MOUSE is a story told through poems, a narrative arc spanning the 30-some years of the speaker’s life, starting with his earliest memories of masculine representation, and progressing through his experiences with the various men in his life. The speaker in these poems is sensitive and thoughtful, introspective even as his attention is focused on the world around him. As he comes to know himself, his struggles with sexuality and relationships are manifested in the natural world. There is a depression, a longing for connection throughout these poems that threatens to crush the speaker. In the penultimate piece in the collection, there is a rumination on the seeming inevitability of suicide, followed by the titular poem, which explores the idea that perhaps one can find meaning in unexpected place.
","abstract_html":"<p>MOUSE is a story told through poems, a narrative arc spanning the 30-some years of the speaker’s life, starting with his earliest memories of masculine representation, and progressing through his experiences with the various men in his life. The speaker in these poems is sensitive and thoughtful, introspective even as his attention is focused on the world around him. As he comes to know himself, his struggles with sexuality and relationships are manifested in the natural world. There is a depression, a longing for connection throughout these poems that threatens to crush the speaker. In the penultimate piece in the collection, there is a rumination on the seeming inevitability of suicide, followed by the titular poem, which explores the idea that perhaps one can find meaning in unexpected place. </p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Breen, Joseph"],"institution":"Eastern Kentucky University","degree_name":"Master of Fine Arts (MFA)","degree_level":"Master's","degree_discipline":"English and Theatre","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2019,"date_issued":"2019-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2019-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:15:53Z","subjects":["Poetry"],"languages":[],"rights":["Copyright 2019 Joseph Breen"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/615","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Breen, Joseph"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Encompass Digital Archive, Eastern Kentucky University"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Master Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["English and Theatre"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Master's"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Fine Arts (MFA)"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Eastern Kentucky University"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Poetry"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2019 Joseph Breen"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/615"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["MOUSE is a story told through poems, a narrative arc spanning the 30-some years of the speaker’s life, starting with his earliest memories of masculine representation, and progressing through his experiences with the various men in his life. The speaker in these poems is sensitive and thoughtful, introspective even as his attention is focused on the world around him. As he comes to know himself, his struggles with sexuality and relationships are manifested in the natural world. There is a depression, a longing for connection throughout these poems that threatens to crush the speaker. In the penultimate piece in the collection, there is a rumination on the seeming inevitability of suicide, followed by the titular poem, which explores the idea that perhaps one can find meaning in unexpected place.
"]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/PDF"]},{"key":"dc:source","label":"Dc Source","values":["Encompass Digital Archive: Online Theses and Dissertations"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Mouse"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Breen, Joseph"],"dc:description.abstract":["MOUSE is a story told through poems, a narrative arc spanning the 30-some years of the speaker’s life, starting with his earliest memories of masculine representation, and progressing through his experiences with the various men in his life. The speaker in these poems is sensitive and thoughtful, introspective even as his attention is focused on the world around him. As he comes to know himself, his struggles with sexuality and relationships are manifested in the natural world. There is a depression, a longing for connection throughout these poems that threatens to crush the speaker. In the penultimate piece in the collection, there is a rumination on the seeming inevitability of suicide, followed by the titular poem, which explores the idea that perhaps one can find meaning in unexpected place.
"],"dc:format":["application/PDF"],"dc:identifier":["https://encompass.eku.edu/etd/615"],"dc:publisher":["Encompass Digital Archive, Eastern Kentucky University"],"dc:rights":["Copyright 2019 Joseph Breen"],"dc:source":["Encompass Digital Archive: Online Theses and Dissertations"],"dc:subject":["Poetry"],"dc:title":["Mouse"],"dc:type":["Master Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["English and Theatre"],"thesis:degree_level":["Master's"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Fine Arts (MFA)"],"thesis:institution_name":["Eastern Kentucky University"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:15:53Z"}