Historical Research
My degree at Princeton is towards a Bachelor's of Arts in History.
Each semester in junior year, I have completed a paper on a topic of my choice.
Navigate to the work of your choosing
An early Christian perspective on Hebrews: Eusebius of Caesarea
The image of Jesus as a high priest after the order of Melchizedek is beloved for modern Christians.
All can read about this image in the Book of Hebrews, now part of the Biblical canon.
Yet early on, Christians argued over whether Hebrews was suitable for the Bible, given that its author could not be identified from its contents.
In this paper, we explored the case that the church historian Eusebius of Caesarea made for including Hebrews in the Bible.
We get a glimpse of how early Christians thought about the role of Scripture in the church and in their faith.
I completed this work under the guidance of Professor Anthony Grafton.
Byzantine fresco of Polycarp
Before he was burned alive, the ancient Christian martyr Polycarp was recorded to have offered himself as a “rich and acceptable sacrifice” before the “eternal high priest Jesus Christ.” He proclaimed these words in the public stadium before tumultuous crowds of spectators. The man turned out inflammable, and when fire could not consume him, they pierced him with the sword. The year was A.D. 155.
Read my paper on Hebrews here.
Tejanos on the frontier between U.S. and Mexico
In the past, history about Texas and its neighboring states has centered on the actions of the nation-state; much emphasis has been placed on the fact that the swathe of land that once belonged to Mexico came under the possession of the U.S. after the U.S.-Mexican war.
Historians have explained that northern Mexico was sparsely populated and neglected by the Mexican government, allowing the U.S. to conquer it swiftly and painlessly.
Little has been said about the opportunists, tradesmen and entrepreneurs that transformed the landscape and made this place their home before the U.S. government annexed the territory.
Historians have embarked on meaningful quests to understand the U.S.-Mexican frontier as its own space, inhabited by people who have different objectives than those who represent the nation-state.
Contributing to this scholarship, I explore the perspectives of two men who were Mexican statesmen, vested with power by the Mexican government. These men behaved in ways that suggests they had to negotiate between their objectives as statesmen and their objectives as frontiersmen.
This work was completed under the guidance of Molly Greene, in a seminar titled "Irregular Warfare."
Read my paper on the Tejanos here.