This thesis is a collection of thematically arranged poems that explore one of the significant ways in which we define ourselves as human beings, that is, through our past and present relationships with others, whether those relationships are familial, cultural, social or personal. Through the direct presentation of images, these largely narrative poems seek to refine perception and thus reveal some of the complicated truths inherent in our various relationships with others, all in an effort to find meaning. The form of the poems often reveals a process, a continual redefining of views on human experience in both its life-affirming and disappointing aspects. It is through such discovery and disclosure that these poems aim to affirm the process, passion, and meaningfulness of art and life.

The Church of Our Blessed Redeemer Who Walked Upon the Waters is a collection of short stories about Elwyn Parker, a devout pianist who becomes a worldly car salesman. "Thirty Fingers," "My Father's Business," and "Apostate" introduce Elwyn, a saint at church and a trouble-making evangelist at school, who nevertheless finds himself in a love affair with an older woman, Sister Morrisohn. In "Captivity," Elwyn, a college freshman, experiences worldliness, then grows to resent and ultimately reject Sister Morrisohn. In "The Leap," Elwyn is back at the piano, but unemployed and unhappily married. He finds comfort only in his decade-old affair. In "The Lord of Travel," Elwyn, a car salesman, appears bereft of his former morals until he hoodwinks Ida, who reminds him of the now deceased Sister Morrisohn. Elwyn repairs Ida's car, redeeming himself in the process.

THE FULLNESS OF TIME is a novel about the quest for identity that transcends the limitations of moral duty, social status, and cultural conventions. Set in Tarpon Springs, Florida, in 1969, it is the story of Victor Lucas, a young Greek immigrant forced to go to war in Vietnam in another man's place in order to save the woman he loves. He must survive the war to return and reclaim his love and his rightful place in society. Based on the archetypal hero's quest as articulated by Joseph Campbell, the narrative is told from the limited third-person perspective of the main character. Though the journey is particular to Tarpon Springs in the 1960s, it echoes the human struggle and triumph in the wanderings of Ulysses. The novel's influences include Thomas Hardy's The Mayor of Casterbridge, but is also thematically related to contemporary works exploring cultural turbulence and upheaval.

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Please note: creative writing theses are permanently embargoed in OpenBU. No public access is forecasted for these. To request private access, please click on the lock icon and filled out the appropriate web form. / Five stories: "Adult Video Store," "The Tiger," "Theory and Practice," "Disarm, Transform," and "Louisiana." / 2999-01-01T00:00:00Z

Please note: creative writing theses are permanently embargoed in OpenBU. No public access is forecasted for these. To request private access, please click on the lock icon and filled out the appropriate web form. / A collection of short stories written during the creative writing program. / 2031-01-01T00:00:00Z

Please note: creative writing theses are permanently embargoed in OpenBU. No public access is forecasted for these. To request private access, please click on the lock icon and filled out the appropriate web form. / A collection of short stories / 2031-01-01T00:00:00Z

Please note: creative writing theses are permanently embargoed in OpenBU. No public access is forecasted for these. To request private access, please click on the lock icon and filled out the appropriate web form. / A collection of short stories / 2999-01-01T00:00:00Z

The poems in the dissertation Monster Truck Seductions explore the interconnectedness of identity and myth. Probing the constantly shifting dynamics of dominant and marginal identity categories, such as self/other, male/female, heterosexual/homosexual, and domestic/foreign, the poems give voice to an American culture fraught with violent polarities of thought and memory. The ultimate aim of the collection is to achieve a radical and disarming investigation of our deep-seated assumptions about identity and its mythical, material, and cultural contexts. / A Dissertation submitted to the College of Arts and Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2010. / June 21, 2010. / contemporary, narrative, lyric, poetry / Includes bibliographical references. / Erin Belieu, Professor Directing Dissertation; Enrique Alvarez, University Representative; Ralph Berry, Committee Member; Barbara Hamby, Committee Member; Berry Faulk, Committee Member.