LITR 4332 American Minority Literature UHCL 2001 student poetry presentation

LITR 4332: American Minority Literature

Sample Student Poetry Presentation 2001

Presenter: William Frith

Recorder: Shellie Garza

19.NOVEMBER.01

Lorna Dee Cervantes,

"Poem for the Young White Man Who Asked Me How I, an Intelligent, Well-Read Person, Could Believe in the War Between Races,"

from Unsettling America: An Anthology of Contemporary Multicultural Poetry,

pp. 248-249

Background Information:

Lorna Dee Cervantes was born in 1954 in California, growing up in San Jose. Her parents strictly enforced that she and her brother speak English exclusively in order to avoid the racism and genocide occurring in the area at that time. She is a professor at the University of Colorado. She considers herself a "chicana…feminist…political writer." Although her literary works are held in high esteem, she lacks self-confidence concerning her writing. She has only two published works, and has never been a writer who sends out a lot of manuscripts and a lot of poems because of her fear of rejection. She now edits novels and compiles anthologies, along with producing her own works and teaching.

Her poetry is typically autobiographical, and, as a result, has caused tension between her and her family. She uses vivid language to create power. It is usually blunt, helping even the least frequent purveyors of poetry to understand. She also uses the language of childhood and dreams to convey her thoughts.

Objectives:

The objectives covered in this presentation are:

1b- "Voiceless and choiceless"

1c- to bring conscience to the dominant culture, which otherwise forgets the past

2b- to detect class as a repressed subject of American discourse

4b- to distinguish the ideology of American racialism

Examples in poem:

1b- "…the barbed wire politics of oppression…"

1c- "I can deny it. I can forget…when I’m safe"

"I know you don’t believe this. You think it’s nothing but faddish exaggeration. But they are not shooting at you."

2b- for the most part, the examples for 1c apply.

4b- "These bullets [of racism] bury deeper than logic."

"Outside my door there is a real enemy who hates me."

"Every day I am deluged with reminders that this is not my land."

Discussion and Interpretations:

I began with my own experience as a minority, about my doubts and low self-esteem, particularly when dating. There is always a pressure to live up to the standards set by what is termed the "All-American Boy." When one envisions this, he sees a Caucasian man, with blue eyes and blonde hair, etc. There was always a fear that I had as a result, a fear that I could not compete with these expectations. The racism/racialism is there; it is just invisible to those that do not experience it on a regular basis. Sherry responded in concurrence with the statement that one does not notice racism unless he is a victim, that the dominant culture claims racism is a farce, that it no longer exists. "They don’t see it. They don’t feel it." Dr. White responded with a statement saying that the dominant culture wants to leave the past behind. There are laws now barring racism, therefore having no place in our society. I interjected with the fact that there are laws against speeding and running stop signs as well. Cervantes sees beyond this. There were and still are problems that need to be addressed.

I mentioned that I sometimes feel as if I am trapped between two worlds, that I see both sides. Sometimes I see that the racism is gone, that we as a society should move on, in agreement with the dominant way of thinking. Most of the time, though, I see the results of this past filled with racism, that it still affects our society today, such as the reinstatement of racial profiling. If we are truly blind to race, then why is the pattern still occurring? The person to whom Cervantes is responding/writing does not see these things.

Sherry said that Cervantes feels that her home is her ideal place; that she is not looking for a fight, but, no matter how hard she tries, it is still prevalent. If she had her way, it would not be happening. I responded with agreeing, and then stating that she is in southern California, which was at one time Mexico…her land. She is forced to either stand up to the racism or dodge it. Dr. White agreed as well, and said, "The last two lines are a direct statement- ambivalence, no matter how much you deny it."

Dr. White wanted to explore her lack of self-esteem a bit more. I replied that, as an artist or writer, a person is his own worst critic. The artist should not publish every bit that they produce. There are some works with which famous artists were not satisfied. They did not want their public to view any of it, because it did not meet their own harsh standards. It is a very healthy way of producing, because the outcomes are the artist’s personal best. There is also the Romantic notion of potential and distance, that incomplete works "could have been…" and "would have been…" This is also a good technique for improving one’s own status as an artist in the public eye, because they will involve what they think the artist could have done with the work had they been able to finish.

Dr. White stated that many artists and intellectuals align their works with minority groups. They are interested in the lifestyles of minorities. "Is there any link?" My answer was yes, because artists/intellectuals are, in their own right, outsiders as well. Dr. White interjected with a statement, "Notice schoolchildren playing…it is the one that is watching the group, not leading or following, that will be the artist/intellectual. They are on the outside." I responded with the supposition that artists/intellectuals are also guilty of creating their own outsider status, because they know that this is true. "Tortured artist," jests Charley.

"color of skin…stumbling mind," Shaista points out that parents usually never let their children know that there is a struggle or that there is a weakness, especially in their own heritage.

Dr. White, now my full time respondent, brought the second stanza to the forefront, saying that it is a bit confusing, mentioning the Russian short stories. I said that the Russian stories were usually Romantic and depressing, that Romantics enjoy that sort of depression. Charley compared this stanza to page 249, the last big stanza, saying that these are the things with which Cervantes deals, and that her poetry is how she deals with them. "But, no matter how much she pounds at the keys of her typewriter, the muffled outrage is still louder, causing her to write more."

The last lines state that Cervantes believes not IN the war between races, because that would mean that she supports it, but confirms its existence.