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The Sum of My Undergraduate Degree

Call it being Type "A", being anal retentive, intelligent, stupid, crazy, on-crack, but I saved every single paper from my undergraduate degree (at least most of them.)

Most people write their papers, wipe their brows with tear-soaked tissues, and say "thank fuck that's done so I can never think about THAT again," before moving onto the next paper.

To me, I thought that was a waste. If I'm going to spend five years of my life writing papers, researching, and learning how to think deeply and critically, how can you measure your actual progress without keeping that record? So. I kept it. And it is very obvious how much I grew even year to year, never mind how much I grew from year one to year five.

Preserved entirely, I present, ALL of my papers that have survived (alas, when my mac died on me, I didn't have every single one backed up, so you can see the gaps in the earlier years). I have published them so it actually adheres to the dates they were submitted, and from most recent to least recent.

The growth is astonishing.

All the essays are available for free below, but a bound edition will soon be available, and the funds from the sales of this book will be 100% going to my student debt.

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Juvenilia: University-Era Essays

Playing God - The Folly of Mad Scientists: A Discussion of "The Island of Doctor Moreau"

Playing God - The Folly of Mad Scientists: A Di...

Amanda Rautio

The Island of Doctor Moreau explores scientific ethics, and despite the years that have passed, I think it’s as relevant as ever. The animal cruelty, the playing at God, the secrecy...

Playing God - The Folly of Mad Scientists: A Di...

Amanda Rautio

The Island of Doctor Moreau explores scientific ethics, and despite the years that have passed, I think it’s as relevant as ever. The animal cruelty, the playing at God, the secrecy...

Heroes and Heroines: A Discussion on "The Princess and the Goblin"

Heroes and Heroines: A Discussion on "The Princ...

Amanda Rautio

The Princess and the Goblin is one of the few texts from the Victorian “golden age” of children’s literature that gives us a representation of a male and female hero/ine. What...

Heroes and Heroines: A Discussion on "The Princ...

Amanda Rautio

The Princess and the Goblin is one of the few texts from the Victorian “golden age” of children’s literature that gives us a representation of a male and female hero/ine. What...

The Third Time is Not the Charm: A "Dracula" Discussion

The Third Time is Not the Charm: A "Dracula" Di...

Amanda Rautio

Context is key – what kind of fears and anxieties of the 1890s do you think this novel might address? This was my third time reading this novel, and it’s...

The Third Time is Not the Charm: A "Dracula" Di...

Amanda Rautio

Context is key – what kind of fears and anxieties of the 1890s do you think this novel might address? This was my third time reading this novel, and it’s...

An Optimistic Trajectory: A "Great Expectations" Discussion

An Optimistic Trajectory: A "Great Expectations...

Amanda Rautio

Is it realistic that a child of the lower class would ever be given the opportunity that Pip receives? Would Pip have had the desire if he had not had...

An Optimistic Trajectory: A "Great Expectations...

Amanda Rautio

Is it realistic that a child of the lower class would ever be given the opportunity that Pip receives? Would Pip have had the desire if he had not had...

A Study on Voice and Diction: A Discussion of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"

A Study on Voice and Diction: A Discussion of "...

Amanda Rautio

What effect does the run on nature of Carroll's first two sentences have on the following narrative, and why did he choose to use that sentence structure? Lewis Carroll’s intentional...

A Study on Voice and Diction: A Discussion of "...

Amanda Rautio

What effect does the run on nature of Carroll's first two sentences have on the following narrative, and why did he choose to use that sentence structure? Lewis Carroll’s intentional...

The Power of Belief: A Discussion on "The Picture of Dorian Gray"

The Power of Belief: A Discussion on "The Pictu...

Amanda Rautio

The centrality of Basil’s masterpiece portrait of Dorian creates many questions about art, representation, responsibility, character, craft, society, life….. what do you make of the artist – Basil – and...

The Power of Belief: A Discussion on "The Pictu...

Amanda Rautio

The centrality of Basil’s masterpiece portrait of Dorian creates many questions about art, representation, responsibility, character, craft, society, life….. what do you make of the artist – Basil – and...