You are here

The carnivalesque and grotesque realism in modernist literature: the final novels of Ronald Firbank and Virginia Woolf

Download pdf | Full Screen View

Date Issued:
2015
Summary:
Concerning the Eccentricities of Cardinal Pirelli by Ronald Firbank and Between the Acts by Virginia Woolf both liberate the text from the expected form to engage emotional awareness and instigate reform of societal standards. Employing Mikhail Bakhtin’s theories of the carnivalesque and grotesque realism as a means to create this perspective is unconventional; nevertheless, Firbank, predominantly misunderstood, and Woolf, more regarded but largely misinterpreted, both address sexuality and religion to parody what they believe to be the retrogression of civilization by narrating christenings, pageants, and other forms of carnival. Both novels forefront nonconformity, and the conspicuous influence of debasement is identified as a form of salient renewal. Christopher Ames, Melba-Cuddy Keane, and Alice Fox have already expressed remarkable insight into Woolf; unfortunately not a single scholar has approached Firbank’s text in this manner, and this essay discusses the value of both authors in the aspect of Bakhktin’s theories.
Title: The carnivalesque and grotesque realism in modernist literature: the final novels of Ronald Firbank and Virginia Woolf.
571 views
346 downloads
Name(s): Case, Marlene Katherine, author
Adams, Don, Thesis advisor
Florida Atlantic University, Degree grantor
Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters
Department of English
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Date Created: 2015
Date Issued: 2015
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Place of Publication: Boca Raton, Fla.
Physical Form: application/pdf
Extent: 90 p.
Language(s): English
Summary: Concerning the Eccentricities of Cardinal Pirelli by Ronald Firbank and Between the Acts by Virginia Woolf both liberate the text from the expected form to engage emotional awareness and instigate reform of societal standards. Employing Mikhail Bakhtin’s theories of the carnivalesque and grotesque realism as a means to create this perspective is unconventional; nevertheless, Firbank, predominantly misunderstood, and Woolf, more regarded but largely misinterpreted, both address sexuality and religion to parody what they believe to be the retrogression of civilization by narrating christenings, pageants, and other forms of carnival. Both novels forefront nonconformity, and the conspicuous influence of debasement is identified as a form of salient renewal. Christopher Ames, Melba-Cuddy Keane, and Alice Fox have already expressed remarkable insight into Woolf; unfortunately not a single scholar has approached Firbank’s text in this manner, and this essay discusses the value of both authors in the aspect of Bakhktin’s theories.
Identifier: FA00004355 (IID)
Degree granted: Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2015.
Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection
Note(s): Includes bibliography.
Subject(s): Carnival in literature
Eccentrics in literature
Firbank, Ronald -- 1886-1926 -- Concerning the eccentricities of Cardinal Pirelli -- Criticism and interpretation
Grotesque in literature
Postmodernism (Literature)
Woolf, Virginia -- 1882-1941 -- Between the acts -- Criticism and interpretation
Held by: Florida Atlantic University Libraries
Sublocation: Digital Library
Links: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004355
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004355
Use and Reproduction: Copyright © is held by the author, with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
Use and Reproduction: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Host Institution: FAU
Is Part of Series: Florida Atlantic University Digital Library Collections.