Date of Award

2013

Type

Thesis

Major

English Language and Literature - Creative Writing Concentration

Degree Type

Bachelor of Arts in English Language/Literature with a Concentration in Creative Writing

Department

English

First Advisor

Dr. Aaron Sanders

Second Advisor

Dr. Courtney George

Third Advisor

Dr. William Owen

Abstract

Southern small-town culture is marked by a close-knit community's strict societal expectations and hierarchy, the undeniable familiarity of all the residents and their business in a particular small town such as Bloomingdale, Georgia; and a resistance or inability to be affected by time. The second element—familiarity—functions not always as a means of nosiness but as a direct result of the unavoidable interconnectivity that is formed by generations of neighbors and relatives growing up together and never leaving their hometown. A final characteristic of the small-town culture is the significance of landmarks—both in a geographical and manmade sense. These elements and traits largely compose the small-town culture demonstrated throughout Lee Smith's Oral History, Olive Ann Burns's Cold Sassy Tree, and Candice Lawrence's short stories "Glimpse", "That Kinda Courage", and "Back Stabbin' Mrs. Betty".

Before we examine these components, let's take a moment to define what is meant by "Southern small-town culture." Few things have remained the same in respect to the progression of Southern literature—especially when referring to contemporary Southern literature. Still, there are some characteristics which have paradoxically become unique yet standard features of Southern literature and culture, such as the unmistakable social and often genealogical interconnectivity of a small town's residents. For the purposes of this thesis, Southern small town culture encompasses landmarks, social interactions and hierarchy, as well as how a seemingly abundance of time uniquely affects fictional characters' perception of and reactions to reality. Candice Lawrence uses the culture found in southern small towns to zoom in on how individuals function in their environment.

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Honors Thesis

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