This study is divided into two major parts. The first explores the variations of the stranger genre in the American twentieth-century short story by examining the short works of Sherwood Anderson, Ernest Hemingway, Eudora Welty, Katherine Anne Porter, Flannery O'Connor, Raymond Carver, and David James Duncan. The second provides five original works of fiction that represent my understanding of the genre. Observations in the first section fall into three basic categories: \"The Mysterious Stranger: Character,\" \"The Tough Guy: Conflict,\" and \"The Nature of Knowing: Theme.\" \"The Character in Transition\" chapter relates my observations in the critical study to the structure of my original fiction, while the final chapter presents five original short stories.
","abstract_html":"<p>This study is divided into two major parts. The first explores the variations of the stranger genre in the American twentieth-century short story by examining the short works of Sherwood Anderson, Ernest Hemingway, Eudora Welty, Katherine Anne Porter, Flannery O'Connor, Raymond Carver, and David James Duncan. The second provides five original works of fiction that represent my understanding of the genre. Observations in the first section fall into three basic categories: "The Mysterious Stranger: Character," "The Tough Guy: Conflict," and "The Nature of Knowing: Theme." "The Character in Transition" chapter relates my observations in the critical study to the structure of my original fiction, while the final chapter presents five original short stories.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Otto, Ryan S"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"MA (Master of Arts)","degree_level":"Thesis - unrestricted","degree_discipline":"English","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2000,"date_issued":"2000-08-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2000-08-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:18:50Z","subjects":["literature","Arts and Humanities","English Language and Literature"],"languages":[],"rights":["Copyright by the authors."],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/17","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Otto, Ryan S"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["1990-01-01T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2000-08-01T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["English"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis - unrestricted"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["MA (Master of Arts)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["literature","Arts and Humanities","English Language and Literature"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright by the authors."]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://dc.etsu.edu/context/etd/article/1053/viewcontent/ottorju01.pdf","https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/17"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This study is divided into two major parts. The first explores the variations of the stranger genre in the American twentieth-century short story by examining the short works of Sherwood Anderson, Ernest Hemingway, Eudora Welty, Katherine Anne Porter, Flannery O'Connor, Raymond Carver, and David James Duncan. The second provides five original works of fiction that represent my understanding of the genre. Observations in the first section fall into three basic categories: \"The Mysterious Stranger: Character,\" \"The Tough Guy: Conflict,\" and \"The Nature of Knowing: Theme.\" \"The Character in Transition\" chapter relates my observations in the critical study to the structure of my original fiction, while the final chapter presents five original short stories.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["If Only I Knew: The Stranger in the Twentieth-Century Short Story."]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Otto, Ryan S"],"dc:date.available":["1990-01-01T08:00:00Z"],"dc:date.issued":["2000-08-01T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["This study is divided into two major parts. The first explores the variations of the stranger genre in the American twentieth-century short story by examining the short works of Sherwood Anderson, Ernest Hemingway, Eudora Welty, Katherine Anne Porter, Flannery O'Connor, Raymond Carver, and David James Duncan. The second provides five original works of fiction that represent my understanding of the genre. Observations in the first section fall into three basic categories: \"The Mysterious Stranger: Character,\" \"The Tough Guy: Conflict,\" and \"The Nature of Knowing: Theme.\" \"The Character in Transition\" chapter relates my observations in the critical study to the structure of my original fiction, while the final chapter presents five original short stories.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://dc.etsu.edu/context/etd/article/1053/viewcontent/ottorju01.pdf","https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/17"],"dc:rights":["Copyright by the authors."],"dc:subject":["literature","Arts and Humanities","English Language and Literature"],"dc:title":["If Only I Knew: The Stranger in the Twentieth-Century Short Story."],"thesis:degree_discipline":["English"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis - unrestricted"],"thesis:degree_name":["MA (Master of Arts)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:18:50Z"}