Date of Award
7-18-2008
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
English
First Advisor
Dr. Audrey Goodman - Chair
Second Advisor
Dr. Mary Hocks
Third Advisor
Dr. Nancy Chase
Abstract
Willa Cather contests the contemporary notion that identification links to a natural or original order. For example, that man equals masculine and femininity comes from an essential connection to woman. Cather deconstructs normativity through her use of character relationships in order to redefine successful interpersonal alliances. Thus, Alexandra, the protagonist of O Pioneers! builds a home and friendships that exemplify alternatives to stasis. My readings of O Pioneers! display the places in the novel where Cather subtly contests the ideology of naturalization. I make lesbian erotic and queer social interactions visible through a discourse on Cather’s symbolism. I favor queer theory as a mode of inquiry that magnifies the power and presence of heteronormativity and I examine Cather’s work as a critique of cultural principles that inflict violence against individuals who participate in dissent from conformity.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.57709/1059497
Recommended Citation
Neill, Nora, "Illuminating the Queer Subtext: the Unmentioned Affairs in Willa Cather's O Pioneers!." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2008.
doi: https://doi.org/10.57709/1059497