Death as a Fictive Technique in Four Novels

Presented by Kathleen Thompson, M.F.A. in fiction and poetry, and writer and editor

Writing about death of any kind is risky. Second only to love as a universal subject, death can be deadly with cliché. In this lecture, Thompson will examine four novels to show how death is used as a fresh and effective fictive technique in each: death as a setting and an organizing principle for the whole novel in A Death in the Family by James Agee; death as a fear that propels a character and therefore a plot forward in MotherKind by Jayne Anne Phillips; death as a facilitator for characterization in The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ischiguro; and death as an overlying theme that affects all of the characters in The Hours by Michael Cunningham. A handout will be available with appropriate excerpts from the novels plus a take-home exercise.

A podium and microphone are requested. A PowerPoint projector, if available, is also requested.

Contact Kathleen Thompson to book this presentation
kthompson42@aol.com
(205) 981-0911
kt@wordforwordforword.com