So let it fall : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Creative Writing, Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand
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Date
2017
DOI
Open Access Location
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Massey University
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The Author
Abstract
What
are
you?
This
Master
of
Creative
writing
thesis
seeks
to
explore
this
question
and
other
questions
it
leads
to.
The
thesis
consists
of
a
collection
of
linked
autobiographical
stories
that
explore
identity,
“So
Let
it
Fall”
(80%),
and
an
accompanying
exegesis,
“What
Are
You?”
(20%).
Through
the
writing
of
“So
Let
it
Fall”
I
tell
the
story
of
my
own
experiences
as
a
multi-‐ethnic
woman
growing
up
in
New
Zealand
with
mixed
Māori,
Chinese
and
Pākehā
heritage.
I
explore
this
mixed
identity
throughout
my
project
through
evoking
contrasts
and
contradictions
within
my
own
personal
experiences.
Specifically,
I
tell
a
story
of
living
between
two
parents,
and
I
focus
on
the
separations
that
developed
within
my
life
and
my
identity
as
a
result
of
living
between
two
cultural
upbringings.
When
evoking
different
identities
in
“So
Let
it
Fall,”
I
wrote
in
scene
to
highlight
formative
moments
in
my
life
as
well
as
scenes
that
illustrate
important
characteristics
in
each
of
my
parents
that
have
been
formative
of
my
own
identity.
In
the
creative
work
as
a
whole
I
delve
into
the
different
roles
that
I
have
moved
through
as
I
grew
up,
and
by
doing
so
discover
who
I
am.
The
accompanying
exegesis
“What
Are
You?”
places
“So
Let
it
Fall”
in
context
by
exploring
the
driving
questions
behind
this
project
and
explicating
the
creative
process
involved.
The
purpose
of
this
exegesis
is
to
illuminate
the
ideas
and
research
that
went
into
the
production
of
“So
Let
it
Fall.”
This
is
done
first
by
outlining
why
I
chose
the
the
form
of
autobiography,
then
examining
a
range
of
recent
autobiographical
writing
in
New
Zealand
and
the
various
perspectives
these
works
offer.
Specifically,
I
discuss
how
the
nonfiction
writing
of
Witi
Ihimaera,
Manying
Ip,
Alice
Te
Punga-‐Somerville,
Tina
Makereti,
Tze
Ming
Mok,
Ashleigh
Young
and
Tracey
Slaughter
have
informed
my
work.
The
intent
of
this
combined
creative
and
critical
project
is
to
find
value
in
personal
experiences
and
to
create
a
wider
pool
of
experiences
within
creative
nonfiction
writing
in
New
Zealand.
This
thesis
is
not
constructed
to
represent
or
speak
for
any
ethnic
groups
or
identities.
This
is
formation
of
an
identity
through
autobiographical
writing
that
is
my
own.
Description
Keywords
Ethnicity in literature, Autobiography, Research Subject Categories::HUMANITIES and RELIGION::Aesthetic subjects::Literature