Date of Award
2026
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
English
Committee Chair
Samantha Moe
Committee Member
David St. John
Committee Member
Beth Boswell
Research Advisor
Samantha Moe
Subject(s)
McKenzie Sharp, Creative nonfiction, Poetry, Short stories
Abstract
Down the Rabbit Hole: A Journey of Writing and Liberation is a hybrid creative thesis composed of poetry, memoir, and auto-fiction that explores trauma, mental illness, abuse, and resilience through non-linear narrative and surrealist imagery. This collection examines writing as both a survival practice and reclamation of agency after prolonged silencing by drawing on feminist theory, trauma studies, and experimental literature techniques. Structured as an anthology, the thesis mirrors fractured memory and identity and the cyclical nature of healing. Organized into three chapters— “Awakening,” “Deconstruction,” and “Enlightenment”—the collection traces recognition of harm, dismantling of inherited belief systems, and the ongoing practice of expanded awareness. This project frames healing as an embodied and perpetual process that resists closures and emphasizes vulnerability and empathy.
Recommended Citation
Sharp, McKenzie, "Down the rabbit hole : a journey of writing and liberation" (2026). Theses. 808.
https://louis.uah.edu/uah-theses/808