The Ripening of Mangos

Authors

Katherine Hoerth, University of Texas-Pan American

Date of Award

5-2011

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Fine Arts (MFA)

Department

English

First Advisor

Dr. Steven P. Schneider

Second Advisor

Dr. Caroline S. Miles

Third Advisor

Dr. Deborah Cole

Abstract

This project is a collection of poems which draw influence from Romantic, confessional, and post-modern poetry movements, and can most accurately be described as Confessionalistic, though they are resistant to categorization. The poems function to dismantle archetypal definitions of feminine identity, and instead aim to depict identity to be fluid and multifaceted.

The Ripening of Mangos is divided into four sections. The first section deconstructs the 'angel' or 'virgin' archetype, while the second deconstructs the 'monster' or 'whore' archetype. Section three includes voices of procreation, and functions to complicate the image of 'the mother.' The last section, Transplanting, shows gendered identity within the context of other power constructs (such as language, sexuality, class, and ethnicity) and shows the transcendence beyond singular notions of identity.

Comments

Copyright 2011 Katherine Hoerth. All Rights Reserved.

https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/ripening-mangos/docview/875770685/se-2?accountid=7119

Granting Institution

University of Texas-Pan American