The Emperor of Shoes follows a long tradition of 20th century Jewish-American writers--Bellow, Roth, Paley and Olsen, to name a few--addressing issues of work and commerce in America. My novel, however, carries this tradition into the 21st century to a shoe factory in Southern China. Soon after his father gives him ownership of the shoe factory, Alex Cohen is drawn into a web of Chinese people his own age trying to flex a freedom they don't quite have yet. There is an upheaval for the protagonist's identity as Alex attempts to locate his place in this world, either as the caretaker of his father's legacy and business or as a member of the nascent Chinese democratic movement. This reinvention of self is an essential feature of the fiction coming out of the Jewish diaspora. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of English in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2015. / March 27, 2015. / Includes bibliographical references. / Robert Olen Butler, Professor Directing Dissertation; Martin Kavka, University Representative; Kristie Fleckenstein, Committee Member; David Kirby, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_253493 |
| Contributors | Wise, Spencer (authoraut), Butler, Robert Olen (professor directing dissertation), Kavka, Martin (university representative), Fleckenstein, Kristie S. (committee member), Kirby, David (committee member), Florida State University (degree granting institution), College of Arts and Sciences (degree granting college), Department of English (degree granting department) |
| Publisher | Florida State University, Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource (324 pages), computer, application/pdf |
| Rights | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them. |
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