Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Date of Degree
6-2023
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.A.
Program
Digital Humanities
Advisor
Andrea Silva
Subject Categories
Digital Humanities
Keywords
recitative, recitatif, voyant, pedagogy, reading methods, text analysis
Abstract
Several academic and literary articles focus on the claims about identity in Toni Morrison’s posthumously published short story, “Recitatif.” However, few of them offer analyses that approach the function of the story in ways that align with Morrison’s description of it as an “experiment.” Even fewer through tools of text analysis, which is a method of distant reading. In this paper, I provide a mixed analysis of “Recitatif” through close reading and text analysis via Voyant, a digital tool. I concentrate on the recitative device, how it facilitates the message of the story, and how the results may expand the discourse that surrounds “Recitatif” at the experimental level. I then reflect on how the conceptual qualities and functions of the tools I selected from Voyant apprehend Morrison’s short story in ways that not only support discourse, but offer pedagogic value based on how they can be used to explore the meaning and qualities of textual information.
Recommended Citation
Neblett, Asma A., "A Field of Relations: A Mixed Analysis of Toni Morrison’s “Recitatif” with Voyant, a Text Analysis Tool" (2023). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/5392