Head Above Water
Abstract
Head Above Water demonstrates how cultural roles and changing societies affect the identities of young women struggling through moments of adolescent angst and solitude. Value systems inform cultural identity, and it is important to study, recognize, and challenge them so that we may be enlightened about the human condition.
In the formative stages of my thesis, I read fiction by writers from a range of cultural backgrounds who used motifs to signify the complexity of the issues central to their stories. In my stories symbols are juxtaposed as dichotomies-the mask as an obstructer and demonstrator of identity, water as a symbol of fertility as well as oppression, ugliness and beauty both internally and externally, and power versus weakness.
In order to achieve an accurate portrayal of industrial and village life in Nigeria, I conducted primary and secondary research. I learned about the verve, flavor, and culture of Nigeria through literature, media, and interviews, and I studied the ways published writers employ voice, physical and material landscapes, and cultural details. My research has informed my thesis, which ultimately centers not only on Nigerian women as mothers and daughters, but on the human condition itself.
Notes
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Thesis Completion
2004
Semester
Spring
Advisor
Hubbard, Susan
Degree
Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)
College
College of Arts and Sciences
Department
English
Degree Program
Creative Writing
Subjects
Arts and Sciences -- Dissertations, Academic; Dissertations, Academic -- Arts and Sciences; Short stories, English; Women -- Fiction
Format
Identifier
DP0021836
Language
English
Access Status
Open Access
Length of Campus-only Access
None
Document Type
Honors in the Major Thesis
Recommended Citation
Iromaunya, Julie, "Head Above Water" (2004). HIM 1990-2015. 328.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/honorstheses1990-2015/328