Thesis Proposal
As a form of modern art in America, regionalism gained prominence in literature in the 1930s as writers labored to focus on particular issues specific to given geographical regions in their works. And while it continues to be a central subject for scholarly debates, its main works are mainly found among the late 19th century publications (Joseph, 206).
Both Willa Cather and Richard Wright have explored this literary school of writing in their work My Antonia and Black Boy respectively. By splitting them into sections, the two authors were keen on focusing on specific aspects of particular regions. Richard Wright captures his own childhood years in the first section called Southern Night and his early adulthood years in Chicago to remain within this theory. This is a technique that Cather had also used in the signature text by dividing it into five sections (Judith, 57).
The main aim here is to achieve local color as the other gives a look at life in distant lands while still remaining faithful to the minute details of the indigenous scenes. The depiction of authentic characters like Wright does with himself also adds to localization of dialect with great simulation to exotic realities (Brodhead, 439). This provides a good interfluence of both realism and romanticism.
As a movement propounded just after the Civil War, this theory contributed greatly to the unification of America by exposing vernacular cultures in a way that also purveyed the importance of contemporary relations (Blau, 29)
As demonstrated by Cather, this form is able to place characters in a pool while also able to create the much desired universality of emotions regardless of whether those characters live west or east of the Mississipi (Christopher, 97).
Works Cited
Eleanor Blau (1991). The Works of Richard Wright, New York. .
Encyclopedia of Southern Literature
Fetterley, Judith (1986) "My Ántonia, Gender Studies: Ohio. Green State University Popular Press, pages 43–59
Oxford Companion to American Literature
Richard Brodhead (1993) Cultures of Letters Chicago. Chicago University Press
Smith, Christopher (2001) Readings on My Antonia Carlifornia. Greenhaven Press
Urgo, Joseph (1997) Willa Cather and the Myth of American Migration College English 59(2): p.2 06
Yukman, Claudia (1988) "Frontier Relationships in Willa Cather's My Ántonia" Pacific Coast Philology 94–105
