Opening Acts: Narrative Beginnings in Twentieth-Century Feminist Fiction

192 Pages·2015·5.655 MB·English

by  Catherine Romagnolo

Opening Acts
series editors
Frontiers of Jesse E. Matz, Kenyon College
Narrative David Herman, Ohio State University
Opening Acts
Narrative Beginnings in
Twentieth- Century Feminist Fiction
catherine romagnolo
University of Nebraska Press | Lincoln and London
© 2015 by the Board of Regents of the University of
Nebraska. All rights reserved. Manufactured in the
United States of America.
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Romagnolo, Catherine.
Opening acts: narrative beginnings in twentieth-
century feminist fiction / Catherine Romagnolo.
pages cm.— (Frontiers of narrative)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 978- 0- 8032- 6963- 7 (cloth: alk. paper)
isbn 978- 0- 8032- 8500- 2 (epub)
isbn 978- 0- 8032- 8501- 9 (mobi)
isbn 978- 0- 8032- 8502- 6 (pdf)
1. American fiction— Women authors—H istory
and criticism. 2. American fiction— 20th century—
History and criticism. 3. Feminism in literature.
4. Narration (Rhetoric) 5. Women and literature—
United States— History— 20th century. I. Title.
ps374.w6r65 2015
813.009'9287— dc23
2015014670
Set in Minion Pro by L. Auten.
For Dylan, Julia, and Lucy

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction xiii
1 No Place for Her Individual Adventure:
Motherhood, Marriage, and
New Beginnings in Summer 1
2 Waves of Beginnings: The Ebb of
Heterosexual Romance in Paint It Today 23
3 Moving in Lofty Spirals: Circularity and
Narrative Beginnings in The Bluest Eye 41
4 Circling the History of Slavery:
Multilayered Beginnings in Beloved 59
5 Swan Feathers and Coca- Cola:
Authenticity and Origins in
The Joy Luck Club 80
6 Bordering Yolanda García:
Recessive Origins in How the
García Girls Lost Their Accents 101
Conclusion 121
Notes 127
Bibliography 139
Index 149

Acknowledgments
I have long awaited the opportunity to thank the many people who have
helped Opening Acts come to fruition. My deep gratitude goes out to
Brian Richardson, who has been my teacher, mentor, and friend for many
years. His encouragement has kept me moving forward since the begin-
nings of my undergraduate education. I will never forget that it was he
who first set me on the path to narrative beginnings.
And to Susan Lanser, who has served as my model of engaged femi-
nist scholarship, mentorship, and pedagogy. Sue has taught me the pow-
er of alternative discourse; she exemplifies the committed teacher, schol-
ar, and woman I have endeavored to become.
I must thank Jim Phelan and Peter Rabinowitz for their belief in this
book, and Sandy Crooms for her help and patience. Their incredible gen-
erosity of time and energy embody the spirit I have always felt present in
the Narrative community. Thank you to Jesse Matz for providing an ideal
home for Opening Acts at University of Nebraska Press. And to Kristen
Elias Rowley, Ann Baker, and Joy Margheim, who ushered me through
this process and helped bring this book to print.
I am grateful for the friends and colleagues who have read, re- read,
and advised me on this manuscript. Laura Eldred, Emily Orlando, and
Theodora Sakellarides have contributed in untold ways to the comple-
tion of this project. The feedback over the years from Jan Alber, Frederick
Aldama, Ryan Claycomb, Margaret Homans, and Emma Kafalenos has
undeniably made this a better book.
I want to thank the professors at the University of Maryland English
Department, a place that I will always think of as home. Kandice Chuh’s
class on Asian American writers provided the spark that set this book in
motion. Marilee Lindemann and Martha Nell Smith offered me the kind
of intellectual challenge I strive to offer my students each day.
ix