DIPLOMARBEIT / DIPLOMA THESIS Titel der Diplomarbeit / Title of the Diploma Thesis „The Short Stories of Alice Munro: An Exemplary Analysis of the Collection Too Much Happiness“ verfasst von / submitted by Romana Urbanski angestrebter akademischer Grad / in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Magistra der Philosophie (Mag. phil.) Wien, 2017 / Vienna, 2017 Studienkennzahl lt. Studienblatt / A 190 344 313 degree programme code as it appears on the student record sheet: Studienrichtung lt. Studienblatt / Lehramtsstudium UF Englisch UF Geschichte, Sozialkunde, degree programme as it appears on Polit.Bildg. the student record sheet: o.Univ.-Prof. Dr. Margarete Rubik Betreut von / Supervisor: Declaration of Authenticity I declare that I have authored this thesis independently and that I have not used any other than the declared sources and resources, which have been acknowledged in the bibliographic references. I have explicitly marked all material which has been quoted either literally or paraphrased from the used sources in references within the text. Vienna, October 2017 Romana Urbanski Acknowledgements I want to thank…. … my supervisor Univ.-Prof. Dr. Margarete Rubik for her patience and continuous support. … my sister for proofreading my chapters. … my parents for their ongoing support in all matters. … my husband for being there for me when I needed him. Table of Contents 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 1 2 Alice Munro and the short story ......................................................................................... 3 2.1 Defining the short story ............................................................................................... 3 2.2 The modern short story .............................................................................................. 13 2.3 The postmodern short story ....................................................................................... 15 2.4 The postcolonial short story ...................................................................................... 16 2.5 What is a short story .................................................................................................. 16 3 Alice Munro in the Canadian context .............................................................................. 18 3.1 General remarks ......................................................................................................... 18 3.2 Canadian literature in the historical context – a brief outline of important events ... 22 3.3 From unity to disunity to multiculturalism ................................................................ 26 3.4 Between modernism and postmodernism – the “slightly postmodern” Canada ....... 29 3.5 The beginning of the 21st century and perspectives .................................................. 33 4 Characteristics of Alice Munro’s Writing ........................................................................ 35 4.1 Alice Munro’s styles of writing ................................................................................. 36 4.1.1 Realism ............................................................................................................... 36 4.1.2 Magic Realism .................................................................................................... 39 4.1.3 Gothic ................................................................................................................. 40 4.1.4 Feminism and Gender ........................................................................................ 42 4.1.5 Regionalism ........................................................................................................ 45 4.2 Narrative Technique .................................................................................................. 46 4.2.1 Structure ............................................................................................................. 48 4.2.2 Time ................................................................................................................... 48 4.2.3 Place ................................................................................................................... 50 4.2.4 Narrator and Characters ..................................................................................... 51 4.2.5 Irony ................................................................................................................... 53 4.2.6 Autobiography .................................................................................................... 53 4.2.7 Illumination ........................................................................................................ 55 4.2.8 Endings ............................................................................................................... 56 4.2.9 Paradox and Parallel ........................................................................................... 57 4.3 Recurring Themes and Motifs ................................................................................... 58 5 Analysis of the stories in the collection Too Much Happiness ........................................ 61 5.1 Dimensions ................................................................................................................ 61 5.1.1 Synopsis ............................................................................................................. 61 5.1.2 Characters and Characterisation ......................................................................... 62 5.1.3 Structure and Narrative Technique .................................................................... 64 5.1.4 Title, Themes and Motifs ................................................................................... 66 5.2 Fiction ........................................................................................................................ 68 5.2.1 Synopsis ............................................................................................................. 68 5.2.2 Characters and Characterisation ......................................................................... 69 5.2.3 Structure and Narrative Technique .................................................................... 70 5.2.4 Title, Themes and Motifs ................................................................................... 73 5.3 Wenlock Edge ............................................................................................................ 74 5.3.1 Plot ..................................................................................................................... 74 5.3.2 Characters and Characterisation ......................................................................... 75 5.3.3 Structure and Narrative Technique .................................................................... 76 5.3.4 Title, Themes and Motifs ................................................................................... 78 5.4 Deep-Holes ................................................................................................................ 79 5.4.1 Synopsis ............................................................................................................. 79 5.4.2 Characters and Characterisation ......................................................................... 80 5.4.3 Structure and Narrative Technique .................................................................... 81 5.4.4 Title, Themes and Motifs ................................................................................... 83 5.5 Free Radicals ............................................................................................................. 84 5.5.1 Synopsis ............................................................................................................. 84 5.5.2 Characters and Characterisation ......................................................................... 85 5.5.3 Structure and Narrative Technique .................................................................... 86 5.5.4 Title, Themes and Motifs ................................................................................... 87 5.6 Face ............................................................................................................................ 89 5.6.1 Synopsis ............................................................................................................. 89 5.6.2 Characters and Characterisation ......................................................................... 89 5.6.3 Structure and Narrative Technique .................................................................... 90 5.6.4 Title, Themes and Motifs ................................................................................... 92 5.7 Some Women ............................................................................................................ 94 5.7.1 Synopsis ............................................................................................................. 94 5.7.2 Characters and Characterisation ......................................................................... 94 5.7.3 Structure and Narrative Technique .................................................................... 95 5.7.4 Title, Themes and Motifs ................................................................................... 96 5.8 Child’s Play ..............................................................................................................