Memories of Pre-Adolescence and First-Person Narratives: Tools of Identity Formation for Africana Women
Author:
Tamara Michelle Beauboeuf
Degree Date:
May, 1992
Committee Chairperson:
William E. Cross, Jr.
Call Number:
Thesis DT 3.5 1992 B371
Description:
ix, 179 leaves; 29 cm.
Abstract:
This project examines the pre-adolescent coherence presented by the Africana women narrators of three novels. Following an analysis of psychological and sociological works which explore the importance of pre-adolescent coherence in the female life-cycle, this study then traces the manifestations and continuity of this critically conscious, capable, and self-secure identity throughout the pre-adolescent and adolescent years of the narrators. Asserted are two points: One, that the psychological heath of the adult narrators in sexist, racist, and classist environments is vitally dependent on their recourses to their pre-adolescent identities which they preserve despite the fragmentation they encounter in adolescence; Two, that the coherence of the narratives reflects the understanding which the narrators have of themselves and their environments. The study concludes with a discussion of the interplay of memory, reflection, and narratives in the life-long process of identity formation for these women of the African Diaspora.