This project closely examines the relationship between transgenerational trauma, disability, and myth, particularly within Black speculative fiction, Afrofuturism, and Africanfuturism. Through the lenses of critical race theory, trauma theory, disability studies, and feminist theory, I will closely analyze how myth functions across five Black speculative fiction novels. I argue that disability appears as a common thread throughout each of these novels as a unique part of Black history and experience. Disability culture specifically offers community interdependence, a rejection of body and mind binaries, and a rejection of hierarchies in the pursuit of accessibility. I further demonstrate how myth centers racial and disability justice, as myth contains both cultural memory and serves as a communal storytelling experience.
","abstract_html":"<p>This project closely examines the relationship between transgenerational trauma, disability, and myth, particularly within Black speculative fiction, Afrofuturism, and Africanfuturism. Through the lenses of critical race theory, trauma theory, disability studies, and feminist theory, I will closely analyze how myth functions across five Black speculative fiction novels. I argue that disability appears as a common thread throughout each of these novels as a unique part of Black history and experience. Disability culture specifically offers community interdependence, a rejection of body and mind binaries, and a rejection of hierarchies in the pursuit of accessibility. I further demonstrate how myth centers racial and disability justice, as myth contains both cultural memory and serves as a communal storytelling experience.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Tapley, Jessica"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts (MA)","degree_level":"Open Access Thesis","degree_discipline":"English Language and Literature","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Christine Neufeld, Ph.D.","Robin Lucy, Ph.D."],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2021,"date_issued":"2021-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2021-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:40Z","subjects":["Afrofuturism","disability","feminism","flying African","speculative fiction","trauma","Other English Language and Literature"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1085","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Christine Neufeld, Ph.D.","Robin Lucy, Ph.D."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Tapley, Jessica"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2021-10-13T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["English Language and Literature"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Open Access Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts (MA)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Afrofuturism","disability","feminism","flying African","speculative fiction","trauma","Other English Language and Literature"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1085"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This project closely examines the relationship between transgenerational trauma, disability, and myth, particularly within Black speculative fiction, Afrofuturism, and Africanfuturism. Through the lenses of critical race theory, trauma theory, disability studies, and feminist theory, I will closely analyze how myth functions across five Black speculative fiction novels. I argue that disability appears as a common thread throughout each of these novels as a unique part of Black history and experience. Disability culture specifically offers community interdependence, a rejection of body and mind binaries, and a rejection of hierarchies in the pursuit of accessibility. I further demonstrate how myth centers racial and disability justice, as myth contains both cultural memory and serves as a communal storytelling experience.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The memory of mythmaking: Transgenerational trauma and disability as a collective experience in Afrofuturist storytelling"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Christine Neufeld, Ph.D.","Robin Lucy, Ph.D."],"dc:creator":["Tapley, Jessica"],"dc:date.available":["2021-10-13T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["This project closely examines the relationship between transgenerational trauma, disability, and myth, particularly within Black speculative fiction, Afrofuturism, and Africanfuturism. Through the lenses of critical race theory, trauma theory, disability studies, and feminist theory, I will closely analyze how myth functions across five Black speculative fiction novels. I argue that disability appears as a common thread throughout each of these novels as a unique part of Black history and experience. Disability culture specifically offers community interdependence, a rejection of body and mind binaries, and a rejection of hierarchies in the pursuit of accessibility. I further demonstrate how myth centers racial and disability justice, as myth contains both cultural memory and serves as a communal storytelling experience.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1085"],"dc:subject":["Afrofuturism","disability","feminism","flying African","speculative fiction","trauma","Other English Language and Literature"],"dc:title":["The memory of mythmaking: Transgenerational trauma and disability as a collective experience in Afrofuturist storytelling"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["English Language and Literature"],"thesis:degree_level":["Open Access Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts (MA)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:40Z"}