UNCOMFORTABLE QUESTIONS: LITERATURE, REPRESENTATION, AND THE WHITE READING POSITION

Abstract

This thesis offers an epistolary exploration of questions of representation in American literature and the white reading position. It utilizes the form of self-address in order to investigate my own reading position as a White American and LGBTQ-identified elementary, high school, and college student of English in Colorado and Arizona. The letters address issues including cultural appropriation and the publishing industry. Literary texts discussed include works by Black and indigenous authors whose work is subject to authenticity and identity politics. Letters also discuss texts by LGBTQ authors that at the time of this writing have been censored and banned. Lack of representation in literature can lead to violence, depression, and self-esteem issues, especially in children who do not see themselves in the literature they are taught in school. In a series of self-critical and self-reflexive letter-essays, this thesis problematizes my own history and position as a reader in order to advocate for a more inclusive politics of representation in literary publishing and teaching.