Politics of Parody in Jane Smiley’sA Thousand Acres

Abstract

This thesis analyzes Jane Smile’s novelA Thousand Acresapplying the theoretical modality of intertextuality as conceptualized by Julia Krestevia and Mikhail Bakthin.A Thousand Acres incorporatesthe plot line and theme of Shakespearian playKing Lear.The title of the novel sets the background of forthcoming conflict between father and daughters for property that is land.Both textsdeal with the issue that how the transfer of property and power lead the family relationships to conflict. The transfer of property upsets marriages, as well as brings rivalry betweensiblings. The growth of sibling rivalry and the complex relation between Larry and three daughters:Ginny, Rose, and Caroline,inA Thousand Acres,resembles with the plot structure of theplayKing Lear.Accordingly, the thesis revolves around the issue of intertextuality taking a closer look at the reader's role as a significant factor in the dynamics between the texts:A Thousand AcresandKing LearThough exhibited from different perspectives, the two stories have something in common—theironies arising from father- daughter conflicts. In the way of an intertextual comparison, the paper analyzes the ironies from father-daughter conflicts with an aim of digging out deep meaning from behind in a new angle. It finds out that the ironies shared by the two workshelp to increase the tragic atmosphere and reveal many truths underneath the lines. Keywords:intersexuality,heteroglossia,irony, conflict, position