Graduation Term
2024
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Department of English
Committee Chair
Mary J Moran
Abstract
This thesis identifies and examines how parent-child relationships are established within contexts of power and visually depicted in graphic novels. Establishing parent-child relationships through mutually reciprocal care is significant as a phenomenon because of the difference between the way parent-child relationships operate between the beginnings and ends of texts. The relationship change implies a problem with the relationship in the beginning which is rectified through reciprocal care. Amy Mullin describes the change as an acknowledgment that the other person in the relationship is a whole and unique individual separate from an assumption of unconditional love. Rather than viewing parent-child relationships as transactional and impersonal, Mullin concludes that “both parent and child need to pay close attention to one another, to trust each other enough to disclose who they really are, and to engage in activities that respond to each person’s needs and interests” (197). In the two primary texts I explore regarding this topic, The Moth Keeper, by K. O’Neill, and The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen, the trauma and power structures afflicting the characters prevent parent and child from acknowledging, communicating, and caring for each other. However, once these factors are dealt with, both texts naturally conclude with the young protagonists, Anya and Tiến, entering into reciprocal relationships with their parents. Acknowledging different kinds of parent-child relationships is important for understanding how individuals in different parts of power hierarchies can interact. Reciprocal relationships like Mullin identifies are depicted in The Moth Keeper and The Magic Fish as desirable, highlighting the importance of reciprocity and care even in disparate power situations.
Access Type
Thesis-Open Access
Recommended Citation
DelMaramo, Sarah, "“So Much Happens between those Two Spaces ”: Focalization and Parent-Child Relationships in the Moth Keeper and the Magic Fish" (2024). Theses and Dissertations. 1973.
https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/etd/1973
DOI
https://doi.org/10.30707/ETD2024.20240827063556754880.999990