Graduate Program

English

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Semester of Degree Completion

2005

Thesis Director

Robin Murray

Thesis Committee Member

Unknown

Thesis Committee Member

Unknown

Abstract

Adolescence can be a difficult time in life, and today's teenagers face even more difficult situations in the high school atmosphere. A frequent element in the high school social scene is alienation of the "uncool" kids. This social isolation can have devastating effects on the outcasts and school community as a whole. Within this thesis, I reveal my plan for alleviating the emotional trauma of social isolation by bringing the discussion of social outcasts into the literature classroom. Literature reflects society, thereby giving young readers a lens through which to view the alienation in our global world that they may encounter in the future as well as the social alienation in their classrooms which they observe daily. By specifically examining the outcast figures in the storyline of a fictional novel, students can freely discuss and debate the effects of social isolation in a safe atmosphere because they are discussing a fictional character instead of their personal experiences. This study examines the outcast characters in two American literature classics regularly included in high school English curricula, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Scarlet Letter. To complete the study, two young adult novels Speak and The Misfits were also included as a pairing for the classic works. Exploring the ostracism of the outcast characters in the context of these canonical and young adult American literature texts will encourage students to both read literature, and consequently the outcast characters, more critically and examine themselves as individuals and members of a community who might wrongly alienate someone. The goal of any education is to mold better citizens who can think critically and react positively for society, and by examining social outcasts in canonical American and YA literature, we can accomplish this goal.

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