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14 May 2026
Marching Band Experience
Charlee Sharpsteen is a Lindenwood student and St. Louis based digital illustrator who likes to create bold and bright works often playing with light and storytelling.
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Volume 4, Issue 3 (2026)View issue
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Article14 May 2026The Purpose Of LIFE: An Analysis of The Secret Life Of Walter Mitty as a Cinematic Guide To Eudaimonia
This paper examines the moral formation of the protagonist of the film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013) through the framework of Aristotelian virtue ethics. Though extensive research has been conducted on the use of film as a vehicle for moral education and a tool for ethics pedagogy, there exists a demonstrable gap in research which applies the principles of virtue ethics to character analysis in film. This paper presents a scene-based, qualitative analysis comparing the actions of the main character to the model of habituation of virtue as presented in The Nicomachean Ethics by Aristotle. In observing the state of the protagonist's moral posture chronologically, it will be demonstrated that his character arc engages with familiar virtue ethics concepts such as habituation (ethos), disposition (hexis), practical wisdom (phronesis), friendship (philia), contemplation (theōria), and ultimately eudaimonia. The concluding arguments will present Walter Mitty’s moral development as a roadmap to understanding his personal journey to eudaimonia through habituation, supportive friendships, and engagement with reality. Finally, a film analysis framework constructed on the tenets of virtue ethics will be proposed using this film as a case study. The analysis in this paper is intended to contribute to evolving conversations surrounding film philosophy, ethics pedagogy, and narrative screenwriting by encouraging contemporary filmmakers to adopt similar patterns of character formation which can depict authentic human flourishing on screen.
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The Lilith Challenge
Lilith, the female demon, is found all over ancient Babylonian mythology. She is not unique to Jewish folklore but was a part of ancient Babylonian and Assyrian mythology prior to the time of the Rabbis. In this paper, I will explore how her myth is incorporated into Judaism to help explain why evil happens to people who unwilfully sin. I will explore the cultivation and connection between the demon Lilith in the Jewish tradition, drawing from the Talmudic sources, a separate story in the Alphabet of Ben Sira, and the relation to evil. The Alphabet of Ben Sira was written after the Babylonian Talmud: “The Alphabet of Ben Sira is a medieval popular book with a pseudpigraphic character. Its exact date is still a matter of dispute. The majority of experts believe that it was written sometime between the ninth and tenth centuries.”[1] [https://lindenwood0-my.sharepoint.com/personal/ntorbitzky_lindenwood_edu/Documents/Confluence%20S%202021/0104282021-final.docx#_ftn1] This, and the Talmudic midrash about Lilith, were eventually picked up by popular Judaism. In this paper, I follow the development of the Lilith mythology, her beginning as an evil mother goddess, changing to a desert demon, to a baby killer, then to a succubus, and lastly as an explanation of Adam’s first wife in the book of Genesis, which serves as a bases for the Alphabet of Ben Sira. - Article3 May 2023
Beyond Blackface: Minstrel Shows in Modern Day America
This essay explores the history of Blackface in America and how not addressing or treating Blackface as a taboo has allowed for microaggressions within the media to continue. - Article14 November 2022
Shades of Emotion: Color and Emotion Study
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Michelangelo Buonarroti and Homophobia in the Renaissance
Tommaso de’ Cavalieri was a young man with an aristocratic background when he first met famous artist Michelangelo Buonarroti in Rome. Tommaso was known to be an incomparable physical beauty, with intelligence and elegant manners, as well as being a member of one of the most illustrious families of Rome—the Orsini. Some have said this is what drew the artist to Cavalieri from the start. Though not much is known about their encounter, it is confirmed that Cavalieri remained a close and loyal companion to Michelangelo for thirty-two years until the artist’s death in 1564. Furthermore, throughout their years together as friends, there passed between them several letters and even a collection of drawings which contain scenes of suggested homoeroticism. Some scholars have stated that Tommaso became the object of Michelangelo’s affection, his muse, and the inspiration for the letters, drawings, and numerous poems. Given the artist’s contested sexuality, the nature of these drawings and the men’s relationship has been examined by numerous art historians. The drawings consisted of classical motifs and narratives which exhibit themes of ecstasy and punishment for partaking in something forbidden. In other words, the drawings present scenes which illustrate giving into something and a subsequent consequence. Additionally, given the homoerotic nature of the drawings, the conclusion would be that homosexuality is the “forbidden fruit” which Michelangelo refers to, and therefore would indicate Michelangelo subconsciously harbored internalized homophobia. This would further indicate a proposed or failed romantic attachment which could not be sustained with the artist’s own internalized homophobia, produced by restrictive laws and a largely Christian society of sixteenth century Italy. Michelangelo Buonarroti gave Tommaso a multitude of drawings, including, The Rape of Ganymede, The Punishment of Tityus, The Fall of Phaethon, The Children’s Bacchanal and The Dream, as well as letters and poetry to communicate certain messages to Tommaso, such as his affections for the young man in a society which had cultivated internalized homophobia for the artist. - Article18 December 2023
The Influence of High Renaissance Art on the Mannerist Movement: Examining Representative Works of Rosso Fiorentino, Pontormo, and Bronzino
This paper explores the impact of the High Renaissance, led by Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael, on the development of the Mannerist movement. Specifically, it examines the ways in which three prominent Mannerist artists, Pontormo, Rosso Fiorentino, and Bronzino, built upon the "ideal" art produced during the High Renaissance. Through a comparative analysis of works by the "three greats" of the High Renaissance and those of the three Mannerist artists, this paper identifies similarities and differences in style, composition, and subject matter. It also considers broader cultural influences that contributed to the development of Mannerism. The paper argues that the rules that Leonardo and Michelangelo broke, and the contributions they, along with Raphael, made to the rising status of the artist, paved the way for the innovations of the Mannerist phase. Ultimately, this paper demonstrates the ways in which the High Renaissance substantially changed art and made the Mannerist movement possible. - Article6 May 2022
The Understanding of Mycorrhizae Networks: A Historical Approach
The growth of mycorrhizal fungi into plant roots used to be viewed as a parasitic relationship between plants and fungi, where the fungal symbiont benefits and the plant host is harmed. Current research elucidates a mutualistic relationship. The mycorrhizae network assists the plants by increasing the capabilities for nutrient absorption in the soil. In exchange, the fungi receive carbon supply from the photosynthetic plants for growth. Our scientific understanding of other topics like species specificity, seed germination, and co-evolutionary influence of mycorrhizae and plants has also progressed. Additionally, we now understand that the mycorrhizal mutualism is not limited to the roots of a single plant species and the mycelium associated with it. Mycorrhizae networks have an ecological impact on other species within the community since networks can be developed among roots of multiple plants. Non-photosynthetic plants rely heavily on these interconnected mycorrhizae. In perspective, mycorrhizae influence the relationships between plants and fungi, along with the environmental factors, in the ecosystem. More specifically, the relationships of the plant roots and the fungal mycelium within the soil along with other microorganisms, like bacteria, influences overall productively above and below the soil.