Reflection and Acceptance: Small Town Ghosts Represented in Poetry

<p>This thesis discusses the theories of ethnography and ethnographic verse and applies these two theories in an original narrative in verse. Ethnography and ethnographic verse have a complicated relationship when it comes to a poet’s authority representing a certain place. Yet authenticity is never obtainable, since perceptions of a place are always subjective. That subjectivity allows a poet creative expression, as he or she shapes his or her relationship with a place and the people within it. The poet then must rely on elements like unifying imagery, dialect, surrealism, and empathetic insights. With these elements, a poet can identify with a community through unique descriptions and reflection that build connections between that poet and his or her subjects. I utilize these elements in my own poetry. By using the theories of ethnography and ethnographic verse, I have written a manuscript of poetry that builds upon (and even deviates) from the works of poets I looked to during my research process. This manuscript of poetry attempts to represent a group of people in a rural small town. Rural realism and supernatural surrealism both create a sense of community for readers. In the end, the manuscript of poetry aims to establish a connection between the speaker and the community. After this manuscript of poetry, I discuss the creative process that went into this thesis. I reflect upon the theories and concepts and how I have applied them in my own poetry. I then discuss works by Walt Whitman, Robert Frost, and contemporary poets like Ted Kooser and Ron Rash. Finally, I analyze how those works influenced the decisions I made while composing my narrative in verse.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts (MA)

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis - Open Access

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

English

Year dc:date.available

2017

Author dc:creator

• Junker, Adam

Contributors dc:contributor

• Christine Stewart

• culture
• ethnographic verse
• ethnography
• place-based poetry
• poetry
• supernatural
• Creative Writing

Licence

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Language dc:language

en

Repository record dc:identifier

https://openprairie.sdstate.edu/etd/1228

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:openprairie.sdstate.edu:etd-2228