Type of Document	Master's Thesis
Author	Donald, Nicole M.
URN	etd-1112101-153735
Title	"Of One Kind or Another:" Rape in the Fiction of Eudora Welty
Degree	Master of Arts (M.A.)
Department	English
Advisory Committee	Advisor Name Title Peggy Prenshaw Committee Chair John Lowe Committee Member Kevin Cope Committee Member
Keywords	welty the robber bridegroom the burning rape june recital petrified man
Date of Defense	2001-10-23
Availability	unrestricted
Abstract "Of One Kind or Another:" Rape in the Fiction of Eudora Welty explores the ways in which Eudora Welty's repeated inclusion of rape in her fiction reveals and questions southern society and women's roles in it. Despite the vague, even confusing language with which she describes the incidents of rape. Welty offers a rich, forceful commentary upon the culture and women's roles in it. The ambiguity with which she describes rape reveals ambivalence toward the society that Welty may be said at once to protect and to expose. An examination of Welty's use of rape in her fiction reveals a troubling ambivalence, but, in the context of Welty's fiction, the persistent image of rape does allow Welty to voice a critique of southern culture. Chapter One demonstrates Welty's ambivalence towards both the South and violence in it. Chapter Two analyzes the rape imagery in one story from each collection of short fiction, and delves into the conventions of female decorum that these stories expose. Chapter Three explores Welty's commentary on race in southern society that is evidenced in contrasting rape scenes in The Robber Bridegroom. Welty's repeated use of rape imagery invites further exploration of its significance in Welty's fiction. What this repetition reveals, in fact, is Welty's assessment of gender and racial roles in the south. In both her short fiction and in her novella, Welty uses rape to reveal cultural norms and expectations of women in southern society.
Files	Filename       Size       Approximate Download Time (Hours:Minutes:Seconds)     28.8 Modem   56K Modem   ISDN (64 Kb)   ISDN (128 Kb)   Higher-speed Access    Donald_thesis.pdf 156.02 Kb 00:00:43 00:00:22 00:00:19 00:00:09 < 00:00:01

If you have questions or technical problems, please Contact LSU-ETD Support.