Date of Award
Spring 5-15-2015
Document Type
Thesis
First Advisor
Tonya Stremlau
Second Advisor
Jennifer Nelson
Third Advisor
Jane Nickerson
Abstract
August Shitama’s collection of short stories is a bitingly frank look into the experiences of a deaf, gay college student navigating the dating world in Washington, DC. Written from some of Shitama’s own experiences, the stories could be considered semi-autobiographical, but with enough embellishments and changes to fit the satirical fiction genre. The critical introduction covers the influences for Shitama’s writing in regard to the theme and style, thematically from bestselling gay authors, David Sedaris and Augusten Burroughs as well as Deaf gay author Raymond Luczak, and stylistically from gay Deaf writer Derrick Behm as well as Shitama’s favorite satirical author, Lemony Snicket (Daniel Handler), along with several other deaf and hearing authors: David Sedaris, Summer Land, Gillian Flynn, Curtis Robbins, and Willy Conley. Discussing the differences in portraying gay life between the mid-to-late twentieth century and now, the author acknowledges the abundance of creative possibilities he enjoys in depicting his character as openly gay. His collection of stories contributes to deaf literature not only with experiments in style but also with a greater variety of portrayals of deaf life in that it explores some experiences of intersectionality of the Deaf community, the hearing community, and the gay community with a focus on how Tip walks communication tightropes both separating and connecting these different communities.
Recommended Citation
Shitama, August E., "Tip's Book of Tips: Dating in DC" (2015). Undergraduate University Honors Capstones. 41.
https://ida.gallaudet.edu/honors_capstones/41
