Keywords

gulf, south, identity, relationships, haunting, short story, florida

Abstract

In Ernest Hemingway's novel The Old Man and the Sea, the narrator speaks of the healing power of the Gulf in a literal manner: the waters of the Gulf of Mexico heal the wounded hands of the fisherman. The seventeen stories in the following collection examine Hemingway's concept on other levels, focusing on the human ability--or lack thereof--to bridge psychological gulfs, and to find emotional healing. Three major currents run through the lives of the characters in Gulf: difficulties in relationships, struggles with identity, and a sense of being haunted by the unexplained. As the stories progress, the healing waters of the Gulf move the characters away from chaos and toward contentment. In early stories, characters are often appalled by the discovery of their true identities; the later stories feature heroes who've found happiness and peace. Scattered throughout the book are the haunted stories, those that question the boundaries between what is real and what is imagined, what is known and what can never be understood. Gulf is informed by the landscape of the south, yet some stories venture around the world, from the Gulf of Mexico to the heather-dotted hills of Scotland, exploring themes as dark and mysterious as the Gulf itself.

Notes

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Graduation Date

2008

Advisor

Hubbard, Susan

Degree

Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.)

College

College of Arts and Humanities

Department

English

Degree Program

Creative Writing

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

CFE0002023

URL

http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/CFE0002023

Language

English

Release Date

March 2008

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Access Status

Masters Thesis (Open Access)

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