Blunt and Sharp Objects

Though I won’t start graduate school until Fall 2010, I’ve started looking at potential programs and schools. I’m currently considering American studies, comparative literature, English, and linguistics programs. Hopefully I can narrow it down to three or four applications, because it's too much to apply to multiple schools for each program. My generalist tendencies haven’t made it easy for me to get specific.

In an attempt to whittle the possibilities, I’ve been trying to come up with a focus that I could make part of my application. While doing the dishes a couple of minutes ago I thought of a question that could serve as a starting point:

How has scientific progress (especially theoretical physics) shaped American identity, and how is that expressed in art (especially literature)?

Or:

How does American literature express the impact of theoretical physics in defining identity?

Or maybe:

How has physics’ changing view of the universe, and its relation to the self, affected and been expressed in American literature?

It’s still clumsy, but it’s a start. I guess there’s more whittling to do. One thing’s for sure, though: Clint Eastwood looks like a combination of Vincent Cassel and Hugh Jackman.