Material Information |
| Title: |
Canada, the Transnational, and the Self Cultural Identities and Triangular Relationships in Michael Ondaatje's The Collected Works of Billy the Kid and Coming Through Slaughter |
| Physical Description: |
Book |
| Language: |
English |
| Creator: |
Guillebeau, Emily-Rose |
| Publisher: |
New College of Florida |
| Place of Publication: |
Sarasota, Fla. |
| Creation Date: |
2010 |
| Publication Date: |
2010 |
Subjects |
| Subjects / Keywords: |
Canada
Canadian
Literature
Ondaatje
Homosocial Relationships |
| Genre: |
bibliography ( marcgt )
theses ( marcgt )
government publication (state, provincial, terriorial, dependent) ( marcgt )
born-digital ( sobekcm )
Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
Notes |
| Abstract: |
This thesis examines questions of cultural and individual identity in two early novels by Canadian writer Michael Ondaatje. The thesis's two chapters ostensibly address very different topics: Chapter 1 assesses The Collected Works of Billy the Kid (1970) as a work of �Canadian� literature and Chapter 2 concerns triangular relationships between characters in Coming Through Slaughter (1976). Nevertheless, both are ultimately concerned with rejecting or transcending binary categories in favor of more complex conceptions of multiple or fluid identities. Ironically, both of these novels are set in the United States. Chapter 1 outlines the ways in which The Collected Works of Billy the Kid both is and is not a work of �Canadian� literature. The novel does feature many of the themes identified as �Canadian� by Canadian literary critics of the 1970s, including the hostility of nature, animal victimization, and identity crisis. Yet The Collected Works significantly deviates from other Canadian literary trends in a number of ways, such as its suggestion of a happy future for Canada at a time when many Canadian writers believed their country to be on the verge of cultural extinction. The definition of The Collected Works as a strictly �Canadian� novel becomes difficult. Ondaatje himself is a transnational figure, not just a Canadian one: he was born in Sri Lanka and educated in England before becoming a Canadian citizen. Chapter 2 concerns triangles of desire in Coming Through Slaughter, with a focus on the homosocial relationships between male rivals. �Homosocial� refers to social relationships between people of the same sex, and especially between men. Almost all the males of Coming Through Slaughter fall into two categories: the artistic and emasculated and the powerful and virile. The main character, turn-of-the-century New Orleans jazzman Buddy Bolden, moves between these groups, a portrayal that complicates our view of the nature of the self. Thus Ondaatje's two novel are united in their refusal of binary categorizations, favoring instead multiple cultural and individual identities. |
| Statement of Responsibility: |
by Emily-Rose Guillebeau |
| Thesis: |
Thesis (B.A.) -- New College of Florida, 2010 |
| Electronic Access: |
RESTRICTED TO NCF STUDENTS, STAFF, FACULTY, AND ON-CAMPUS USE |
| Bibliography: |
Includes bibliographical references. |
| Source of Description: |
This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law. |
| Local: |
Faculty Sponsor: Dimino, Andrea |
Record Information |
| Source Institution: |
New College of Florida |
| Holding Location: |
New College of Florida |
| Rights Management: |
Applicable rights reserved. |
| Classification: |
local - S.T. 2010 G95 |
| System ID: |
NCFE004263:00001 |
|
Material Information |
| Title: |
Canada, the Transnational, and the Self Cultural Identities and Triangular Relationships in Michael Ondaatje's The Collected Works of Billy the Kid and Coming Through Slaughter |
| Physical Description: |
Book |
| Language: |
English |
| Creator: |
Guillebeau, Emily-Rose |
| Publisher: |
New College of Florida |
| Place of Publication: |
Sarasota, Fla. |
| Creation Date: |
2010 |
| Publication Date: |
2010 |
Subjects |
| Subjects / Keywords: |
Canada
Canadian
Literature
Ondaatje
Homosocial Relationships |
| Genre: |
bibliography ( marcgt )
theses ( marcgt )
government publication (state, provincial, terriorial, dependent) ( marcgt )
born-digital ( sobekcm )
Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
Notes |
| Abstract: |
This thesis examines questions of cultural and individual identity in two early novels by Canadian writer Michael Ondaatje. The thesis's two chapters ostensibly address very different topics: Chapter 1 assesses The Collected Works of Billy the Kid (1970) as a work of �Canadian� literature and Chapter 2 concerns triangular relationships between characters in Coming Through Slaughter (1976). Nevertheless, both are ultimately concerned with rejecting or transcending binary categories in favor of more complex conceptions of multiple or fluid identities. Ironically, both of these novels are set in the United States. Chapter 1 outlines the ways in which The Collected Works of Billy the Kid both is and is not a work of �Canadian� literature. The novel does feature many of the themes identified as �Canadian� by Canadian literary critics of the 1970s, including the hostility of nature, animal victimization, and identity crisis. Yet The Collected Works significantly deviates from other Canadian literary trends in a number of ways, such as its suggestion of a happy future for Canada at a time when many Canadian writers believed their country to be on the verge of cultural extinction. The definition of The Collected Works as a strictly �Canadian� novel becomes difficult. Ondaatje himself is a transnational figure, not just a Canadian one: he was born in Sri Lanka and educated in England before becoming a Canadian citizen. Chapter 2 concerns triangles of desire in Coming Through Slaughter, with a focus on the homosocial relationships between male rivals. �Homosocial� refers to social relationships between people of the same sex, and especially between men. Almost all the males of Coming Through Slaughter fall into two categories: the artistic and emasculated and the powerful and virile. The main character, turn-of-the-century New Orleans jazzman Buddy Bolden, moves between these groups, a portrayal that complicates our view of the nature of the self. Thus Ondaatje's two novel are united in their refusal of binary categorizations, favoring instead multiple cultural and individual identities. |
| Statement of Responsibility: |
by Emily-Rose Guillebeau |
| Thesis: |
Thesis (B.A.) -- New College of Florida, 2010 |
| Electronic Access: |
RESTRICTED TO NCF STUDENTS, STAFF, FACULTY, AND ON-CAMPUS USE |
| Bibliography: |
Includes bibliographical references. |
| Source of Description: |
This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law. |
| Local: |
Faculty Sponsor: Dimino, Andrea |
Record Information |
| Source Institution: |
New College of Florida |
| Holding Location: |
New College of Florida |
| Rights Management: |
Applicable rights reserved. |
| Classification: |
local - S.T. 2010 G95 |
| System ID: |
NCFE004263:00001 |
|