Date of Award

Spring 5-3-2024

Level of Access Assigned by Author

Open-Access Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

English

Advisor

Rosalie Purvis

Second Committee Member

Greg Howard

Third Committee Member

Sarah Harlan-Haughey

Abstract

The following is a collection of short stories and flash fiction assembled in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the creative writing concentration of the degree of Master of Arts in English. The pieces are autofictional in nature, tracing, with some degree of accuracy, my personal experiences with reconstructing my gender identity. The collection deals with themes of isolation, dysphoria, love, acceptance, and reflection. The pieces are largely drawn from experiences I’ve had during the course of my participating in this MA program, though there are also stories that take place during the time I spent in the military. The intent of this collection is to explore my own experiences with forming trans identity and queer community in an attempt to both help me process the experience by being known and also to allow others to understand the experience better.

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