REALITIES REIMAGINED: ACCESSING FANTASTIC BODIES AND MINDS THROUGH THE REALISTIC IN NINETEENTH-CENTURY BRITISH FANTASY

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dc.contributor.advisorFeuerstein, Anna
dc.contributor.authorVentura, Hsin-Yun Tsai
dc.contributor.departmentEnglish
dc.date.accessioned2024-07-02T23:42:06Z
dc.date.available2024-07-02T23:42:06Z
dc.date.issued2024
dc.description.degreePh.D.
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10125/108362
dc.subjectLiterature
dc.subjectBritish
dc.subjectFantasy Literature
dc.subjectNineteenth Century
dc.subjectReality
dc.titleREALITIES REIMAGINED: ACCESSING FANTASTIC BODIES AND MINDS THROUGH THE REALISTIC IN NINETEENTH-CENTURY BRITISH FANTASY
dc.typeThesis
dcterms.abstractThe resurgence of fantasy literature in recent years inspired the reexamination of the connection between the possible and the impossible. Nineteenth-century Britain experienced remarkable social changes and developments. Political reforms, industrialization, modernization, feminist movements, and other forms of social movements greatly shifted the lives of its citizens. At the same time, these changes inspired a group of writers to create a new form of literature which included fantastic elements and yet varied from myths and legends. In addition, these writers also address the limitations of the prominent literary form—realism—exhibited. These fantasy texts are innovative and highly personalized with reflections of the fantasists’ psychological views and their social standings. This project examines how these writers utilize fantastic elements to connect and adapt to social changes while exercising their creative expressions. This project includes four major fantasy texts produced in the 19th century that display significance in defining social conditions in relation to individuals: Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, Robert Louis Stevenson’s Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula. I identify a group of fantasy texts where the primary world is largely included while new rules are added to suit the authors’ specific needs. The fantastic elements are invented as additions to the world as we know it. These creations employ specific psychological powers to change personalities, engage with moral issues, and even transform social conditions.
dcterms.extent260 pages
dcterms.languageen
dcterms.publisherUniversity of Hawai'i at Manoa
dcterms.rightsAll UHM dissertations and theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission from the copyright owner.
dcterms.typeText
local.identifier.alturihttp://dissertations.umi.com/hawii:12181

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