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Author: The Editors

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

The US and climate change – on track to fulfill its international obligation?

by Dr. Simon Schaub Climate change represents one of the most polarized issues in the United States (Smith et al. 2024) and the upcoming presidential elections in November will probably be decisive for future climate action in the US. For long, the US has been a laggard on climate change.…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

The Most Important Announcement since Christ: The ‘No Breakfast Plan’ Between Science and Religion

By Layla Koch Edward Hooker Dewey (1837-1904) In 1895, the physician Edward Hooker Dewey published The True Science of Living, in which he argued that the secret to a healthy life for the American citizen was quite simple: abstain from breakfast. Bolstered by an introduction by theologian George Frederick Pentecost,…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

The Skeleton Key, Historical Erasure, and Cultural Appropriation

By Max Schiersner Caodaglio Figure 1: Hampton Plantation, Charleston County, South Carolina Horror is an easily recognizable literary genre due to its frequent exploration of what torments our minds and anxieties. Supernatural happenings and paranormal implications are part of such stories, from books to Hollywood movies. Ghosts, cults, séances, rituals,…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

Feminist Foreign Policy and the United States: Is it a match?

by Eva Rieger American Exceptionalism entails the belief in the United States’ outstanding characteristics and is rooted in classical liberal values and their propagation. Consequently, U.S. foreign policy behavior has often been justified with the promotion of freedom, human rights and democracy. According to most contemporary liberal interpretations – starting…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

“Creating Connections between People that Don’t Let Go:” The Intricate Network of Catholic Peacemaking

by Virginia Zentgraf A few weeks ago, I stumbled upon a Twitter post by aspiring theologian Mason Mennenga featuring a wish for Christians to be more like 20th-century activists instead of contemporary right-wing evangelicals. pic.twitter.com/1lx9nNBbfl— Mason Mennenga (@masonmennenga) October 25, 2023 The shared image shows three stoic-looking people – Catholic…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

On the Treasures of Deep Research

By Drew M. Ross One of the pleasures of deep research is the unexpected find that ties together threads that you have been following. Sometimes, that gem comes too late to be included in the final draft of your work. In the case of my article, “White Supremacy on Parade”, …

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

Shaken Awake: The Nighttime Earthquake of 1783

By Katrin Kleemann Earthquakes in the United States? California is probably the first state that comes to mind. The largest earthquake with an estimated 8.7-9.2 magnitude in the contiguous US was a megathrust earthquake off the coast of Washington state on 26 January 1700. Ever since Conevery Bolton Valencius’ book…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

Women Strike for Peace – and Equality

By Lara Track Poster announcing the Women’s Strike for Equality and its three key demands. Rights held by Library of Congress. On August 26, 1970, 50 years to the day after the 19th Amendment gave American women the right to vote in national elections, a new generation of women’s rights…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

Allen Ginsberg, Religious Experience and the Anxiety of ‘Othering’

by Jonas Faust Throughout his five-decade career, Beat-poet-turned-countercultural-icon Allen Ginsberg [1] presented himself in- and outside of his poetic work as a literary prophet of Cold War America, thereby situating himself at the forefront of the literary avant-garde. His poetry and political activism rebelled against the then-dominant conformist, conservative and…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

“It is no Desert.” White Pages, Black Ink, and Green Poems in Stephen Crane’s The Black Riders and Other Lines

by Philipp Leonhardt Even a cursory look at titles like The Red Badge of Courage, “The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky” or “The Blue Hotel” reveals that the works of Stephen Crane keep on changing colors. Ever since he entered the literary scene in the 1890s, readers have been puzzled…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

Gun Culture Supremacy: The cultural shift of gun ownership and the rise of political violence in the United States

By Stefanie Wallbraun Political violence in the United States has increased sharply over the past decade. Aggravated by populist actors such as Donald Trump, a political climate has developed that is characterized by polarizing language, dehumanization of the opposition, and the propagation of crisis narratives. Political actors accuse the opposition…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

Fan Studies: “You can do a PhD on that?!”

By Christina Wurst Why study (Anglophone) fan cultures? When you mention that you are writing a PhD on fan cultures, people’s first question is often “You can do a PhD on that?”. The term ‘fans’ typically calls to mind screaming girls at a boy band concert, football fans going on…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

Can (Mega) Philanthropy Cure the World? Global Health, HIV/AIDS and the Gates Foundation

by Swetha Ananth and Natalie Rauscher Can (mega) philanthropy cure the world? In an attempt to answer this complex question, this article will offer a glimpse into the world of mega philanthropy, focusing on global health and more specifically on the area of Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS)-related efforts.…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

James W.C. Pennington: Freedman, Scholar, Abolitionist

by Caitlin Smith As the 1834 fall term began, eager seminary students poured into the lecture halls of Yale Theological Seminary. They brought high expectations and keen hopes for their education. Yale College had already distinguished itself as one of most prestigious centers of learning in early America. And, for…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

Dungeons & Dragons between Community and Commercialization

by Jula Maasböl Within the last decade, Dungeons & Dragons has turned from a relatively niche hobby that few people were aware of to a vastly popular game with renewed cult status. Helped along by the publication of a more accessible rule system with Dungeons & Dragons’ 5th Edition in…

The Editors · HCA Graduate Blog

The Founding Fathers are Back from the Dead: 19th-Century Spiritualism and the American Civil Religion

By E. H. Messamore The 4th of July brings with it the usual paeans to the foundational principles of the republic along with affirmations of its special destiny. Independence Day represents the holiest day in what sociologist Robert Bellah in 1967 dubbed America’s civil religion—a trans-denominational sanctification of the symbols,…