Resistance and Identity in Ernest Gaines' The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, A Lesson Before Dying, and A Gathering of Old Men

This thesis examines resistance as a method of identity formation in Ernest Gaines' <italic>The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman<italic>, <italic>A Lesson Before Dying<italic>, and <italic>A Gathering of Old Men<italic>. For this purpose, I situate the author's focus on rural southern black communities as a way of establishing the importance of communal values, and more specifically, how these values form communal identities. Though I ultimately conclude that Gaines offers collective identity as most viable, my research begins by focusing on the author's attempts to situate a male identity. Gaines is most known for portrayals of African American masculinity, and this project both examines and problematizes masculine identity formation, especially as it relates to resistance. Mainly, I argue that hetero-normative masculine opposition proves too limiting and cannot sustain the formation of communal identities. Beginning with Gaines' portrayal of masculine opposition, I aim to demonstrate how African American men unsuccessfully attempt to invest in normative identities as a means of liberation from the socioeconomic constraints of life in the rural south. To expand my analysis of masculinity, I delve into limits of masculine resistance involving characters who adopt more antagonizing forms of hetero-normative masculinity as a form resistance. The deficiencies of male resistance lead to the final and most important aspect of my argument, which proposes female opposition as providing the space wherein communal identities are formed.

Grantor dc:publisher

Wake Forest University

Year dc:date.issued

2013

Author dc:creator

• Pinesett, Christian

• Ernest Gaines

Language dc:language.iso

en

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10339/39123

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:wakespace.lib.wfu.edu:10339/39123