Sorting, Telling, & Keeping: A Study of Intrusive Narratives in Relation to Identity Formation in Don DeLillo's White Noise
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Date
2018-05
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The Ohio State University
Abstract
There seems to be two plots at work within the pages of Don DeLillo’s White Noise: one plot that contends plotting, in itself, inherently moves deathward; and another plot that defiantly regards plot formation as a structural necessity for coherent identity formation, thus proposing not only that to plot is to live, but that one cannot identify themselves without plot formation. I intend to focus on the tension that arises between the two as they clash against each other, not only in the aforementioned novel, but specifically through examining the tension between narrative identity and the intrusive narratives of society posited within the novel's protagonist Jack Gladney. Even further, I examine this in relation to the "universal third man" societal philosophy of Jean-Francois Lyotard. I am hoping to explore the interwoven relations of each viewpoint and the somewhat surprising, if not ironic, connections that arise upon further contemplation of each stance. I intend to juxtapose the ideology of "deathward plots" (such as the nega-narrative and identity failure) with that of the plots of the living (adaptive narrative identity and the societal narrative of consumerism), using each to explore the tension between modernist and postmodernist concepts within each. In relation to the novel's protagonist, I intend to depict Gladney in a new light, not as a modern character in a postmodern society, but instead as a binary character offering exemplary models of both. Furthermore, I intend to highlight the conflict that this creates in relation to Gladney's formation of an individual, coherent identity. While Jack Gladney is often discussed as an opponent to the postmodern theory of Murray, I want to examine the shared traits between the two, both in ideological positions and in the representations of their narrative identities. Taking into account the permeating capabilities of the varying "white noise" prevalent in the novel, it is my intention to highlight the attack on narrative formation, and its effects upon character development and identity formation through a close study of the way narrative threats are masked within the mimetic society in White Noise. It is my hope that I will be able to formulate an argument that identifies Jack as a transfusion of modernist and postmodernist narrative theory. It is this very same transfusion that causes so much tension, both within the novel, and within Jack's character as he struggles to understand, balance, and embrace these theories. Finally, I intend to trace these themes against Jack's struggle to identify himself through a process of self-censorship and open expression (what I call a process of sorting, telling, and keeping). I will do this by examining the nightly open dialogues of Babette and Jack as a place of identity formation and reconciliation, one that is shattered by the synthetic narrative of DeLillo's White Noise, and how Jack's identity crumbles at the lack of someone to confer with.
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Keywords
postmodernism, modernism, Don DeLillo, White Noise, Identity formation, nega-narrative