Autobiography of Alfred Matthew Runion

Abstract

The introduction of this thesis project discusses the autobiography as a genre that combines the writing conventions of both literature and history while not purely representing either. It examines the role and perspective of the narrator and writer as they compose and, to some extent, assume the role of re-arranger of personal details and historical timeline that presumes a theocratic view of the life presented in the autobiographical form. At the same time, a public, simultaneous history emerges as it is affected by the narrator’s lens. This revisionist aspect, caused by the autobiographic writing of unlettered individuals, is examined as it has ability to alter perceived understanding of historical events. Manuscript and writing drafts are also explored in the discussion of autobiography and narrative composition. Writing conventions are examined as strengths or weaknesses of the autobiography contained in the later section of the project. The remaining section of the project is the autobiography of Alfred M. Runion.