Thesis Format
Monograph
Degree
Master of Fine Arts
Program
Visual Arts
Supervisor
Migone, Christof
Abstract
An unusual dissertation that presents a science fiction autobiographical narrative, following a trial of trauma and identity dysphoria. Through a trans-queer biological female lens, the vulnerable tone of the author invites the reader into wording that describes matters they will care for on a human level. This study probes the question of what lives within the silence of our perceptions by appraising reverberations between interactions that coerce the human condition. Interrogating memory is inevitable when questioning how defense mechanisms interrelate and adapt to human needs. This study penetrates the complexities of perception fabrications, power dynamics, sensory perceptions, systemic moralities, and passivity. The following is a written account of human absurdity that considers abjection as applied to the metaphysical and paraphysical pathways of gender and sexual reclamation. The objective is to guide vulnerable self-acknowledgments and activate purposeful settlement.
Summary for Lay Audience
This unusual monographic dissertation Eyes Open in the Dark affectionately sinks you into an autobiographical science fiction that goes beyond words. It explores the tension between trauma and identity. This dissertation invites the viewer into a vulnerable tone, buoyantly activating purposeful settlement within the psyche. We must expose ourselves to the fears that obstruct vulnerability. Vulnerable literature creates connections and validates both the reader and writer to establish self-awareness within the human condition. When words penetrate vulnerabilities, they intrusively create reactions and responses. When the information is rejected, a seed is planted and remains buried. When conditions become appropriate, they grow into something unexpected.
The central question What lives within the silence of our perception, traverse levels of consciousness to find awareness within our defense interactions, interrelations, and adaptation. The shifting nature of perception, and how our memories and amnesia play a role in this movement, highlights assertion and self-doubt within the terrain of understanding oneself. This challenges the flawed nature of autobiography, especially when rooted in emotional memory.
The manipulating nature of systemic morality clouds the authenticity of the self. Eyes Open in the Dark probe’s identity dysphoria and the prominent question that agitates, has an identity ever developed, or was it just smothered and forgotten? The answers to these questions self-praise us with autonomy. This practice at hand alleviates the toxicity that breeds social issues. It solidifies these ideas into poignant entities that cling to objects from the past.
Objects act as anchors within our memories. They bear witness to trauma and grant escape within the moment of trauma. The recipe of trauma is made up of the residue of defense mechanisms colliding. Objects also hold warmth within the memories of a time you wish to hold you, as memories behave as a time machine.
Recommended Citation
Forrest, Brittany A., "Eyes Open in the Dark" (2024). Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository. 10259.
https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/10259
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