Thesis Defence: The Moulting

Niki Pezeshkzad Pesantes, supervised by Professor Michael V. Smith, will defend their thesis titled “The Moulting” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing.

An abstract for Niki Pezeshkzad Pesantes’s thesis is included below.

Defences are open to all members of the campus community as well as the general public. Registration is not required for in-person defences.

Abstract

The Moulting is a speculative fiction novel-in-stories set in an alternate, (post)apocalyptic reality, where a zoonotic disease plagues the world. One of the only species left immune: the humble chicken. Seeing the world’s qualms as a business opportunity, a poultry corporation known as Feathra has taken over the global agrifood sector.

The stories in the novel tap into the perspectives of those brushed under the wing of Feathra’s decades-long dominance. These 24 chapters are split into five parts, ordered along the lines of the corporation’s production chain. Told across multiple timelines in a polyphonic structure, the book seeks to challenge linear, single-hero narratives, in favour of relational storytelling.

This novel aims to highlight the potential for exploitation for migrants with closed work permits, as well as the intersections between anti-immigrant rhetoric, colonialism, racism, and capitalism.

Blending genre tropes and conventions found in science fiction, magical realism, horror, and fairy/folktale fantasy, the novel-in-stories invites readers to think beyond anthropocentrism and hegemonic expectations. As a whole, The Moulting seeks to emphasize the importance and transformative potential of decolonial ways of knowing.