The subject of this thesis is Swedish author Åsa Nelvin’s writings. Five books are at the center of attention: The children’s books De vita björnarna (“The White Bears”) (1969) and Det lilla landet (“The Little Country”) (1971), the two novels Tillflyktens hus (“The House of Refuge”) (1975) and Kvinnan som lekte med dockor (“The Woman who played with dolls”) (1977), and the cycle of poems Gattet (“The Inlet”) (1981). The overriding aim of the the thesis is to characterize Nelvin’s literary works and her over-all literary enterprise. A major part of the thesis is devoted to textual analyses, the purpose of which is to identify fundamental themes and literary strategies in Nelvin’s works. Also treated is the author’s development from being a prose writer to becoming a lyric poet. In addition, the thesis examines how Nelvin’s writings relate to the cultural climate of the 1960s and 1970s; it deals with the reception of her works, and the question whether literary ideals and conventions have had any impact on her writings. Nelvin is generally associated with the emancipatory tradition of female autobiographers in the 1970s. Her works are considered to engage in psychological and/or gender issues and to be openly autobiographical. This thesis partly argues against that view by asserting that that the fundamental concern of Nelvin’s works is the experience of being and the creation of meaning. The textual analyses show that Nelvin’s writings in the main deal with existential matters such as time and death, art and eternity. They also show that the autobiographical elements in her works are not primarily directed towards the construction of womanhood or therapeutic confession. They rather serve as an aesthetic and meta-literary function, drawing attention to questions concerning the construction of the text (and life), and differences or correspondences between phenomena like fiction and reality.

ABSTRACT CAMUS: A REBEL AT THE JUNCTION OF EXISTENTIALISM AND SKEPTICISM (Basar) Baskaya, Dilek Ph.D., Department of Philosophy Supervisor: Prof. Dr. S. Halil Turan May 2011, 190 pages The purpose of this thesis is to examine Albert Camus&rsquo / s stance in existentialism and scepticism, to discuss his philosophy by referring to his life, which, in many respects, forms a foundation for his philosophy and to exhibit that he maintains his contemporariness in the 21st century. As existentialism is treated differently by different philosophers, the main concern of the thesis is to discuss how Camus handles it. This is done by focusing on his approach to issues appearing commonly in existentialism, such as the absurd, suicide, God, rebellion, freedom, and alienation and by scrutinising the link between existentialism and skepticism. According to Camus, the absurd is the paradoxical condition caused by a contradiction or a confrontation of two unequal concepts or situations. The merit, for Camus, is to survive despite the disillusionment the absurd brings about. Consequently, he is against suicide because he regards it as surrender to the absurd. Camus claims that it is man himself who can make his own life meaningful. Thus, man may question the existence of God and revolt metaphysically against the absurdity and injustice in the world. The metaphysical rebel can then establish the unity and order that he believes is lacking in the world. Camus attaches great importance to rebellion because it brings man freedom. And freedom is indispensable because being deprived of freedom means submission to an authority and, therefore, loss of human dignity. Alienation is a major issue for Camus, too, as it is a result of man&rsquo / s &lsquo / thrownness&rsquo / on to the world and displays the human situation. The thesis analyses the above items in detail with reference to all Camus&rsquo / s major works.

I believe that the concept of the absurd, as described in philosophy and reflected in works of drama and literature, provides an unusual and helpful perspective from which to view the emerging field of digital media. In my opinion, absurd principles can help us understand the mixed feelings we may have when engaging with digital media: joy and frustration, play and despair, significance and nonsense. I intend to explore the concept of the absurd through a handful of authors and works, including the philosophy of Camus and the literature and drama of Pinter, Beckett, Roussel, and the Oulipo. I will use these works to analyze characteristics of absurdist works and then extend this analysis to characteristics and theory of digital media. I believe an absurdist analysis may bring a new vantage point to the study of digital media, from which we can see not only the advantages and liberation it offers but also the ever-present threat of nonsense it entails.

This essay is a study of the portrayal of the theme of alienation in Eugene Ionesco's novel The hermit. In my study I examine the different ways in which the theme of alienation is portrayed and how the cause of the narrator's experience of alienation can be found in ideological, psychological and existential conflicts that the narrator has to face. The result is an experience of das unheimliche, a Freudian concept, which is a kind of uncanny detachment that the narrator experiences, when he is put up against an invisible force that lurks in the perifery of the world, which is portrayed in the story. The meaning of the ideological conflict is a portrayal of man's situation in a world that is ruled by capitalism, with marxism as a positive leveler and the meaning of the psychological conflict is a conflict in the narrator's own inner reality. The meaning of the existential conflict is a portrayal of man's situation in a world absent of God. The novel by Ionesco points at these conflicts and also offers a solution to the limitations, that are caused by alienation by transcending them. In my study I focus on the function of language, biblical imagery, allegory and the theories that are being used to define the ideological (marxist theory) and existential (Albert Camus' theory of the absurd) conflicts. In my analysis I have also used Camus' The stranger in comparison with Ionesco's novel.

Through the use of the texts published from 1893 to 1903 by Alphonse Allais, we analyse what we call the mystifying discourse, in other words the power of fiction. We show how the author succeeds to deceive the reader. We emphasize the artificial aspects of the language and the style used by Allais to make fun of his readers. This technical study of the writing of Allais allows us to compare with other kinds of works, notably the dreamlike images and the vaudeville. / We study therefore the tricks and the traps of the language employed by Allais with the aim of laughing at our expectations. From this point, we will demonstrate that, most of the time, a rupture between the conclusion and the beliefs of the readers exists regarding the fiction which is presented in the tales. Emphasizing the absurd in the texts, we accentuate the various literary techniques. As a result, we illustrate how the humour of Alphonse Allais turns out to be a technical work.

This study carries out both a technical and a thematic analysis of the novels by Albert Camus, L&amp / #8217 / Etranger, La Peste, and La Chute, and Samuel Beckett, Molloy, Malone Dies, and The Unnamable. In the technical analysis of the novels, the study explores the differences in characterization and narrative technique. It argues that the differences in these two issues mainly emerge from the difference in the two authors&amp / #8217 / views of art. In the thematic analysis, on the other hand, the study focuses on the recurring themes in the two authors&amp / #8217 / novels. It argues that Camus and Beckett explore similar themes in their novels because both writers belong to the absurd tradition. In other words, although their notions of art are different, their views of the human condition are quite similar, which is reflected in the common themes they explore in their novels.

Thesis (MA (English))-University of Pretoria, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of North Carolina Wilmington, 2008. / Title from PDF title page (viewed September 22, 2008) Includes bibliographical references (p. 47-48)

Thesis--Lund. / "Traduit par Richard Korn et J.C. Birau." Includes bibliographical references (p. 185-193) and index.

Thesis (M.A.)--Victoria University of Wellington, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references.