Date of Award

12-2023

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.F.A.

Degree Program

Creative Writing

Department

English

Major Professor

Carolyn Hembree

Second Advisor

John Gery

Third Advisor

Karisma Price

Abstract

With poetic influences such as Lucille Clifton, specifically her poem “begin here,” and Ai Ogawa, specifically “Twenty Year Marriage,” this manuscript pays homage to mentor poets and people who have survived abuse, isolation, self-doubt, mental disorders, and addiction. This manuscript is for the otherwise voiceless, rightfully afraid, and forcefully silenced beings. There are also minor motifs consisting of the, sometimes, complex relationship between father and daughter, life after abusive love, and living with eating disorders. These themes are reflected in the poems throughout this manuscript not only in subject matter but in poetic craft such as playful use of otherwise strict poetic form, experimental use of white space, persona, the musical syntax of specific words, and intentional and surprising line breaks. Due to the subject matter of this manuscript, a trigger warning is advised for those who feel as though they can not submerse themselves into poems of these experiences.

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.

Available for download on Friday, December 15, 2028

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