June 8th

Ain’t I a Woman: “Then that little man in black there, he says women can’t have as much rights as men, ‘cause Christ wasn’t a woman!” The message that I get from this quote is that this is a man’s world. I think women contribute just as much, but often receive half the recognition. I like how she goes on to say “Where did your Christ come from? From God and a woman! Man had nothing to do with Him” I think it is odd that just because Christ was a man, this “little man” thinks that he has some right to take credit for it, the “little man in black” is not Christ, he didn’t create anything, so why is he any better than any woman who lives the same way he does?

When I Was Growing Up: “When I was growing up and a white man wanted to take me out, I thought I was special, and exotic gardenia, anxious to fit the stereotype of an oriental chick” I think this quote goes along with a lot of the things we talked about in class and about the concept that some women need to have a man in their life to feel special, or in this case, to be taken out to feel special. At the beginning she says, “when I was growing up people told me I was dark and I believed my own darkness, in the mirror, in my soul” She really wants to be white, because that’s what she sees as being beautiful, and I think this is still a big struggle today with people not being able to accept themselves the way they are, they are always striving to be more because of what is shown in the media.

Lady Lazarus: “Out of the ash, I rise with my red hair, and I eat men like air." I liked this quote specifically for the line “and I eat men like air” out of all the things I’ve read today, I’m finally seeing a little strength. I see her saying that she can end a man just as easy as she could take a breath. I think she is trying to say she is still strong even after she is dead. I get a sense of pride from the last line.