Document Type
Thesis
Degree
Master of Fine Arts (MFA)
Major/Program
Creative Writing
First Advisor's Name
Julie Marie Wade
First Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Chair
Second Advisor's Name
Denise Duhamel
Second Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Member
Third Advisor's Name
Nathaniel Cadle
Third Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Member
Keywords
nonfiction
Date of Defense
3-21-2023
Abstract
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF AN(OTHER) ORDINARY LIFE is a memoir arranged within the adopted form, or hermit crab shell, of an encyclopedia. Written in the fragmented Japanese style of zuihitsu, this project explores the speaker’s life history, personal reflections, and subjunctive reveries through a series of alphabetically arranged entries. Autobiographical details are not presented all at once, but in bite-sized literary morsels that are easily read and digested. The speaker contemplates varying topics from the mundane—like ladybugs and memory foam pillows—to the more serious and solemn—like mental illness and emergency rooms. Though the entries appear to stand alone, various thematic through-lines and narrative recursions unite them, weaving these short-form essays into an artfully braided and cohesive memoir.
Identifier
FIDC011071
Recommended Citation
Ruado, Ranijun E., "Encyclopedia of An(other) Ordinary Life" (2023). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 5261.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/5261
Rights Statement
In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).