Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Notre Dame, 2006. / Thesis directed by Sandra M. Gustafson for the Department of English. "June 2006." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 172-186).

The thesis primarily engages with Proust and China from the following three aspects: the Chinese translations and retranslations of Proust’s A la recherche du temps perdu, contemporary mainland Chinese writers’ intertextual engagement with Proust, and the transcultural dialogue between Proust and the Franco-Chinese author, François Cheng. Part I Chapter I compares and contrasts different – integral and selective – Chinese translations of La Recherche, and explores their different emphases as well as negligence of Proustian themes, e.g. time and memory over anti-Semitism and homosexuality, due to the former’s strong resonance with Chinese philosophical and aesthetic traditions. The chapter is further substantiated by a close examination of various strategies employed to translate passages on sadomasochism and homosexuality in Proust’s work, which reflect changing discourses on and attitudes to the subjects in China. Chapter II focuses on the creative reception of Proust’s work in China. It explores how three mainland Chinese writers’ intertextual engagement with Proust is influenced by the first integral translation of La Recherche, and how they cite Proust partly to enhance the cultural prestige of their own works, while creating a horizon of expectations and a favourable climate of reception of Proust’s work in China. With a shift of focus to the Chinese diaspora in France, Part II explores Cheng’s French-language novel Le Dit de Tianyi as the author’s intellectual and artistic dialogue with Proust’s work. In addition to the intertextual relations, this part particularly examines Cheng’s conceptual and structural engagement with Proust’s novelistic conceptions of Bildungsroman and Künstlerroman, his approach to the fine arts, and finally his use of mythological motifs. Through the case of Proust, the thesis tries to gain a better understanding of the interaction between literatures and cultures, and particularly, the phenomena of cultural appropriation and dialogue in literature. More specifically, it demonstrates how the cultural heritages of China and the West can be re-negotiated, re-thought, and put into dialogue through the fictional and creative medium of literature.

The general intent of my thesis is to write two novellas that show the differences in ways of life in two completely dissimilar states, and the conflicts that occurred therein. Therefore, the novellas will include a variation in gender, setting, and conflict. The main characters will be roughly the same age, but I will explore how the setting they live in has affected conflicts they have to deal with. I will explore writing these two novellas in the category of young adult fiction, as well as, first person narration for a close psychic distance.

In the Cards is a collection of five interrelated short stories with six related poems in between each piece. Each of the selections features a female protagonist with a focus on two main characters, Shelley and Caroline, half-sisters trying to regain their sisterhood after their father's death. Themes explored in the fiction and poetry include faith and relationships, and how they can be connected. Caroline and Shelley drive the primary storyline with the former, a self-described goody goody who has surrounded herself with superficial friends. Between the expectations of the community that surrounds her and the standards she has set for herself, she struggles to create a unique identity that is not influenced by some form of expectation. She is also haunted by guilt over her relationship with her younger sister Shelley, with whom she has had minimal contact ever since Caroline refused to attend their father's funeral, though she keeps these feeling largely to herself. Shelley's mother, Caroline's step-mother, has brought Shelley up in a household dominated by strict adherence to Catholicism, and conservative ideals. When the half-sisters' father dies, Shelley becomes increasingly disillusioned by religious faith, and faith in the people she thought cared for her most, such as Caroline. Both sisters must look beyond their own perspectives of what has happened in their pasts in order to mature, understand, and maybe grow to forgive each other and themselves.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Notre Dame, 2007. / Thesis directed by Kate Baldwin and Glenn Hendler for the Department of English. "July 2007." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 200-215).

Serving as an unfortunate benchmark for the twenty-first century, 9/11 has completely altered society’s perceptions of personal safety, security and social identity, along with provoking intense emotional reactions. One outlet for these resulting emotions has been through art and literature. Five years have since passed and contemporary authors are still struggling to accurately represent that tragic day and its consequent impression. This paper provides an analysis of how the events of 9/11 have been incorporated into adult fiction. Variations of themes related to psychology, interpersonal relationships, political and social perspectives, and heroism were found to be used most frequently among authors.

To be presented as the author's Thesis (doctoral)--Åbo Akademi University on Feb. 3, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [379]-396) and index.

Thesis (doctoral)--Université de la Sorbonne, Paris IV, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (p. i-xvi) and indexes.

To be presented as the author's Thesis (doctoral)--Åbo Akademi University on Feb. 3, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [379]-396) and index.

Thesis (doctoral)--Université de la Sorbonne, Paris IV, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (p. i-xvi) and indexes.