| dc.description.abstract | This dissertation is a literary analysis as it applies to the writing of memoir. It is a study that focuses on the memoirs of four specific minority women of color who came of age during the historical time-period in this country known as the Civil Rights Era. Their stories reflect the times in which they were lived out. There are four points that were the lenses that I used in conducting the analysis of the four memoirs that are examined in this research study.
1. Purpose-the reason for which something is done.
2. Writing Style-a combination of diction or syntax that includes word choice, word order, sentence construction, organization, use of figurative language and symbolism.
3. Point of View-the perspective from which the story is told
4. Theme(s)-the main idea or general message of the work, including the truth or believability of the author
Literary analysis focuses on how plot, structure, character, setting and many other techniques are used by the author to create meaning. It encourages one to think about how and why a poem, short story, novel, memoir or play was written. I used a number of data collection methods as the researcher of this study. The means of data collection I used came in the forms of interview transcripts, story telling, autobiographical writing, documents such a journal entries and pictures, and audio and video recordings. In a basic linear and chronological approach, this research project encompassed the study of four single individuals embracing stories from their lives, and exploring the learned significance of those individual experiences. In this study, I created an aggregate of narratives, each bearing on the others. It is, by no means, an exhaustive collection of women's memoir. The significance of this study lies in the contribution towards a practical critique that the writing of memoir has had on certain women of minority status. | en_US |
