Date of Award
Summer 8-12-2017
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts - English
Department
English
First Advisor
Dr. Michael J. Martin
Second Advisor
Dr. Ericka Hoagland
Third Advisor
Dr. Michael Given
Fourth Advisor
Dr. Paul J. Sandul
Abstract
This thesis explores the American road genre. I argue that in addition to the automobile and the highway, a discussion of trains, boats, and walkers and their alternative roads must also be included in the genre. Each method of transportation expands the genre by adding new themes and ideas. Hobos and tramps can take to the road in search of community in order to discover more about themselves; some boatmen can use America’s racial history to discover themselves; walkers can go through a state of liminality in order to discover their internal selves. When these travelers complete their journeys, many are unsuccessful and either return home disappointed or do not return home at all.
Repository Citation
Mix, Tinesha K., "Mapping the Self: Reconciling Identity through an Expansion of the American Road Genre" (2017). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 122.
https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/etds/122
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Tell us how this article helped you.
