American literature
136 theses under this subject heading
The interplay between racism and feminism: Black feminism and Toni Morrison's 'Paradise'
Toni Morrison's novel Paradise provides a vivid picture of patriarchy and racism. The novel is surrounded with crucial symbols in connection with race and gender. The novel takes place in Ruby near Oklahoma. It is a small town where only black men hold the authority and manipulate the system according to their interests.In terms of identity there is no separate concept for women in the novel. They have to obey all the rules which are expected by men. On the other hand, There is a place which is known as Convent near Ruby. The women who live in Convent trigger the hatred and anger of those men against women in general because they think that they can not control the women as they control their wives. The women in Convent show their identities bravely and freely. Therefore, it menaces the absolute authority of men. The concept of strong women and how merciless men can be If the authority is taken from them, are emphasized with the help of Convent thematically.Actually, from the very beginning to the end, Toni Morrison draws the picture of difficulties women have to deal with. The richness of the novel stems from the thematic elements intimately linked to the language and discourse intertwined with racism and patriarchy. The way she uses the language and the events that take place provide different perspectives on these issues non-chronologically. There is a striking interplay between past and present in connection with inequalities in terms of gender and race. Actually, Morrison tries to show that the underlying reason of segregation is not closely linked to race or gender. The aim of this study is to analyze the thematic elements and their relations to the interplay between racism and feminism known as Black Feminism and as a conclusion how concepts of race and gender are used to hide interests stemming from political and economic reasons are explained in the light of literature review. In the study, as data collection method, the thematic analysis has been used to explain the content according to themes.
The concept of individuality in Scott Westerfeld's Uglies and Lois Lowry's The Giver
This thesis aims to analyze the concept of individuality in terms of achieving the transcendence in two dystopian novels: The Giver by Lois Lowry and Uglies by Scott Westerfeld. The concept of individuality, by its very nature, can exist only with the concept of collectivity. However, this situation also involves a duality. This duality originates from the question of identity. An individual's identity is determined by the principles of the society, therefore s/he struggles to grow a self-identity. Thus, this thesis aims to examine an individual's condition in a social organization. This thesis also aims to examine which role the maturity plays in achieving this transcendence.
The theoretical formation of Mise en Abyme and its intertextual applicability in Michael Cunningham's The Hours
The aim of this study is to provide a comprehensive exploration of the themes and multi-layered narrative structures in Michael Cunningham's The Hours (1998) through the lens of the literary theory of mise en abyme, examining the implications of the novel's internalised intertextual dialogue with Virginia Woolf's Mrs Dalloway (1925). The mise en abyme is utilised as a narrative device for dissecting the self-reflexive instances in The Hours, necessitating a tracing of its theoretical formation from its earliest interpretations to its refinement by various scholars, which culminates in the exploration of the role of self-reflexivity in sign studies, reader-response theory, and postmodern poetics. The current study also introduces an extension to the literary phenomenon of mise en abyme, the concept of intertextual mise en abyme, which is deeply rooted in Gérard Genette's framework of hypertextuality. It is proposed that this intertextual mirroring creates and nurtures a necessary tension between the original work and its adaptation, where each reflection both acknowledges the original and forms an integral part of the adaptation's narrative. Therefore, the study analyses the novel's self-reflexive inspection of its own status as an adaptation, the processes of its creation and reception, and the real versus ideal dichotomy. Furthermore, it presents mise en abyme as a conduit for the cyclical movement of artistic creation and the immortality of the creative process as proposed in the narrative of The Hours, with characters reflecting the original author and adapting novelist. Lastly, the research illustrates the novel's thematization of the dynamics between the artist's imagination and its publicised expression through the reception of art, as a complex mirror, reflecting both individual and collective attitudes towards the symbolic value of intellectual works of art. Keywords: mise en abyme, intertextuality, self-reflexivity, Michael Cunningham, The Hours
Novels of social activism: American women writers of the interwar years
In the United States, the interwar decades of the 1920s and 1930s represented the struggle between liberation and conservatism during the "Roaring Twenties" and the turbulent Great Depression. The postwar emphasis on freedom, progress, and change was associated with the new youth, radical politics, industrial and urban growth, and immigration. Conservative reactions resulted in counteraction to modernization, working class activism, and foreign people and ideologies in light of economic crises, environmental disasters, and the changing socioeconomic and cultural structures of the United States. This dissertation explores six American women novelists who carried Progressive Era reform into the interwar years. Their social novels criticize the sociocultural and political context in order to improve modern American Woman's self-image and position, conditions of working class and farmers, and American society's awareness about global conflicts. Their drive to reform and consciousness raising narratives challenge popular and prejudiced portrayals in literature and the media. Gertrude Atherton's The Sisters-in-Law: A Novel of Our Time (1921) and Black Oxen (1923) redefine the new woman's liberation and morality through wartime services and the postwar reconstruction of society. Grace Lumpkin's To Make My Bread (1932) and Mary Heaton Vorse's Strike! (1930) convey working class families' demands for rights in the booming textile industries via the Gastonia Strike of 1929. Josephine Johnson's Now in November (1934) and Sanora Babb's Whose Names Are Unknown: A Novel (written in 1939/published in 2004) address farm families' struggle with the Great Depression, drought, and the Dust Bowl during the New Deal. In The Deepening Stream (1930), Dorothy Canfield critiques WWI and peace settlements, while warning American society against growing totalitarianism and persecution in the pre-WWII era in Seasoned Timber (1939). These novels of social activism express critical observations, the suffering of the masses, the reality behind myths and bias, and a call for change. Keywords: Interwar Era, American Social Novel, New Woman, Gastonia Strike, Great Depression, Dust Bowl, World Wars
Analysis of military terminology in the translation of war literature: A descriptive study on retranslations of Joseph Heller's Catch-22
This thesis aims to examine the translations of Catch-22 by Levent Denizci (1976) and Niran Elçi (2006) in terms of military terminology. The methodological and theoretical framework is based on Antoine Berman's translation criticism theory. Berman argues that translation criticism should be constructive. According to him, deforming tendencies in the target text should be examined since they can shed light on translator's choices and help the critic analyze the text in a productive way. He also thinks that every translation ages in time and therefore needs retranslation (Berman, 2009). Catch-22, written by Joseph Heller, is a cult post-war novel rich in military terminology. In this thesis, the military terms in Catch-22 were analyzed according to Berman's twelve deforming tendencies and the results were examined in the light of his retranslation theory. In the analysis part, military terms randomly selected from both target texts were shown in tables and analyzed with a descriptive method over fifty examples. The findings of the analysis show that the first translation made by Levent Denizci aimed to introduce the source text to the target culture. So, the strategy of ''domestication'' is observed in his translation. In addition, Niran Elçi's retranslation exhibits fewer deforming tendencies observed in the initial translation. Therefore, Niran Elçi's retranslation is closer to the source text, and the strategy of "foreignization" is observed in this translation. Also, it can be concluded that quantitative impoverishment, the destruction of underlying networks of signification, and the destruction of linguistic patternings are the tendencies that are observed the most in both target texts when the results are checked.
Kara Walker's early installations as counter-narratives to Uncle Tom's Cabin and Gone With the Wind
Uncle Tom's Cabin (1851) and Gone with the Wind (1936) still hold a prominant place in the American public memory. The first novel describes the immoral and unacceptable aspects of slavery in great length and is considered to be explicit support for the abolitionist cause in the US. Meanwhile, the second novel foregrounds a love story happening during the Civil War and Reconstruction Era in the South where people experience the loss of not only the war but also the idealized way of life in which everybody, including the slaves, was content. These novels are vastly different in terms of the ideas they want to convey, yet they were both instrumental in perpetuating negative stereotypes of African Americans. These novels are master narratives, and the readers take such texts for granted and do not feel compelled to question their authenticity. For the contemporary artist Kara Walker, creating counter-narratives is a way to deal with the repercussions of these two novels in her two early installations: The End of Uncle Tom and the Grand Allegorical Tableau of Eva in Heaven (1997) and Gone: An Historical Romance of a Civil War as It Occurred b'tween the Dusky Thighs of One Young Negress and Her Heart (1995). In these installations, Walker masterfully links her art to the nineteenth century, a time period depicted in the novels in which slavery still existed, and presents alternative and disturbing panoramas of slavery conveniently absent in the novels. The viewers are often uncomfortable about the whole experience. They remember a point in history that is not palatable. For Walker, this is the only way in which the conventional historical narratives be challenged, and viewers feel compelled to confront the uncomfortable truths of slavery.
Posthumanism and precarity in the post-2008 crisis science fiction novels: Paolo Bacigalupi's The Windup Girl, Cory Doctorow's Walkaway, and Annalee Newitz's Autonomous
This thesis analyzes three science fiction (SF) novels Paolo Bacigalupi's The Windup Girl (2009), Cory Doctorow's Walkaway (2017), and Annalee Newitz's Autonomous (2017), through the concept of precarity as a shared vulnerability in light of posthumanism. These SF novels reflect the surging precarity in the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis (2007-2008) and display how SF responds to precarity conditioned by economic structures and environmental problems with posthumanist elements. In the novels, this imaginative response to the crisis is shaped by the critical examination of the concept of vulnerability as a posthuman condition in post-disaster societies constructed as possible future worlds. As such, the works try to produce a criticism of capitalism by projecting critical dystopias with posthumanist elements which examine how to imagine the future after the collapse of capital and the global ecological systems. In the meantime, by questioning what it means to be human, each novel shows that the shared vulnerability of its characters transforms them into posthumans. This vulnerability manifests in the characters' embodied, embedded, affective and interconnected natures. Hence, this study argues that these critical dystopias not only harbor a quest for alternatives by concentrating on precarity, but they also suggest that potential utopian aspirations may emerge from a posthumanist perspective.
Postkolonyal çalışmalar ışığında Afro-Amerikan edebiyatından örnekler (1890-1950)
Post kolonyal çalışmalar İkinci Dünya Savaşından sonra yükselişe geçen alanlardan bir tanesi olmuştur. Post kolonyal çalışmalar özü itibariyle kaynağını edebiyat ve kültürel çalışmalardan almaktadır. Postkolonyal çalışmaların ana çıkış noktasını oluşturan unsurların başında mağduriyet yaşamış insanların durumları gelir ve yaşanan olayları Batı gözünden yorumlamak yerine dekolonizasyon sürecinden geçmiş ve bağımsızlığını yeni kazanmış ülkelerin gözünden yansıtma hedefini güder. Post kolonyal çalışmaların en çok ilgi duyduğu ulusların başında Afrika, Asya gibi Üçüncü Dünya ülkeleri gelmektedir. Post kolonyal çalışmalar her ne kadar bağımsızlıklarını yeni kazanmış ülkelerin dekolonizasyon süreçlerini ele alsa da post kolonyal çalışmaların içinde Amerika Birleşik Devletleri'nin özel bir yeri vardır. Amerika Birleşik Devletleri'nin bu alanda ön plana çıkmasında sömürgecilik döneminin sona ermesi oldukça etkili olmuştur. Sömürgecilik yerini kılık değiştiren emperyalizme bırakmıştır. Emperyalizmin birincil önderliğini ve destekçiliğini Amerika üstlenmiştir. Postkolonyal çalışmalar sadece dekolonizasyon sürecindeki uluslar ve halkların maddi durumuna odaklanmaz aynı zamanda büyük bir dikkatle bu ulusların manevi yorgunluklarını, kimlik sorunlarını ve maruz bırakıldıkları ırkçılık, ayrımcılık ve baskı gibi sorunların kökenine inerek açıklamaya çalışır. 20. yüzyılın ortalarından itibaren önem kazanan post kolonyal çalışmalar ışığında iç sömürgeciliğe bağlı olarak Amerikan toplumunda kölelik kurumuyla başlayan ırkçılık hareketleri, Afrikalı Amerikalıların kimlik sorunsalı ve Yurttaşlık Hakları Hareketi'nin önemli unsuru sayılan birliktelik ve Afrikalı Amerikalıların kültürel uyanışları 1890-1950 yılları arasında kaleme alınmış bazı ünlü eserler yoluyla incelenecektir.
Slow violence in contemporary American fiction: Richard Powers`s Gain, Ann Pancake`s Strange As This Weather Has Been and John Grisham`s Gray Mountain
Rob Nixon's Slow Violence and the Environmentalism of the Poor, published in 2011, has undertaken an important mission in the Environmental Humanities; Nixon coined the term "slow violence" for the hitherto unnamed environmental disasters that escape the public eye. According to Nixon, slow violence is dispersed across time and, as such, goes unnoticed. Given that the people most exposed to slow violence are disempowered people, it becomes even harder for the environmental degradation to become visible. Even though violence is typically associated with momentary events, an event does not have to be momentary to be fatal. Although violence is associated with instant events, the consequences of slow violence can be even more fatal. Rob Nixon has inspired many scholars, and a good number of studies have been carried out addressing slow violence in the global South. The novelty of the present dissertation, however, is the application of Nixon's concept of slow violence to three contemporary American environmental novels on disempowered people who are exposed to the scourge of slow violence. In Gain (1998), the first novel under focus in this dissertation, the environmental damage wrought for more than a century by the Clare Company is evident, its long-lasting harm exemplifying what Nixon refers to as slow violence. A Nixonian analysis of Gain reveals that a product of Clare, Inc., has caused Laura Bodey's cancer—a manifestation of slow violence. The fact that many people and organizations collaborate with Laura and participate in the struggle against Clare expresses the significance of the solidarity which Nixon calls "the environmentalism of the poor." Powers's drawing attention to the toxicity in Illinois, warning people about slow violence – which would otherwise have gone unnoticed – embodies the significance of Nixon's "writer-activism." The fact that Superfund sites were established in Illinois after the publication of Gain proves the impact of such literature on environmental hazards. The second novel under focus, Strange as This Weather Has Been (2007) is significant in its embodiment of all the Nixonian concepts. Ann Pancake, as a writer and lecturer born in the region who struggles against strip-mining and the ensuing environmental hazards, exemplifies writer-activism. The fact that the characters Lace and Bant experience a revelation and become environmentalists embodies the environmentalism of the poor. The plot features numerous instances of slow violence: the degradation of Appalachia after four decades of mountaintop removal, and the illnesses and deaths caused by coal mining, such as when Corey died after falling into a pond created by the industry. The procedure of mountaintop coal mining creates toxicity in the water, soil, and the air; thus, people continually suffer from respiratory illnesses, the scarcity of potable water, and sludge rains and floods. Gray Mountain (2014), the third novel, focuses more on the legal issues related to coal mining. A lawyer by training, Grisham reveals the corruption of the legal system in Appalachia and the dishonest alliances between multinational corporations and authorities. The long-term wreckage goes unnoticed in Appalachia, rendering its slow violence invisible. However, although slow violence is relatively concealed, its consequences are fatal, black lung disease being the principal one. Further, the violence mainly hits the disempowered people in Appalachia, since multinational corporations' development target locations tend to be inhabited by disempowered people who are unable to defend themselves. It is examined that in both Strange as This Weather Has Been and Gray Mountain, slow violence appears in the form of black lung disease, accidents related to coal mining, loss of housing, unemployment, and depression. A study of the three contemporary environmental novels makes visible what went unnoticed over a long period of time, illustrates the vulnerability of ecosystems, as well as the vulnerability of human health. The dissertation proves that the concept of slow violence has become one of the defining factors of a collective awareness of the suffering that emerges out of prolonged environmental catastrophes.
Robert Frost's reflection on man isolation and its connection to something in nature
Robert Frost?s popularity was accepted with his simplistic style, his particular sensitivity and a clever use of imagery in his poetry in the twentieth century. Man?s relation with universe is his main concern in his poems. The vastness of universe is beyond compare to man with his loneliness and frailty with it. Man?s indifference and his confrontation of the universe have a connection with certain themes in his poetry. His great admiration of nature made his poems portraying one of the great themes in his poetry: nature. My particular focus in this study is Frost?s certain joy about nature and even a fear towards it on which results in man?s isolation in society and despite his struggle to connect himself to it in regards to his longing. This isolation and longing come from human psychology. This study begins by placing Frost?s works in the context of Romantic poetry. Frost gives his readers the observation of something in nature and its connection to human isolation. The best way to understand Frost's key themes- his affection for nature, man's reasons for keeping away from nature, man's loneliness in the face of nature, the power of nature to act as a remedy for man's ills- is to examine the poems
The concept of alienation in Tennessee Williams' works
Tennessee Williams who is distinguished with the masterly use of dramatic devices such as light, music, and stage setting, his poetic language as well as the extraordinary themes on which his works are centered is often regarded as one of the greatest American dramatists of the twentieth century. As a gifted writer, Tennessee Williams managed to create many impressive characters since he had an empathetic understanding of the human soul and its most powerful motives, which direct the acts of individuals. He focuses not only depicting their identities but also their interaction with other members of society. Most of his heroes and heroines suffer because they fail to adapt themselves to the established values of the environment in which they live; therefore, they are usually confused and unable to fulfill their prescribed roles. In that sense in most of his works it is noticed that his characters, under the pressure of harsh reality, develop the feeling of alienation. They escape from the reality to seek refuge under the shadow of illusion. However they cannot get rid of the harsh reality and finally, they live their life with the very feeling of frustration, loneliness and alienation.This dissertation aims at exploring Tennessee Williams? characters in some of his works in respect to the concept of alienation. It is important to note that this study covers Tennessee Williams? three major plays and one novel; The Glass Menagerie (1944), Portrait of a Madonna (1946), A Streetcar Named Desire (1947), The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone (1950). The reason to confine this dissertation to scrutinising these four works is that the feeling of alienation is so distinct in the characters and it plays the central theme in these works. The introduction gives a general information on Tennessee Williams? biography and his theatre in relation to the theme of alienation which shapes his works. In the second chapter the concept of alienation is discussed within the framework of various theories put forward by leading thinkers. The third chapter presents detailed studies of the works and analyse comparatively how this concept is reflected in these works. The conclusion presents a general evaluation that Tennessee Williams dealt with the theme of alienation to project the internal conditions of his characters who, by not showing the capacity to experience an awakening, cannot overcome their illusion. Key Words: Alienation, Illusion, Isolation, Self- Awareness.
American revolution and analysis of the effects of American Revolution in Washington Irving's Rip Van Winkle
American Revolution is the most important event which created the foundations of The United States of America as we know it today. Under the impositions of the British Crown, colonists established a new country. The research is based on literary search of the Enlightenment and its effects, thoughts of the colonists, the harsh acts that are demanded from them, French and Indian Wars, Proclamation of 1763 and Boston Massacre, First and Second Continental Congress, Declaration of the Independence but this paper's main aim is the American Revolution's occurrence, and analyzing it through the context of literature and one of the founding fathers of American short story Washington Irving and his most important short story on the American Revolution, Rip Van Winkle, is examined. The primary function of the thesis is American Revolution that resulted with unison in 13 colonies and through the literature, different feelings are conveyed as for the Crown. Furthermore, new national notions can be traced which lead to the beginning of America itself and its literature style. In introduction, the general information about American Revolution and its effects on American literature will be given. The process and causes of American Revolutionary War will be examined in the second section of this thesis. In the third section, Washington Irving's effects on American literature and his views on American Revolutionary War and his works will be mentioned. Rip Van Winkle is analyzed in the forth section of this thesis. Moreover, it can be seen a detailed study about the reflections of American Revolutionary War on Washington Irving's Rip Van Winkle. In conclusion, it is shown how Washington Irving describes American Revolution in his work "Rip Van Winkle" successfully.
The beat genaration, the marginal social group of the post WWII American literature: A study of Chandler Brossard's Who Walk in Darkness and John Clellon Holmes's Go
This study investigates the Beat generation as a marginal social group of the Post WWII America and looks at Chandler Brossard's Who Walk in Darkness and John Clellon Holmes's Go as the major works of the Beat movement which has had a significant impact on the American culture and society. The cultural and social legacy of the Beatniks can be traced to the sixties counterculture, hippies, anti-war movements, and even the civil rights movement. Their literary impact has been even more significant. The poets such as Allen Ginsberg and Lawrence Ferlinghetti and the novelists such as Jack Kerouac provided American literature with a fresh and original perspective, also making remarkable contributions in terms of form and style. The reason why I chose to study the Beat literature is the dissident attitudes of its writers and poets and the way they created a unique dissident culture. Their importance in terms of challenging the mainstream values of the post-war American society cannot be overlooked even if we view the modern American literature from a very broad perspective. Their critical stance with regard to the social and political issues concerning America can even be applied to today's global crises, affecting the societies all over the world. The Beats were not an isolated group of people who rejected to be involved in the current social political issues of their country. xii On the contrary, their anti-establishment and anti-war attitudes inspired the critical responses toward the Cold War between the US and The Soviet Union that emerged after the Second World War, the Red Scare, McCarthyism, policy of containment, conformity, consumerism created and supported by capitalism. Their anti-bourgeois and anti-materialistic attitudes provided a basis for the sixties counterculture and civil rights movement, and more importantly, they questioned the prejudices and discrimination against people on racial, ethnic, and ideological bases existing in the American society. The Beats' search for an authentic form of life and a personal identity outside the mainstream is brought under scrutiny. This study specifically deals with the themes of individualism and bohemian and hedonist lifestyle as an alternative to the American conformity and the white middle class values. The first section contains a review of the origins of the Beat Generation and is followed by a critical examination of it. The second chapter examines the general context of the post WWII America and views the post war America from the social and political aspects. The social and literary aspects of the same era are also discussed. The third chapter focuses on marginality and individuality vs. the mainstream White Middle Class Values in Brossard's Who Walk in Darkness, while chapter four debates hipsterism and hedonism vs. consumerism and conformity in John Holmes's Go. Both works are significant for portraying a xiii search for a more authentic lifestyle. They show the harsh consequences the characters are faced with after rejecting the mainstream white middle class values. One such consequence is being treated as outcasts and being marginalized. The characters cannot be integrated to the American society and because of their lifestyles they are judged harshly and stigmatized. So, both works deal with the judgmental attitudes of the white middle-class American society, which include racist, misogynist, and homophobic behaviors and which turn into heavier social and moral pressures, causing suppression of individual expression. The novels describe the suffocating atmosphere caused by social pressures and stigmatizing attitudes that frustrate the Beats who reject being mainstream career-oriented, consumerist conformists and give us an idea about how the American society after the WWII has been actually divided by the racial, ethnic, and sexual lines and how it is impossible to reduce it into one large homogeneous whole. The rebellious spirit reveals itself in the form of an energetic scene of subcultures such as the Beats that prefer to explore alternative ways of being and to acquire a variety of experiences rather than becoming regular members of the mainstream middle-class.
Comparison of two beat generation novels' adaptations: On the Road and Naked Lunch
Beat Generation novels, although they had a deep influence on both American literature and world literature, did not take the attention of filmmakers for adaptation for long years. People's interest increased towards Beat Novel soon after the release of the film adaptation of On the Road in 2012, however this increase in interest did not entail an increase in the number of Beat Novel adaptations. This study has two essential aims. First one is to investigate two Beat Novel adaptations, Jack Kerouac's On the Road and William Burroughs' Naked Lunch. Second one is to determine which elements of adaptation are more efficient in adaptation studies. The Beat Generation, Novel Adaptation and Desire in Adaptation and detailed analysis of two Beat Novel Adaptations: Walter Salles' On the Road and David Cronenberg's Naked Lunch were the main issues in this study. The first part deals with the Beat Generation: its background, pioneering members and reactions of critics and society towards the Beats and the Beat Movement. The second chapter lays out the theoretical dimensions of the research to help in expressing the gist of the main argument. Chapters three and four analyzed two Beat Novels and their film adaptations. Here I intend to determine whether adapters of On the Road and Naked Lunch succeeded to create a new and original work of art or not. The research shows that even though Naked Lunch was independent from the original work, it was defined as a more successful adaptation than On the Road in terms of loyalty to the spirit of the original work and creating visual equivalence of the letter. On the basis of the results of this research, it can be concluded that "a restoration of the essence of the letter and the spirit'' was the most efficient element in adaptation of Beat Novels.
On the road to heaven: An evaluation of spirituality in the works of Jack Kerouac
ON THE ROAD TO HEAVEN: AN EVALUATION OF SPIRITUALITY IN THE WORKS OF JACK KEROUAC ABSTRACT In this thesis study, Jack Kerouac's spirituality is investigated in his two important novels: On the Road and Desolation Angels. Jack Kerouac had been accused of writing indecent, obscene, and worthless. The literary critics of the time of publishing of On the Road, find the book also not to mention as literary work. All the comments about On the Road were derogatory, pejorative and belittling. Nobody mentioned the book's highly spiritual content and the author's thought sphere, philosophy and spirituality and mysticism. In fact On the Road was highly spiritual and the author was really in relationship with mysticism and other religions other than his familial and national involvement. And Kerouac's another book, Desolation Angels was proof of his deep understanding of spirituality with giving his discourse on notion of his spiritual road with highs and lows. But that book was lately published in 1965 and Kerouac was well known so far with his other explanations and interviews, so the comments were not so far from the reality and then the Kerouac's spirituality. But On the Road was scapegoat of its time. All the negativity of the time was emerging from the novel, or the novel's author's so called "rebellious understanding of life". Jack Kerouac's spirituality is not suitable to a certain religion or a spiritual sect. He had accepted all of them by heart in spite of their paradoxical position as in Buddhism vs. Christianity (at least on reincarnation matter). But many think he was devoted Catholic. I argued also this is not a true comment in this thesis. If that allegation was true he wouldn't so keen to investigate other religions or spiritual thought systems. He could only make some improvisations on Catholicism. Yet he even didn't make any pure investigation solely on body of Christianity. He always searched what he thought was missing, and that was purely spirituality. The other concerns were only details, collateral involvements. The core, the essence of his search for was the spirituality itself. And he found that spirituality from time to time as it is written in his different novels. These moments were not only possess certain religion. Then, one could even find some Islamic spirituality, without Kerouac's authentic considerations because he was not an advocator of a certain religion in spite of his deep concern of Catholicism. He was only a champion of spirituality. The proof was also his novel On the Road because it is not even accepted as a decent novel at the publication time but all the details in the book rounding around spirituality. And institutional reaction moreover religious rejection was obvious on the face of the current criticism at that time. On the Road from the beginning to the end filled with author's spiritual concerns which are defined in various ways. This spirituality is not really related to any religion. But in Desolation Angels the religious concerns are much visible. The attachment of Christianity and Buddhism is obvious while effects of Islam are not exposed. On the Road is not dealing with spirituality directly—apart from an unnamed quest, but overall tone with aura encompasses the reader with spirituality. The author's attempts, madly mobility with words along with earthly movement make sense with transcending voice. Kerouac makes this by words, connotations, intonations, variations of words, with a brilliant word reservoir, and with his immense energy. Keywords: Spirituality, Mysticism, The Beats, Jack Kerouac
Ernest Hemingway'in A Farewell to Arms ve For Whom the Bell Tolls'daki erkeklik testi
The present study discusses the masculine identity of two main characters, Frederic Henry and Robert Jordan, in Ernest Hemingway's two novels. Henry is the main character in A Farewell to Arms, and Jordan is the main one in For Whom the Bell Tolls. In the past, literary critics had identified Hemingway's main male characters as individuals that demonstrate tough masculine traits. In contrast to the previous critics' views, I argue that Hemingway's central male characters, namely Henry and Jordan are in struggle with regard to their masculine social positions and they are hardly able to prove their masculinity. In marked contrast to the previous emphases on biographical readings and psychoanalytical analyses of the novels, this study pays careful attention to the construction of the masculine identity. My discussion of the subject is based on the social construction of manhood. This involves examining the motives that lead Henry and Jordan to participate in the First World War and in the Spanish Civil War. Although there are several similarities between Henry and Jordan, they differ from each other in particular aspects. Henry has no way except rebuilding his masculine identity by joining the war. However, he soon finds out that being involved in the war is not a way to assert his masculine identity. In other words, the war leaves him disenchanted with his search for manhood. Consequently, he is overwhelmed by his disenchantment with his desperate attempts to rebuild his masculine identity as he is eventually unable to find happiness by asserting his manhood neither in the battlefield nor in family life. He becomes distraught and desperate due to the death of his lover Catherine and her stillborn child. On the other hand, Jordan makes up his mind to stay in battlefield and keep on fighting to protect his friends and his lover Maria despite the fact that his ideals are being compromised. In doing so, Jordan hardly manages to find satisfaction and gain victory in showing his manhood in this manner. Jordan is prevailed over with a sense of loss to the utmost degree. While the war is a means to uncover the treasure of manhood, Henry fails in his attempts to prove his manhood. Yet, Jordan succeeds to a certain degree through being committed to his ideals and principles which he initially has left America for.
The projection of racism in Richard Wright's Black Boy
Racism is a prominent theme in the Black American Literature. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate racism in the novel Black Boy by Richard Wright through examining ways of racial discrimination against black community during the times when the Jim Crow Laws were implemented. According to the Constitution of the United States of America, everyone is born with equal rights. However, the term 'equality' was non-existent or irrelevant in the states of Southern America. Black Boy narrates the life, struggles and eventual triumph of a young, destitute Black Boy growing up in the unruly state of Mississippi under the appalling legislations of the Jim Crow Laws. There, the Jim Crow Laws were unanimously being amended and forced upon the inhabitants of those states. The black community was very harshly treated during those times. Even innocuous incidents, like looking at a white person in the eye were punishable by law. Racial discrimination and hatred for the blacks were at their peak in the early 1900s. The punishments were very brutal and included forceful arrest, severe beating and mob-lynching. Many problems arose in the society from the unlawful persecution of the African-Americans. In his entire life, young Richard never paid any heed to the assumption of the white masters and he fought them with intellect, which he did when he moved to France where he led a rather peaceful life. The story in the novel Black Boy mainly recollects the life of Wright and more importantly his interactions with the whites, his neighbors and his own family who were scared and very pious during Jim Crow Era. Richard Wright and his contemporaries decided to denounce the flagrant discrimination by writing about it in their novels, essays and short stories. Their goal was to create awareness among the population about the harmful effects of this prejudice on the daily lives of the black community and also work together to solve those pressing issues. This study lays emphasis on issues such as violence which occurs abundantly in the novel Black Boy and on the poverty, lack of food and education, as well. The life that Richard Wright faced in his childhood and early adulthood was very traumatic. But due to his endless efforts, intelligence and desire to fight against injustice, he was able to achieve considerable success as a black despite living under the Jim Crow Laws. Keywords:Richard Wright, Black Boy, Racism, Jim Crow Laws, Black American Literature, Violence, Hunger and Alcohol.
The representations of domesticity, motherhood and violence in Toni Morrison's Beloved and Alice Walker's The Color Purple
At a time when women around the world were staging a fight against gender discrimination and calling for equal rights with men in their various societies, black American women also tried to make their voices heard. As history holds it, unlike other women especially in the west, their story is different because it was shaped by slavery, which made them not only inferior to men but to women of other races. Coupled with the roles of housekeeping and motherhood assigned to women, thus sidelining them from decision making issues in the society, the African American woman also had to deal with the belittlement, violence and segregation from the white society during and after slavery. In this regard, Tony Morrison and Alice Walker like a host of other black writers, took it upon themselves to tell the stories that were often ignored or could not be perfectly told by men or white writers. Through similar characters Sethe and Celie in the novels Beloved and The Color Purple, Morrison and Alice very much brings out the themes of motherhood, domesticity and violence which affected the lives of the African American woman in various ways. Set in the South of the United States of America where slavery and segregation were most practiced, the novels depict the maltreatment and relegation and of black women both by the white society and the black society. Though Morrison's Beloved is set during slavery and Walker's The Color Purple set during the Jim Crow Laws that separated black and white people, the characters still share similarities in the ways they experience motherhood, domesticity and violence. Morrison and Walker offer an explicit feminist conceptualization of African American politics that exposes and enriches concepts of black feminism and radicalism. In Beloved, Morrison depicts the adverse side of motherhood that many writers of the time failed to consider. By attempting to exercise her motherly role in a period of extreme suffering, Sethe loses her identity and in the process also suppresses that of Denver her daughter. This is occasioned by the maternal ties that link Sethe to her children that preclude her individuation and thwart her self-development. Sethe sacrifices her being. Indeed, we see throughout the novel that all her efforts are directed at atoning for her losses as a daughter and re-establish herself as a good black mother based on the society's conceptualizations. The Color Purple brings out the domestication and motherhood roles of women during the time and the fact that these roles meant that women had no voices, they were to remain silent and suppress their feelings as well as opinions. A good example of domestication of women in Celie's society is Sophia who was a rebellious woman but is forced to silently acquiesce to the social norms of servitude to one's husband and household chores. Similar to Morrison's argument that the suffering in the society caused women to resent the role of motherhood, Sophia is extremely detached with the children that are under her charge. My thesis investigates how Toni Morrison and Alice walker portray the issue of domesticity, motherhood and violence in their novels Beloved and The Color Purple, during and after the days of slavery. The thesis also will provide the possibilities that lead to the characters emancipation. Keywords: Motherhood, Domesticity, Racism, Black Feminism, African-American Literature, Violence, Slavery, patriarchy
Technoculture and hyperreality in Don Delillo's Americana, Great Jones Street, and White Noise
In 21st century, many postmodernist authors, theorists and critics explain and argue in their works that the contact with the 'reality or real' have been lost in various respects, and people have been fascinated with this loss, and that the sense of historicity has disappeared or forced to be replaced with other ways or forms of historicity, and that consumer society dominates over the masses, and that the copy or copy of copy defines the sense of 'reality or real', and that media technologies and mass media have a domineering power over the guidance of people's lives. Most specifically, the masses around the globe in the 21st century are forced to consume through media and their contents such as advertisements, movies, interviews and so forth. The consumption is transformed into insatiable desires and wishes rather than needs. Furthermore, individuals forget their 'authentic self' and identities, and adopt the self and identity of the masses. The effects of late capitalism and culture industry, the death or end of the subject are reflected in the plays and novels of Don DeLillo, a contemporary American writer. In this respect, this dissertation argues causes and effects of the physical and psychological states of the characters in White Noise, Great Jones Street and Americana based on postmodern concepts such as technoculture and hyperreality. In addition, this argument will be supported by the postmodern theory in general terms, and with Jean Baudrillard's Simulation theory, his theories of the consumer society and the masses, Marshall McLuhan's media theory and specifically 'hot' and 'cool' media, Zygmunt Bauman's 'liquidity', and 'need', 'desire', and 'wish' and François Lyotard's Postmodern Condition more specifically.
Ethnic identity and food culture in Asian American fiction
The present paper is devoted to the investigation of problems pertaining to the development of the national and ethnic identity in first- and second-generation immigrants through the analysis of literary works by Asian American writers: John Okada, Bharati Mukherjee, JhumpaLahiri, Maxine Hong Kingston, Frank Chin, and Mei Ng. During migration and the course of adaptation to new cultural environments, individuals are exposed to significant stresses linked to cultural bereavement and loss of a sense of belonging, which one enjoyed living in the origin country. Assimilation can be especially challenged in case the host culture embeds substantially disparate values and norms. In this situation, the conflict between one's ethnicity and nationality may arise and consequently interfere with a person's functioning and well-being. In this research, the focus is made on the study of various cultural practices and their roles in immigrants'acculturation and identity development. Cultural practices connected to food preparation and consumption are chosen as the central point of analysis because of the multitude of meanings associated with food and its representation in literature. The semantic analysis framework is used as the major tool for the interpretation of primary sources as it allows finding links between signs (culinary practices),signified (ethnic identity), meanings (in-group membership, and so forth), and contexts (conflicts between majority and minority cultures). The main findings reveal that first- and second-generation immigrants face a different set of problems in immigration. Cultural practices play an essential role in their efforts to cope with acculturative stress and to develop sound self-identification, yet strict adherence to culturally defined activities and lifestyles, as well as their avoidance, may have negative implications for individuals' welfare. Key Words: Ethnic identity, Asian American fiction, cultural practices, assimilation, "hybrid" identity, gender roles, stereotypes, food, traditions.
Exploration of identity in Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple Hibiscus, Half of A Yellow Sun, and Americanah
The present thesis will attempt to explore identity from the approach of a post-colonialist perspective and shed light on an African-American writer who used identity as a primary theme in most of her novels. This present study is the analysis of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's three books and the study will describe how the main female characters in all of these fights to construct her identity as a woman struggling with her current society, and how this affects her growth of selfhood. This thesis will emphasis on female characters in Adichie's works to establish their identity and determine how they found their postcolonial individuality. Identity is a frequent theme throughout the three novels that will be explored in this thesis. In this thesis, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's novels and main women characters that will be examined are Kambili in Purple Hibiscus (2003), Ifemelu in Americanah (2013) and Olanna Ozobia in Half of a Yellow Sun (2014). The female characters in these novels relate in that they are all trying to find out who they are as women in their current societies. The central characters in these three novels have described as smart, powerful, and autonomous young women who cross beyond desires in their contemporary culture. Furthermore, how social pressures like those that racial differences and patriarchy difficulties have performed through immigration described. They ask themselves some questions like ‗who am I?', ‗what am I?' to discover their place in this world, and create a room for themselves both on the inside and the outside. Keywords: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Identity, African-American
Jack London'ın Beyaz Diş roman'ında ırkçılık ve kölelik kavramlarının incelenmesi
Bu çalışmada yirminci yüzyıl Amerikan edebiyatının önemli yazarlarından biri olan Jack London'ın Beyaz Diş isimli eserini merkeze alarak yazarın çocukluk hayatından ölümüne kadar yaşadığı hayatı ve bunun eserlerine nasıl yansıdığı incelenecektir. Jack London'ın yaşadıklarının eserlerine yasıması Beyaz Diş adlı eseri üzerinde ırkçılık, kölelik kavramlarının incelenmesi amaçlanmaktadır. Çalışmamız iki ana bölümden oluşmaktadır. Birinci bölümde yazar'ın hayatı, edebi kişiliği ve yazarın eserlerindeki yaygın temalar ve hayatı arasındaki yakınlığının ayrıntılı bir şekilde incelemenin yanı sıra realizm, natüralizm ve ırkçılık kavramları ele alınacaktır. İkinci bölümde ise konusu ve içerdiği temalar açısından geniş bir okuyucu kitlesine sahip olan Beyaz Diş romanının yaygın temaları ve Amerikan Edebiyatı Tarihi'nde ırkçılık ve kölelik kavramları incelenip alıntılarla desteklenecektir. Bu bölümde ırkçılık ve kölelik kavramları tanımlanacak. Irkçılığın tarihsel süreci hakkında bilgi verilip, ırk ayrımcılığı uygulamalarına değinilecektir. Uzun süredir ilgiyle takip edilen ve geniş bir okuyucu kitlesine sahip olan yazarın yoksulluk, açlık, adalet gibi sosyal temalar üzerinde yoğunlaşmış ve bu yönüyle içinde bulunduğu çağın ve toplumun genel eğilimlerine olan anlayışıyla tanınıp akademik çalışmalara da konu olmuştur. Yapılan bu çalışmalara yeni bir boyut kazandıracağını düşünerek yazarın söz konusu eserinde ırkçılık ve kölelik kavramlarını incelemeyi yararlı gördük.
Native American's cultural aspects in Linda Hogans poems
The exploration of America by Europeans is the start of changes in the Indigenous Americans' life. It lasted hundreds of years and comprised of endeavors by various individuals and campaigns from different outside nations to outline the mainland. Indigenous Americans, otherwise called American Indians, Native Americans, are the indigenous people groups of the United States. They have different colors, a different lifestyle, and different beliefs. The huge assortment of people groups, the European colonization of the Americas, influenced the Indigenous Americans. The changing in Native American's life started in 1492, and their population declined essentially due to some factors such as wars, diseases, displacement. After its creation, the United States, as a major aspect of its strategy of pilgrim America enacted some unfair policies. The purpose of this thesis is to explore the significant cultural aspects that interpreted in Linda Hogan's poems. Hogan has reflected the cultural aspects of indigenous Americans on her poems in terms of cultural habits, cultural beliefs, and cultural symbols. The study has explored by highlighting Native American's spiritual beliefs, rich Native American culture, and their traditions dealing with Hogan's life, and tribal education. Hogan, as one of the pioneers of Native American's poet, is well-engaged with her culture that it has an overall presence in her works. The study comprises an introduction and three chapters, in the first chapter, culture, in general, are demonstrated, and then the early life of Native American people before American's foundation is described. Native American's traditions and spiritual beliefs are discussed as well in terms of written literature. In the second chapter, the study focuses on Linda Hogan as one of the pioneers of Native American literature, cultural aspects, and cultural symbols that are figured out in her poems. In the third chapter, it elaborates some poems of Hogan, culturally and spiritually. By analyzing Linda Hogan's poems, the thesis aims us to recognize to penetrate all parts of Indigenous Americans. Keywords : Native American Literature, Culture, Linda Hogan, Religion, Spiritual, Symbol.
Natüralizm'in Jack London'ın eserleri üzerindeki etkisi
Bu çalışma Amerikan edebiyatının önemli yazarlarından Jack London ve natüralizm ile ilgilidir. London'ın eserlerinde natüralizmin etkisi ve realist öğelerbulunmaktadır. Jack London Amerikan Edebiyatına yeni bir soluk kazandırmıştır. Abartılı ve süslü bir anlayış yerine daha akıcı, sade ve realist bir sanat anlayışını benimsemiştir. Bu nedenle eserleri geniş kitleler tarafından benimsenmiştir. Londonçok sayıda eser vermesine ve edebiyat dünyasına yaptığı bunca katkıya rağmen, dünya edebiyatında hak ettiği yerin çok uzağındadır. Oldukça zorlu bir yaşam geçirmiş olan London bütün eserlerinde bunu dışa yansıtmıştır. Bilinçaltında bu zorlu yaşamın izleri önemli bir yer kaplamıştır. Daha sonra bu eserlerin satışından çok para kazandı. Jack London'ın karşılaştığı zorluklar onu olgunlaştırmış vezorlu yaşamı eserlerini yazması için iyi bir zemin oluşturmuştur.Önemli eserleri doğada yaşam ve hayatta kalma mücadelesi ile ilgili olmuştur.Bu sebeptenyirminci yüzyıl edebiyatının en önemli natüralist yazarlarındandır. London'ın siyasiolarak farklı düşünceye sahip olması onun için büyük problem olmuştur. İlk dönem romanlarında hep doğada yaşanan zorlu ve acımasız yaşamları anlatmış ve bu eserlerinde genellikle hayvan karakterleri önemli rolleralmıştır. Doğada ayakta kalmanın ne kadar zor ve dayanılmaz olduğunu eserlerinde hep vurgulamıştır. Güçlü olan yaşamını devam ettirdiği zayıf olanın ise hayatta kalma savaşını kaybettiğiçok yalın bir dille eserlerinde anlatmıştır. Eserlerindeki karakterler birbirlerine karşı acımasız ve birbirlerini yok etmek için fırsat kollamaktadırlar. Jack London sosyalizmden etkilenmiş ve bunu bazı eserlerinde de yansıtmıştır. İnsanlar arasındaki gelir adaletsizliğini vurgulamaktan hiç bir zaman kaçınmamıştır. İşçi sınıfının yaşadığı sorunlar, sınıf çatışması, yoksulluk, açlık gibi temalara bazı eserlerinde değinmiştir. Bu çalışmanın amacı Jack London ve fikirleri hakkında yazılanları inceleyerek onun siyasi, edebi duruşunu sorgulamaktır.