"The literary discipline is not simply defined as a term, but as a myriad of terms that grant particular criteria on certain texts, where news can and is classified as literature." So states Chapter 3, "Quoyle, Literature Versus News," of this work that explores journalism as literature through the writing of Pulitzer Prize winner Annie Proulx in her novel The Shipping News. The integration of these two disciplines, journalism and literature, underscore ways in which fiction maybe enriched with nonfiction creating fertile news pieces worthy of being called literature. Each chapter in this work reveals a bit of how this form of writing is achieved. In the first chapter, "E. Annie Proulx, the Image of Literature in News," we look at Proulx's (as well as authors like James Joyce and John Steinbeck) journalistic background bleeding into fiction writing. The study moves to Chapter 2, "Quoyle, Embodiment of Realism," which analyzes specific news articles illustrated in The Shipping News. Chapter 3, mentioned above, discusses the controversial matter having to do with literature's ambiguous definition that often blocks the recognition of news as literature. In the next chapter, titled "Journalists Turn to Fiction," we explore the trend that exists among journalists, which sees them leaving news and turning toward fiction. And last, Chapter 5, "Conclusion," we review how my news day around writers and reporters at my workplace (NBC San Diego) fortifies the extensive study presented in earlier chapters.
