This thesis is grounded in philosophy and in literature. It is concerned with the recognized human need for self-affirmation and with the consequences of its denial caused by exile. For the victim this means the loss of social interaction and public moral agency within his natural community through which self-affirmation can be actualized. / In certain types of exilic literature constructive reactions were found to counteract this loss of freedom of choice of action and place, which entails potential annihilation of the exile's personal integrity. / In the exilic text of Dante as my chosen case study, I investigate the use of philosophical and literary means admitting of various kinds of self-referential expressions and of similacra of moral agency as substitutes for self-affirmation by public acts. Stimulated by these means, an intellectual and moral 'self-portrait' of the poet eventually emerges in the reader's consciousness. This 'portrait' is no static image of a pre-existent character, but a dynamic presence of an evolving human person of intellectual and moral integrity, as a reflection of the poet's self-perception. / By sample analyses and comparisons, my exposition substantiates the claim that Dante's text exemplifies the distinct and identifiable literary mode to which I refer as 'Exilic Discourse'.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.56814 |
| Date | January 1992 |
| Creators | Auersperg, Ruth E. |
| Contributors | Walker, Jeremy (advisor) |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Arts (Department of Philosophy.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 001327434, proquestno: AAIMM87571, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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