Washington University in St. Louis Washington University Open Scholarship All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) January 2010 Impossible Whiteness: Race, Gender, and American Identity in Early Twentieth-Century American Literature Tarah Demant Washington University in St. Louis Follow this and additional works at: https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/etd Recommended Citation Demant, Tarah, "Impossible Whiteness: Race, Gender, and American Identity in Early Twentieth-Century American Literature" (2010). All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs). 87. https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/etd/87 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by Washington University Open Scholarship. It has been accepted for inclusion in All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) by an authorized administrator of Washington University Open Scholarship. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY IN ST. LOUIS Department of English Dissertation Examination Committee: Vivian R. Pollak, Chair Mary Ann Dzuback Andrea Friedman William Maxwell Linda Nicholson Daniel B. Shea IMPOSSIBLE WHITENESS: RACE, GENDER, AND AMERICAN IDENTITY IN EARLY TWENTIETH- CENTURY AMERICAN LITERATURE by Tarah Ann Demant A dissertation presented to the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of Washington University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy August 2010 Saint Louis, Missouri Acknowledgements According to Edith Wharton, there are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it. This dissertation is a reflection of the many people who have shone throughout my journey and it is my pleasure to thank them here. I would like to extend special thanks to my advisor, Professor Vivian Pollak, for her guidance, advocacy, support, and no small amount of patience.