Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Semester of Degree Completion
1995
Thesis Director
David Carpenter
Abstract
This thesis is composed of two parts. The first is a critical introduction which explores the influences on the author. The author is interested in the idea of style as a character in such works by Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner, and Albert French. This discussion of these authors leads into ideas of space, both physical and metaphysical, in much of twentieth century literature. Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man is an example. The exploration of space in literature is important for the determination of identity, which is one of the important themes of literature in this century. The author connects Sherwood Anderson's idea of the grotesque to ideas of space. The inability of a character to grab a true truth makes him or her grotesque just as the inability to create or determine one's own space keeps a character from a true identity.
The second part of this thesis is a work of fiction. The author explores, in a novella, the ideas outlined above. The protagonists returns from military service, wounded physically and mentally. He hopes to recreate a family he perhaps never had. The members are emotionally cold and provide little comfort. This coldness, in turn, affects each character's ability to communicate. The protagonist moves through one family member to the next with little success. Through flashbacks, the reader learns of some of the pain of the character and why this task is so important and why he is so determined to make this exploration succeed. This search only adds to his wounds until the end when he is betrayed and alone. The story questions not only ideas of space, but also ideas of manhood, courage, and identity.
Recommended Citation
Brown, Michael J., "Whale" (1995). Masters Theses. 1985.
https://thekeep.eiu.edu/theses/1985
