Masculinity and young adult fiction

The thesis 'Masculinity and young adult fiction' analyses the forces that shape the construction of masculinity within young adult texts. The core of the thesis is a creative novel 'Broken glass' which deals with the consequences of masculine mythology within the context of a small town.

Descartes on the human soul : philosophy and the demands of Christian doctrine

By the 17th century Catholic orthodoxy had defined a range of propositions concerning the human soul as revealed by God and verifiable by natural reason. The writings of Rene Descartes display a consistent adherence to these orthodox propositions. The conclusion presents him as ultimately unsuccesful in convincing his contemporaries that his philosophy provided the rational demonstration of the key soul doctrines and that he was worthy of the title "Christian philosopher"

Realism and idealism in the philosophy of Charles S. Peirce

The thesis argues that there is a conjoining of realism and idealism in the mature thought of American philosopher Charles S. Peirce. Concludes that realism and idealism function together as a unit as they are both founded on an evolutionary conception of continuity and potentiality.

Study of 'post-critical' thought and religious epistemology : with special reference to Michael Polanyi, Paul Tillich and Thomas F. Torrance

Explores the foundational problem in epistemology posed by Immanuel Kant and illustrates, from the 'post-critical' position, with special reference to Michael Polanyi, Paul Tillich and Thomas F. Torrance, how they serve as alternative philosophical and religious responses to the Kantian critical philosophy.

Maternal realms : an exegesis and novel

Combines a novel and exegesis. The fictional autobiography, "The wardrobe drawer", describes a girl's prepubescent experiences in a dysfunctional family. The exegesis explores the process of life writing and renegotiates terms for motherhood and femininity by drawing from feminism, autobiography, queer theory and psychanalytic theory.

Leavings : a novel and exegesis

In the novel, Billie, a painter living on the Hawkesbury River, remembers her life in Italy and England in a search for family and identity. The exegesis investigates the prophetic figure of the Sibyl from a writer's perspective, exploring notions of writing, research, creativity, authority and textual longevity.

Renaturalising : Lacan's ethics and Nietzsche's critique of platonism

‬This thesis examines how Lacan's ethics of psychoanalysis might contribute to our understanding of Nietzsche's critique of Platonism.

Properties, processing and performance of rare and natural fibres : a review and interpretation of existing research results

A substantial up-to-date reference manual has been prepared which documents important issues for the supply chain of rare natural animal fibres. New developments in textiles have been included. Cashmere, mohair and camelid fibres have special properties of softness, smoothness and lustre, when compared with sheep wool. They also have other attributes which affect market prices and consumer perceptions, such as being rare and exotic luxuries, and are associated with expensive, comfortable and exclusive garments. These fibres add to the range of wool processing, and add value to wool textiles. Generally, knowledge about these animal fibres is limited, and research effort small compared with research into wool and other natural and man-made fibres. Compared with wool, rare natural animal fibres are more difficult and costly to process. Knowledge about processing these fibres is kept guarded as industrial knowledge. There are problems with clearly identifying rare natural animal fibres when goods are traded or fibres are blended, and fraud is a major concern for textile manufacturers and industry groups. Prickle discomfort in mohair and alpaca next-to-skin wear is a major concern for consumers and textile manufacturers. Natural colours, whiteness and yellowness of rare natural animal fibres are important fibre attributes for dyers and consumers, and the current products have both positive and negative colour attributes for processors. Past investments by RIRDC have made substantial gains in knowledge about fundamental and applied areas of knowledge on the properties, testing and processing performance of rare natural animal fibres.