Adolescence, Masculinity & Alienation
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Adolescence, masculinity & alienation Sites of engagement and resistance in American young adult fiction 1950-2000 Clare E Caldwell A thesis in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of the Arts & Media Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences UNSW, Australia September 2018 THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES Thesis/Dissertation Sheet Surname or Family name: Caldwell First name: Clare Other name/s: Elizabeth Abbreviation for degree as given in the University calendar: PhD School: School of the Arts & Media (SAM) Faculty: Arts & Social Sciences Title: Adolescence, masculinity & alienation: sites of engagement and resistance in American young adult fiction 1950-2000 This thesis explores the correlation between representation of the adolescent male in late twentieth- century fiction and the progressive disengagement of boys from the practice of reading during that same period. By mapping the fictional embodiment and re-mediation of juvenile male experience through a series of focused, yet interrelated studies of seminal works in the genre since 1950, the vital and often overlooked disjunction between the fictional and lived experience of adolescent males emerges as a definitive reason for the steadily diminishing number of young male fiction readers. Across the four case studies that comprise this thesis, the determining effects of habitus and field on teenage male engagement with young adult fiction are explored through analysis of mimetic limitations in key texts by prominent American authors, including J. D. Salinger, S. E. Hinton, Robert Cormier and Stephen Chbosky. In close reading and application of convergent methods drawn from cultural studies, cognitive narratology and theories of gendered reading, this thesis explores the complex divergences between fictional representations of male adolescence and the challenges presented by the efflorescence of other forms and channels of meaning-making for young males from 1950 to 2000, including a vast array of visual and digital media. Whilst selective, the case studies pay particular attention to shifts in language, narrative devices and literary techniques that have traditionally enabled teenage males to close the gap between the existential fuzziness of fiction and the physical manifestations of adolescence. Each case study embeds the works under discussion in their particular social and historical contexts, ranging from post-World War Il paranoia, evolving class structures and the emergence of feminism as a significant political force, to the rapid expansion of global capital and the unsettled political ambience generated by the Cold War. Themes of impermanence, intimacy, solipsism and isolation that typify young adult fiction in this period are also considered, particularly in relation to the ways in which the exemplary novels variously enact homosocial identifications and dynamics, and how this performative queering of masculine norms, in turn, informs the engagement of young male, and indeed, female readers in fictional incarnations of adolescent masculinity. [348 words] Declaration relating to disposition of project thesis/dissertation I hereby grant to the University of New South Wales or its agents the right to archive and to make available my thesis or dissertation in whole or in part in the University libraries in all forms of media, now or here after known, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. I retain all property rights, such as patent rights. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis or dissertation. I also authorise University Microfilms to use the 350 word abstract of my thesis in Dissertation Abstracts International. Signature Witness Date The University recognises that there may be exceptional circumstances requiring restrictions on copying or conditions on use. Requests for restriction for a period of up to 2 years must be made in writing. 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I also declare that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own work, except to the extent that assistance from others in the project's design and conception or in style, presentation and linguistic expression is acknowledged.’ Signed Date INCLUSION OF PUBLICATIONS STATEMENT UNSW is supportive of candidates publishing their research results during their candidature as detailed in the UNSW Thesis Examination Procedure. Publications can be used in their thesis in lieu of a Chapter if: • The student contributed greater than 50% of the content in the publication and is the “primary author”, ie. the student was responsible primarily for the planning, execution and preparation of the work for publication • The student has approval to include the publication in their thesis in lieu of a Chapter from their supervisor and Postgraduate Coordinator. • The publication is not subject to any obligations or contractual agreements with a third party that would constrain its inclusion in the thesis Please indicate whether this thesis contains published material or not. This thesis contains no publications, either published or submitted for publication (if this box is checked, you may delete all the material on page 2) ☒ Some of the work described in this thesis has been published and it has been documented in the relevant Chapters with acknowledgement (if this box is ☐ checked, you may delete all the material on page 2) This thesis has publications (either published or submitted for publication) incorporated into it in lieu of a chapter and the details are presented below ☐ CANDIDATE’S DECLARATION I declare that: • I have complied with the Thesis Examination Procedure • where I have used a publication in lieu of a Chapter, the listed publication(s) below meet(s) the requirements to be included in the thesis. Name Signature Date (dd/mm/yy) Clare Caldwell Postgraduate Coordinator’s Declaration (to be filled in where publications are used in lieu of Chapters) I declare that: • the information below is accurate • where listed publication(s) have been used in lieu of Chapter(s), their use complies with the Thesis Examination Procedure • the minimum requirements for the format of the thesis have been met. PGC’s Name PGC’s Signature Date (dd/mm/yy) COPYRIGHT STATEMENT ‘I hereby grant the University of New South Wales or its agents the right to archive and to make available my thesis or dissertation in whole or part in the University libraries in all forms of media, now or here after known, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. I retain all proprietary rights, such as patent rights. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis or dissertation. I also authorise University Microfilms to use the 350 word abstract of my thesis in Dissertation Abstract International (this is applicable to doctoral theses only). I have either used no substantial portions of copyright material in my thesis or I have obtained permission to use copyright material; where permission has not been granted I have applied/will apply for a partial restriction of the digital copy of my thesis or dissertation.’ Signed Date AUTHENTICITY STATEMENT ‘I certify that the Library deposit digital copy is a direct equivalent of the final officially approved version of my thesis. No emendation of content has occurred and if there are any minor variations in formatting, they are the result of the conversion to digital format.’ Signed Date Das beste, was du wissen kannst, Darfst du den buben doch nicht sagen.* Goethe, Faust (Part 1, Scene 4) * After all, the best of what you know may not be told to boys. Contents Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................. i Publications & Presentations ............................................................................................... ii Abbreviations .................................................................................................................... iii Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 1 i. Mapping the Field of a Gendered Form ...................................................................... 16 ii. Surface Reading and Cognitive Literary Theory as Convergent Methods .................. 29 iii. Pathologising Affect in Young Adult Fiction ................................................................ 41 1 ....................................................................................................................................... 47 1950s: An Imperfect Masculinity in The Catcher in the Rye ................................................. 47 1.1 First Act: Performing Adolescent Gender ..............................................................