This collection of poems draws largely upon language to construct unlikely images and scenes that evoke a sense of displacement. Although the poems may deviate stylistically, they maintain a lyric sensibility that takes its grounding from a Modern sensibility while also heavily influenced by language poetry. Many of the poems portray the influence of cultural and communicative mediums on everyday language and common speech. These poems also attempt to construct a sense of self, often times in the form of fracture and fragmentation, which can both complicate and frustrate the notion of a singular objective self that pre-exists language and the function of communication. Frequently this tension manifests itself in a sweeping and associative take on syntax and attempts to complicate the structure of written versus spoken language as it is influenced by everyday symbols and various cultural iterations.
","abstract_html":"<p>This collection of poems draws largely upon language to construct unlikely images and scenes that evoke a sense of displacement. Although the poems may deviate stylistically, they maintain a lyric sensibility that takes its grounding from a Modern sensibility while also heavily influenced by language poetry. Many of the poems portray the influence of cultural and communicative mediums on everyday language and common speech. These poems also attempt to construct a sense of self, often times in the form of fracture and fragmentation, which can both complicate and frustrate the notion of a singular objective self that pre-exists language and the function of communication. Frequently this tension manifests itself in a sweeping and associative take on syntax and attempts to complicate the structure of written versus spoken language as it is influenced by everyday symbols and various cultural iterations.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Mueller, Michael Zachary"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"M.F.A.","degree_level":"Campus Access Thesis","degree_discipline":"English Language and Literatures","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Kwame Dawes"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2012,"date_issued":"2012-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2012-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:38:31Z","subjects":["Arts and Humanities","Creative Writing"],"languages":[],"rights":["© 2012, Michael Zachary Mueller"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/851","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Kwame Dawes"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Mueller, Michael Zachary"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["English Language and Literatures"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Campus Access Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["M.F.A."]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Arts and Humanities","Creative Writing"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["© 2012, Michael Zachary Mueller"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/851"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This collection of poems draws largely upon language to construct unlikely images and scenes that evoke a sense of displacement. Although the poems may deviate stylistically, they maintain a lyric sensibility that takes its grounding from a Modern sensibility while also heavily influenced by language poetry. Many of the poems portray the influence of cultural and communicative mediums on everyday language and common speech. These poems also attempt to construct a sense of self, often times in the form of fracture and fragmentation, which can both complicate and frustrate the notion of a singular objective self that pre-exists language and the function of communication. Frequently this tension manifests itself in a sweeping and associative take on syntax and attempts to complicate the structure of written versus spoken language as it is influenced by everyday symbols and various cultural iterations.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Folding City Flats"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Kwame Dawes"],"dc:creator":["Mueller, Michael Zachary"],"dc:description.abstract":["This collection of poems draws largely upon language to construct unlikely images and scenes that evoke a sense of displacement. Although the poems may deviate stylistically, they maintain a lyric sensibility that takes its grounding from a Modern sensibility while also heavily influenced by language poetry. Many of the poems portray the influence of cultural and communicative mediums on everyday language and common speech. These poems also attempt to construct a sense of self, often times in the form of fracture and fragmentation, which can both complicate and frustrate the notion of a singular objective self that pre-exists language and the function of communication. Frequently this tension manifests itself in a sweeping and associative take on syntax and attempts to complicate the structure of written versus spoken language as it is influenced by everyday symbols and various cultural iterations.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/etd/851"],"dc:rights":["© 2012, Michael Zachary Mueller"],"dc:subject":["Arts and Humanities","Creative Writing"],"dc:title":["Folding City Flats"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["English Language and Literatures"],"thesis:degree_level":["Campus Access Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["M.F.A."]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:38:31Z"}