{"id":{"repo_id":"uiuc","oai_identifier":"oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/97560"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uiuc/oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/97560","repository":{"repo_id":"uiuc","name":"University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign","base_url":"https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh"},"display":{"title":"Bumpkin rising: the development of American identity through the country bumpkin character in American manners plays","abstract":"In this dissertation, the country bumpkin character type is analyzed as a reflection of American identity. In the English tradition, the country bumpkin is often the object of ridicule because of his ignorance and buffoonish mistakes, but in America this type morphs into a freedom loving character imbued with common sense, a strong will, and a distrust of class structures. In this study, the country bumpkin type is used to look at the formation of a national identity and how the constructed nature of that identity privileges some aspects of society while ignoring or degrading others. The focus of this work is the bumpkin’s development in American theatre from its arrival in colonial America until the verge of World War Two. Each chapter examines the historical and cultural context of the time, applies that to a significant manners play of the period, and discusses American identity through the lens of the country bumpkin. The periods within the dissertation are framed by war, notably the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the Civil War, and World War One. The earlier chapters focus on England’s strong influence on the emerging nation and America’s struggle to form an independent identity. The middle section concentrates on America’s internal battles and the final chapter deals with the United States on its rise to world power. The embracing of this character is still popular today in all aspects of American culture and in addition to entertainment can be seen in our political candidates.","abstract_html":"In this dissertation, the country bumpkin character type is analyzed as a reflection of American identity. In the English tradition, the country bumpkin is often the object of ridicule because of his ignorance and buffoonish mistakes, but in America this type morphs into a freedom loving character imbued with common sense, a strong will, and a distrust of class structures. In this study, the country bumpkin type is used to look at the formation of a national identity and how the constructed nature of that identity privileges some aspects of society while ignoring or degrading others. The focus of this work is the bumpkin’s development in American theatre from its arrival in colonial America until the verge of World War Two. Each chapter examines the historical and cultural context of the time, applies that to a significant manners play of the period, and discusses American identity through the lens of the country bumpkin. The periods within the dissertation are framed by war, notably the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the Civil War, and World War One. The earlier chapters focus on England’s strong influence on the emerging nation and America’s struggle to form an independent identity. The middle section concentrates on America’s internal battles and the final chapter deals with the United States on its rise to world power. The embracing of this character is still popular today in all aspects of American culture and in addition to entertainment can be seen in our political candidates.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Bunch, Caroline M"],"institution":"University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign","degree_name":"Ph.D.","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Theatre","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Davis, Peter A.","Robinson, Valleri","Syer, Katherine","Bishop, Mardia"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2017,"date_issued":"2017-08-10T19:51:50Z","date_published":"2017-08-10T19:51:50Z","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:24:34Z","subjects":["Country bumpkin","American identity","American theatre","National identity","American plays","Manners"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["Copyright 2017 Caroline Bunch"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"http://hdl.handle.net/2142/97560","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Davis, Peter A.","Robinson, Valleri","Syer, Katherine","Bishop, Mardia"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Bunch, Caroline M"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2017-08-10T19:51:50Z","2019-08-11T09:15:17Z","2017-04-18","2017-05"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["text"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Theatre"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Ph.D."]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Country bumpkin","American identity","American theatre","National identity","American plays","Manners"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2017 Caroline Bunch"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["http://hdl.handle.net/2142/97560"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["In this dissertation, the country bumpkin character type is analyzed as a reflection of American identity. In the English tradition, the country bumpkin is often the object of ridicule because of his ignorance and buffoonish mistakes, but in America this type morphs into a freedom loving character imbued with common sense, a strong will, and a distrust of class structures. In this study, the country bumpkin type is used to look at the formation of a national identity and how the constructed nature of that identity privileges some aspects of society while ignoring or degrading others. The focus of this work is the bumpkin’s development in American theatre from its arrival in colonial America until the verge of World War Two. Each chapter examines the historical and cultural context of the time, applies that to a significant manners play of the period, and discusses American identity through the lens of the country bumpkin. The periods within the dissertation are framed by war, notably the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the Civil War, and World War One. The earlier chapters focus on England’s strong influence on the emerging nation and America’s struggle to form an independent identity. The middle section concentrates on America’s internal battles and the final chapter deals with the United States on its rise to world power. The embracing of this character is still popular today in all aspects of American culture and in addition to entertainment can be seen in our political candidates.","Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'Closed Access', the embargo will last until 2019-05-01","The student, Caroline Bunch, accepted the attached license on 2017-04-12 at 14:35.","The student, Caroline Bunch, submitted this Dissertation for approval on 2017-04-12 at 14:56.","This Dissertation was approved for publication on 2017-04-18 at 10:16.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #10708 on 2017-08-10 at 14:30:24","Made available in DSpace on 2017-08-10T19:51:50Z (GMT). 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In the English tradition, the country bumpkin is often the object of ridicule because of his ignorance and buffoonish mistakes, but in America this type morphs into a freedom loving character imbued with common sense, a strong will, and a distrust of class structures. In this study, the country bumpkin type is used to look at the formation of a national identity and how the constructed nature of that identity privileges some aspects of society while ignoring or degrading others. The focus of this work is the bumpkin’s development in American theatre from its arrival in colonial America until the verge of World War Two. Each chapter examines the historical and cultural context of the time, applies that to a significant manners play of the period, and discusses American identity through the lens of the country bumpkin. The periods within the dissertation are framed by war, notably the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the Civil War, and World War One. The earlier chapters focus on England’s strong influence on the emerging nation and America’s struggle to form an independent identity. The middle section concentrates on America’s internal battles and the final chapter deals with the United States on its rise to world power. The embracing of this character is still popular today in all aspects of American culture and in addition to entertainment can be seen in our political candidates.","Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'Closed Access', the embargo will last until 2019-05-01","The student, Caroline Bunch, accepted the attached license on 2017-04-12 at 14:35.","The student, Caroline Bunch, submitted this Dissertation for approval on 2017-04-12 at 14:56.","This Dissertation was approved for publication on 2017-04-18 at 10:16.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #10708 on 2017-08-10 at 14:30:24","Made available in DSpace on 2017-08-10T19:51:50Z (GMT). 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