Date of Award
5-2007
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.F.A.
Degree Program
Film, Theatre & Communication Arts
Department
Film, Theatre, and Communication Arts
Major Professor
Leake, Joanna; Boyden, Amanda
Second Advisor
Boyden, Joseph
Abstract
Putting Makeup on Dead People is a collection of ten short stories narrated by Donna that relate key moments in her life from early childhood through her mid-thirties. Because of the author's belief in the circularity of time and of what makes up human identity (what we do, what happens to us, to whom we are related), the stories do not progress chronologically. The collection pays particular attention to Donna's relationship with key family members: her father Nicky, her mother Martha, her Uncle Lou, her Aunt Selena, and her siblings, Linnie and B. Many of the stories also attend to Donna's relationship with Charlie, the man who finally becomes her husband. Through these stories of one woman's life, this collection explores themes of loss, healing, and personal growth. Ultimately, this work encapsulates one person's discovery of her core identity, underneath and in addition to all of the layers added to that core, through relationships, life experiences, successes, and failures.
Recommended Citation
Violi, Jennifer, "Putting Makeup on Dead People" (2007). University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations. 1069.
https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/1069
Rights
The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this dissertation or thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis or dissertation.