Instinctive presence: an examination of the maternal discourse in selected works by African American and Native American women writers, 1999
Mitchell, Shawn E
1990-1999
The purpose of this study was to examine the underlying maternal motifs in selected works by African American and Native American women writers. The study, specifically focused upon African American author Toni Morrisons Beloved, and Native American author Ella Cara Delorias Waterlilv. These respective African American and Native American women, through their unwavering positions on maternal supremacy, have rightfully positioned the mother figure, whether biological, cosmic or surrogate, to the forefront. Within this formation, the bearer of life is revealed and revered as the authoritative source of spiritual growth, generational sustenance, and ancestral tribute. Both authors emphasize the significance of the maternal figure through the use of revision and (re)memory, important literary devices reflective of both cultures, to illustrate the simultaneous past, present and future. The research confirmed that the selected African American and Native American women writers strategically devised their literary language to demonstrate the prominence of this central maternal figure, and her role as maintainer of cultural traditions, thus the preserver of a society.
text
application/pdf
1999-05-01
thesis
Master of Arts (MA)
Clark Atlanta University
Department of English
Twining, Mary Arnold
Georgia--Atlanta
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12322/cau.td:1999_mitchell_shawn_e
