Personal is Political

I believe that you cannot avoid politics if poetry always possesses some kind of personal value. And it truly does. Diving into the Wreck symbolized Adrienne Rich's personal transformation, which was also of a political nature of gay marriage and gay/lesbian couples. Even Gertrude Stein, who said she wanted readers to look at the sound of words themselves rather than their meaning, was a personal and political writer. Because her poems were intensely related to Cubism and thoughts on the war, they had a deeper meaning than merely the sounds of words coming together. For instance, "A Carafe, That is a Blind Glass" represented the ones who caused the war and who are blind to others' differences. "The difference is spreading," she illustrates.

Poetry is not just something that anyone can write. It is real, personal, political, though-provoking, truth to some, and lies to many. It is how we allow our subconscious to rise to the surface. So, how could it not be political and personal in that same mind frame?

What is "the Wreck?"

Adrienne Rich's "Diving Into the Wreck" is clearly about the grand transformation in her life, but I'm going to go a step further and say it is about her having sexual encounters with another woman for the first time. The wreck is her "loss of virginity," per say. For example, the ladder represents the hanging temptation of what she wishes to discover. "There is a ladder. The ladder is always there hanging innocently close to the side of the schooner. We know what it is for, we who have used it. Otherwise it's a piece of maritime floss, some sundry equipment." (Rich 2627) Since poetry is subjective, it could also be taken as other personal transformations or perhaps a regular loss of virginity. "I go down. Rung after rung and still the oxygen immerses me the blue light the clear atoms of our human air. I go down. My flippers cripple me, I crawl like an insect down the ladder and there is no one to tell me when the ocean will begin." (Rich 2627) The downward motion represents the actual act of intercourse. Again, the ladder appears as she is in the process of going through her transformation. As we discussed in class, she is alone in this because she has been in a heterosexual marriage for so long, and does not know where this road will take her.

Do we have a choice?

For the Invisible Man, we had discussed whether or not we have the ability to make our own decision in our lives. Personally, I believe that we have a choice when we are gifted with opportunities. For instance, a princess of England has a lot of opportunities and responsibility, therefore, she has a lot of choices to make in her life. Whereas, a homeless person lacks any other choice but to beg in the street. People in desperate situations do not have many options to work with. So, at the end of the spectrum, people do not have choices. However, if we are presented with opportunities, we a choice on how to live our lives. It is all based upon our own situation. For me personally, I have plenty of choices to make: when to move out, when to get married, what clothes to wear everyday, to pursue my major or to change it, etc. Because I have the opportunities and responsibility to make decisions, I must do so in order to improve my life. However, many people are not in a fortunate situation, and so, do not have many routes to choose from.

Who Am I?

When we had this discussion in class, I thought of where I was from and my past and recent landscape, which were prevalent subjects in Big Sur.

This is what I wrote:
My name is Cassie Tarulli. I am a female. I was born in Carmichael, Cali and was raised in Sacramento. I am a non-denominational Christian because I believe in God, but not parts of the bible because of its ambiguity of translation. My career goal is to become an elementary school teacher and a writer. I have a big family, but I only want one child when I do get married. I love warm weather and absolutely detest cold or even cool weather. So, summer is my favorite season.

As some of my classmates explained, I believe that my home town shaped who I am by means of its landscape. I was born into and grew up with perfect warm weather for years, and this is why I am in love with it. My body never fully adapted to Ohio's weather because it refused to. As a physical example, my natural body temperature rests at 96.8 degrees F instead of the normal 98.6 degrees F.

Of course, every other factor is based off how I was raised and personal values, but landscape is a big part of my life. I do not like Ohio and I am always reverting back to vacationing in places with that perfect weather, such as Florida and the Bahamas. I also want to get married in that beautiful landscape because that is a part of who I am. So, when all is said and done, I really did leave a piece of me back in California.