This study examines Flann O'Brien's At Swim-Two-Birds and Samuel Beckett's Molloy, Malone Dies and The Unnamable as metafiction, fiction which raises questions about the relation between fiction and reality by continually frustrating the reader's expectations of plot, character, language, time and space and by presenting a narrative voice that self-consciously creates fiction. Thus, metafiction makes an issue of the ability of fiction to convey reality. In focusing on the workings of metafiction, three factors are considered: the unconventional qualities of the narration, the text's breakdowns in communication, and the reader's role in establishing meaning. The study concludes with an examination of the influence of O'Brien and Beckett on later American metafiction. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-08, Section: A, page: 2750. / Major Professor: Fred L. Stanley. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1990.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_77763 |
| Contributors | Creasman, Boyd H., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 169 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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