Category: Uncategorized

What I enjoyed most about this text is its raw awareness of emotional feelings. Winterson was able to perfectly capture not only two very complicated emotions: Love and Loss, but was also able to dissect their intertwined relation to one another. The narrator’s love for Louise reminds me of Robert’s love for Edna. In Written on the Body, love is presented as something that’s best expressed through the body. During the scene where Robert and Edna are alone at her apartment, they finally kiss and express their love for each other. Throughout the entire story, they withheld their physical affection, so their relationship did not go beyond anything but a complicated friendship. For Robert, especially, that kiss was the step he was trying so hard to avoid because he knew there was no going back from that. Kissing Edna was admitting that he loved her, something he even went to Mexico to avoid. This is because, as Winterson discusses in the text, love is written on the body. Both texts also explore how loss is a fundamental part of love. However, the narrator’s grief over Louise’s seemingly impending death, as well as literally leaving her, is a different loss than what Edna experiences. I feel as though Edna had only herself to grieve, even though she seemed to have grieved the presence of Robert. Edna’s awakening also meant the loss of another part of her, one that was content with her marriage. It also meant disconnection with her mental peace. There was also the realization of the loss of her identity.  In the end, it resulted in the loss of herself. Edna was able to love herself enough to lose some things to gain independence, while the narrator’s love was strong enough to lose her for the sake of her health. Written on the body also reminded me of a TikTok I saw that stated that “grief is like glitter.” The video explained that, at first, Grief is everywhere and messy, like glitter. Then you may think it’s gone, but soon you will see that every once in a while it will be in your pocket or your car, but this time when it shows up its less messy and more sparkly. It becomes a reminder of the subject of your grief. This video really goes to show how grief is simply love taking on a new form.

@thefallenpo.et

Grief doesn’t disappear, it transforms🪽 I heard a quote about grief that says it’s like glitter. At first it’s everywhere, on your clothes, in your hair, under your nails. You can’t escape it, can’t sit still without feeling it. Then one day you think it’s finally gone. Life feels normal again. But months later, you find a bit of glitter in your pocket or your car, and suddenly it all comes back. The memories, the ache, the love. Only this time, it doesn’t feel as heavy. It’s softer. It sparkles instead of suffocates. Because now it reminds you of the good, not just the loss. Grief doesn’t leave, it changes, from something that overwhelms you into something that quietly reminds you that what you had was real and worth missing. 📕 I wrote a book Between Heaven & Earth for those carrying love, loss, and memories that never fully leave, the ones learning how to hold both the ache and the beauty at the same time. It’s about emotional depth, healing, and the invisible threads that stay with us. Comment “Book” and I’ll send you the link. #poetry #grief #healing #loss #emotionaldepth

♬ original sound – 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘱𝘰𝘦𝘵

The end of The Awakening caught me by surprise, even though I probably should have seen it coming. Edna had reached her limit in tolerating the destructive world that clearly caused her to lose her light. Her mental health had been deteriorating since the first chapter, and the abandonment by Robert was the last straw. I believe Edna made an unconscious decision that she wouldn’t have made if the situation had unfolded in her favour. Edna was happy for the first time in a while after Robert had confessed their love. Moreover, even if Robert had stayed, he and Edna would not only have been ostracized by their community, but she would also have to lose her children to an extent. During the labour scene, Adele tells Edna to “think of the children.” The biggest critique of her affair would be the fact that she is doing an injustice to her children. As the story established before, Edna is not a “mother woman. Nonetheless, she is a mother, which is something that cannot be undone. Edna had lost her ability to put herself first because her identity is tied to being a mother. On social media, I came across a video of a woman who expressed her fears of being a mother. She shared that her biggest problem with becoming a mother is that she would lose her self-identity. She also notes that women in the patriarchal system are viewed as ONLY mothers as soon as they give birth. At the end of the video, she states, “I can not be reduced to being just someone’s mom, that would send me over the edge.” This is a statement that Edna would relate to. Her identity was connected to her children, so anything she would have done would have impacted them, causing her to feel guilty for all of her choices. While the ideal ending should have been that Edna learns to be happy with her independence, this ending is much more revealing of the effects of the patriarchy. Edna should have had the freedom to leave her marriage and live however she pleased. But even if she had the bravery of leaving her husband, Robert did not allow her to have the choice of being with whom she pleased. This ending reminds me of the book Dreaming in Cuban, in which the main character, Celia, is abandoned by her family, so she ends her life by walking into the sea. Both Celia and Edna had bad relationships with their children and husbands. The broken connection to their family ultimtaly lead to their psychological and emotional destruction. In The Awakening, Edna tried to be independent, but her conditioning caused her to lose hope and trust in herself. The independence that she gained gave her some mobility, but the price for this was loneliness. Society had already clipped her wings. 

@itsayyylexis

I don’t wanna be a shell of my former self and I’m easily overstimulated as if that weren’t enough

♬ original sound – Ayyylexis 🍉

These chapters revealed the slow awakening that Edna is experiencing. I particularly enjoyed how she felt a sense of purpose through her artwork. One aspect of this part that I disliked is the introduction of Alcee. This is because Alcee and Edna’s relationship makes her adulterous, which is undoubtedly unethical. I did not have the same complaint about Robart’s role because I thought she deserved better than Mr. Potnellia, and their affair was only emotional. Their relationship felt l genuine, therefore acceptable, but I feel that it is still objectively wrong. While it’s true that Edna’s husband is not a good person,  this does not give her the excuse to get involved with other men. After all, Edna chose to enter this marriage willingly. I understand that she was pressured into this norm by social norms, but social norms did not stop her from kissing another man who was neither her husband nor a man she loved.  People during this time looked for excuses not to support the fight for women’s rights; one of their excuses was that women would become unfaithful and abandon their families…Edna’s story perpetuated this stereotype. “Feminist books” that want to persuade ideas about more rights for women should not portray women to be adultorus or morally problematic. There are far too many stories like this, and it gives feminism a bad reputation. It’s as if to say that “modernity” comes with unethical sexual premises. Aside from this critique, I generally enjoyed the events of this story. Moreover, the awakening of Edna reminds me of Henrik Ibsen’s play, A Doll’s House. The main character, Nora, gets herself into some trouble, and her husband does not provide her the support she had though she would. She realizes that her marriage is not what it seemed to be. She also realizes she has never had a serious conversation in her life. Nora becomes aware of the fact that everything in her world is frivolous, and she becomes inspired to see and explore the world. The play ends with her slamming the door shut as he leaves her family to find herself. Nora’s world is parallel to Edna’s, as both women become awakened and inspired by self-reliance. What I found most interesting is that both women are connected to birds as a symbol of representation. It seems that self-reliance would be the  “wings’ for the two since that is what they would require to fly away from their cage.

In part 3 of Chapter 1, in “The Awakening,” Mr. Pontellier’s treatment of Edna reeked of manipulation and disrespect. In that scene, he is upset with her disinterest in his conversations, so he decides to act pettily and inconvenience her. He even uses motherhood to make her feel guilty. As a father, to lie about the sickness of your child simply to annoy your spouse is not only manipulative but also hypocritical. He does not show sane and normal behaviors as a father but repreaches her for her lack of being a “mother woman.” He dismisses her when he explains that he is fine and even uses his profession to insinuate that he “knows better.” What stood out to me most was her reaction after these words were exchanged. She quickly went to check on her son despite knowing the claim was not real and then sat on the bed. I believe she only did this to satisfy him so that he would leave her alone. This signifies that she may be used to this behavior. Moreover, at the beginning of the scene, the author mentions that Mr. Pontellier’s “entrance awoke his wife.” Her physical awakening mirrors the emotional awakening she has from his behavior. Later, she is noted to feel “An indescribable oppression, which seemed to generate in some unfamiliar part of her consciousness, filled her whole being with a vague anguish. It was like a shadow, like a mist passing across her soul’s summer day.” This line encapsulates the newfound sense of relaxation in her place in the world. Her state reminded me of Dominique from Girl, Woman, Other. Avristo writes that Dominique asks herself questions such as “why did Nzinga think being in love with her meant she had to give up her independence and submit completely?” Just like Edna, Dominique was on a slow process of being awakened. Both women suffer at the hands of their partners through manipulation. While Mr. Pontellier uses the patriarchy as the foundation of his oppression, Nzinga uses misandry and extreme feminism as the foundation of hers. Another connection I was able to make was to the Bollywood movie Mrs. that released last year. This year, it has been circulating on all social media platforms in the South Asian community. The movie is known for its raw and devastating representation of what it is like to be a housewife in the indian culture. In the movie Risha, a new bride, becomes awakened to the patriarchal oppressive norms in her new family. She is constantly seen working with a dirty sink to signify all of the painfully hard tasks that housewives are made to do but receive no credit for. In the climax of the movie, she sends nine glasses of dirty sink water to the guests out front and then leaves the house. Her character reminds me of Edna and the struggles she faces in the first half of the book. I am hopeful that, like Risha, Edna will find her voice and stand up for herself.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSm2POBiGJF

My childhood was very similar to Liz’s. My whole childhood consisted of my mother trying to make me more “girly.” But unlike Liz, it worked on me. I became embarrassed about the fact that I was to refer to myself as a tomboy. Sadly, I feel more like the “girly” ex-tom boy she read about in the Magazine. It is important to mention that girls being athletic is no longer seen as something out of the ordinary, or “boyish.” The lines of gender have shifted, and it is much more acceptable for girls to like things that were once considered “only for  boys.” That’s today. Ten years ago, it was not like that. Liz Prince ends her story with a series of things that people tease about, followed by a comment about how words don’t hurt. I have to say I disagree with the part about words not hurting. The truth it Words hold power. If the unsupportive words were said by her parents, most likely they would be connected to unsupportive actions, such as forcing her to wear dresses. The quote “Stones and sticks break only skin, while words are ghosts that haunt me,” by Barrie Wade, is a perfect response to her ending.

Truth — Barrie Wade

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can also hurt me.

Stones and sticks break only skin, while words are ghosts that haunt me.

Slant and curved the word-swords fall, it pierces and sticks inside me.

Bats and bricks may ache through bones, but words can mortify me.

Pain from words has left its’ scar, on mind and hear that’s tender.

Cuts and bruises have not healed, it’s words that I remember.”

The book Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo introduced me to a new world of perspectives. And as great as it is to be able to experience a fictional life through the eyes of people much different than me, I felt happier to read about perspectives which are similar to mine. Warris, Yazz’s muslim friend, immediately grabbed my attention because, like me, she is also muslim. In the passage, describing Warris, we learn that Warris wears the Hijab to “make a statement about her muslim identity.” Warris’s reason for wearing the hijab is vaguely brushed over, as we never really learn what that statement really is. Infact we learn more about what it isn’t; a proper religious thing.” Meaning that Warris disagrees with the notion that the hijab is religiously mandated. While some may believe the conversation about hijab and identity ends here, I would argue that the lines following these reveal much more about Warris’s relationship to her hijab and her identity. The narrator tells us that Warris is deeply insecure and is dependent on cosmetics to make up for her insecurities. She even refers to this step and putting her “face on,” which shows that she ties her real self to this artificial application of beauty products. When describing her make up processs, the narrator mentions that the features that she tries to improve are “already perfect,” highlighting the unnecessary nature of her routine. The speaker also says she uses “whole tubes of mascara to thicken already forested eyelashes” The exaggerated claim about “whole” tubes being used shows us that Waaris overdoes it with her makeup. The reason that these lines are tied to her hijab and identity is simple. Warris’s overdependence on cosmetics may be an attempt to compensate for the beauty she covers using her hijab. This is a pattern we see even in today’s world. Hijabis often feel that covering their hair takes away from their beauty, so they attempt to compensate by making sure their face is perfectly in line with conventional beauty standards. Warris may have missed the practical reason for wearing a hijab. The reason is that the hijab is a prevention of two matters of injustice. The first matter is that Women in patriarchal norms are unjustly judged by their looks instead of their character. The second is that women feel a sense of pressure to maintain their physical looks to unknowingly appease the male gaze. The striving for societal validation is very dangerous to young girls. This is a dilemma we see in Christina Rossetti’s Goblin Market, which states the lines: “We must not buy their fruits/Who knows upon /what soil they fed/Their hungry thirsty roots?”(43-45) Here, one sister warns the other after the goblins ask for a piece of hair as a price for the fruit. The fruit here may symbolize the sweet validation that comes with appeasing social beauty structures. We give a piece of ourselves away every time we apply foundation to our natural skin or mascara to our natural eyelashes. But like Warris, many young girls believe it is not acceptable to leave their room without having perfected their facial features first. The hijab is not just a piece of cloth; infact it is literally defined as “a barrier,” so the hijab works as a barrier that prevents women as well as men from being reduced to their physical features. Because Warris’s religion preaches that a human’s identity and worth are much more valuable than skin and lashes.


Passages Used:
Girl, Woman, Other By Bernardine Evaristo

“Waris replies that she wears a hijab to make a statement about her Muslim identity, and while there are those who make out it’s a proper religious thing, there’s nothing about women covering up in the Koran, you know? Waris doesn’t ever leave her room without applying a smooth paste of foundation on to her already perfect complexion whole tubes of mascara to thicken already forested eyelashes and her eyebrows are painted into a high arch that practically stretches Waris says she’s ugly without her ‘face on’, even though Yazz reassures her that Somali women are the most beautiful in the world, and that includes you too, Waris”

Goblin Market By Chirstina Rosetti

We must not buy their fruits:
Who knows upon what soil they fed
Their hungry thirsty roots?”

My name is Tasnum, but I go by Taz. I am an English Education major at Rowan University. Teaching is what I have always imagined myself doing as a career. I’m pretty sure I decided I wanted to be a teacher around the same time I learned what my own name was. That’s probably because my  Mother is a teacher, and she is my greatest role model. The reason I chose English is not that I like to read; in fact, I sometimes find it to be a chore. However, I am extremely passionate about all of the topics that the English department allows me to explore. For instance, I love literary works that dive into structural or cultural issues such as the patriarchy or the class system. Infact the book A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini is what made me realize the beauty of Literature. Reading that book showed me that the ideas in my mind were perfectly transferable through stories and words. SO I wanted to be exposed to everyone else’s minds. Moreover, there is no other field that will allow me to unpack and endlessly rant about concepts like race, gender, class, etc. My real interest lies in conversations and human connection. English and literature are only a mode of transportation to my interests. My dream is to follow my calling and become a high school English teacher. 

I have never taken a seminar class before, so I am excited to see what this will be like. So far, I love the environment and class structure. I am excited to be exposed to all of the works of literature listed in the syllabus. I want to sharpen my writing skills through this class. Writing is definitely one of my weakpoints so I’ve set my mind to bettering my writing abilities. I am mostly excited about the conversations that we can have in class. I hope to get closer to my peers and converse with them about all of their ideas.

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start writing!