Ethnicity and poetry: A systems theory approach to contemporary African American and Mexican American poetry

Author

Antonio Paniagua Guzman, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Date of Award

12-2016

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Sociology

First Advisor

Dr. Igor Ryabov

Second Advisor

Dr. William Donner

Third Advisor

Dr. Salvatore Restifo

Abstract

Given the ongoing ethnic transformation of the current society of the United States, contemporary sociologists have extensively studied ethnic relations from diverse theoretical and methodological approaches. Despite the vast sociological research recently developed, the literary-based methodological approach remains partially uncultivated. This study explores motivations and patterns of minority groups’ ethnic performance in contemporary poetry by analyzing inter and intra-group similarities and differences of diverse linguistic and cultural traits. From secondary data analysis, this study examines four hundred poems authored by forty contemporary African American and Mexican American writers experientially connected to the state of Texas. Grounded in systems theory, this study finds notable inter-group differences in ethnic performance through poetry and concludes that it becomes more intense either in regions with considerable high and low presence of such minorities.

Comments

Copyright 2016 Antonio Paniagua Guzmán. All Rights Reserved.

https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/ethnicity-poetry-systems-theory-approach/docview/1878196570/se-2?accountid=7119

Recommended Citation

Paniagua Guzman, Antonio, "Ethnicity and poetry: A systems theory approach to contemporary African American and Mexican American poetry" (2016). Theses and Dissertations. 189.
https://scholarworks.utrgv.edu/etd/189