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Minutes From Pragma, Juan M. Martinez

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Minutes from Pragma is a collection of twelve pieces--a memoir, five short stories, and six short-shorts--exploring ways in which estranged characters may find refuge from chaos and entropy. These stories attempt to deal with bleakness and despair through playfulness and humor. In Enterprise Carolina: A Capsule Review, time has stopped, but somehow everyday life goes on as usual. In Errands, children work in razorblade factories. In Roadblock, the narrator lives with a relative who repeatedly sets his possessions on fire. The collection concentrates on hardship and alienation, but suggests ways in which characters may confront and endure hard times. Characters' …