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TitleHungarian Roma and African American autobiographies
in comparative perspective
NameDemeny, Tamas (author), Walker, Janet A (chair), Diamond, Josephine (internal member), Pirog, Gerald (internal member), Dubs, Kathleen E (outside member), Rutgers University, Graduate School - New Brunswick,
Degree Date2011-05
Date Created2011
SubjectComparative Literature,
Comparative literature--Hungarian and English,
Comparative literature--English and Hungarian,
Autobiography in literature,
Romanies,
Lakatos, Menyhért, 1926- Füstös képek,
Péliné Nyári, Hilda, 1924- Az én kis életem,
Péliné Nyári, Hilda, 1924- Dodó és én,
Wright, Richard, 1908-1960. Black boy,
Hurston, Zora Neale. Dust tracks on a road
DescriptionMy dissertation is a comparative study of the following Hungarian Roma and African American autobiographies: Menyhért Lakatos's Smoky Pictures, Hilda Péliné Nyári's My Little Life, Richard Wright's Black Boy, and Zora Neale Hurston's Dust Tracks on a Road. I use the rich critical literature on African American autobiographies to better understand Gypsy autobiographies, about which there is a paucity of literary scholarship. I make use of the latest developments in theoretical writings about the genre of
autobiography, particularly autoethnography. So, my study is a groundbreaking work on Hungarian Roma autobiographies, and my comparative method brings an original contribution to the fields of comparative literature and cross-cultural ethnic studies. My dissertation focuses, on the one hand, on how the Hungarian Roma and African American authors grapple with ways to understand their own cultures and present
their experiences and insights, and, on the other hand, on the equally complex presentations of contacts with the majority cultures. The authors search for ways to reveal the dynamics of their cultures and their special positions within them, using the language,
cultural productions, and ideologies of the majority culture, finding ways to express things that are often unthinkable in the majority culture's understanding of the world. A study of the narrators' relationships with their mothers and families opens up ways of
understanding the complexities of their own cultures and their complicated relationships to these cultures. While descriptions of the relationships with the mothers are readily accessible to most readers, these descriptions point beyond themselves to the complicated and emotionally charged relationships to the cultures. The presentation of intercultural encounters is equally unique and difficult in each
case, as the subject of the minority culture describes experiences of oppression and disadvantaged status. Experiences of poverty, isolation, disrespect, and lack of access to education can be difficult to transmit because these experiences penetrate the deepest levels of one's being. I study the presentations of violence because violent experiences are palpable and emotional ways of encountering oppression at the hands of the majority
culture. The understanding thus gained can explain the varying attitudes towards resistance among the four authors.
autobiography, particularly autoethnography. So, my study is a groundbreaking work on Hungarian Roma autobiographies, and my comparative method brings an original contribution to the fields of comparative literature and cross-cultural ethnic studies. My dissertation focuses, on the one hand, on how the Hungarian Roma and African American authors grapple with ways to understand their own cultures and present
their experiences and insights, and, on the other hand, on the equally complex presentations of contacts with the majority cultures. The authors search for ways to reveal the dynamics of their cultures and their special positions within them, using the language,
cultural productions, and ideologies of the majority culture, finding ways to express things that are often unthinkable in the majority culture's understanding of the world. A study of the narrators' relationships with their mothers and families opens up ways of
understanding the complexities of their own cultures and their complicated relationships to these cultures. While descriptions of the relationships with the mothers are readily accessible to most readers, these descriptions point beyond themselves to the complicated and emotionally charged relationships to the cultures. The presentation of intercultural encounters is equally unique and difficult in each
case, as the subject of the minority culture describes experiences of oppression and disadvantaged status. Experiences of poverty, isolation, disrespect, and lack of access to education can be difficult to transmit because these experiences penetrate the deepest levels of one's being. I study the presentations of violence because violent experiences are palpable and emotional ways of encountering oppression at the hands of the majority
culture. The understanding thus gained can explain the varying attitudes towards resistance among the four authors.
NotePh.D.
NoteIncludes bibliographical references
NoteIncludes vita
Noteby Tamas Demeny
Genretheses
Persistent URLhttp://hdl.rutgers.edu/1782.1/rucore10001600001.ETD.000061185
Languageeng
CollectionGraduate School - New Brunswick Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Organization NameRutgers, The State University of New Jersey
RightsThe author owns the copyright to this work.
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