To Be Caught: A Collection of Poetry and Short Fiction
College
College of Arts and Sciences
Department
English
Abstract
For my honors thesis, I am completing a collection of short fiction and poetry. I was compelled to write a creative thesis since I plan on teaching creative writing. My collection of writing was inspired by the strong characters in my own life and the impact that they had on the way that I view the world, including the way I perceive my role in the world. In my short fiction work, “By The Antlers,” a college-aged woman visits her grandfather in rural Arkansas in search of answers. Her grandmother had died a few years previously and though her grandparents had divorced before she was even born, the young woman believes that her grandfather will be able to answer some of the questions her grandmother left unanswered. Most poignant of all – she hopes that she will be able to persuade her grandfather to open up enough to tell her the details surrounding the divorce. In one of my poems, “(Fe)male,” the speaker explores the relationship of a mother to her children. I was inspired to write this poem after finding out some of the sacrifices that my own grandmother had to make in order to raise four children, including a disabled child, as a single mother. I hope that my audience will gain a sense of the quiet strength found in femininity and motherhood. Through language, form, and images portrayed, my writing aims to create a connection between the reader and the characters in my life who have impacted me.
Honors Thesis Committee
Evelyne Weeks, M.A.; Dustin Hoffman, Ph.D.; and Leslie Bickford, Ph.D.
Previously Presented/Performed?
Southern Regional Honors Council (SRHC) Conference, Asheville, North Carolina, March 2017; Third Annual Showcase of Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors (SOURCE), Winthrop University, April 2017
Start Date
21-4-2017 3:30 PM
To Be Caught: A Collection of Poetry and Short Fiction
West Center, Room 219
For my honors thesis, I am completing a collection of short fiction and poetry. I was compelled to write a creative thesis since I plan on teaching creative writing. My collection of writing was inspired by the strong characters in my own life and the impact that they had on the way that I view the world, including the way I perceive my role in the world. In my short fiction work, “By The Antlers,” a college-aged woman visits her grandfather in rural Arkansas in search of answers. Her grandmother had died a few years previously and though her grandparents had divorced before she was even born, the young woman believes that her grandfather will be able to answer some of the questions her grandmother left unanswered. Most poignant of all – she hopes that she will be able to persuade her grandfather to open up enough to tell her the details surrounding the divorce. In one of my poems, “(Fe)male,” the speaker explores the relationship of a mother to her children. I was inspired to write this poem after finding out some of the sacrifices that my own grandmother had to make in order to raise four children, including a disabled child, as a single mother. I hope that my audience will gain a sense of the quiet strength found in femininity and motherhood. Through language, form, and images portrayed, my writing aims to create a connection between the reader and the characters in my life who have impacted me.
