Presentation Title

A Sign of the Times

Panel Name

Literary Treatments of Tragedy, War, Fear, and Redemption

Location

Lecture Center 15

Start Date

3-5-2019 3:15 PM

End Date

3-5-2019 4:30 PM

Presentation Type

Multimedia/Creative Presentation

Academic Major

Communication

Abstract

I drafted this short story for an assignment in my Creative Writing 102z course based on techniques we learned in class including estrangement but also it was inspired, in part, by Tennessee Williams’ “The Glass Menagerie”. Williams’ play touches on certain familial mental health struggles in each character that were deep rooted and I wanted to communicate the same effect. My story revolves around the present life and childhood of Charles, an underground boxer, who was orphaned at a young age due to both of his parents’ struggles with mental illness. Charles experienced his mother’s mental deterioration before and following his father’s exit from their lives. He also lived through abuse imparted by his father as a result of his father’s untreated anger issues. What breaks the cycle, temporarily, in my piece is the intervention of a mentor in the form of George, the owner of a boxing gym, who tries to help Charles deal with his problems in alternative ways rather than how his parents handled them. Throughout the story, there are pieces of monologue from present-day Charles that cut through the 3rd person limited narration of his childhood in order to provide closer retrospection on his part.

Select Where This Work Originated From

Course assignment/project

First Faculty Advisor

Joshua Keller

First Advisor Email

jdkeller@albany.edu

First Advisor Department

Creative Writing

The work you will be presenting can best be described as

Finished or mostly finished by conference date

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May 3rd, 3:15 PM May 3rd, 4:30 PM

A Sign of the Times

Lecture Center 15

I drafted this short story for an assignment in my Creative Writing 102z course based on techniques we learned in class including estrangement but also it was inspired, in part, by Tennessee Williams’ “The Glass Menagerie”. Williams’ play touches on certain familial mental health struggles in each character that were deep rooted and I wanted to communicate the same effect. My story revolves around the present life and childhood of Charles, an underground boxer, who was orphaned at a young age due to both of his parents’ struggles with mental illness. Charles experienced his mother’s mental deterioration before and following his father’s exit from their lives. He also lived through abuse imparted by his father as a result of his father’s untreated anger issues. What breaks the cycle, temporarily, in my piece is the intervention of a mentor in the form of George, the owner of a boxing gym, who tries to help Charles deal with his problems in alternative ways rather than how his parents handled them. Throughout the story, there are pieces of monologue from present-day Charles that cut through the 3rd person limited narration of his childhood in order to provide closer retrospection on his part.