It wasn't that bad...
This morning, I got up early, showered, washed my hair, got dressed in nice black dress pants, plain black tank, black dress sandals, and fushia button up shirt. I tried to make my hair look nice, and I put on some makeup.
I gathered up my purse, a bottle of water, a couple empty manilla envelopes, and two bottles of wine carefully packaged in homemade wine gift bags - made out of fabric with a cheese print all over it.
I rode to campus, with my lovely and supportive wife driving, and ran into one of the computer labs to print off two full copies of approximately 147 pages each, which then went into the manilla envelopes.
I rode to the other side of campus and went into the building I've spent so much of my time in for the past three years, straight up to one of the offices on the third floor.
And then...
I defended my Master's thesis. Yes, folks, that's right. The monstrosity that has taken over my life for nearly two years is finally completed (with the exception of what they're calling "minor revisions"). The defense went well, and was really not much different than a few of the previous conversations I'd had with my director and second reader, only this time they were both there at the same time and I was dressed up. The defense is open to the public, but Heather is the only one who came (probably in part because most of the department was stuck in a staff meeting at the same time).
I think my favorite part was the five solid minutes where they both complimented me on my writing, especially in comparison to how I wrote 2-3 years ago when they first met me and read my work. My director actually said "you've grown more as a writer than any grad student I've ever had." Of course, it was also nice that they both said the work in my thesis was so well done and so sound that they couldn't find any argument on a content level.
Abstract
“These things are Shadow-casters. You put them in motion and they tell you a story.” An Exploration of Jungian Shadow Work in
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
The mark of good writing is in its ability to reach people, to touch the deepest levels of humanity and affect the lives of those who read it. Buffy the Vampire Slayer does this well, as evidenced by its cult following and academic study. This thesis, presented in segments similar to a television script, investigates why Buffy matters in both these arenas and explores the deeply psychological and philosophical ideas viewers can discover in Buffy and her friends. Joss Whedon’s characters are fully-developed creations with aspects Jung calls Shadows, and they serve as examples of psychological development to each other as well as to the viewers.
This discussion of Shadows in Buffy follows each character through the development process and explores the Shadow symbolism and recurring motifs of masks and cheese in reference to the character in question. Chapter One uses Whedon’s development of mentor Rupert Giles to create a framework for explaining the Jungian aspects of Shadow-work in all the characters of Buffy. It also discusses the Shadow aspects of minor characters connected to Giles, such as Jenny Calendar and Wesley Wyndam-Pryce. Chapter Two explores Xander Harris, as well as his love interests Cordelia Chase and Anya Jenkins. Chapter Three focuses on Buffy Summers and her Shadow in addition to exploring the Shadows of Angel, Spike, Faith, and Dawn. Finally, Chapter Four discusses Willow Rosenberg, her love interests Oz and Tara, and her friend and magical influence, Amy.
Sources consulted, as referenced in the Works Cited, include the Buffy episodes, DVD commentaries, special DVD features, interviews with the cast and crew, and academic sources related to both Buffy (e.g., Rhonda Wilcox, Why Buffy Matters; Jana Reiss, What Would Buffy Do; selected essays from Slayage: The International Online Journal of Buffy Studies) and the Shadow symbol (e.g., Carl Jung, The Basic Writings of Carl Jung; Joseph Campbell, The Power of MythThe Hero With a Thousand Faces; selected essays from Meeting the Shadow).
I gathered up my purse, a bottle of water, a couple empty manilla envelopes, and two bottles of wine carefully packaged in homemade wine gift bags - made out of fabric with a cheese print all over it.
I rode to campus, with my lovely and supportive wife driving, and ran into one of the computer labs to print off two full copies of approximately 147 pages each, which then went into the manilla envelopes.
I rode to the other side of campus and went into the building I've spent so much of my time in for the past three years, straight up to one of the offices on the third floor.
And then...
I defended my Master's thesis. Yes, folks, that's right. The monstrosity that has taken over my life for nearly two years is finally completed (with the exception of what they're calling "minor revisions"). The defense went well, and was really not much different than a few of the previous conversations I'd had with my director and second reader, only this time they were both there at the same time and I was dressed up. The defense is open to the public, but Heather is the only one who came (probably in part because most of the department was stuck in a staff meeting at the same time).
I think my favorite part was the five solid minutes where they both complimented me on my writing, especially in comparison to how I wrote 2-3 years ago when they first met me and read my work. My director actually said "you've grown more as a writer than any grad student I've ever had." Of course, it was also nice that they both said the work in my thesis was so well done and so sound that they couldn't find any argument on a content level.
Abstract
“These things are Shadow-casters. You put them in motion and they tell you a story.” An Exploration of Jungian Shadow Work in
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
The mark of good writing is in its ability to reach people, to touch the deepest levels of humanity and affect the lives of those who read it. Buffy the Vampire Slayer does this well, as evidenced by its cult following and academic study. This thesis, presented in segments similar to a television script, investigates why Buffy matters in both these arenas and explores the deeply psychological and philosophical ideas viewers can discover in Buffy and her friends. Joss Whedon’s characters are fully-developed creations with aspects Jung calls Shadows, and they serve as examples of psychological development to each other as well as to the viewers.
This discussion of Shadows in Buffy follows each character through the development process and explores the Shadow symbolism and recurring motifs of masks and cheese in reference to the character in question. Chapter One uses Whedon’s development of mentor Rupert Giles to create a framework for explaining the Jungian aspects of Shadow-work in all the characters of Buffy. It also discusses the Shadow aspects of minor characters connected to Giles, such as Jenny Calendar and Wesley Wyndam-Pryce. Chapter Two explores Xander Harris, as well as his love interests Cordelia Chase and Anya Jenkins. Chapter Three focuses on Buffy Summers and her Shadow in addition to exploring the Shadows of Angel, Spike, Faith, and Dawn. Finally, Chapter Four discusses Willow Rosenberg, her love interests Oz and Tara, and her friend and magical influence, Amy.
Sources consulted, as referenced in the Works Cited, include the Buffy episodes, DVD commentaries, special DVD features, interviews with the cast and crew, and academic sources related to both Buffy (e.g., Rhonda Wilcox, Why Buffy Matters; Jana Reiss, What Would Buffy Do; selected essays from Slayage: The International Online Journal of Buffy Studies) and the Shadow symbol (e.g., Carl Jung, The Basic Writings of Carl Jung; Joseph Campbell, The Power of MythThe Hero With a Thousand Faces; selected essays from Meeting the Shadow).