Civil Ghosts: Transatlantic (Il)literacy and Personhood

Autor/in	Kling, Rebecca Debra
Titel	Civil Ghosts: Transatlantic (Il)literacy and Personhood
Quelle	(2019), (219 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit Ph.D. Dissertation, University of California, Davis
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Monographie
ISBN	978-1-0857-9923-2
Schlagwörter	Hochschulschrift; Dissertation; Foreign Countries; Ideology; Literacy; History; Fiction; Novels; United States Literature; English Literature; Cultural Differences; Civil Rights; Institutionalized Persons; Correctional Institutions; Slavery; Homeless People; Migrant Workers; Social Bias; Correctional Education; Role of Education; Racial Bias; United Kingdom (England) + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Thesis; Dissertations; Academic thesis; Ausland; Ideologie; Alphabetisierung; Schreib- und Lesefähigkeit; Geschichte; Geschichtsdarstellung; Fiktion; Novel; Roman; Englische literatur; Kultureller Unterschied; Bürgerrechte; Grundrechte; Zivilrecht; Jugendstrafvollzug; Sklaverei; Homeless person; Homeless persons; Obdachloser; Wanderarbeiter; Fürsorgeerziehung; Bildungsauftrag; Racial discrimination; Rassismus
Abstract	This dissertation aims to illuminate divergent ideologies of literacy and personhood in the United States and England, utilizing literary and non-literary texts from the nineteenth century to shed light on the historical constraints and conventions shaping our current moment. My version of the nineteenth century is a long one, since I look at nineteenth-century rewrites of the eighteenth-century novel "Robinson Crusoe," and I reference a few works of contemporary historical fiction set in the nineteenth century. My analysis centers on trajectories of negative personhood--in particular prisoners, slaves, and vagrant laborers--in accordance with the idea that a nation is defined by how it treats its most oppressed citizens. By comparing a range of transatlantic literary responses to canonical texts, such as "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and "Bleak House," I demonstrate that American literature develops an increasingly exclusive model of literacy, whereas British literature advances towards a vision of universal literacy. Texts where African Americans do acquire literacy, such as "The Life and the Adventures of a Haunted Convict," I argue, still perpetuate exclusion and perceived failure to achieve moral growth. I integrate these insights on transatlantic contexts surrounding literacy with contemporary continuities, particularly in prison education and the school-to-prison pipeline. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.) [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.] (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway, P.O. Box 1346, Ann Arbor, MI 48106. Tel: 800-521-0600; Web site: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01