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Marvellous geometry : narrative and metafiction in modern fairy tale

Bibliography: leaves 190-201.

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Main Author: Tiffin, Jessica
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: Department of English Language and Literature 2014
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author Tiffin, Jessica
author_browse Tiffin, Jessica
author_facet Tiffin, Jessica
author_sort Tiffin, Jessica
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description Bibliography: leaves 190-201.
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institution University of Cape Town (South Africa)
language eng
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license_str Not specified — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UCTD — University of Cape Town Open Access Repository
publishDate 2014
publishDateRange 2014
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publisherStr Department of English Language and Literature
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spelling oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/7963 Marvellous geometry : narrative and metafiction in modern fairy tale Tiffin, Jessica English Language and Literature Bibliography: leaves 190-201. Despite the age of the fairy-tale tradition, and its focus on fairly primitive aspects of human experience, fairy tale is able to adapt itself to a range of cultures and contexts, including numerous examples in the twentieth century. Various authors and film-makers are reasserting the power and value of the fairy tale as a response even to the uncertain and ironic experience of contemporary culture. The suitability of fairy tale to modern texts rests partially in its qualities of inherentmetafictionality, the extent to which it self-consciously denies mimesis. This gives it particular relevance to postmodernism, as does the structuredness which facilitates self-aware play with genre. At the same time, the status of oral fairy tale as a folk form connects interestingly with postmodernism's blurring of the boundaries between high and low culture. This has particular implications for the presence of fairy tale within texts traditionally considered as popular culture, herethe fantasy/science fiction ghetto, and the Hollywood film. This thesis chooses to focus on texts which attempt to write actual fairy tale, rather than those which use fairy-tale motifs thematically. In making this distinction, attention is paid to particular aspects of recognisable fairy-tale texture, that is, overall effect, which relies on elements of pattern, structure, simplification, symbolism, ahistorisicim, the construction of a removed and marvellous world, and a tone of certainty which necessitates a response of accepting wonder in the reader. 2014-10-02T13:15:59Z 2014-10-02T13:15:59Z 2003 Doctoral Thesis Doctoral PhD http://hdl.handle.net/11427/7963 eng application/pdf Department of English Language and Literature Faculty of Humanities University of Cape Town
spellingShingle English Language and Literature
Tiffin, Jessica
Marvellous geometry : narrative and metafiction in modern fairy tale
thesis_degree_str Doctoral
title Marvellous geometry : narrative and metafiction in modern fairy tale
title_full Marvellous geometry : narrative and metafiction in modern fairy tale
title_fullStr Marvellous geometry : narrative and metafiction in modern fairy tale
title_full_unstemmed Marvellous geometry : narrative and metafiction in modern fairy tale
title_short Marvellous geometry : narrative and metafiction in modern fairy tale
title_sort marvellous geometry narrative and metafiction in modern fairy tale
topic English Language and Literature
url http://hdl.handle.net/11427/7963
work_keys_str_mv AT tiffinjessica marvellousgeometrynarrativeandmetafictioninmodernfairytale