Delaware Love Affair

Abstract

This thesis is a collection of personal essays that explore the author’s experiences with a variety of subjects, including her upbringing in rural Delaware, class struggles, social performance, and the intersection of public and private traumas. One of the primary connecting threads of the collection is the simultaneous desire and fear of being seen, and how that manifests through writing. Delaware is also central to the collection. The narrator is drawn to Delaware and its people despite knowing she must leave them behind. Ultimately, the collection explores an impossible longing for wholeness as the narrator explores her fractured family, troubling friendships, and the longing to feel comfortable physically and economically.