English Language and Literature ETDs
Publication Date
Spring 5-19-2020
Abstract
This creative dissertation is a first-person dramatic memoir. This project is an exploration of grief and longing to connect to a mother who died before the narrator could form memory. It examines grief, family, escape, and home, through an Aristotelian ‘hero’s journey’ story structure that connects with several social issues prevalent in US discourse for the past two decades—including the opioid epidemic, migration between Mexico and the US, post 9/11 conflicts in the Middle East, and economic bereavement. Influences for this project include Tobias Wolff, Alison Bechdel, Mary Karr, Leslie Jamison, and James Baldwin.
Degree Name
MFA Creative Writing
Level of Degree
Masters
Department Name
English
First Committee Member (Chair)
Gregory Martin
Second Committee Member
Daniel Mueller
Third Committee Member
Mark Sundeen
Fourth Committee Member
Julie Shigekuni
Fifth Committee Member
Charlotte Holmes
Language
English
Document Type
Dissertation
Recommended Citation
McGuirk, Ariel E.. "A Boy Named Ariel." (2020). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/engl_etds/293
