I have 5 sisters and no brothers. Over the years, almost every time someone has found out this fact about me, they have responded with “your poor dad” or “I feel bad for your father” or “I bet your dad hates it.” Being a sister means everything to me and is a core part of who I am. The constant insistence (even when said in jest) from people on the outside that our existence is a burden has been something frustrating to me since I was a child. For my project, I wanted to explore my identity as a sister. To do this, I started with artwork from the original publication of Little Women, which was drawn by Louisa May Alcott’s sister, Abigail May. I then had both myself and my sisters write on top of it what being a sister means to them. Under the picture I wrote the caption as some of the many phrases people have said to us over the years. In the background of all this I layered the poem “My Brothers Have Never Read Little Women” by Scarlett Curtis. This poem has been incredibly influential in my life and, to me, represents how the type of stories being told and the representation within those stories influence how the world sees those identities.
Identities are things that high school students are grappling
with on a daily basis. This assignment
is a fantastic tool because it allows them to examine the ways their identities
are portrayed, discussed, and represented. In a part of Barney’s “Responding” essay, he discusses that the process of creating
is one of “inquiry and research.” This
assignment provides opportunities to ask questions of both self-assumptions and
of the historical portrayals of identity. I had to deliberately make decisions
about which text I would base it on (which is why the picture I chose was one
painted by Louisa’s sister, instead of more iconic portrayals.) This assignment
allows for both choice and discovery. Barney states that, “Contemporary artists
… respond to past and present conversations found in visual art.” I enjoyed
researching these conversations and then presenting them in my own remixed way.
I would love for my students to have this opportunity of analysis and creation.
CLAIRE I LOVE THIS. I was recently reading a forum about this topic of "your poor dad", and how damaging those comments can be to the children and the parents. Your words and mindset is so beautiful and as a daughter of parents with 3 daughters and 1 son, we have heard similar things. The perspective of women is often hidden and I appreciate yours.
ReplyDeleteThis piece is incredibly moving. I do have brothers, so I can't necessarily relate to this common response; I have, however, heard it so often. It's sad that having girls is seen as 'putting up with a lot'. I'm AD on Turn of the Screw and a theme from a recent scene we worked is the idea that, during that time, it was considered a burden to have a daughter unless they perfect and measured and obedient. An individual girl was a nuisance. It's sad to see that, as far as we've come, things like this are still being said and beliefs like this are still being held.
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ReplyDeleteI love this piece! It feels like you've both critiqued and reclaimed this statement that lots of people have made about how your father feels about being a father to five daughters. I feel like it's especially meaningful that you've based this off of an image from Little Women, which is a story that I feel celebrates women and sisterhood and motherhood. I'm interested to know why you chose to write the words of the poem at certain angles on the image. It definitely makes it harder to read and follow the flow of the poem, but perhaps that's what you were going for! I also wonder, why did you choose that specific color to write the poem in? Thanks for contributing such great work!
ReplyDeleteThis project really resonated with me (and I actually considered incorporating Little Women myself!). My background in having all older sisters allows me to understand this special dynamic and shared bond with my sisters which you portray in the post. The quote about how your dad must "hate it" is something that I almost always here as well which has always upset me because I know that isn't true. That, comment, along with the also common comment that we "must have had a lot of drama growing up" really shows how negatively people view and think of households where women are in the high majority as well as female-dominated institutions in general. Thank you very much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteClaire,
ReplyDeleteThis project is so fascinating to me because I am in exactly the opposite situation. I have brothers, but I have no sisters. I prayed everyday for a sister when I was little, but it just wasn’t in the cards for me, I guess. The part of this post that I resonate with the most is actually the line about your “poor dad” quote. I get asked if I hate being the only girl almost every time someone finds out I am the only girl. I never know how to respond because I don’t know anything different, and I love my brothers. Thank you for providing this perspective for me.
Claire, I love this project! I love how you responded to the comments you get by having you and your sisters work collaboratively on something, showing the unity and love that you have for each other. I also think the inclusion of Curtis' poem really adds an additional perspective of gender and gender expectations. I can tell you put a lot of thought into this project and the message is so moving!
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