Thesiss

For my thesis, I explore how South Sudanese refugees in central Iowa imagine a utopic South Sudan amidst contemporary inter-ethnic tensions emanating from their recently independent country. In central Iowa and in particular Des Moines, South Sudanese refugees subtly reproduce t…

This dissertation explores the rhetorical imaginary of internetworked societies by examining three cases where actors in the blogosphere shaped public deliberation. In each case, I analyze a trope that emerged organically as bloggers theorized their own rhetorical interventions,…

This dissertation examines people’s relationships to place and community. The papers are linked by three broad themes: 1) place meanings, 2) community connections to resource places, and 3) innovative qualitative research methodologies.