Flipping the Script by Jonah Marie Llave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8 Women’s Voices Deconstructing the Shackles of Gendered Images en-us 2023-06-05 01:53:22 UTC 2025-10-27 05:12:25 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet-uploads.storage.googleapis.com/1910190860/1dd8f3078de490292833cb8d5cd563dd/eng_132_finals_logo.png Images Given to Women jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614267415 Historically, women’s voices have been restricted to private spheres with topics limited to domesticity and familial affairs, while men dominate the public spheres such as law, science, business, and the like. The privilege to have an avenue to speak and be heard was restricted to powerful individuals in society, men. (Shaw) The lack of a platform given to women extended to professions such as writing.  Before the 1800s women were restricted to writing personal accounts of their lives in the form of diaries, autobiographies, short poems, and stories that were centered on their daily lives. These are documentation of their domestic struggles and frustrations over their gender confinement. Women have come a long since then, breaking off from their private spheres and slowly integrating themselves into public male-dominated ones. As well as challenging and diverting from enforced domestic images such as “Angel of the House”, a woman who dotes on her husband and children, or perhaps the  “Perfect Lady” a completely docile woman. (Bohman and Lipton)

However, it is crucial to mention that despite the breakthrough of women into public spheres, they are still in male-dominated spaces. These contribute to a whole new set of problems such as unequal pay, sexist and misogynistic treatment, and gendered violence in public spaces. Likewise, women are enclosed in new images enforced by a patriarchal society such as “Whore” when a woman is comfortable in her sexuality and body, or a “Prude'' someone who does not want to give in to a man’s sexual advances. In 1984-5 however, women were still fighting for their liberation and place in society.  With this comes the newfound voices and avenues given to women. “The Fat Black Woman Remembers” by Grace Nichols and “Standing Female Nude” by Carol Ann Duffy, these two contemporary poetry challenges the canon by deconstructing these images: “the fat black woman” and “the model” by giving them a voice to change their respective narratives.   


]]> 2023-06-05 01:56:37 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614267415 Grace Nichols jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614268620 Grace Nichols was born in 1950 in Georgetown, Guyana. She has worked as a teacher and journalist, as part of the process of attaining a Diploma in Communications at the University of Guyana, she spent time in isolated places of Guyana which was heavily reflected in her writings which centralized on Guyanese folk tales, Amerindian myths and the South American civilisations of the Aztec and Inca. By 1977, she would reside in the United Kingdom full time. 

Nichols has been able to publish texts that range from Novels, Poetry, and Children Books. A few examples would be her first novel published in 1986, Whole of a Morning Sky, which was heavily influenced by her experience of moving to the city when she was 8 years old. Her first poetry collection,  I is a Long-Memoried Woman (1983) garnered much attention. It won the Commonwealth Poetry Prize and was turned into a film adaptation. A few of the children's books she has published include: Come on into My Tropical Garden (1988) and Give Yourself a Hug (1994) which takes inspiration from Guyanese folklore and Amerindian legends. 

In 2021, Nichols was awarded the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry. (British Council, “Grace Nichols.”)

]]> 2023-06-05 01:58:17 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614268620 Carol Ann Duffy jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614269876 Carol Ann Duffy was born in 1955 in Glasgow, she is a poet, playwright, and freelance writer. Additionally, she was a former editor and broadcaster at Ambit, a poetry magazine. In 1996 she moved to Manchester and lectured poetry at Manchester Metropolitan University. In 1999 her papers were acquired by the Robert W. Woodruff Library of Emory University and by the year 2000, Duffy was awarded a grant by the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts.

Duffy’s work ranges from adult poetry, children’s poetry and picture books, and plays. Some examples of these  would be her adult poetry collection Standing Female Nude (1985) and Selling Manhattan (1987). Both collections garnered awards, Scottish Arts Council Award for the former and Somerset Maugham Award for the latter. A few of her published picture books include: Underwater Farmyard (2002) and  Doris the Giant (2004). Her children's poetry was compiled in New & Collected Poems for Children (2009). Some of her plays are Take My Husband (1982) and Little Women, Big Boys (1986), a handful of her plays have been performed in the Liverpool Playhouse and the Almeida Theatre in London. In 2012, to mark the departed Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee she compiled 60 poems from 60 poets to mark the 60 years of the Queen’s reign. That year she was the recipient of the PEN Pinter Prize. 

From the year 2009 to 2019, Duffy held the title of Poet Laureate.  (British Council, “Carol Ann Duffy”)


]]> 2023-06-05 02:00:00 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614269876 jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614271204 2023-06-05 02:02:01 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614271204 “The Fat Black Woman Remembers” by Grace Nichols jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614273441 In Nichols, “The Fat Black Woman Remembers” she gives the narrator, “the fat black woman” a voice to reclaim enforced images given to black women that date back to the history of black slavery. This is highlighted with the reference to, “the Jovial Jemina.” (Nichols 4)Furthermore, several lines alluding to domestic work such as “tossing pancakes”(5), “Starching and cleaning”(9), “pressing little white heads/against her big-aproned breasts” (11-12)  is a call back to services that these enslaved “fat” black women were expected to do. Overall, the poem highlights how the image of a fat black woman is closely tied to its origins in slavery which heavily affects how black women of today are viewed based on their weight. (Foreman) Nichols’ last two lines, “But this fat black woman ain't no Jemima/ Sure thing Honey Yeah” (15-16) gives a distinct voice to the fat black woman away from the confinements of the enforced image of black women rooted in the history of her weight and race. 

To access a copy of the poem, click here. It is on the 4th page of the PDF. 
]]> 2023-06-05 02:05:14 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614273441 “Standing Female Nude” by Carol Ann Duffy jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614276539 While Duffy’s, “Standing Female Nude” paints a scene of an artist and his model. An article by Özlem Uzundemir tackles how Duffy challenged Ekphrastic Poetry by giving a voice to the model rather than the artist, the point of view centered on the object that is being gazed upon rather than the gazer. Uzundemir further emphasized that ekphrastic poetry usually constitutes the male poet objectifying the passive female image under the oppressive gaze of the male artist. Duffy on the other hand goes against these fixed roles. (Uzundemir)The model in the poem takes us through her inner monologue, “I shall be represented analytically and hung/in great museums. The bourgeoisie will coo/ at such an image of a river-whore. They call it Art.” (Duffy 5-7) and even snippets of her conversation with the artist, “I ask him Why do you do this? Because /I have to. There's no choice. Don't talk.” (22-23) She also provides imagery of what she can see whilst being painted, “Belly nipple arse in the window light,/he drains the colour from me. Further to the right.” (2-3) As a final blow to the cannon, Duffy ends the poem with the lines, “[...] When it's finished/he shows me proudly, lights a cigarette. I say/Twelve francs and get my shawl. It does not look like me.” (26-8) Duffy’s last lines further emphasize the model’s deference from the expected image of the model as “passive” and “quiet”. Disassociating herself from the image the artist had of her allows her to fully separate herself from the expected image and the male gaze enforces.
 
To access a copy of the poem, click here. It can be found on pages 1st to 2nd page of the PDF. 
]]> 2023-06-05 02:09:11 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614276539 Delve into Duffy’s “Standing Female Nude” poetry collection, click here. jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614281673 2023-06-05 02:15:52 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614281673 Further Contextualization of the Time jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614282192 The following resources will further situate the readings as they provide historical context and background on feminist literature which occurred during the time both “The Fat Black Woman Remembers” by Grace Nichols and “Standing Female Nude” by Carol Ann Duffy were created. ]]> 2023-06-05 02:16:29 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614282192 Women’s Liberation Movement, click here. jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614283448 2023-06-05 02:18:03 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614283448 Background on Feminist Literature, click here. jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614284505 2023-06-05 02:19:36 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614284505 Access the rest of Nichols’, “From ‘The Fat Black Woman’s Poems.’” poetry here. jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614286018 2023-06-05 02:21:10 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614286018 jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614287746 British Council. “Grace Nichols.” British Council, 2020, literature.britishcouncil.org/writer/grace-nichols. Accessed 28 May 2023.
British Council. “Carol Ann Duffy” British Council, 2018, literature.britishcouncil.org/writer/carol-ann-duffy. Accessed 28 May 2023.
Duffy, Carol Ann. “Standing Female Nude.” Ambit, no. 98, 1984, pp. 21–22. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/44333228. Accessed 20 May 2023.
Foreman, Micaela. The Fat Black Woman Remembers by Grace Nichols | the Feminist Poetry Movement. 20 Dec. 2018, sites.williams.edu/engl113-f18/foreman/the-fat-black-woman-remembers-by-grace-nichols. Accessed 27 May 2023.
Moïse, M. “‘Ain’t I a Woman?’ Grace Nichols and M. NourbeSe Philip. Re-Membering and Healing the Black Female Body.” Commonwealth Essays and Studies, vol. 40, no. 2, Apr. 2018, pp. 135–47. https://doi.org/10.4000/ces.303.
Nichols, Grace. “From ‘The Fat Black Woman’s Poems.’” Ambit, no. 97, 1984, p. 5. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/44339778. Accessed 27 May 2023.
Shaw, Sylvia. “Women’s Voices.” The British Library, 2 Nov. 2021, www.bl.uk/speaking-out/articles/womens-voices. Accessed 27 May 2023.
Uzundemir, ÖZlem. “Challenges to Ekphrastic Poetry: Carol Ann Duffy’s ‘Standing Female Nude.’” Çankaya University Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, vol. Volume: 10, no. Issue: 2, Feb. 2013, pp. 163–69.
]]> 2023-06-05 02:23:30 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614287746 Media Used: jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614293757 Getty. “Carol Ann Duffy’s Term as Poet Laureate Ends in 2019.” The Telegraph, www.telegraph.co.uk/books/what-to-read/sincerity-carol-ann-duffy-review-bidding-farewell-laureateship.
National Portrait Gallery. “Grace Nichols.” The British Library, www.bl.uk/people/grace-nichols.
“Standing Female Nude.” Genius, genius.com/Carol-ann-duffy-standing-female-nude-annotated.
“The Angel in the House: A Victorian Ideal.” The Walrus and the Carpenter, walrusandthecarpenter.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/op129.jpg.
“The Fat Black Woman’s Poems.” Beasley Books, www.beasleybooks.com/product/26207/The-Fat-Black-Womans-Poems-Nichols-Grace.]]> 2023-06-05 02:31:43 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614293757 How are women perceived? and what labels are they given? Who gives out these labels and how does it affect women’s daily lives? jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614293963 2023-06-05 02:32:03 UTC https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614293963 Media Used for the Background and Logo: jillave https://padlet.com/jillave/mbemr8y373e7m6r8/wish/2614365597 A. “Cartoon 3D Megaphone.” Pinterest, www.pinterest.ph/pin/9781324183084099.
“Designer Clothes, Shoes and Bags for Women | SSENSE ; Opens a New Tab.” Pinterest, www.pinterest.ph/pin/1119707526078864569.
Kae. “Background Elements.” Pinterest, www.pinterest.ph/pin/5981411998841367.
Tinybooyah. “Background Element 2.” Pineterest, www.pinterest.ph/pin/1121677850922237172.Vintage Everyday. “30 Stunning Black and White Photos of Loretta Young From Between the 1930s and 1950s.” Pinterest, www.pinterest.ph/pin/515451119863015608.

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