foucault-and-marx http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1897/gender-theory-vs-pragmatism-a-point-of-diversion-between-judith-butlers-gender-performativity-and-the-psychosocial-limitations-of-gender-construction By Melissa Padron - The question of what it means to be a gendered individual has been left unanswered in light of its variants. The feminist movement proceeding the Industrial Revolution propelled philosophical and literary works, such as Simone de Beauvoir’s The Second Sex, challenging the traditional perception of man and woman and concomitantly advancing the foundation for gender theory. Judith Butler’s Gender Performativity theory proved to be one of the most salient works of the rather unexplored realm of philosophy. This paper confronts Butler’s theory of gender as an individual act and analyzes... Fri, 16 Apr 2021 10:50 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1897/gender-theory-vs-pragmatism-a-point-of-diversion-between-judith-butlers-gender-performativity-and-the-psychosocial-limitations-of-gender-construction http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1894/the-growing-popularity-of-the-radical-right-comparing-institutional-societal-and-historical-explanations-in-the-united-states-and-france By Zak Schneider - Following the enlightenment era, a new incarnation of politics created a uniquely democratic, liberal, egalitarian structure of government in Western democracies. In recent years, there has been an erosion of these qualities in favor of alternate ideologies such as Right-Wing Populism. Fundamentally, what is the appeal of these ideologies that are diametrically opposed to liberal democracy? I argue that multiple factors are catalyzing the growth of this Right-Wing Populism worldwide. Firstly, the structural weaknesses in democratic governance itself. Secondly, contemporary societal conditions... Mon, 05 Apr 2021 03:10 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1894/the-growing-popularity-of-the-radical-right-comparing-institutional-societal-and-historical-explanations-in-the-united-states-and-france http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1887/reconstructing-ruin-as-future-rethinking-the-spatiotemporality-of-race-and-gender-in-glissant-and-spillers-middle-passage By Yiyang Chen - Intersecting Edouard Glissant’s poetics with Hortense Spillers’ theory of race, gender, and sexuality alchemizes a new conception of the Middle Passage’s spatiotemporality. With the slave trade haunting the living, this paper attempts to orient a rupture in the fabric of spacetime, through which implosion leads to a new future. The destructive and destabilizing abyss of the Middle Passage, in itself, creates a philosophy of alterity, where linear, universalizing logics of the West become ruin through which new paradigms emerge. In Poetics of Relation, Glissant delineates three... Wed, 10 Mar 2021 08:59 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1887/reconstructing-ruin-as-future-rethinking-the-spatiotemporality-of-race-and-gender-in-glissant-and-spillers-middle-passage http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1869/a-barrier-to-prosperity-analyzing-the-impact-of-israeli-security-policy-on-palestinian-manufacturing-productivity By Zachary T. Fesen - Israel has increased the nation’s security presence around the Gaza Strip and in the West Bank. Here, the research project analyzes how transaction costs resulting from Israeli security policy impact the output of manufacturing activities in the Palestinian territories. The study examines transaction costs in the form of import restrictions and items Israel restricts from entering the Palestinian territories in the form of the dual-use goods list. Existing research outlines trade restrictions from Israeli security policy but does not explain how the restrictions impact Palestinian manufacturing... Wed, 27 Jan 2021 10:15 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1869/a-barrier-to-prosperity-analyzing-the-impact-of-israeli-security-policy-on-palestinian-manufacturing-productivity http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1867/edgar-allan-poe-and-race-analyzing-the-absent-negro-trope-in-gothic-literature By Jennifer Celeste - Edgar Allan Poe is known for writing about a wide variety of controversial topics, such as death, murder, and addiction. However, one topic that his work tends to avoid is race and/or racism. Instead, he often chooses to include marginalized groups of people in tertiary roles, intentionally or unintentionally utilizing stereotypes associated with each marginalized subject to enhance or reveal insights on many of the more overt themes included in his literature. This paper will analyze Pompey, a side character in Poe’s “How to Write a Blackwood Article” in order to assess how... Fri, 22 Jan 2021 09:21 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1867/edgar-allan-poe-and-race-analyzing-the-absent-negro-trope-in-gothic-literature http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1860/reimagining-populism-to-reveal-canadas-right-wing-populist-zeitgeist By Kyle R. Friesen - Through an examination of recent populist political formulations in Canada, this paper argues that prevailing understandings of right-wing populism are incomplete insofar as they occlude expressions of right-wing populism through regional and economic formulations of ‘the people’ that exist outside of ethnic or cultural conceptions of ‘the nation.’ Thus, counter to the prevailing popular narrative, this paper contends that Canada is not immune to right-wing populism and that such populism can exist without overt ethnic or culturally based exclusions in its construction... Mon, 11 Jan 2021 11:37 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1860/reimagining-populism-to-reveal-canadas-right-wing-populist-zeitgeist http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1855/reading-religion-in-literature-toni-morrison-luisah-teish-and-postsecular-theory By Kayla R. Drummond - The postsecular turn of the late 1990’s refers to the emergence of a critical theory which challenges an important modern assumption: that secular ideologies are inherently more valid and truthful than religious ideologies. Other developments in literary theory in the latter half of the 20th century were aimed at disrupting and challenging normative assumptions, and postsecularism was no different. By disrupting the hierarchy of the knowledge/faith binary, postsecular theory provides a range of fresh opportunities for reading religion in literature. This essay examines several important... Mon, 04 Jan 2021 12:13 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1855/reading-religion-in-literature-toni-morrison-luisah-teish-and-postsecular-theory http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1843/a-postcolonial-theory-of-value-broadening-economic-scholarship-through-disciplinary-mimetic-valuation By David L. Myers - This work aims to integrate postcolonial scholarship into some basic theoretical foundations of a mainstream economic curriculum. Noting the insufficiencies of neoclassical economics to deal with problems of cultural difference and priority, the work offers a basic critique of economics and its aspirations for universal applicability. It does this by building upon existing postcolonial critiques of economics as a social science and focuses specifically on economic notions of value. Using postcolonial and anthropological scholarship, it sketches out a broader, more inclusive theory of value than... Tue, 24 Nov 2020 10:49 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1843/a-postcolonial-theory-of-value-broadening-economic-scholarship-through-disciplinary-mimetic-valuation http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1834/aquinas-just-war-theory-and-pandemic-response By Ezekiel Vergara - “Just-war theory,” as it is called, aims to guide action during warfare, so that states and individuals can act ethically. Because warfare is often analogized to epidemics, this paper will argue that just-war theory can recommend how one ought to conceive of governmental action during a pandemic. Drawing off the work of Thomas Aquinas, one of the most canonical figures within the just-war tradition, this article demonstrates that just-war theory explains both why the government has expanded powers during a pandemic and what a government ought to do with these expanded powers. Notably... Tue, 10 Nov 2020 08:16 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1834/aquinas-just-war-theory-and-pandemic-response http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1800/intergenerational-intimate-partner-violence-pathways-of-genetic-and-environmental-interactions By Clare Choi - Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health issue that results in social, psychological, emotional, and physical consequences. Although interventions may be continuously designed to combat this problem, IPV must first be understood in an intergenerational perspective before effective programs can be put into place. Intimate partner violence is historically viewed as a social and private phenomenon, tinged with shame and stigma. Existing literature on this issue predominantly focuses on the social environment, leaning towards theories that put blame on the social environment the... Tue, 22 Sep 2020 05:31 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1800/intergenerational-intimate-partner-violence-pathways-of-genetic-and-environmental-interactions http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1791/terry-richardson-and-the-celebration-of-porn-chic-a-critique-of-fashion-photography By Yasmeen Sabet - In On Photography, Susan Sontag derides photography for generating a sense of false objectivity. Focusing on the moral implications of taking a photograph, she explores the relationship between artist and subject, exposing photography as a medium contingent upon violating its subjects.[1] Engaging with Sontag’s text, the following analysis studies fashion photography as a site embodying this exploitation, revealing the disturbing power dynamic between a defamed fashion photographer and his underage subject. In deconstructing Terry Richardson’s 2011 image of Lindsey Wixson (fig 1),... Mon, 07 Sep 2020 10:51 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1791/terry-richardson-and-the-celebration-of-porn-chic-a-critique-of-fashion-photography http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1789/negotiating-the-concept-of-national-allegory-homosexuality-departure-and-homecoming-in-pedro-almodandoacute;vars-pain-and-glory-and-midi-zs-nina-wu By Qingyang Zhou - Often regarded as the glorious palace showcasing contemporary world cinema (“Press Conference”), the Cannes Film Festival epitomizes the roles of an accreditor, an archaeologist, and a political activist. It jumpstarts the careers of emerging auteurs from around the globe, casts light on obscure cinematic traditions, and engenders debates on controversial social issues in specific nations and regions. Encounters with the foreign constitute an integral part of the festival experience for the majority of the audience. As a result, filmmakers from less renowned national industries (i.... Sun, 06 Sep 2020 07:54 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1789/negotiating-the-concept-of-national-allegory-homosexuality-departure-and-homecoming-in-pedro-almodandoacute;vars-pain-and-glory-and-midi-zs-nina-wu http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1784/totalitarian-friendship-carl-schmitt-in-contemporary-china By Jackson T. Reinhardt - For the past several years, the study of German jurist Carl Schmitt has exploded in China. Floria Sapio remarks that Schmitt has enjoyed “enormous currency among mainland Chinese scholars since the 2000s.”[1] Even though Schmitt has received a recent revitalization of interest of his thought among Western scholars,[2] he is still known primarily for his aphoristic (and largely untranslated) texts on political theory and his infamous association with the Nazi Party. Yet, the reason that this esoteric and controversial thinker has garnered any consideration within Chinese academia is... Tue, 14 Jul 2020 08:23 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1784/totalitarian-friendship-carl-schmitt-in-contemporary-china http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1783/towards-a-theory-of-leniency-for-immigrants By Keerthana Annamaneni - In his compelling account of juvenile justice, “Age of Culpability,” Gideon Yaffe provides a philosophically rigorous justification for the claim that “children should be given a break when they do wrong; they ought to be treated more leniently than adults.”[1] While his claim may be conventional, his reasoning is highly novel. Yaffe rejects the notion that children deserve “a break,” or lenient punishments, because children and adults are intrinsically different.[2] Rather, children deserve leniency because children are denied the vote and cannot author their... Wed, 15 Apr 2020 09:45 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1783/towards-a-theory-of-leniency-for-immigrants http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1776/the-psychology-of-romance-the-impact-of-personality-traits-on-romantic-relationships By Amanda Glynn - Research shows conflicting results when relaying how personality traits play into successful and satisfying romantic relationships. The focus has been on trait similarity (i.e. the “Birds of a Feather” concept) without a clear answer, with very little research supporting the “Opposites Attract” concept. Additional factors have also been noted, to include emotionality, how maladaptive traits factor into a relationship, self-esteem, and how the perception of a partner affects feelings about the relationship. Self-report measurement methods have shown to provide conflicting... Thu, 12 Dec 2019 08:49 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1776/the-psychology-of-romance-the-impact-of-personality-traits-on-romantic-relationships http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1756/populist-mobocracy-fear-and-lies-the-politics-of-american-populism By Anthony R. Brunello - American politics today operates in an arena where truth and objective reality are bent to the designs of particular interests, powerful people and commercial profiteers. All facts are questioned; the truth has purposes. Populist and nationalist waves are pulsing through many western democratic republics in the West; these waves are a challenge to the values of liberal democracy. A populist believes that the common man is possessed of the highest virtues and an earthy, superior wisdom. Fareed Zakaria said in Foreign Affairs (2017) that, “populism sees itself as speaking for the forgotten... Tue, 05 Feb 2019 08:35 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1756/populist-mobocracy-fear-and-lies-the-politics-of-american-populism http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1743/can-the-value-proposition-work-in-health-care By Frederick J. White - The value proposition in the commercial setting is the functional relationship of quality and price. It is held to be a utility maximizing function of the relationship between buyer and seller. Its proponents assert that translation of the value proposition into the health care system of the United States is a necessary and perhaps indispensable solution to the current structural difficulties of health services delivery in our nation. But the application of the value proposition to health care delivery in the United States will meet with difficulty for a myriad of reasons. Some of these are inherent... Wed, 24 Oct 2018 08:24 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1743/can-the-value-proposition-work-in-health-care http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1714/narratives-binaries-and-framing-in-the-cultural-contest-over-climate-change By Scott B. Remer - The above texts have been selected because they are iconic and authoritative. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is authorized by the United Nations and is the world’s foremost source of expertise on climate change.[1] The United States’ 2014 National Climate Assessment was produced by over 300 scientific experts and subject to an open review process and National Academy of Sciences oversight.[2] Laudato Si received extensive media coverage and has been lauded by numerous environmental groups.[3] 350.org, Greenpeace, and the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC... Wed, 13 Dec 2017 11:45 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1714/narratives-binaries-and-framing-in-the-cultural-contest-over-climate-change http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1707/decision-making-theories-and-chinas-military-intervention-in-the-korean-war By Hao Ming Xiong - This article uses two decision-making theories – rational choice theory and prospect theory – to examine China’s resolution to intervene militarily in the Korean War. I argue that Chairman Mao Zedong was in a domain of loss both domestically and internationally when the U.N. Command crossed the 38 Parallel and approached the Yalu River. In this context, loss aversion predisposed him to gamble on a risky option – direct military intervention – which is estimated to have a higher utility than strengthening border defenses, an option that would have been more attractive... Wed, 22 Nov 2017 09:42 EST http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1707/decision-making-theories-and-chinas-military-intervention-in-the-korean-war http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1676/cognitive-embodiment-and-mind-reading-in-jane-austens-persuasion By Karah L. Smith - Empirical psychology first emerged as a scientific discipline during the eighteenth century when it was launched into the academic realm by being taught in universities, appearing as chapters in philosophy manuals, and debuting as the topic of scientific journals and textbooks (Vidal 408). Psychology “then, and for the first time­­­––[was thought of] as an empirical research discipline, committed to a naturalistic perspective on the mind” (409). This perspective led to the rejection of the soul’s agency in the body claiming that thoughts could be explained... Tue, 31 Oct 2017 09:55 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1676/cognitive-embodiment-and-mind-reading-in-jane-austens-persuasion