Circling and shaping the maelstrom : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Creative Writing, English and Media Studies, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
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Date
2015
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Massey University
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Abstract
This thesis is comprised of two sections. The first section is a critical essay entitled Lawrencian Streams in Joyce Carol Oates’ Fiction. The second section is creative, consisting of a novella entitled Cold River. In both sections the flow of water is a metaphor for the protagonists’ psychological journey and also a structuring device. The critical essay establishes D.H. Lawrence’s general influence on Joyce Carol Oates, drawing on their various works of fiction and non-fiction to explore how and why Oates interrogates, appropriates and re-visions Lawrence. A comparative study of Oates’ Blackwater and Lawrence’s The Virgin and the Gypsy, identifies how Eros, symbolised by archetypal water imagery, functions as a force which drives the writing and shapes the form of both novellas. A water trope also features in the creative section, where intertextual allusions, a transformational theme and naturalistic imagery provide evidence that Lawrence and Oates’ texts have functioned as mimetic models.
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Joyce Carol Oates, Blackwater, D.H. Lawrence, The Virgin and the Gypsy, Water in literature, Influence, Criticism and interpretation, Research Subject Categories::HUMANITIES and RELIGION::Aesthetic subjects::Literature