Assignment task:
Readings:
- Casandra Lopez:
- Roxane Gay:
"Extraordinary Machine"
1) In Lopez's "When I Was a Young Girl," discusses the structure of the poem. Compared to prior poetry read in this course, how does this poem differ? Why do you think Lopez arranges the poem and its lines in the manner she does? How does the alignment of the poem correspond to the discussion of her mother and brother's body?
2) Lopez's powerful poem "For Brother Friend Who Contemplates Suicide on a Sunday" explores the impact of her (assumed) brother's death on those beyond her family and herself. How has the death impacted her brother's friend? Why does Lopez seem especially troubled by his friend's reaction? What does this poem say about the lasting impact of this death on the author?
3) In Roxane G ay 's "I am a Knife," the speaker states, "We live in a large home that is beautiful and empty. We never talk about the emptiness or the failed attempts to fill the void. It is a sorrow we share but do not share." Based on the glimpse into their marriage that the story provides, why do you think the speaker feels this way?
4) As a writer, G a y' s content is more sexualized than any author we read thus far. Based on this story, what do you find to be the purpose of the brazen sexuality in the story? What does this say about G a y as one of the final authors read in the semester?
5) The topic of death runs throughout Lopez and G a y 's writing. What do these 21st-century authors have to say about this universal and timeless concept?
6) Fiona Apple is the only songwriter we look at this semester. What stands out about the structure and content of her writing, in comparison to the rest of this semester's authors?
7) Based on "Extraordinary Machine" and "Ladies," what message does Apple give about a woman's reaction to the end of a relationship?
8) What do these 21st-century authors contribute to the semester's discussion of Women in Literature, with their writing being our only 21st-century published works in the class?