In Savage Embraces: James Purdy, Melodrama, and the Narration of Identity, Looi van Kessel explores the ways in which the early works of the American author James Purdy undermine the notion of a... Show moreIn Savage Embraces: James Purdy, Melodrama, and the Narration of Identity, Looi van Kessel explores the ways in which the early works of the American author James Purdy undermine the notion of a stable and true identity. Writing in the 1950s and 60s, a time in which identity politics enjoyed increased purchase in the United States, Purdy imagines characters who feel the urge to act out their sexual desires without having to conform to oppressive identity categories. In so doing, Purdy is searching for a language that shows how identity is produced through narration. To tease out this language, Looi approaches Purdy’s writing through the mode of melodrama—a mode that focuses on the aesthetic dramatization of tensions in the plot—while also bringing his work in conversation with current queer thinking. Ultimately, this dissertation attempts to bring the disparate fields of narrative theory and queer theory in a meaningful relation with one another. Show less
This dissertation presents a thematic analysis of Joyce Carol Oates’s (1938) novels written since 1990 about the middle- and upper classes of America. The goal of the study is to examine the ways... Show moreThis dissertation presents a thematic analysis of Joyce Carol Oates’s (1938) novels written since 1990 about the middle- and upper classes of America. The goal of the study is to examine the ways in which these novels represent the reality of contemporary America. The dissertation draws on sociological and cultural studies of American society in the second half of the 20th century. The study shows that Oates constantly reflects on the past, from the post-war period to more recent decades, reexamining not only the cultural constructs of previous generations, but also our current attitudes toward them. An important conclusion of the study is that Oates appears to be criticizing a lack of character strength, stability, reliability and moral decency in the middle and upper classes, qualities that are often associated with the Protestant world-view, while simultaneously criticizing the limitations that this same Protestant ethic imposes on her characters. She reassesses the meaning of success in the corporate, political and celebrity world and pleads for humbleness and simplicity. Through the different literary techniques that she embraces in her work and plots taken from real life Oates remains a social critic and an artist closely bonded to her society. Show less
