Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

The following is a critical preface and portion of a novel-in-progress produced during my master's program in creative writing at the University of North Texas. The preface analyzes the way time and point of view work together to create or determine structure in fiction, as well as provide added meaning. In order to explore these topics I focus on two novels, Joan Didion’s Play It as It Lays and Jennifer Egan’s A Visit from the Goon Squad, and speak to how these elements have influenced my own writing style in The Hostess. The Hostess is a story about a group of twenty-something’s working together in a restaurant located in a Mid-West, college town, told from multiple character perspectives, as they struggle to choose between pursuing their passions and creating stability in their lives.

This dissertation examines the experience of former collegiate football hostesses and presents an autoethnographic narrative from my viewpoint as a female researcher enmeshed in the culture of athletics. The exploration reveals the experience of gender, race, and power as told through my own stories as well as those of former hostesses. My exploratory study reveals the contradiction and conflict between and amongst women’s experiences as well as brings to light the aspects of hostess experience that the media rarely highlights. I wrote this for readers to witness and understand the complexity of the hostess experience, its privileges and challenges.

published_or_final_version / abstract / Modern Languages and Cultures / Master / Master of Philosophy