Peavy, Charles D.2022-12-132022-12-131976-0519762716983https://hdl.handle.net/10657/12930The works of John Rechy display a compulsion to destroy the cultural, social, sexual, religious, moral, and filial systems which represent the Establishment, countered by the recognition that when order is gone life no longer has purpose. The compulsion to rebel and the opposing need to reestablish some kind of order are both a parallel and a reaction to the chaos Rechy sees at the center of all existence. Because he is Chicano, homosexual, and a former Catholic, Rechy acknowledges a life-long feeling of alienation from the white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant society in which he was reared. His personal alienation, however, also stems from his rebellion against his father and his early loss of faith in religious orthodoxy. His writings--published and unpublished, fiction, drama, poetry, and criticism--reflect his background, and his characters exhibit a yearning both for identity and for some meaningful substitute for religious salvation.application/pdfenThis item is protected by copyright but is made available here under a claim of fair use (17 U.S.C. Section 107) for non-profit research and educational purposes. Users of this work assume the responsibility for determining copyright status prior to reusing, publishing, or reproducing this item for purposes other than what is allowed by fair use or other copyright exemptions. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires express permission of the copyright holder.Thesisreformatted digital