Phosphoria
Date
2019-01-03
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Publisher
The University of Tampa
Abstract
Phosphoria is a short story collection consisting of nine stories with the common
themes of alienation and marginalization, often but not always a product of the
characters’ own efforts and ennui. The majority of the action in these stories
happens in and around Mulberry, a small rural community in Central Florida with
a depressed phosphate industry, low education standards, and a general sense of
malaise, unconquerable and unchanging despite the buried desires of the characters.
The actual community of Phosphoria was a small mining encampment located
approximately seven miles from Mulberry, the evidence of which is still visible
today. The area is very rural.
The goal of the author was to write quiet, character-driven stories. Protagonists are
usually given an opportunity to affect their circumstances through choice, and while
they often justify their negative actions, there is usually an awareness of moral
failure by the end of each narrative. While many of the subjects are of a dark or
negative nature, it is his desire that, whenever possible, they be read as hopeful if
not always positive. Hence the final story, intended as an optimistic (if wobbly)
look into the future of one of the native sons of Mulberry.
The author would like to express his deep appreciation to the residents of the town
of Mulberry, several of whom were integral to the construction of this manuscript.
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Keywords
Short stories, Mulberry, Florida