This collection of prose and poetry considers what it means to exist in a space that hovers above the Appalachian border, where tradition and progress clash and meld in surprising and often transformative ways. Identity is constructed in part through the experience of environment, and this work seeks to unpack and reimagine an ever-changing sense of self. The pieces included in this collection question regional notions of religion, faith, love, marriage, motherhood, and what it means to both love and resist one’s place of origin.
The Fear of Drowning is a culmination of fiction, poetry, and essays that blur the lines of confession and imagination. Each individual piece works in conversation with the whole. Fiction merges into poetry and finally lands in an undeniable desire to somehow return home.
","abstract_html":"<p>This collection of prose and poetry considers what it means to exist in a space that hovers above the Appalachian border, where tradition and progress clash and meld in surprising and often transformative ways. Identity is constructed in part through the experience of environment, and this work seeks to unpack and reimagine an ever-changing sense of self. The pieces included in this collection question regional notions of religion, faith, love, marriage, motherhood, and what it means to both love and resist one’s place of origin.</p> <p><em>The Fear of Drowning</em> is a culmination of fiction, poetry, and essays that blur the lines of confession and imagination. Each individual piece works in conversation with the whole. Fiction merges into poetry and finally lands in an undeniable desire to somehow return home.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Kauffman, Christen N"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Fine Arts","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"English","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Jon Billman"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2016,"date_issued":"2016-08-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2016-08-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:23:34Z","subjects":["Fiction","Nonfiction","Poetry"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.nmu.edu/theses/115","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Jon Billman"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Kauffman, Christen N"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2999-12-31T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["English"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Fine Arts"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Fiction","Nonfiction","Poetry"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.nmu.edu/theses/115"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This collection of prose and poetry considers what it means to exist in a space that hovers above the Appalachian border, where tradition and progress clash and meld in surprising and often transformative ways. Identity is constructed in part through the experience of environment, and this work seeks to unpack and reimagine an ever-changing sense of self. The pieces included in this collection question regional notions of religion, faith, love, marriage, motherhood, and what it means to both love and resist one’s place of origin.
The Fear of Drowning is a culmination of fiction, poetry, and essays that blur the lines of confession and imagination. Each individual piece works in conversation with the whole. Fiction merges into poetry and finally lands in an undeniable desire to somehow return home.
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The Fear of Drowning is a culmination of fiction, poetry, and essays that blur the lines of confession and imagination. Each individual piece works in conversation with the whole. Fiction merges into poetry and finally lands in an undeniable desire to somehow return home.
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