Introduction [excerpt] I argue that Jackson and Oyeyemi escape the underlying patriarchal connontations of the novel and writing by creating temporal spaces within their texts for the purpose of discussing gender issues facing middle-class women at their time. By placing temporal space within the houses, Jackson and Oyeyemi demonstrate that both social norms and change are born in the home. Analyzing the writing techniques of these authors, I address the social commentary made within each novel. In Chapter 1, I...

Abstract Muriel Rukeyser's book of poetry, The Book of the Dead (1938), focuses on detaling the industrial tragedy of the Hawk's Nest Tunnel Disaster in Gauley Bridge, West Virginia. This thesis examines the poet's use of documentary poetics as a channel for witness-bearing to victims of the tragedy. Rukeyser uses testimonial documents, doctors' reports, and interviews to support her overview of the tragic events through her writing. Several of Rukeyser's twenty...