My presentation will be the culminating result of my ENAM critical thesis, which I am currently writing, and the ethnographic research I completed in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia during the summer of 2016. My thesis explores... [ view full abstract ]
My presentation will be the culminating result of my ENAM critical thesis, which I am currently writing, and the ethnographic research I completed in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia during the summer of 2016. My thesis explores the transient relationship between identity and memory in the fiction of Cape Breton author Alistair MacLeod. In his stories, memory serves as a unifying and problematic device for exploring history, geography, genealogy, community, and cultural tradition.
My research in Cape Breton was made possible by the Hoskin Research Fund, and for three weeks I was able to familiarize myself with the landscapes and people that inspired MacLeod's stories. I was also able to interview a wide range of Cape Bretoners, gaining unique insights about MacLeod, Cape Breton's culture and economy, oral tradition, the Gaelic language, and the uncertainty that the future presents.
I found the best way to combine my writing and my research was through a website. I would like to present this website during the symposium, and in particular, I would like to walk viewers through my "Mapping MacLeod" section, where I depict the geographies of his stories using geographic and multimedia tools. This interactive map includes images, audio recordings, excerpts from MacLeod's stories, and my own commentary at every geographic location.
