Vol. 1 No. 1 (2021): Aletheia: The Arts and Science Academic Journal

Welcome to the inaugural edition of the Arts & Science Journal: Aletheia. This is the first-ever peer-reviewed journal that compiles works from students in the Arts & Science program at McMaster University. In this journal, we invite you to enjoy some of the innovative and high-quality work produced by students in a range of Arts & Science courses from the 2019-2020 academic year.

The inspiration to start this journal came during a difficult summer of COVID-19, in which the two of us were feeling disconnected from the Arts & Science community and were looking ahead to a school year of remote learning. After three years in Arts & Science, reading our peers’ impressive works, we believed that the program was missing a platform to showcase papers from its students. As both of us had experienced, submitting one’s paper to an external journal is an intimidating and often complicated process. As we entered our final year in the program, we hoped to create a way to bring together Arts & Science
work, while also fostering inter-year collaboration in the remote-learning school year.

With the help of our two ‘Editors-in-training’, who shared our vision for the journal, we brought together our amazing Staff team: 10 Peer Reviewers who provided detailed feedback and commentary on authors’ submissions, and two Graphics Designers who created the journal’s website and artwork. We then called for submissions for papers relating to our theme of Resilience and were excited by the diversity of courses and topics reflected in the papers we received. The peer-review process is an arduous one, but we were incredibly impressed by the dedication and eye for detail of our Peer Reviewers as they immersed themselves in the papers, and of the Authors in incorporating all the feedback and edits they received. More information on the peer review process can be found on our website. Although perhaps a little dense for a casual read, we envision that this publication, and subsequent editions, will serve to not only inform readers about important issues, but also provide examples of strong work from Arts & Science courses. For prospective Arts & Science students, we hope that these pieces will help you gain a sense of the critical thinking and writing skills fostered in the program. For current students, we hope it is helpful to have examples of work from classes you are taking or considering, to assist with your own writing and connect you to others with similar research interests. And for alumni, we hope Aletheia can help you to stay up to date with your alma mater. For everyone, perhaps this journal will come in handy when you are inevitably asked the question: “So, what is Arts & Science?”

Our theme for this edition is Resilience. In deciding on a theme for our inaugural edition, we were keen to capture the complexity and crises of our current time; a time in which communities have come together to question long-established practices and systems, and in which a global pandemic has compelled us to cope with adversity in new ways. The papers in this edition discuss strength and adaptability in the face of hardship, taking up diverse topics such as the Holocaust, climate change, and women’s rights. While almost all of the papers were written before COVID-19, we thought that they spoke well to the resilience needed to navigate our current world.

Thank you for taking the time to read Aletheia. We hope that you enjoy going through it as much as we enjoyed putting it together.