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FSW Professor Publishes Multiple Journal Articles, Encourages Others to Learn from the Past

Jul 6, 2016


JULY 6, 2016 – FORT MYERS, FLA. – While it’s quite common for college faculty to publish journal articles throughout their careers, Florida SouthWestern State College (FSW) English Professor Dr. Scott Ortolano has done something that is not so common. He’s published multiple articles in less than a year.

A lover of the modernist literary movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Dr. Ortolano’s journal articles focus on cultural ideas of the period.

“At the time, society was moving from a regional industrial culture dominated by Victorian values to a mass consumer society,” Dr. Ortolano said. “Modernist writers were trying to navigate this changing landscape and develop new understandings of themselves and their world.”

In his article, “In Plain Sight: Strictly Dynamite, Modern Comedy, and the Hidden Legacy of Henri Bergson,” published in The Explicator, Dr. Ortolano uncovers the underappreciated influence of modernist philosopher Henri Bergson.

“Bergson had a significant impact on major modernist writers, including T.S. Eliot and William Faulkner,” said Dr. Ortolano. “However, he also shaped the tradition of American humor in important ways, a fact that is visible in Jimmy Durante’s film Strictly Dynamite, which directly references Bergson. His ideas form one of the film’s major conceits and are used to humorously mock our tendency toward the cliché.”

Published in Women’s Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal, Dr. Ortolano’s second journal article, “Liberation, Degeneration, and Transcendence(?): The Promise and Paradox of the ‘New Woman’ in Edna Ferber’s Dawn O’Hara, The Girl Who Laughed and Dorothy Parker’s Big Blonde,” focuses on female modernist writers, many of whom while notable at the time, have been forgotten today.

“In the early 20th century, women were beginning to see new opportunities, but they were also facing new obligations and often still expected to fulfill traditional gender roles. Entering the workforce, a woman would need to be a productive worker, but society also expected her to be a good wife, mother, and homemaker—the stress of these obligations placed women in a kind of double-jeopardy. Writers like Edna Ferber and Dorothy Parker focused on the struggles and triumphs of women in modern America and offer an important window into women’s experiences during the era.”

“We have a great deal in common today with those who lived during the modernist period,” Dr. Ortolano said. “Our world and cultural norms are quickly evolving, much as they were then. Like the modernists, we too are trying to find our place in a new epoch, the Digital Age. Understanding modernism and the challenges people faced during this era can help us light our own way.”

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Florida SouthWestern State College is Southwest Florida’s largest and one of the most affordable institutions of higher education. Annually serving nearly 22,000 students globally, FSW offers a variety of nationally-ranked, career-focused academic programs with two- and four-year degrees, and professional certifications. Students are also active in clubs and programs catered to their interests. FSW debuted its intercollegiate athletics program in January 2016. Visit www.FSW.edu for more information.

Last Updated: July 6, 2016

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