Advisory Committee Chair
Tony Crunk
Advisory Committee Members
Larry Wharton
Daryl W Brown
Document Type
Thesis
Date of Award
2007
Degree Name by School
Master of Arts (MA) College of Arts and Sciences
Abstract
Hell Raisers and Holy Rollers seeks to explore and express, through poetry and prose, the religious tension I experienced growing up due to the influence of a morally diverse family. While my mother’s family was extremely religious, my father’s relatives were notorious for their brash and often criminal behavior. This dichotomy led to my own spiritual crisis as I struggled to find balance between my strong religious upbringing and my fascination with the “outlaw image” of my father’s family and their non-serviam approach to life. In many ways, the works attempt to capture this internal struggle and the tensions that fueled it, while also serving as poetry of witness to the two very different, and at times, very dark worlds I encountered during this struggle. The hope is that the collection will invite the reader to experience these two seemingly opposing worlds, while also awakening them to the possibility that both religion and rebellion are simply manifestations of the same struggle- the eternal search for purpose in this life and peace with whatever lies beyond it.
Recommended Citation
Mahan, John Christopher, "Hell Raisers And Holy Rollers" (2007). All ETDs from UAB. 3605.
https://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/etd-collection/3605