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Oct. 24, 2006
 Dr. Marty Knepper, professor and chair of English at Morningside College, and Dr. John Shelton Lawrence, professor emeritus of philosophy, are co-authors of the essay “World War II and Iowa: Hollywood’s Pastoral Myth for the Nation” that was included in the anthology Representing the Rural: Space, Place, and Identity in Films about the Land published in September by Wayne State University Press in Detroit, Mich. Editors of the book are Catherine Fowler and Gillian Helfield.
Representing the Rural: Space, Place, and Identity in Films about the Land is part of Wayne State University Press’ Film and Televison series and includes essays from scholars that explore the role of rural space in the cinema. Knepper and Lawrence’s essay discusses Iowa as representative of the nation’s heartland and compares portrayals of the state in World War II-era films.
Knepper frequently writes and speaks about Iowa films and popular culture. She has been a member of  Morningside’s faculty since 1984 and has taught courses in American popular culture and Iowa literature and film. She is former president of the Popular Culture Association. Knepper holds a bachelor’s degree from Morningside College, a master’s degree in English from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, and a doctorate in English from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Lawrence taught philosophy and interdisciplinary studies at Morningside from 1966 to 1996. He is the author of numerous articles and books on American popular culture including “The Myth of the American Superhero,” and “Captain America and the Crusade Against Evil: The Dilemma of Zealous Nationalism,” both co-written with Dr. Robert Jewett, former professor of religious studies at Morningside, and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University in California and a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Texas at Austin.
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