Type of Document	Thesis
Author	Miller, Holly Ellison
URN	etd-08282003-180529
Title	Refugee And Other Stories
Degree	Master of Arts
Department	English, Department of
Advisory Committee	Advisor Name Title Elizabeth Stuckey-French Committee Chair Janet Burroway Committee Member Mark Cooper Committee Member
Keywords	Short Stories Of Alienation And Obsessions
Date of Defense	2003-05-01
Availability	restricted
Abstract This thesis consists of five short stories written during 2000-2003. Three of the stories were written in fiction workshops, and two were written after I completed the coursework for my M.A. All but one are written in first-person. “Refugee” was written for Elizabeth Stuckey-French’s spring 2001 fiction workshop, and is in its fifth draft. It is the story of a man in his mid-thirties, restless, yet passive, a stay-at-home drifter, whose life so far is one big missed opportunity. He visits his brother’s perfect suburban home and finds himself in a situation in which action is required—a life and two children depend upon it. “Hail Mary, Full of Lies” was also written for Elizabeth Stuckey-French’s spring 2001 workshop. In this story, a young girl who knows the rules of the Catholic Church but does not understand them covets the role of Mary in the Christmas mass, and will say anything to get the part. This story is in its fourth draft. “Faster than the Human Mind” and “Lynne’s Grooming Corner” were written in summer and fall 2002 and have not been workshopped. “Faster” grew from a story a friend told me about a patient with an unusual case of delusional disorder. The story touches on the struggle between reason and emotion, thinking and feeling, responsibility and freedom. “Lynne’s” is currently more a slice of life story, a peek into the world of a dog groomer born and raised deep in Cajun Louisiana. These stories are in second draft stage. “I’ll Have the Past Your Prime Rib” was written for Elizabeth Stuckey-French’s spring 2000 workshop, the first fiction course I ever took. This story was my first attempt at writing fiction, and in this fourth draft, a cynical young woman and her fading boss square off in the wake of their PR firm’s disintegration. Themes many of the stories share are alienation, worlds colliding, tiny quirky obsessions, life altering obsessions, and most of all, the question, “What if your life turns out drastically different than what you hoped for?” What if you waste it with inaction? Or what if you burn so hard in one direction that you neglect other parts of your life and wind up at a lonely dead end? You will carry the weight of some decisions throughout your life—but which ones? The answers certainly aren’t here in the stories, but the questions are.
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