Screens: A Novel

Abstract

There are many versions of Alexandra Marie Howell: there is the profile-picture-less, snarky wit of the Twitter user, @HowellattheMoon85, sending her observations into an unlistening void (having only a few followers, none of whom she actually knows); there is the lurker on Reddit, u/CodswallopToBoot, who observes but rarely interacts, making all her fanfic private; there is the Bumble dating app user, GrangerDanger, who is putting herself out there, only to incur textual abuse the moment she doesn’t respond quickly enough for fragile man-boys on the other end of the interface. And then there is the physical body of Alexandra Marie Howell--Alex--sitting alone in her cramped apartment, face lit by laptop and phone screens in an otherwise darkened room.Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)Englis