Creating Identity Through Dialect In Fantasy Media: The Absence, Presence And Use Of Stereotypes In Characters

Identifier

172

Author

Anna Maria Kirby

Date

2020

Document Type

Honors Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Major

English

Concentration

Language & Linguistics

Committee Member

Sage Graham

Committee Member

Evelyn Wright Fogle

Abstract

As everyone speaks in a dialect, and its meaning is limited to biographical details. However, dialects have stereotypes associated with them that impart information that may or may not be true for a person. This is not true in media. A character's dialect has broader meaning couched in those stereotypes, especially when it is a non-standard dialect. This thesis explores how a dialect and its stereotypes are used in media as a tool for characterization. As a part that is the examination of the convergence and divergence of a dialect's stereotypes and characterization. The media examined is limited to fantasy media produced in the United States. In the thesis, multiple characters from two films, one videogame, and two podcasts are examined.

Comments

Undergraduate Honor's Thesis

Library Comment

Honors thesis originally submitted to the Local University of Memphis Honor’s Thesis Repository.

Recommended Citation

Kirby, Anna Maria, "Creating Identity Through Dialect In Fantasy Media: The Absence, Presence And Use Of Stereotypes In Characters" (2020). Honors Theses. 108.
https://digitalcommons.memphis.edu/honors_theses/108