Graduate Program

English

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Semester of Degree Completion

2007

Thesis Director

Michael Loudon

Thesis Committee Member

Olga Abella

Thesis Committee Member

Daiva Markelis

Abstract

This thesis consists of six essays written in the genre of creative nonfiction. The focus of the work is my experience of living in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and teaching at the American School from 1969-1971 when I was in my early twenties. The essays are sourced in 104 letters I sent to my family; entries in two daybooks; photos; and my roommate's diary. The events suggested by these primary sources have been enriched by information acquired through academic research and by details provided by conversations and correspondence with the people who shared the experiences with me. The essays shift back and forth through time, recalling and reflecting on memories from my childhood to present day. Understandably, these memories have been tempered somewhat by time, experience, and imagination.

The first essay describes the trip to Rio; my roommates and my friends; and my first encounter with macumba, Brazilian voodoo. The second tells of two evenings at a five-star restaurant on the top of an unfinished skyscraper. The third records the occurrences of a day spent in a favela, a slum, with our maid and her family. The fourth chronicles the observance of New Year's Eve 1969 by practitioners of macumba. The fifth details the events of Easter 1971 in the town of Ouro Prêto, including meeting Julian Beck and members of the Living Theatre and spending Easter afternoon with American poet Elizabeth Bishop. The sixth essay is an afterword, reflecting on these experiences.

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